25/03/2022 - Movistar Plus+ is set to release this dystopian series, which carries the distinctive hallmarks of directors Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Raúl Arévalo, Isaki Lacuesta, Isa Campo and Alberto Rodríguez

Director Rodrigo Sorogoyen and actor Luis Callejo during the shoot for Apagón (© Emilio Pereda)

Five apocalyptic, dark, distressing episodes, each lasting 50 minutes. Five revered screenwriters: Isabel Peña, Alberto Marini, Rafael Cobos, Isa Campo and Fran Araújo, with coordination duties assumed by the latter. Add to this five sure-fire filmmakers directing each of the episodes: Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Raúl Arévalo, Isaki Lacuesta, Isa Campo and Alberto Rodríguez. Three parts have already been filmed, and all that’s left are those of Lacuesta (who premiered One Year, One Night [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Isaki Lacuesta
film profile] at the most recent Berlinale) and Rodríguez (whose eagerly awaited Modelo 77 [+see also:
trailer
film profile] is due to bow at a major festival some time this year – see the news). They are all being produced by Buendía Studio, and without a shadow of a doubt, the show will be one of the most appealing assets of the current season for Movistar Plus+.

The overarching plot of Apagón (lit. “Blackout”) tells of how a solar storm affects the Earth, causing a widespread blackout. In this new reality, five stories unfold focusing on characters that are fighting to adapt their way of life to a world without electricity, telecommunications or means of transport, where they are forced to face up to their most primal needs, instincts and fears.

The first episode of the series, which was shot in February this year in Madrid, was directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen (who garnered excellent reviews for the show Riot Police [+see also:
series review
interview: Rodrigo Sorogoyen
series profile] and is currently putting the finishing touches to his new film, The Beasts [+see also:
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interview: Rodrigo Sorogoyen and Isabe…
film profile]), with a screenplay penned by his regular collaborator Isabel Peña (Madre [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Rodrigo Sorogoyen
film profile]). It stars Luis Callejo (Goya-nominated for Princesas [+see also:
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film profile], The Fury of a Patient Man [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Raúl Arévalo
film profile] and Out in the Open [+see also:
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interview: Benito Zambrano
film profile]) as Ernesto, the deputy director of the Emergency Unit in Madrid.

At the start of the series, we see how the Civil Defence team, while caught up in the difficulties of dealing with a train crash, receives a warning about a possible solar storm. Ernesto is the only one who believes that measures must be taken as soon as possible, regardless of how awkward or embarrassing they may be. The sluggish pace at which information arrives, the doubts of the experts and the fear of reacting all make his life more difficult.

However, in fact, this ambitious series began principal photography on 13 December 2021, in the town of Valdeluz (Guadalajara), with the filming of the third episode, written and directed by Isa Campo (Maixabel [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Icíar Bollaín
film profile]), and starring Patricia López Arnaiz (who has just released Beyond the Summit [+see also:
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interview: Ibon Cormenzana
film profile] in theatres after its screening at the Málaga Film Festival), Zoé Arnao (Schoolgirls [+see also:
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interview: Pilar Palomero
film profile]) and Miquel Fernández (Adú [+see also:
trailer
film profile]). It shows how, following the blackout that has brought the country to a standstill, the residents of a small residential area have managed to get organised with a view to surviving this new reality. However, everything changes when a group of kids come screeching into the area and threaten the communal way of life they had built for themselves.

Furthermore, in January, both Madrid and Ciudad Real played host to the shoot for the second instalment, directed by actor Raúl Arévalo (who was festooned with awards for his only feature-length directorial effort to date, The Fury of a Patient Man). Its screenplay was penned by Alberto Marini (Sleep Tight [+see also:
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interview: Alberto Rodríguez and Rafae…
series profile]) and Javier Tena (No Shame). It portrays how, a few weeks after the blackout, the staff at a hospital have to confront a new reality. Without any diagnostic capabilities owing to a lack of equipment, and with scarcely any medicine available to treat the patients, the doctors resort to the unthinkable in order to continue saving as many lives as possible. Tension, angst and a dark dystopia are guaranteed.

(Translated from Spanish)