Spain’s Most Fantastic Films Arrive at Sitges2024

Less than a month to go until the kick off of the 57th edition of the SITGES - International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia, which once again offers us a selection with Spain’s best genre films of the year, with names that are extremely familiar to fans of our film competition, including Nacho Vigalondo, Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia or Miguel Llansó... all in all, more than 60 films, so get your calendars ready. 

The kickoff of the Sitges Film Festival is approaching and with it, the number of announcements is on the rise. Today it's time to reveal the domestic productions that join the previously confirmed Una ballena, by Pablo Hernando, Apocalipsis Z: El principio del fin, by Carles Torrens, Exorcismo, by Alberto Sedano or The Birthday (4K), by Eugenio Mira, whose celebration of the 20th anniversary of its premiere will be accompanied by the presence of Corey Feldman (you can find the complete announcement at this link).

Domestic Films in the SOFC - Official Fantàstic In Competition Selection 

We will start the battery of new additions with the SOFC - Official In Competition Fantàstic Selection, where we find several names that already know what it's like to be there (and that have even been crowned there). 

Nacho Vigalondo with Daniela Forever, his latest production, couldn't miss out on this event. Starring Henry Golding and Beatrice Grannò, the film is about a man who decides to take part in a clinical trial in order to control his dreams and be reunited with his deceased girlfriend. Obviously, this experiment has its dangers, and in this case Nicolas runs the risk of getting lost in his dreams forever. Daniela Forever was the project presented by the Sitges Film Festival as part of Fantastic 7 at the Marché du Film - Cannes Film Festival, and it is one of the Cantabrian director's most personal works.

Another “usual suspect” returning to the Official In Competition Fantàstic Selection is Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, who is looking to repeat awards after winning Best Picture in 2020 with The Platform. This Bilbao-born director returns to explore the themes of greed, ambition and excessive wealth in Rich Flu, a feature film where a virus is killing anyone who possesses any kind of wealth, so everyone is trying to get rid of possessions that no one wants anymore. The film has a deluxe cast featuring names that include Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jonah Hauer-King and Timothy Spall.

A film that promises to set plenty of tongues wagging is Luna, by Alfonso Cortés-Cavanillas, a science fiction project where a private expedition travels to the moon to photograph a comet. A fragment of it ends up colliding with the Earth, cutting off all communication and leaving them completely alone, desperately struggling to survive in the lunar void. With a cast headed by Marian Álvarez, Greta Fernández, Asier Etxeandía and Roberto Álamo, Luna could prove to be one of the major surprises in the SOFC.

The last of the Spanish feature films that will be present in the Official In Competition Section will be Enrique Buleo's debut feature, Still Life with Ghosts, a new and promising voice in absurdist comedy endorsed by Juan Cavestany, and co-produced by Alejandra Mora and Sideral. The film, which has an impeccable track record in both domestic and international markets, was part of the ECAM Incubator and has just landed from First Look in Locarno. It is a delicious ensemble black comedy, containing elements that are both autobiographical and characteristic of Spanish idiosyncrasy, such as the “esperpento” and “picaresque” styles, where belief in the paranormal is widely accepted. . In short, a unique portrait of the La Manchuela region that will delight audiences at the Auditori theater.

Domestic Films in the Other Official Sections 

In Sitges Collection, the section dedicated to fantastic films that have already made waves at other major competitions, and that makes its debut at the Festival, we will also be able to find two new domestic productions that are bound to get plenty of people talking. The first of them is an animated feature film that participated in the Contrechamp Section at the most recent edition of the Annecy Festival. We're referring to Mariposas negras by David Baute, a story inspired by real women that proposes a journey from Africa, the Caribbean and Asia towards a future that's uncertain for humanity. The reason why these beings are forced to migrate? A climate change that is advancing mercilessly and whose victims are always the most vulnerable. 

The second domestic addition to Sitges Collection (third if we count the previously announced Apocalypse Z: The Beginning of the End by Carles Torrens) is El llanto (The Wailing), the debut feature by Valladolid-born director Pedro Martín-Calero. The film is about Andrea (played by Ester Expósito), who is haunted by something or someone she is unable to see. Twenty years earlier, this same thing had happened to Marie (Mathilde Ollivier) and there was only one person who was able to understand what was going on, a woman named Camila (Malena Villa). The three of them will face this threat in the shadows and all three will hear the same overwhelming sound: the sound of wailing. 

