This is a prestige international collaboration highlighting authentic Uruguayan talent and a bold, intimate take on a historic feminist resistance story.
Insiders whisper that casting Jinkings as a nun is a cheeky nod to her recent Oscar buzz, but the real tea is the strict political mandate: every Tupamara actress must be Uruguayan to avoid Hollywood stereotypes.
Principal photography is locked for Sept–Nov 2027. The film recreates the March 8, 1970 escape of 13 women from the Cabildo prison-convent, led by character 'La Parda'.
Jinkings is trading red carpets for prison cells in a project that refuses to let Hollywood sanitize a real-life political revolt.
If you thought Maeve Jinkings was resting on her Oscar laurels after *I’m Still Here*, think again. The Brazilian powerhouse is diving headfirst into the gritty, religiously charged world of *Cabildo 71*, a new drama centered on the largest women’s prison escape in history. Jinkings isn’t playing a prisoner, though; she’s stepping into the habit of a nun guarding the very women who plan to storm the gates.
This casting choice feels like a deliberate subversion of her recent critical acclaim, moving from the polished halls of Hollywood recognition to the stone walls of a Uruguayan convent-prison. The story is ripped from the headlines of 1970, following a character named La Parda who rallies twelve political prisoners to form a choir. This musical front becomes their ticket to freedom during a Mass on March 8, 1970, when they sprint down the chapel aisle right under the noses of their nuns.
But the drama doesn’t end with the escape. A year later, La Parda is recaptured, this time facing police rather than nuns, and reunited with her sister, Lucía Topolansky. For those keeping score at home, Lucía isn’t just any prisoner; she later became the Vice President of Uruguay and the wife of former President José “Pepe” Mujica.
The film promises to explore the tense, unspoken dynamics between the sisters as a new, bigger escape plan takes shape. What makes this production particularly spicy is its strict adherence to authenticity. Eugenia Olascuaga of Monarca Films confirmed that all eight Uruguayan actresses playing the Tupamaras are local talent, a deliberate political and artistic choice to avoid the “guerrilla women” stereotype often favored by international producers.
The cast includes Graciela Ingold and Carolina Genoni as the Topolansky sisters, alongside Camila Parard, Renata Denevi, Luche Bolten, and Matilde Colacce. Jinkings’ role as a nun places her on the other side of the bars, challenging audiences to see the complexity of the guards rather than just the heroism of the escapees. The project is backed by a heavyweight coalition of co-producers, including Una Presencia from Argentina and Vitrine Filmes from Brazil and Spain, with funding from Argentina’s INCAA and the Ancine–ACAU bilateral fund.
Written and directed by Victoria “Pitoka” Pena, whose debut *Delia* won Best Director at the Málaga Film Festival, the film is currently seeking partners at the Ventana Sur Proyecta Co-Production Forum in Montevideo. With principal photography slated for September to November 2027, *Cabildo 71* is poised to be a major contender in the global festival circuit, proving that the most radical acts of resistance are often the ones performed in silence.
