From Arachnid Fuelled Sci-Fi to Heart-Pounding Airport Thrills, San Sebastian’s Diverse Basque Lineup
26.09.2023 - 07:45
/ variety.com
Callum McLennan A salute to Basque cinema, the 71st edition of the San Sebastian Festival has once again unfurled its Zinemira section, a brainchild conceived in collaboration with the Basque government’s Department of Culture. Serving as more than just a showcase, Zinemira comes wrapped in the financial backing of sponsors Irizar and EiTB, with collaborative support from Urbil, the Basque Film Archive, EPE/APV, IBAIA, and Zineuskadi.
The competition for the coveted Irizar Basque Film Award promises to be as strong as ever, drawing eligible feature films that meet a set criteria— namely, a 20% Basque production involvement, a Basque-language script, or a narrative focus on Basque communities. Not to be eclipsed, the section also lights up with the Kimuak programme, a curated selection of this year’s top Basque short films, giving them a passport to international acclaim.
A rundown: “Sultana’s Dream,” (“El sueño de la Sultana,” Isabel Herguera, Spain, Germany) The latest from “Unicorn Wars” producers Abano Producions and UniKo, joining El Gatoverde Producciones, Sultana Films and Fabian & Fred, a three-part animated feature, recounting the modern-day vicissitudes of a Spanish artist in India; the travails of real-life feminist thinker Rokeya Hossain; and the story she published in 1905 about Ladyland, where women rule. Screening in main competition.
“Contadores,” (Irati Gorostidi) The latest from rising Basque star Gorostidi, set in 1978 around collective bargaining for a new deal in Gipuzkoa’s metallurgical industry which served testimony to the splintering of the Basque Country’s labor movement. Selected for this year’s Cannes Critics’ Week.