Instituto Cervantes
Film: Ciclo Ángela Molina, Las cosas del querer
12 pm (available for 48 hours) Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE Jaime Chávarrri’s Las cosas del querer follows the trajectory of a song-and-dance duo and their piano player in the 1940s, with a look into their backstage lives and an evocation of the popular music of their times. As the group’s rise to fame and fortune parallels Franco’s consolidation of power in collusion with the Spanish aristocracy, their return to Madrid marks the most difficult moments of their careers. Lavishly produced and vibrantly entertaining as a musical, (more...)
Film: La Guerra Civil Española por nosotras/Female Views of the Spanish Civil War
12 am (MST) Available through 11:59 pm (MST) March 7 Place: All titles will be available on the Mujeres de Cine VOD platform HERE Instituto Cervantes Albuquerque, in collaboration with Mujeres de Cine (Women of Cinema), presents the on-line film series La Guerra Civil española por nosotras (Female views of the Spanish Civil War), bringing together the views of three Spanish female directors on this conflict. The cycle comprises three full-length films: La buena nueva, by Helena Taberna, El gran vuelo, by Carolina Astudillo Muñoz, and El (more...)
Film: Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, Segundo López, aventurero urbano
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE In Ana Mariscal’s neorealist comedy Segundo López, aventurero urbano, an honest countryman arrives in Madrid looking for work. When he befriends a street urchin, they embark on innumerable urban adventures. Mariscal, an iconic Spanish film actress, also stars in her directorial debut. 1953; Spanish with English subtitles; 80 minutes; not rated. Free community event In February, the Pioneras series featured on-line talks highlighting the work of women who have paved the way in investigating new (more...)
Film: Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, La gata
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE Co-directed by Margarita Alexandre and Rafael Torrecilla, La gata, set in in the Andalusian countryside, is the story of a love triangle playing out in the world of bullfighting. It has been described as a “beautiful tragedy,” as well as a melodrama. Actress, director, and producer Margarita Alexandre worked in film and theatre in Spain during the early days of the Franco regime, and in Cuba following the Revolution. Born in León in 1923, she (more...)
Film: Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, El crimen de Cuenca
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE Pilar Miró’s El crimen de Cuenca is an unsparing depiction of real events that took place in 1913 in the Spanish province of Cuenca. When a shepherd mysteriously disappears, his companions, believed to be responsible for his murder, confess to the crime under torture and are condemned to prison, serving 11 years of an 18-year sentence. After they are released, the man they supposedly killed turns up alive. The film was initially banned in Spain (more...)
Film: Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, Función de noche
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE In Josefina Molina’s Función de noche, the actress Lola Herrera, performing nightly in Miguel Delibes’ play Cinco horas con Mario, comes to confound her own life with that of the character she plays. In the close confines of her dressing room, she and her former husband, actor Daniel Dicenta, engage in a cathartic conversation about their professional and personal lives. 1981; Spanish with English subtitles; 90 minutes; Rated PG13 Free community event In February, the (more...)
Film: Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, Después de… No se os puede dejar solos
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE At the beginning of the Transition (la Transición—the Spanish transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975), a small group of filmmakers took to the streets to record the opinions of politicians and citizens regarding the country that was about to be formed. Today, this documentary by Cecilia and José Juan Bartolomé is a milestone in the history of Spanish cinema, compiling testimonies that allow us to understand the plurality of (more...)
Pioneras: Mujeres de Vanguardia/Pioneers: Women of the Avant-Garde, Después de… Atado y bien atado
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE The second part of the documentary Después de..., by Cecilia and José Juan Bartolomé, features politicians, professionals, and citizens from all walks of life as they express their opinions of the changes that have befallen Spain during the years of the country’s transition to democracy following the death of Francisco Franco. The outspokenness of some of these testimonies and the sense of tension that pervades the film caused its release to be held up until (more...)
Film: Del corto al largo (y viceversa), Lucas
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE In Álex Montoya’s short film Lucas, a high school boy wanting to buy a motorcycle in order to impress a girl agrees to model for a photographer he met at the gym, but finds that things are not always what they seem. Montoya’s short films, striking in their narrative efficiency, have enjoyed impressive circulation. In 2019, the director adapted Lucas into a feature film, still awaiting release as a result of the pandemic. 2013; Spanish (more...)
Film: Del corto al largo (y viceversa), Asamblea
12 pm (MST) Available for 48 hours Instituto Cervantes Vimeo Channel HERE Álex Montoya’s first feature film, an adaptation of the play La gente by Juli Disla and Jaume Pérez (who also wrote the screenplay for the film), is a comic look at the decision-making processes of assemblies formed as a result of political movements after 2011. In a last meeting before the summer, Josep wants to move forward on the approval of a plan, while respecting differing ideologies and allowing all members an opportunity to speak. (more...)