The week of screenings of the short films in competition at the 23rd Lanzarote International Film Festival kicks off. CIC El Almacén will host these works from this Monday, May 8 to the 11th, starting at 6:00 p.m. On Friday, the event will be from 5:00 p.m. as it is the day reserved for Canarian short films in competition, which will conclude with a discussion with the jury.
"The most anticipated moment of the 23rd Lanzarote International Film Festival has arrived: the screening of the short films competing in the Official Section in the categories of International Fiction, Spanish Fiction, Canary Islands, Documentary and Animation," the Cabildo de Lanzarote reported in a statement. The price of admission to each session is one euro.
"One of the attractions of attending the daily program of exhibitions is the presence in the room of the directors of many of the films. Each year the Lanzarote festival attracts more creators who want to personally present their works." This year, nearly twenty directors and producers are coming from places as diverse as Barcelona, Armenia and France.
On Monday, May 8, the director and producer of Original Copy -Greg Zinger and Miguel Torrente Gómez, respectively- will explain the details of this film that competes in the Spanish Fiction section and addresses the legal difficulties of a renowned international Peruvian pianist to integrate into a prestigious orchestra in Madrid. On this same afternoon of screenings, French filmmaker Mario Martínez Maquedano will present his short film Ceux qui restent, from the International Fiction category, which tells the disturbing story of an old man who meets his family in a basement.
Also on Tuesday the 9th, other creators from the national short film section will come to the CIC El Almacén hall. On the one hand, Sergio Millán, director of Actos por partes, will reflect with the public on his film which, although it deals with illness and destiny, does not lose its humorous tone. Likewise, Jordi Calvet will present his already award-winning Takbir, which proposes a disconcerting situation: a writer appears at the police station claiming to be the involuntary inspirer of the latest ISIS attacks.
On Wednesday, the 10th, the documentary Lo que no fue, by Sandra Ruesga, will arrive on the screen of El Almacén, who will personally present this exquisite work on abortion at a certain age. Also, during the screenings of the International Fiction section, Marius Gabriel Stancu and Lilit Kostandyan will present their films. The former, who arrives with the producer of the short film, Cosimo Santoro, will give the keys to his proposal in L'anniversario, which tells the suspicions of a woman about the intervention of her partner in a terrible event. For her part, the marketing director of the Armenian short film Human will present this work, which is endorsed by the special jury prize of the Japanese festival Sapporo Short Fest.
But it is in the Canary Islands section where there is more influx of creators in the FICL. The eight teams competing in the official section, with their directors at the helm, will be present in the CIC EL Almacén hall. Thus, on Friday the 12th, starting at 5:00 p.m., they will present their proposals Pedro Ayose and José Martret (Confecciones Saavedra), Pedro Pérez (Benito), Marino Darés (Last Trial - A Star Wars Collateral Story), Sergio de Vega (Pepita), José Suay and Alejandro Moreiras Clavijo (19 years); Willy Suárez (¿Pablo?), Manuel Román (Visionado) and Anatael Pérez (La Mañanita). After the screenings, there will be a round table, moderated by Ezequiel de la Corte, where the Canarian short filmmakers will address the issues of interest to the audiovisual sector in the archipelago.
After a short break, there will be an open talk to the public with members of the jury of the official section, which will be led by the TVE journalist and coordinator of the FICL jury, José Fernández. On this occasion, Fernando Colomo, Santi Alverú, Ricardo Gómez, Álvaro Cervantes, Pilar Palomero and Marina Seresesky will participate.
Origen, short film winner of the Roberto Pérez Toledo contest
Marina Garnica Rosa, with her mysterious Origen, won this Sunday the first prize of the Roberto Pérez Toledo express short film contest, endowed with 1,000 euros.
The second prize, of 600 euros, went to the Tenerife native Anatael Pérez Hernández and his disturbing Expiatio, a story of medieval knights and mysterious aboriginal ladies. The special prize for those under 20 years of age, which has an endowment of 300 euros, went to ¿What is beauty?, an audiovisual poem by its director Natalia Concepción de León.
The jury awarded a special mention in the general category to the comedy short film set in the world of basketball La canasta, by Emilio and Nacho Peña. There was also a mention in the Under 20 category for the film Lo que no se ve, by Natalia Concepción, which tells a story of gender identity in childhood.
Success of the first School Shorts contest
The students of Lanzarote have turned to this first call to participate in the Festival and the School Shorts contest has received a total of 18 short films. It is also worth noting the special presence of works from the IES Agustín Espinosa, with its six short films.
Among the works elaborated by primary education students, the winner has been Casa, presented by the CEIP Capellanía del Yágabo, a story of solidarity between classmates during the crisis of evictions. In addition, the short film Home, from the Apadis special education center in Alicante, received a special mention from the jury.
In the secondary category, the winning center was the IES Costa Teguise, with the short film Delusio, which tells the vocation of a child for science and his desire to be an astronaut, a passion that he takes up again when he is a teenager and life insists on taking him along another canine. A special mention was also given to the IES Tías, for the work La pluma vence a la espada, an allegory with western aesthetics about the power of literature over violence.
The Minister of Culture of the Cabildo de Lanzarote, Alberto Aguiar, and representatives of the sponsors of the School Shorts Contest, Rancho Texas and Aquapark Costa Teguise, were in charge of presenting the awards to the winners.
The Lanzarote International Film Festival is organized by Fisme Producciones and the Culture area of the Cabildo de Lanzarote, with the sponsorship of the entities CACT Lanzarote, Canary Island Films, Canary Institute of Cultural Development, Arrecife City Council, SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote and Lanzarote Film Commission. The Lanzarote companies Arrecife Gran Hotel, Open Mall and CICAR collaborate with the Festival.
You can consult the entire program here and the tickets at Ecoentradas.
