Catalan films routinely punch above their weight at high-profile international festivals: Think 2022 Berlin Golden Bear winner “Alcarràs.” That trend looks primed to continue in 2024.
Catalan auteur Albert Serra will debut “Afternoons of Solitude,” co-produced by Catalan companies Andergraun Films and LaCima, with Ideale Audience and Tardes de Soledad.
A fall fest bet, “They Will Be Dust,” from Carlos Marqués- Marcet (SXSW winner “10,000 Km”), is produced by Catalonia’s Lastor Media alongside Chile’s Alina Film and Kino Produzioni in Italy.
Few regions boast a lineup of female filmmakers as impressive as Catalonia. This year, new films from Goya Award winners Pilar Palomero (“Glimmers”) and Belén Funes (“The Turtles”) are strong contenders for festival recognition.
With the backing of Catalonia’s Minority Co-Production Fund, four international co-prods are poised to make a significant impact on this year’s festival circuit. Keep an eye out for Javier Rebollo’s “Close to the Sultan” (France, Spain), Calia Atan and Valeria Pivato’s “La Llegada del Hijo” (Argentina, Spain), Jaime Rosales’ “Morlaix” (France, Spain) and Roya Sadat’s “Sima’s Song” (Spain, France, Netherlands, Taiwan).
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Several films from first-time Catalan directors will make their festival debuts this year, including Gerard Oms’ “Away,” Aitor Echeverría’s “Dismantling an Elephant,” Iván Morales’ “Join Me for Breakfast,” Pablo Gil Rituerto’s “The Drunkmen’s Marseillaise,” Vigilia Collective’s “The Imminent Age” and Gemma Blasco’s “The Fury.”
Arcadia, which produced the Oscar-nominated “Robot Dreams,” will unveil Ibon Cormenzana’s live-action “The Bus of Life” later this year, co-produced with Aixerrota Films, Priss & Batty Films and Pachacamac Films.
Catalonia’s animation sector is booming, and both Maria Trenor’s “Rock Bottom” and David Baute’s “Black Butterflies” will initiate their festival runs in competition and Contrechamp, respectively, at Annecy, the world’s oldest and most important animation festival.
