Sinopsis
Documentary. In O Courel in Galicia, Spain, the dead dwell amongst the living. The film opens with images of a deserted mountainous region and picturesque villages over which a female voice begins her narration. But from the outset, her documentary commentary should not be trusted. Suddenly, images of people’s faces loom into extreme close-up as the inquisitive camera begins to observe their everyday rituals. This is a community for whom tradition is shrouded in myths and legends about wolves, the undead and missing women – and All Saints’ Day is by no means the only time that these phenomena put in an appearance. But the film also shows us a more down-to-earth side of life in O Courel, as we learn the proper way to pluck a chicken, work with slate slabs, collect chestnuts to sell, or how to hunt and skin a wild boar. In her composed and beautifully observed film, director Diana Toucedo deliberately sets up red herrings in order to blur the border between real village life and invented stories, religion and superstition, true histories and dramatized ones. The dead are amongst the living, and some of the living have suddenly disappeared.
A director and editor who lives in Barcelona. To date she has edited 16 feature-length films, the most successful of which has been La noche que no acaba (All Night Long), directed by Isaki Lacuesta. The film premiered at the 2010 San Sebastian film festival and won numerous awards at international festivals. As a director, she has made short documentaries and experimental films. In 2015 he directed the feature-length documentary En todas as mans. Thirty Souls is her feature film debut and premiered in the Panorama section of the 2018 Berlin Festival. She also lectures in editing, including on the post-graduate programme at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona.
March, 27th 2019 7 pm
Sala Berlanga. Fundación SGAE
Section: Spanish authors Panorama
Year of production: 2017
Running time: 80’
Country: Spain
Language: Galician
Director: Diana Toucedo
Cast: Alba Arias, Samuel Vilariño
Producers: Cristina Bodelón, Jaime Otero Romaní, Miguel A. Otero, Ignacio de Vicente and Diana Toucedo
Producing companies: Lasoga Films, Diana Toucedo Films and CRTVG
Main Festivals and Awards: Premiered at the Berlinale 2018. Selected at festivals in Ourense, Malaga, San Sebastian, São Paulo, FIDBA, Sarajevo and Tbilisi. Awarded at the Vigo, CinSpain de Toulouse, Tarragona festivals and at the Fénix Awards