The Noves Visions section always offers us some of the most interesting cinematic proposals of the year. Centaures de la nit and Infinite Summer are perfect examples of this section's spirit. The first of them is by one of the most prestigious Catalan directors of the moment, Marc Recha. Centaures de la nit, his tenth feature film, is shot mostly with blind actors, and is freely inspired by the surreal world of the blind Slovenian photographer Evgen Bavèar and the imagination of Luis Buñuel: free, radically independent, global and transversal cinema. Meanwhile, Infinite Summer comes to us from a director who is already very well known to Sitges Film Festival fans: Miguel Llansó. The film takes us to an Estonian beach, where the vacations of three young people will turn into a transhumanist mystery. An exploration of youth, sexuality and friendship with all the surreal twists this Madrid-born director has us accustomed to. 

In the Panorama section we will have a Spanish and Mexican co-production filmed in Jalisco destined to become one of the most disturbing films of this edition of the Festival. Directed by Adrián Araujo, Estela is the story of a couple who decides to move to a mansion in front of a lake, in search of tranquility that will allow them to become parents. His obsession ends up attracting the ghost of a girl looking for a mother. In addition to Estela, in Panorama we will also present Historias de Halloween, the latest by Kiko Prada. It deals with the adventures of Luis, who one Halloween night ends up in an old antique shop that hides many secrets. The film has a strong ensemble cast that includes names such as Macarena Gómez, Christian Thomas and Javier Botet. 

In Anima't we will also have another co-production, with the participation of Spain, Argentina, Peru, Brazil, Ecuador and Colombia. We're referring to Dalia y el Libro Rojo, by David Bisbano, an animated fantastic film where Dalia will become part of the book that her deceased father was writing, coming face to face with the characters that he'd created.

Rediscovering Spanish Cult Films 

Back in July, we already announced that we would be dedicating a retrospective to León Klimovsky, and that we would also be rediscovering several cult classics by the legendary Jesús Franco. In the case of the first, we already announced the screenings of Dr. Jekyll vs. the Werewolf and The People Who Own the Dark. To these, we now add two of the most important vampire films made by the Argentinean-born director, who produced most of his work in Spain: Strange Love of the Vampires and The Dracula Saga. And we continue in vampire territory with Las vampiras, Dracula, Prisoner of Frankenstein (4K) and Count Dracula, cult works by Jesús Franco. To all these treasures we add a title that fits this year's carnival and circus leitmotif like a glove: Balada triste de trompeta, by Álex de la Iglesia. 

Short films with a Domestic Hallmark 

In addition to the aforementioned feature films, we can also add a large number of short films that will be shown in the different sections of Sitges' film competition. In the Official Selection, Imago, by Rafa Dengrá, Malet by Roger Danès and Alfred Pérez Fargas and Triangle by Joseph Díaz will be screened. As special screenings we will enjoy the participation of Los comensales by Mj Fuentes, The Merchant by Gabriel Campoy & Guillem Lafoz And Tengo que acabar el puto TFM by Estíbaliz Burgaleta, and Andrea Casaseca. The first of them was the winner of the first edition of the WomanInFan Short-Teaser Creation Competition. The Anima't - Curts section will feature a total of four domestic productions: The Hunt by Diogo Costa, Crimson Harbor by Victor Bonafonte, When It Comes (It Will Have Your Eyes) by Izibene Oñederra and La valla by Sam Orti. Finally, it is also important to highlight the presence of the Spanish-Andorran short film El mal donat, by Hector Mas and Alfons Casal, which will participate in Noves Visions - Curts, and the special screening of the short film Kokuhaku by Adrià Guxens, which will have its world premiere at the festival.

Spanish Films in Brigadoon 

Continuing with the question of domestic short films, in the Brigadoon section we can find a more than interesting selection, which will also compete for the Brigadoon Paul Naschy Award. There are a total of four: El Cristo de la Calavera by Chus Lara, Voyager by Pablo Pagán, The Harvest, by David Barrera and Manuel Carballo, and Céntrico, by Luso Martínez. 

Regarding feature films, we can highlight the screening of Crypt of the Living Dead ( 1973), by Julio Salvador and Ray Danton, which will be shown as a tribute screening to Teresa Gimpera. Documentaries will also be featured, starting with José Lifante, una aventura en el cine, directed by David García Sariñena. Another documentary to be screened will be Este será el último. Naxo Fiol y su camarita by Carlos J. Lafuente Cerdán and Xavier Gullaumes, which will be accompanied by the short film El fantasma de la mediocridad by Naxo Fiol. Finally, at a screening organized by CineAsia, we will be able to see The Dawn of Kaiju Eiga by Jonathan Bellés. 

