New York, Aug 11 (IANS/EFE): The Latinbeat film festival in New York, which started Wednesday, will present 23 films of different genres from 11 countries in Latin America as well as France, Germany, Spain and the US.

Argentina will be present in a big way at this 12th edition of the festival with six films.

Among the Argentine entries is "Medianeras" by Gustavo Taretto, the debut film for the event.

The two-week festival will also feature films from countries that earlier have been sparsely represented, including Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Uruguay and Venezuela.

Among the films that will be presented for the first time in the US will be "Las mejores cosas del mundo" by Lais Bodanzky; "'Che', un hombre nuevo" by Tristan Bauer; "Querida voy a comprar cigarrillos y vuelvo" and "El Varal", both by Marta Ferrer.

The list also includes a film from Cuba, "Larga distancia" by Esteban Insausti, who is "considered (to be) one of the most prominent directors of the avant-garde movement" in that country, according to the Film Society of Lincoln Center, the organiser of the event.

The film explores the emotional impact of the exodus of Cubans to the US in recent years through the story of a single woman who tries to accommodate herself to the loss of her friends.