# Common Ground (2002 film)

Common Ground (Spanish: Lugares comunes) is a 2002 drama film co-written, co-produced and directed by Adolfo Aristarain. The film marks the seventh collaboration between Aristarain and actor Federico Luppi. It also stars Mercedes Sampietro and Arturo Puig.

## Synopsis

After being forced to retire, literature professor Fernando Robles (Federico Luppi) and his wife Liliana (Mercedes Sampietro) are forced to reevaluate their lives and make major changes in them. These include setting the record straight with their son, exiled in Madrid and starting out a new life. They decide to buy a small lavender farm in Córdoba from a widowed man, Zacarías, and with the aid of their lawyer friend Carlos (Arturo Puig), attempt to start out their new business.
Along the way, Fernando, an aspiring writer himself, jots down notes and ideas for a novel in a book, which he frequently narrates in voice-overs. But this attempt at a new life is cut short when Fernando suddenly contracts pneumonia one cold night on the mountains. He is hospitalized and dies over a week, with enough time to bid farewell to his family and tell his wife all he never said out loud.
Liliana rejects the help of the sympathetic Carlos and the offer from her son Pedro to come live with his family in Spain. She opts to carry on her late husband's attempt of a new life, and stays in the farm Fernando helped rebuild.

## Cast

* Federico Luppi ... Fernando Robles
* Mercedes Sampietro ... Liliana Rovira
* Arturo Puig ... Carlos Sulla
* Carlos Santamaria ... Pedro Robles
* Valentina Bassi ... Natacha
* Claudio Rissi ... Demedio

## Awards and nomination

| Award | Category | Subject | Result |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actor | Federico Luppi | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Art Direction | Abel Facello | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Director | Adolfo Aristarain | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Film | | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Screenplay | Adolfo Aristarain, Kathy Saavedra | Nominated |
| Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Claudio Rissi | Nominated |
| Butaca Awards | Best Film Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| Cartagena Film Festival | Best Film | Adolfo Aristarain | Nominated |
| Cinema Writers Circle Awards | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| Cinema Writers Circle Awards | Best Screenplay | Kathy Saavedra | Nominated |
| Fotogramas de Plata | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Nominated |
| Fribourg International Film Festival | Audience Award | Adolfo Aristarain | Won |
| Fribourg International Film Festival | Grand Prix | Adolfo Aristarain | Nominated |
| Goya Awards | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| Goya Awards | Best Screenplay | Kathy Saavedro | Won |
| Gramado Film Festival | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| Gramado Film Festival | Best Film | | Nominated |
| Havana Film Festival | Glauber Rocha Award | Adolfo Aristarain | Won |
| Havana Film Festival | OCIC Award | Adolfo Aristarain | Won |
| Havana Film Festival | Vigia Award | Adolfo Aristarain | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | Best Screenplay | Kathy Saavedra | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | Best Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | Golden Seashell | Adolfo Aristarain | Nominated |
| Sant Jordi Awards | Best Spanish Actress | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |
| Spanish Actors Union | Best Lead Performance - Female | Mercedes Sampietro | Won |