Spanish films shown to celebrate Int’l Women’s Day
TO CELEBRATE International Women’s Day which falls on March 8, a series of movies directed by Spanish female filmmakers, called “Espacio femenino: Spanish Female Directors,” will be shown at 6 p.m. every Saturday at the FDCP Cinematheque Manila. The film cycle aims to highlight the relevance of female filmmakers in the film industry.
The films are presented by the Instituto Cervantes, the Embassy Spain, and the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP).
The lineup is composed of award-winning films such as the poignant drama La novia (The Bride), the comedy Requisitos para ser una persona normal (Requirements to Be a Normal Person), Vicky Calavia’s documentary María Moliner (2017), and Riot Girls, a set of short films directed by Spanish female filmmakers.
The film cycle will kick-off on March 3, 6 p.m., with the screening of La novia, a drama inspired by García Lorca’s play Blood Wedding. The story is set in Spain in the 1930s and tells of a blood feud between families that is about to be settled by a wedding. But fate has other plans as the bride is in love with another man, and unbridled passion will set a chain of events in motion that will have devastating consequences. Directed by Paula Ortiz in 2015, the film has bagged several awards, among them the Premio Feroz 2016 to the Best Film, Best Director, and Best actress for Inma Cuesta.
The film cycle will continue on March 10, with the comedy Requisitos para ser una persona normal. Directed by Leticia Dolera in 2015, it tells the story of María, a 30-year-old woman who has an immediate goal in life: to become a normal person. But first of all she has to discern what this implies. What does it exactly mean, to be normal? After a while she creates a list of those requirements needed, and she starts a journey to reach them all.
The documentary María Moliner (Vicky Calavia, 2017) will be shown on March 17. A female presence leads us through the important events in the life of linguist María Moliner, highlighting the terms that define them, using the definitions María offers in her great work: the Diccionario de Uso del Español.
Finally, the series of short films Riot Girls: Españolas en corto will conclude the film cycle on March 24. The lineup of short films is composed of: Miss Wamba, directed by Estefanía Cortés in 2017; Oasis, directed by Carmen Jiménez in 2014; Sara a la fuga, produced by Belén Funes in 2015, and Waste by Laura Sisteró and Alejo Levis, 2016.
Entrance is free on a first-come, first-served basis. The FDCP Cinematheque Manila is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila. For details, visit http://manila.cervantes.es, www.facebook.com/InstitutoCervantesManila, or e-mail cinematheque@fdcp.ph.
