Copyright Cineaste Winter 2003Cineaste invited various figures in the Spanish film industry to respond to the following questions. The responses published below (except for that from Fernando Truebti, who wrote in English) have been translated by Dennis West and Joan M. West.
It seems to us that contemporary Spanish cinema has been very successful: the strong generational rejuvenation amongst directors, the presence of famous auteurs, a considerable annual production of feature films, and the appearance of a great number of women directors. And, certainly, the strong support given by the movie-going public makes the Spanish market one of the most important in Europe. Do you agree?
How do you see the current situation of Spanish cinema? What problems exist for Spanish cinema in this time of globalization? For example, is Spanish cinema losing its national character? Is there a "Europeanization" or "Hollywoodization" of national production? Is the notable commercial success of "neovulgar" comedies (the term is from Nuria Triana-Toribio) such as Airbag and Torrente 2: Mision en Marbella negatively affecting cinematic production of a more artistic nature?
Chumilla Carbajosa Director and Screenwriter
Although it may sound paradoxical, Spanish cinema as a concept has never particularly interested me. On the other hand, Spanish directors and films do interest me. I do not mean to be polemical when I say this, but rather to reflect on what the adjective 'Spanish' may mean. When one speaks of Italian, French, or English cinema, one is speaking of Neorealism, Nouvelle Vague, or Free Cinema, for example. These are key words that conjure up groups of filmmakers who have had a radical influence on the history of cinema-either esthetically or ideologically. Such has never been the case with Spanish cinema in spite of the enormous talent of some our filmmakers. And I am not speaking here necessarily of the best known cineastes. Few people, for instance, know about figures such as Chomon or Valdelomar, topflight filmmakers, born in Spain, whose work ought to be studied in all the film schools around the world. But this is an aspect of the individualism typical of my country's character in certain areas of the arts and the sciences.
I proudly consider myself to be a Spanish filmmaker, even though I trained in Italy as a student at the Centra Sperimentale di Cinematografia. Personally, I am interested in producing cinema, whatever the nationality of a given film. My work has led me to undertake projects in different parts of the world, so I may not be the most appropriate person to discuss this topic. But what I find really curious is that I am forever hearing my Spanish colleagues talk about "the perennial crisis of our cinema," while in the same breath they affirm "the extraordinary moment that Spanish cinema is experiencing." It is a kind of schizophrenia which is difficult to comprehend if one is not living it from the inside.
In Spain, the movie industry depends completely on television. Pew films are made without the guaranteed economic support derived from pre-sales to television operations, which are required by law to purchase Spanish movies. So the question arises of how much this fact limits filmmakers' creative freedom. I would like to think very little, and that the executives in charge know how to astutely balance quality cinema with the ironclad demands of the viewing public. Of course, there are very talented people who know how to operate both inside the industry and on its fringes. But one must also recognize, because it is true, that the majority of films produced in Spain never get exhibited in commercial theatres; that the screen quota for Spanish cinema (around ten percent) is sometimes reached thanks merely to the timely success of a boxoffice hit; that distribution difficulties are enormous for independent filmmakers; and that in recent years the tendency has been to privilege the large audiovisual enterprises to the detriment of the small producers. All these conditions can probably also be found in the countries around us thanks to cultural homogenization or globalization. The tough competition from the U.S. multinationals often tends to serve as a recurring excuse to hide other factors when it comes time to analyze the difficulties our cinema faces when trying to create the space it deserves within our borders and beyond them. At any rate, I want to be optimistic, because the talent of our filmmakers will continue to forge ahead in spite of all difficulties; and Spanish cinema will keep writing brilliant- though atypical-pages in the history books of the Seventh Art.
Chumilla Carbajosa has worked as a coproducer, screenwriter, teacher, and consultant. His directorial credits include El Infierno Prometido (1993), Amores que Matan (1996), Zapping (1999) and Desnudos (2003).
Chus Gutierrez
Director, Screenwriter and Producer
I think that Spanish cinema still cannot move out beyond its own borders. From my perspective, it is not true that Spanish cinema carries significant weight in the European market; and it certainly does not in either the North American or South American markets. Yes, the significant incorporation of women into directing has been appreciable; and this influx presupposes an enrichment for society. Nevertheless, it is still difficult for women directors to get projects off the ground-except for low-budget ones-and to be able to continue in the film industry and maintain a solid, uninterrupted career. There is a significant number of women directors who have only succeeded in being able to make their first film.
