Cannes Embraces Catalonia
variety.comCatalonia has become one of Europe’s most vibrant regional audiovisual forces. The proof can be found at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
More than 50 Catalan companies — some 100 executives and creatives — are expected to attend. Five films, four by new directors, have made the official cut at Cannes; six projects play in Marché du Film showcases.
The three biggest Catalan movies at the festival, Elena Martin’s “Creature,” Pham Thiên An’s “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell,” both in Directors’ Fortnight, and Pablo Berger’s “Robot Dreams,” playing out of competition, also underscore strong trends coursing through current Catalan cinema, including international co-production and an exploding animation scene. “Co-producing is at the core of the European cinema industry and has always had more pros than cons,” says Vilaüt Films’ Ariadna Dot, a producer of Elena Martin’s “Creature,” made with regional partnerships in Spain: here Catalonia’s Lastor Media, Barcelona-based Vilaüt, Avalon in Madrid and Valencia’s Elástica Films (the producers of Berlin Golden Bear winner “Alcarràs”).
Among Vilaüt’s most recent films, however, “Alcarràs” was co-produced with Italy, “Libertad” with Belgium and “Mediterráneo” with Greece.
Read more on variety.com