22/08/2005

Give the Brits the opportunity to discover some of the recent Spanish film productions seems to be the aim of the first London Spanish Film Festival (23rd – 29th September), an event organised by Tristona Media, in collaboration with the Spanish Embassy and the French Institute, and with the support of Instituto Cervantes.

The programme, which includes several UK premieres, mixes titles from well known directors such as Carlos Saura (The Seventh Day) and Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón (who will introduce The Life that Awaits you) with younger directors such as Catalan Cesc Gay (In the City) and Jaime Rosales, whose film The Hours of the Day won the FIPRESCI award at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.

But the festival organisers are aware of how much film stars can seduce an audienc, so, to bring some glamour to this first edition, Eduardo Noriega will participate on the 24th of September in a debate on Miguel Courtois' The Wolf and actress Adriana Davidova will introduce Síndrome together with the actor and film director Liberto Rabal. The last day of the festival will enjoy the presence of Victoria Abril, to whom the festival consecrates a mini-retrospective composed of three of her films: Carlos Saura's The 7th Day, Miguel Bardem's Incautos and the mythical Tie me Up! Tie me down! by Pedro Almodóvar.

Besides filmmakers already mentioned, Gutiérrez Aragón and Liberto Rabal, Filipe Vega will also participate in a Q&A after the screening of his film Summer Clouds. The programme is complete with the screenings of The weakness of the Bolshevik by Manuel Martín Cuenca and Jóvenes - Youth, directed by the duo Carles Torras y Ramón Termens.