Gael Bernal Garcia
With the release of Rudo Y Cursi being released this week South American filmmaking is once again in the spotlight as two of it's biggest stars, in the form of Gael Bernal Garcia and Diego Luna, star.
So to celebrate the release of the movie FemaleFirst takes a look at some of the most high profile South American actors and filmmakers.
Gael Bernal Garcia is currently one of the most celebrated Mexican actors at the moment after shooting to fame on a soap opera at the age of nineteen.
He came to prominence in 2000 when he starred in Amores Perros, one of Mexico's most celebrated movies, before going on to star in Padre Amaro and The Motorcycle Diaries.
He moved into a more Hollywood based movies in 2006 with Babel with Brad Pitt and Cate Blachett and again last year when he starred in Blindness, directed by Fernando Meirelles, alongside Mark Ruffalo and Julianne Moore.
Later this year he will star in The Limits of Control and 8.
Diego Luna stars alongside Garcia in Rudo Y Cursi and made a name for himself as a young age in movie El Último Fin de Año.
But his breakthrough came in 2001 when he starred in Y tu mamá también. Like friend Garcia he has moved into Hollywood movies working in Frida, Open Range and, most recently, biopic Milk.
Benicio del Toro is one of Puerto Rica's most famous actors scooping a Best Supporting Actor back in 2000's Traffic.
After roles on the likes of Licence to Kill and Fearless it was The Usual Suspects in 1995 that really gave his career a major boost. The end of the nineties was a great period for the actor, returning in 1998 from a two year break, with Fear and Loathing Last Vegas, which has long since become a cult classic.
2000 brought him the Oscar for his performance in Traffic going on to then star in Snatch and The Pledge. Another Oscar nomination came his way in 2003 for his role in 21 Grams before going onto Sin City.
More recently he reunited with Steven Soderbergh, the filmmaker behind Traffic, for Che which looked at revolutionary Ernesto 'Che' Guevara.
The Wolfman will be del Toro's next film release later this year.
Salma Hayek is one of Mexico's most famous actresses and is the first Mexican national to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.
The actress got her Hollywood break thanks to filmmaker Robert Rodriguez when she was cast in Desperado in 1995 alongside Antonio Banderas.
She went on to star in Fool's Rush In, Wild Wild West before reprising her Desperado role in Once Upon a Time in Mexico.
But it is her role in Frida in 2002 that remains her best performance and she received a Best Actress nomination for her performance.
Later this year she will appear in Cirque du Freak and grown Ups.
But it's not just the actors that have made names for themselves as South American filmmakers are also making an impact in movies.
And non more so that Guillermo Del Toro who has a string of successful Hollywood movies under his belt, including superhero movie Hellboy as well as taking over from Stephen Norrington for Blade II.
But it's his non English speaking movies that still bring the most praise with Pan's Labyrinth a critical hit, and Oscar nominated feature.
Del Toro has taken in The Hobbit, which will be split into two movies, and Pinocchio.
Fernando Meirelles shot to fame with City of God, for which he was nominated for a Best Director Oscar.
He moved into Hollywood movies making the critically praised The Constant Gardner, which saw Rachel Weisz scoop the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, and more recently Blindness.
Rudo Y Cursi is released 26th June.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
Tagged in Benicio Del Toro