Documentaries, novel filmmakers and short films take center stage in the Spanish Cinema section

• The non-competitive section that brings together the most outstanding titles of Spanish cinema from the last twelve months will be screening  18 films -thirteen feature lengths  and six shorts- by authors such as Judith Colell, Agustí Villaronga or León Siminiani

The Spanish Cinema section, which every year brings together the Spanish-produced films released in the last twelve months, will include in this 66th edition of the Valladolid International Film Festival a total of 18 titles, twelve feature films and six shorts, a lineup where the work of new filmmakers and the documentary genre take on a special role.

Spanish Cinema will screen up to seven debut films by authors like Julia de Paz, Celia Viada, Ainhoa Rodríguez, Guillermo Benet, Javier Marco, Juanjo Giménez and Javier Tolentino, along with the second film by Claudia Pinto and the third films by Enrique García and David Martín de Los Santos, in addition to the latest works by veterans Judith Colell, Javier Espada and Agustí Villaronga.

Additionally, this edition will include up to six short films, (three fiction and three documentaries), by authors like León Siminiani, Manuel H. Martín, Brandán Cervino, Ian de la Rosa, new director Claudia Torres and the first joint work of filmmakers Ana Serna , Paula Iglesias and Maialen Oleaga.

Spanish Cinema is a non-competitive section that aims to show a broad overview of the most significant auteur films produced by Spanish cinema during the last season. The films are screened with English subtitles. This section is basically intended for foreign journalists and film professionals accredited in our Festival, but it also enables the Seminci audience to discover some of the most acclaimed titles of Spain’s yearly harvest of films.

The lineup of fiction films in this year’s edition of Spanish Cinema are the first films by Julia de la Paz (Ama), Ainhoa Rodríguez (Mighty Flash), Guillermo Benet (Los inocentes), Javier Marco (Josefina) and Juanjo Giménez (Out of Sync); the second feature film by Claudia Pinto (The Consequences) and the third works by Enrique García (La mancha negra) and David Martín de los Santos (That Was Life), along with the latest films by Judith Colell (15 Hours) and Agustí Villaronga (The Belly of the Sea).

The selection of feature films is completed by the documentaries Buñuel: A Surrealist Filmmaker, by Javier Espada, and the works by debutant directors Celia Viada (La calle del agua) and Javier Tolentino (Tehran Blues).

The Spanish Cinema section is complete with six short films (three fiction stories and three documentaries). The former are are Contigo, by Manuel H. Martín; Farrucas, by Ian de la Rosa, and Versiones, by Claudia Torres; while the documentary shorts are A comuñón da miña prima Andrea, by Brandán Cerviño, El síndrome de los quietos, by Elías León Siminiani , and Lanbroa, by Ana Serna, Paula Iglesias and Maialen Oleaga.

Some of these titles have previously been awarded at Spanish and international film festivals. The Belly of the Sea won six awards, including the Golden Biznaga, at the Malaga Film Festival, where various awards were also given to the films Mighty Flash, The Consequences, 15 Hours and Ama. Petra Martínez, the protagonist of That Was Life, was awarded as best actress at the Transilvania and Seville festivals; Virginia DeMorata won the best actress award at the Alicante Film Festival for La Mancha Negra; and the documentary Buñuel, a Surrealist Filmmaker was selected in the 2021 edition of Cannes Classics.