I believe that a kind of neovulgar cinema has always existed within the panorama of Spanish moviemaking. The surprising thing now is that this type of cinema seems to really interest young people. This is a cinema that, from my perspective, is crude; its attraction is all based on reviving the most mangy, retrograde junk, and on creating despicable, dumb-ass characters who then become authentic heroes of trash culture. I wonder if all this is related to the nouveau- riche culture that is inundating us in this country, as well as to a state of bewilderment worldwide. There exists a lack of political ideals; and there is no dream of building a more just, more egalitarian society. We have our cars, we have our refrigerators, we have our stereos-and we really do not want to hear about the problems around us nor about the more complex dimensions of human beings. Long live neovulgarity- both esthetically and conceptually!
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I do not believe that this neovulgar type of moviemaking harms a cinema with more artistic aspirations; the two types of cinema can coexist without detriment to each other. What seems sad to me is that people choose to see these neovulgar things; meanwhile, other films-that are a lot more human and that arc also artistically superior-nobody goes to see them. I believe that this attitude typifies the society that we have created: all's well in Spain; and our little brains yearn for trash that can be consumed rapidly and mindlessly.
Chus Gutierrez, who studied filmmaking in New York City, has worked as an actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is best known as the director of the feature films Sublet, Sexo oral, Alma gitana, Insomnio, and Poniente.
Alex de la Iglesia Director and Screenwriter
Well, I don't know exactly what the reasons are for some of these achievements of contemporary Spanish cinema. However, I do not believe that this time is a particularly good one for Spanish cinema; it is simply the moment we are living. The fact that some-few, really-of us directors and actors are now achieving a certain international recognition does not mean that good films were not made before. In fact, I believe that the Fifties and Sixties were the Golden Age of Spanish cinema, when our best films were produced-Placido, El Verdugo, El Cochecito, El Extrano viaje; that is when our best directors worked-Uerlanga, Fernando Fernan Gomex. Yet this Golden Age is practically unknown in the rest of the world.
What is happening to us is the same thing that is happening in other countries: the desire for commercial success and the desire to survive as an industry are forcing us to duplicate the commercial models that are winning out in international markets. If we consider cinema as something that is culturally one's own, as a special cultural manifestation that should be preserved, then the laws should protect this cinema of ours. Presently, however, that is not the case; the government's policies are totally different. These policies attempt to put the distribution and exhibition of Spanish cinema on an equal footing with the distribution and exhibition of American cinema, but, in reality, Spanish budgets and economic structures are radically different. So the battle is lost before it begins. It would be very sad if Spanish cinema were to triumph worldwide because of having lost the characteristics that define it. That is to say, that we would have been forced to disappear-culturally speaking-in order to keep producing films. In any case, this has already happened to the lilm industries of certain other countries- they have been practically absorbed by the U.S. industry.
With respect to the possibility that the success of certain kinds of films could be prejudicial towards other kinds of films, I sincerely believe that we cannot establish radical criteria. It would be as bad to impede the production of certain films whose content is not sufficiently 'artistic,' as it would be to disallow the making of other kinds of films because they do not produce the necessary box-office receipts. That is exactly what a Ministry of Culture is for-to establish laws that impede radical or exclusive positions. The essenfzaf characteristic that differentiates our cinema from "mainstream" cinema is its wnefy, its unclassifiable spectrum of tendencies and ideas. This means that the public does not have a single, imi/orm vision of our industry, and, therefore, the public cannot reject it in toto. The kinds of films that are made in this country are very different one from the other, and that's good.
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| [Photograph] |
| Actor Armande de Razza (right), who plays a "professor of the occult" in El dia de la bestia, tries to cast a spell on director Alex de la lglesia. |
Alex de la Iglesia, a skilled sketch ariist, has worked as an art director, screenwriter, and director. The features he has directed include Accion mutante, Persia Durango, La communidad, 800 balas, and the cult classic, El dia de la bestia.
