REC – Tarragona International Film Festival brought its 24th edition to a close on Sunday, after it unspooled from 4-8 December in the Catalonian city. The day before, a number of prizes were handed out in the RECLab, its professional forum dedicated to accompanying film projects at different stages of development and production. This year, Primer Test, one of the event’s main activities, shone the spotlight on four works in post-production that took part in numerous days involving in-depth consultancy with experts.

The International Deluxe Award was bestowed upon Jone, Batzuetan by ESCAC alumna Sara Fantova, which tells of the transformation undergone by a teenage girl who must deal with romantic and familial challenges during a summer in Bilbao; the National Deluxe Award went to Woman Bites Dog by Armand Rovira (produced by From Outer Space), which follows a female serial killer, as documented by two filmmakers; the Screening Test Award was picked up by A la cara by Javier Marco, produced by Pecado Films (see the news); and the Málaga Work in Progress Award winner was deemed to be the experimental gothic tale L’homme Abissal o Phaeophytamón by Marina Wagner Moll (La Impostora Films). With the awarding of these prizes, the recipients embark on a new stage, with tools and resources available to help them access the international circuit.

Also taking part in this section were Los Renacidos by Santiago Esteves (produced by Zabriskie Films), Futura, La Niebla by María Abenia (MamaFilms), the documentary El hombre bueno de Pachalum by Renato Borrayo Serrano (Curuxa Cinema), the non-fiction film Como Manolete en la víspera de su muerte by Álvaro Gómez-Pidal, Zo Ver Weg by Gerard Oms (Zabriskie Films), 3 Voltes Rebel by Anna M Bofarull (Cvinger Film), El diablo también lo llama corazón by Miguel Mejías (Doppelganger) and the doc Antes del fuego by Ángel Giovanni Hoyos (Curuxa Cinema).

Coordinated by Anette Dujisin – a former programmer for the Venice International Film Critics’ Week and the ex-manager of Filmin Portugal – this sidebar brought together a committee of experts including Daniela Persico (Locarno Film Festival), Jim Kolmar (SXSW Film Festival), Angeliki Petrou (Thessaloniki Film Festival), Ana David (Berlinale), Mihai Chirilof (Transilvania International Film Festival) and Laufrey Guðjónsdóttir (a media and creativity consultant), among others.

After a trial run, the RECMatch strand held its first official edition: this section seeks to connect filmmakers and actors (Álvaro Cervantes and Laura Gómez were the guests in attendance on this occasion), creating opportunities for established talents to work with new creators. The selected projects were: Llamadas perdidas by Benjamín Rojo, produced by Mínimo Films; Made in 1999 by Alejandro Cortés, staged by La Soga; Opera Prima by Joel Muñoz, with production duties entrusted to Octubre Cinema; Royal Films by duo Burnin’ Percebes, whose last film was The Fantastic Golem Affairs [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Burnin’ Percebes
scheda film]; El sueño cubano by Marieta Petchanska, produced by Seleste Films; and Alelí by Tommy Llorens, staged by Lo Extraño.

Lastly, it’s worth highlighting RECVision, a new initiative by the REC Tarragona Festival, coordinated by Jana Wolff, which connects exhibition, educational and festival projects with audiences, enabling an exchange of ideas with international experts in audience creation. The selected projects were: La Crida de Edison, a programme initiated by the Granollers Film Club, created by Bel Miralles; Nadir, educational films for youngsters, created by Eloi Sánchez; Transhumant, a mobile cinema in rural areas and for vulnerable groups, created by Joaquim Roqué; and Victoria & Savoy, showing educational films in schools, created by Manel Raga, which ended up being the winner in this section.

Here is the list of award winners:

Primer Test

International Deluxe Award
Jone, Batzuetan - Sara Fantova
Producer: ESCAC

National Deluxe Award
Woman Bites Dog - Armand Rovira
Producer: From Outer Space

Screening Test Award
A la cara - Javier Marco
Producer: Pecado Films

Málaga Work in Progress Award
L’homme Abissal o Phaeophytamón - Marina Wagner Moll
Producer: La Impostora Films

RECVision

Winning project
Victoria & Savoy - Manel Raga