MORO SPANISH FILM FESTIVAL TO OPEN WITH OFFICIAL COMPETITION
THIRTY FOUR FEATURE FILMS CELEBRATE MUCH LOVED STARS AND NEW TALENTS
Presented by Palace, The 2022 Moro Spanish Film Festival full programme has been revealed for some reel inspiración. A sensational line-up of the finest Spanish language cinema from Spain and Latin America features famous faces, including Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, Oscar Martínez, Paco León and Blanca Portillo along with exciting new talent. The Festival screens in Adelaide at Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas from April 27 to May 18.
The rich programme of thirty four films consists of twenty-one features from Spain, ten from across Latin America including Argentina, Mexico, Uruguay and the Dominican Republic and another three from Australia and the USA and features a wide range of genres from period-set drama, documentary, realist drama, to satire and riotous comedy.
Opening the Festival is the Australian Premiere of the much-anticipated OFFICIAL COMPETITION(Competencia oficial). Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, and Oscar Martínez star in Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat’s ingenious, icy behind-the-scenes satire of moviemaking.
The Festival Special Presentation is LANGUAGE LESSONS, a charming and award-winning comedy about a Spanish teacher and her student, whose online connection takes on far more importance than either could have anticipated. It stars Natalie Morales and Mark Duplass.
To honour one of the great couples in modern cinema, this year’s festival features a special focus on Oscar Winners Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem with two titles in which they co-star – JAMÓN JAMÓN, their first film together which is celebrating its 30th anniversary and LOVING PABLO, based on Virginia Vallejo´s bestselling memoir about her love affair with notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar – plus Cruz’s latest collaboration with Pedro Almodovar, PARALLEL MOTHERS.
In the New Spanish Cinema programme:
MAIXABEL features stand out performances from Blanca Portillo and Luis Tosar, and swept the acting pool at the 2022 Goyas with awards for Best Actress, Best New Actress and Best Supporting Actor. It is the story of Maixabel Lasa, the widow of a Basque politician assasinated by ETA who agrees to meet her husband’s murderers in prison.
Securing Best Cinematography, Best Original Song and Best Production at the 2022 Goya Awards, MEDITERRANEO: THE LAW OF THE SEA(Mediterráneo) is based on real events; the gripping drama tells the story of two Spanish lifeguards who traveled to Greece and rescued refugees during the 2015 humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean Sea.
ONCE UPON A TIME IN EUSKADI (Érase una vez en Euskadi), is a coming of age story set in the 1980s Basque country at the height of ETA’s reign about a group of 12 year olds who must learn to deal with loss and adversity. LEMON AND POPPY SEED CAKE(Pan de limón con semillas de amapola), adapted from Cristina Campos’ novel, sees two estranged sisters reunite to sell a bakery they have inherited from a mysterious woman, and in the powerful AMA a mother and daughter are evicted from their home and forced to fend for themselves on the streets.
Intriguing thrillers include survival story BEYOND THE SUMMIT (La Cima) set in the awe-inspiring Himalayas, SKIN IN FLAMES (La piel en llamas), a political thriller based on the award-winning play; THE DAUGHTER (La hija), a cleverly constructed drama from one of Spain’s most intriguing auteurs Manuel Martín Cuenca; psychological horror THE HOUSE OF SNAILS (La casa del caracol) starring Javier Rey and Raúl Arévalo and Paz Vega in the story of a married couple trapped in a web of conspiracy and injustice in WETLAND (El lodo).
Spanish box office smash hit comedies: CARPOOLERS (Con quién viajas) a road movie filled with comical situations and tension, YOU KEEP THE KIDS (Mamá o papa) starring Paco León and Miren Ibarguren, about a divorcing couple who are trying to convince their children to choose the other parent, and POLYAMORY FOR DUMMIES (Poliamor para principiantes) a spicy comedy about sexuality.
Other festival gems include dramatic comedies THE COVER (El cover), in which a Benidorm waiter/wannabe singer meets a pop star impersonator, and GIRLFRIENDS (Chavalas) about four women who were inseparable childhood friends meeting again at a crucial moment in their lives.
Families will enjoy THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT (¡A todo tren! Destino Asturias) an entertaining comedy directed by and starring Santiago Segura; and presented in Spanish, and Disney’s ENCANTO, (2022 Academy Award® Winner of Best Animated Feature Film) the animated story of the Madrigal family who live in the mountains of Colombia.
In the CINE LATINO programme:
Renowned director Fernando Trueba’s Goya award-winning FORGOTTEN WE’LL BE (El olvido que seremos) a tender family drama that is an adaptation of Héctor Abad Faciolince’s memoir about his father, Colombian professor and campaigner Héctor Abad Gómez.
9 is a drama about fame, money, passion and love, focusing on a successful football player suffering media harassment who seeks escape from his isolated life. From Argentina, CAMILA COMES OUT TONIGHT (Camila saldrá esta noche) an intimate and lively portrait of Argentine youth, and CARAJITA a potent, compelling drama set in the Dominican Republic about a teenager and her nanny who have a relationship that seems to transcend their class conditions.
IMMERSION (Inmersión) A suspense-filled thriller starring Chilean star Alfredo Castro, in which a father and his daughter’s day of sailing unravels wildly as they encounter some local fishermen in their sinking boat.
Romantic comedy THE BIG LOVE PICTURE (Amor de Película) stars Nicolás Furtado and Natalie Pérez as a couple who come to realise that they have fallen out of love; captivating coming-of-age drama THE REALM OF GOD (El reino de Dios) direct from its Berlin International Film Festival world premiere, and THE YEAR OF FURY (El año de la furia) about two writers who struggle to maintain their integrity under pressure to tone down their political satires against the military in 1970s Uruguay.
Finally, two significant documentaries round out the 2022 line up – BEGIN AGAIN (Tornar a començar) profiling a global network of women scientists working for planetary sustainability in the Antarctic and the Australian produced, OUR VOICES (Nuestras Voces) which tells the story of a group of Spanish-speaking migrants who arrived in Victoria between the 1960s and 1980s and showcases their contribution to Australia.
Kristen Moxey, Marketing Manager Conga Foods says, “Moro is proud to be the presenting partner of the Moro Spanish Film Festival for a third year. This festival is a great way to share our Spanish heritage and celebrate the power of human connection through film. With an exciting programme of great new films from Spain and Latin America, we look forwarding to welcoming you to what promises to be a fantastic festival.”
The 2022 Moro Spanish Film Festival will take place nationally from 19 April to 18 May in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Brisbane and Byron Bay. ¡Viva la fiesta!
Tickets on sale from 7 April. Visit www.spanishfilmfestival.com.
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