Daniel Monzon Screenwflter and Dlrectap
True, Spanish cinema is becoming an important cultural reference worldwide; but, unfortunately, its international resonance has not been rewarded by a governmental legislative effort to defend it from the tyranny of the exhibition sector. The U.S. multinationals, under the fallacious illusion of the 'free market,' impose a ferocious quota system that prevents Spanish cinema from enjoying a permanent presence in the exhibition sector, or even, in some cases, from being seen on our own screens. So, the strange idea of the supposed international relevance of our cinema turns out to be paradoxical, given that it is being asphyxiated within our own borders.
Apart from, or rather because of, these exhibition problems, a significant number of Spanish fllmmakers attempt to attract an audience by resorting to American narrative formulas with a proven commercial track record-either adapting them, parodying them, or, simply, copying them. In any case, the most interesting examples of Spanish cinema-either 'aluteur cinema" or 'genre cinema" (acknowledging that such a distinction docs not exist)-have the virtue of rejecting 'Hollywoodization.' This happens because these films pervert the Hollywood models by turning them into something original and personal-even if this transformation is brought about by resorting to the csperpfoio* form.
Any commercial success, no matter how 'neovulgar, contributes to the good health of an industry that needs to nourish its technicians and actors so that it can create works with diverse artistic ambitions. What I mean is that the director of photography on the first film, Carles Gusi, is the same person who photographed such highly respected films as Vacas by Julio Medem, Moffos como Becky by Joaquin Jorda, La caja 503 by Enrique Urbizu, or Te joy mis ojos by Iciar Bollain, to list only a few....
*Translator note: espcrpento. A type of novel combining farce, satire, the absurd, and the grotesque, cultivated by Spanish author Ramon Maria del Valle-Inclan in the early twentieth century.
Daniel Monzon first worked as a film critic and screenwriter. His debut feature as a director was Ul corazon del guerrero (2000). He is currently preparing his third feature, Gloomy Sunday, which he described as an "international super-production."
Liherto Rabal Actor, Director, Producer
I can offer a fairly broad perspective on these matters since I have just spent the last two years of my career producing and directing a feature entitled Sindrome. This feature film began its life with no more support than the confidence and the willingness to work offered by a group of actors. Now, when postproduction is almost finished, the film is backed by a grant from the ministry, and the support of a very respected produce, Antonio Saura. In addition, it has the possibility of being shown to the public even though it has realistic sex scenes, an innovative and experimental narrative form, and a storyline that bears no resemblance to the kind of entertainment movies aimed nowadays at the general public-the easiest things to get produced. As for your questions....
Spanish cinema-as traditionally happens with the arts in this country-is nurtured by sporadic and geniuslike talents: the cases of Bunuel, Almodovar, Saura, to cite a few examples. Alongside these talents and the prestige they create, there exists an industry which struggles mightily against the difficulties caused by a lack of government backing, by distribution problems, and by a scarcity of theaters available to show Spanish films, even in Spain.
How do I see the current situation of Spanish cinema? The generational changing of the guard is terrific, marvelous; the talent and freedom of these up-and-coming cinteastes, extraordinary. The training available in film schools is constantly improving. Lots of money from the television companies for films apt for all television viewers; but, little money for films which appeal to the audiences who go to commercial cinemas.
I would like to mention two factors that seem fundamental to the current success of Spanish cinema: First, the marvelous range of perspectives and the freewheeling spirit of Spanish spectators that permit box-office hits such as Lucia and Sex by Julio Medem. Second, the tremendous audacity amongst Spanish directors who dare-we dare-to take on all kinds of genres and offer up a variety of styles and themes that is astonishing given the modest number of films produced.
Two questions occur to me, nonetheless: First, will engage films still be made after Elias Querejeta dies?* (God forbid that this ever happen! In fact, from this very pulpit, I am hereby requesting signatures to keep him alive one hundred years more, even though to accomplish this we may have to resort to shadowy technologies as yet unproven.) Second, when all is said and done, and despite everything, will we owe our survival to comedy?
