Spanish Film Festival
With the European film production fully back on its pre-pandemic growth track, the Spanish Film Festival returns for its 25th presentation with an outstanding program of 32 high quality feature films from Spain and Latin America.
“Spain is the seventh most prolific producer of films worldwide, producing over 300 films in 2022, which is more than France made!” enthused Benjamin Zeccola, CEO of Palace Cinemas. “Mexico which is Latin America’s largest cinema market made a whopping 258 films over the 12 months and Argentina produced 230 films, which overall signifies the film industry’s recovery in these countries”.
The Gala Opening Night promises to be a delight with the screening of comedy hit Two Many Chefs served with pre-screening drinks and tapas, and an afterparty.
The 40th anniversary presentation of Carlos Saura’s biggest international box-office hit Carmen which won all the major awards proudly closes the festival. There will also be a screening of a selection of Saura’s most influential works in the retrospective program, Lord of Dance: A Focus on Carlos Saura.
“Carlos Saura who sadly passed away earlier this year, was an incredible filmmaker of enormous importance. He loved music and dance and he loved to fuse together different styles from around the world, including Flamenco, Fados and folk.”
Zeccola is excited that this year’s festival features works from seven female film makers who are working at the top of their game.
“From Carla Simon’s award winning Alcarras to Marina Seresesky’s Let The Dance Begin, it’s just an absolute pleasure to be able to represent the magnificent work of these female filmmakers in this celebratory festival environment.”
When asked why non-Spanish speaking audiences should also attend this film festival Zeccola responded that it’s great fun and it’s also the best travel experience you can have without travelling.
“Spend a couple of hours listening to people speaking in the beautiful Spanish language and watching a film set somewhere exotic and mysterious is just moving and beautiful – it really feels like you’ve escaped to another world!”
ZECCOLA’S HOT PICKS
FOUR’S A CROWD – (SPAIN) This wild romantic comedy which is packed with laughs, sharp dialogue, and eccentric characters was a major box office hit in Spain.
A SINGULAR CRIME – (ARGENTINA) If you enjoy films such as The Usual Suspects then this is for you. It’s a gripping, true crime thriller that searches for truth in the face of corruption.
TWO MANY CHEFS – (SPAIN) A fun romantic comedy with Spanish flair set against the backdrop of beautiful Bilbao, a crowd favourite in Spain.
