Filming is under way for El Talento by Polo Menárguez
- Based on Arthur Schnitzler's short novel Fräulein Else, Fernando León de Aranoa produces with The Mediapro Studio the film starring Ester Espóxito and Pedro Casablanc
Filming began in early September in Vizcaya on El talento, the new film by Polo Menárguez (whose last film The Plan [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Polo Menárguez
film profile], participated in the Seminci and received two Goya nominations), who wrote the screenplay with Fernando León de Aranoa (director of the award-winning films Barrio, Mondays in The Sun [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and The Good Boss [+see also:
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film profile], among others), who also produced the film with his partner Patricia de Muns, Laura Fernández Espeso and Javier Méndez (the latter two from The Mediapro Studio).
The cast is headed by Ester Expósito (Elite, seen last year in Lost in the Night [+see also:
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interview: Amat Escalante
film profile] and soon in The Wailing [+see also:
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interview: Pedro Martín-Calero, Isabel…
film profile], to be presented in San Sebastian Film Festival) and Pedro Casablanc (Goya nominated for B, la película [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and soon in the series Querer, also in San Sebastian). They are joined by a young cast that includes Spanish actors such as Mirela Balic (Elite), Juan Pablo Fuentes, Carlos Suárez, Itziar Manero, Clara Sans and Uruguayan actor Diego Niski, along with acting veterans such as Rocío Muñoz Cobo, Marta Aledo and Eva Martín, among others.
Based on Arthur Schnitzler's 1924 book-monologue Fräulein Else, this feature film tells the story of a promising cello student (played by Ester Expósito), who is enjoying the exclusive birthday party of her friend Idoia (Mirela Balic), a showcase of high society, when she receives an unexpected call from her mother. What he asks of her will force Elsa to choose between her future and her dignity.
According to Polo Menárguez, “we were having a dialogue with Schnitzler while writing the script: the great themes of his novel are still relevant a hundred years later. It felt as easy as swapping telegrams for mobile phone chats. With a strong point of view, almost in real time, El talento turns a high society party into an incandescent pressure cooker. We rely on a commitment to visuals that engrave images on the viewer's retina. We have the best cast to make tonight the best party... and also the worst nightmare.”
For Fernando León de Aranoa, “this film responds to the desire to promote, as producer and screenwriter, a project by Menárguez; to the belief that his talent and sensitivity as a storyteller make him the perfect person to find the delicate balance of lightness, darkness and sophistication that beats at the heart of this story, where all the weight falls on the shoulders of a young woman who sees her life transform in seconds over the course of a party.”
El talento is produced by Reposado P.C. and The Mediapro Studio with the participation of RTVE, Movistar Plus+ and 3Cat. It will be distributed in Spain by Tripictures.
(Translated from Spanish by Vicky York)
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