As to Hollywoodization and globalization issues: Spanish cinema could not lose its national character, even if it wanted to. The only Spanish films that succeed in being 'Hollywoodesque' are made by a marvelous director of Chilean origin (Amenabar). I do not know why, but there is something intrinsic to the Spanish character that always leaves a signature. Even if one covers up her or his ears, one can still recognize a Spanish film before forty-eight frames have passed. At any rate, having influence or being influenced does not seem all that bad to me. There are very talented people everywhere from whom one can learn; I am not worried about anyone's nationality, least of all that of a creative person. We are all citixens of the world.
You ask about the 'neovulgar' comedies and whether they are harmful to artistic cinema. Definitely not! These films bring in money, and money is what is needed to keep the industry afloat. We all like to make films of great artistic merit, but no one is giving anything away. Without that ncovulgar money, the prospects for Spanish cinema would definitely be very bleak.
*Translators' note: The legendary Spanish producer famed across the decades for his artistically and technically high quality and sometimes polemical films.
Although Lihcrto Kabal (b. 1975) has recently hcgun directing and producing, he is best known as an actor in Almodovar's Carne tremula and other films such as El tiempo de la felicidad, Tranvia a la Malvarosa, and Mas que amor, frenesi.
Fernando Trueba Director, Producer, and Screenwriter
Spanish cinema can take pride in being as bad as that of any other country with more powerful film industries.
Our critics have no reason to envy French or American ones. They arc just as half-witted as their colleagues. This all leads us to one conclusion: Globalization has not only reached cinema but it already forms a part of its past.
In Spain today we can take pride in having some directors so idiotic that they copy Lars von Trier (pardon the redundancy of this), Kieslowski, and there is even one so cretinous that he copies Alan Rudolph. But the fact is that human stupidity is global: that is, it knows no frontiers.
In recent years the culture of idiocy that governs the world in increasingly pronounced fashion and that brings its citizens to elect the stupidest, most ignorant, incompetent, and unpleasant of their compatriots as their president (Spain and the U.S. form the vanguard of this trend) has reached the arts, particularly fine and visual arts. It has even reached literature, although given that it appears one needs a minimum I.Q. level for this practice, the space for idiots, although existent, is visibly more reduced.
The Hollywoodization of Spanish and European cinema is a done deed. Perhaps where it is most noticeable, in extreme and grotesque form, is in the proliferation of executives who intervene in the production of films and in the decisions of the large film and television corporations. These individuals, not the 'neovulgar' comedies, are responsible for the lack of projects with artistic quality. Both notions, that of quality and that of art, are as foreign and inaccessible to them as the works of Walter Benjamin are to Polynesian cockatoos. By the way, does anyone know if there are cockatoos in Polynesia?
Fcrnando Trueha lias been active as a director, screenwriter, and producer. His first feature as director was the "comedia madrilena" Upera pn'ma (1980). Other films he has directed include the Oscar-winning EbMe Epoque and La nina de tus ojos.
| [Author Affiliation] |
| Chumilla Carbajosa has worked as a coproducer, screenwriter, teacher, and consultant. His directorial credits include El Infierno Prometido (1993), Amores que Matan (1996), Zapping (1999) and Desnudos (2003). |
| [Author Affiliation] |
| Chus Cutierrez, who studied film making in New York City, has worked as an actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is best known as the director of the feature films Sublet, Sexo oral, Alnni gifdini, lnsornnto, and Ponitenlc. |
| Alex tic la Iglesia, a skilled ,sketch artist, has worked as an art director, screenwriter, and director. The features he has directed include Accion mutante, Penlita Durango, La conintindad, 800 bains, and the cull classic, El dm de in bestiti. |
| [Author Affiliation] |
| Daniel Monzon first worked as a Him critic und screenwriter. His debut feature as a director was El corazon del gnerrero (2000). He is currently preparing his third feature, Glooniy Sunday, which he described as an "international super-production." |
| [Author Affiliation] |
| Although Liberto Rabal (d. 1975) has recently begun directing and producing, he is best known as an actor in Almodovar's Conic trcinnla and other films such as El tiempo de la felicidad, Tranvia a In Mnlvairosa, and Mas que amor, fremsi. |
| [Author Affiliation] |
| Fcrnando Trueba has been active as a director, screenwriter, and producer. His first feature as director was the "cotnedia madrileua" Opera prima (1980). Other films he has directed include the Oscar-winning Belle Epoquec and La nina de tus ojos. |
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