12/11/2024 - Miki Esparbé, María Rodríguez Soto, Asier Etxeandía and Bruna Cusí topline this film being produced by Coming Soon Films, Diagonal TV and Bulletproof Cupid

María Rodríguez Soto and Miki Esparbé on the set of Frontera (© Andrea Resmini)

The shoot has been ongoing since late October for Frontera (lit. "Border"), a historical thriller telling of the adventures of a group of people who, despite the threats to their existence, put their lives at risk and flout the rules imposed upon them in order help Jews escaping from Nazi repression. Judith Colell (15 Hours; Elisa K [+see also:
trailer
film profile], which scooped the Special Jury Prize at San Sebastián in 2010; 53 días de invierno) teamed up with screenwriters Miguel Ibáñez Monroy and Gerard Giménez to pen the script for this feature based on real events.

Filming is taking place over six weeks in the region of Pallars and on location around Barcelona, with a Spanish and Belgian cast made up of Miki Esparbé (Not Such an Easy Life [+see also:
film review
film profile], the series Smiley), María Rodríguez Soto (The Days to Come [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Carlos Marques-Marcet
film profile], Mamífera [+see also:
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interview: Liliana Torres
film profile]), Asier Etxeandía (Pain & Glory [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Antonio Banderas
Q&A: Pedro Almodóvar
film profile], The Bride [+see also:
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interview: Paula Ortiz
film profile]), Bruna Cusí (Upon Entry [+see also:
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interview: Alejandro Rojas and Juan Se…
film profile], Summer 1993 [+see also:
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interview: Carla Simón
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The plot unfolds in 1943, after General Franco has blocked the route for Jews fleeing over the Pyrenees to escape Nazi repression. At the customs office in a border town, Manel Grau, a civil servant with a Republican past, decides to disobey orders, helped by Juliana, a local resident, and Jerôme, a French people smuggler. They all join forces and begin a crusade to help as many Jews to flee as they possibly can. But then, Manel will be trapped in a dangerous odyssey that will revive within him – and within his wife, Mercé – old ghosts of the still-recent Spanish Civil War. 

“Today, more than ever, there are millions of people who are forced to flee war, hunger and the brutality being caused by their leaders. On the other side, there are always people who help, people who condemn those who run away, and people who turn a blind eye as if nothing were happening to them – people who put themselves at risk and people who don’t,” explains the director. “I believe that film is a weapon for raising awareness and for condemnation. And, as a fast-paced, action-packed film, Frontera is also exactly that,” she sums up.

Frontera is a production by Coming Soon Films (Spain), Diagonal TV (Banijay Iberia) and Bulletproof Cupid (Belgium). It has secured support from the ICEC, ICAA, Screen Flanders (a VLAIO initiative in conjunction with the Flanders Audiovisual Fund) and the Belgian Federal Government’s Tax Shelter, as well as BNP Paribas Fortis Film Finance and the MEDIA programme. It also boasts the involvement of RTVE and 3Cat. The Spanish theatrical distribution will be entrusted to Filmax.

(Translated from Spanish)