Sitges Family 

In Sitges Family we can also find a good number of Spanish productions. In terms of feature length films, we will be screening Superklaus, by Steve Majaury and Andrea Sebastiá, a Spanish-Canadian co-production that tells the story of Santa Claus who, after getting hit in the head, thinks he's a superhero and confronts a businessman obsessed with selling toys.

As for short films, the selection is very extensive, with a total of seven domestic productions: La gran cita de Conej by Pablo Río Gómez, Flocky by Esther Casas Roura, Gizaki by Xanti Rodríguez, El atrapasueños, by Guillermo Patrikios, Cuando llegue la inundación, by Antonio Lomas Domingo, Sincopat, by Pol Diggler, and Un placer (A pleasure), by Sonia Estevez, Buffet Paradís, by Héctor Zafra & Santi Amézqueta and Malas hierbas, by Cristina Merino.

Support for the 57th edition

This year the Festival screenings will take place in the following venues in the official circuit: Auditori Melià Sitges, Sala Tramuntana, Sala Llevant (Brigadoon), Cinemes Casino Prado de Sitges, Escorxador – Centre Cultural and Miramar Centre Cultural.

Once again, the Festival thanks the commitment of the collaborating entities and companies: Moritz (main sponsor), Cupra (automotive partner), Repsol (multi-energy partner), CaixaBank (strategic partner), TV3, Catalunya Ràdio and 3CAT (official television and official radio), La Vanguardia (official newspaper) and Meliá Sitges (sponsor and official headquarters).

The Festival confirms the agreements with AMC SE – Dark TV, Aullidos, China Madrid, Cinemes Verdi, Cinesa, CineyTele, Cinemascomics, Cobega-Coca Cola European Partners, Creu Roja, El Cinèfil, Dama Autoras, Droom, Embotits Bundó, ESCAC, Factorial, FNAC, Fotogramas, Fundación Japón, FX Animation, Grup Flaix FM, Grup Iguana, Grupo Main, Hong Kong Trade Office Brussels, Iberia, IES Joan Ramon Benaprès Escola Hosteleria, Montaz Media, Nació Digital, Ocimag, Patates Piqué, Port d'Aiguadolç, Prime, Real Cercle Artístic, Renfe, Sensacine, SGAE and SGAE Foundation, Terrorweekend, Tik Tok, Transperfect Translation SL, The Original Cha-Chá, Tresc and Vertix.

Sitges 2024 is organized thanks to the involvement of Sitges City Council, the Catalan Institute of Cultural Enterprises of the Department of Culture of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Casino Prado de Sitges and Escorxador – Cultural Center, and has the financing of the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts of the Ministry of Culture of Spain, of the Provincial Council of Barcelona and of the Carnet Jove – Department of Welfare and Family.

SOFC 

‘Daniela Forever’ - Nacho Vigalondo (European Premiere) 

‘Luna’ - Alfonso Cortés-Cavanillas (World Premiere) 

‘Rich Flu’ - Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia (World Premiere) 

‘Still Life with Ghosts’ - Enrique Buleo (World Premiere) 

‘Una ballena’ – Pablo Hernando (European Premiere) 

Sitges Collection 

‘Apocalipsis Z: El principio del fin’ - Carles Torrens (World Premiere) 

‘El llanto’ - Pedro Martín-Calero 

‘Mariposas, negras’ - David Baute (Spanish Premiere) 

Noves Visions 

‘Centaures de la nit’ - Marc Recha (World Premiere) 

‘Infinite Summer’ – Miguel Llansó (Spanish Premiere) 

Anima’t 

‘Dalia y el Libro Rojo’ - David Bisbano (World Premiere) 

Panorama 

‘Estela’ - Adrián Araujo (World Premiere) 

‘Historias de Halloween’ - Kiko Prada 

Sitges Clàssics 

‘Drácula contra Frankenstein’ (4K) – Jesús Franco 

‘Dr. Jekyll y el hombre lobo’ - León Klimovsky 

‘El conde Drácula’ – Jesús Franco 

‘El extraño amor de los vampiros’ - León Klimovsky 

‘La saga de los Drácula’ - León Klimovsky 

‘Las vampiras’ - Jesús Franco 

‘The Birthday’ (4K) – Eugenio Mira 

‘Último deseo’ - León Klimovsky 

‘Balada triste de trompeta’ - Álex de la Iglesia 

Cortometrajes 

‘Crimson Harbor’ – Víctor Bonafonte (Anima’t) 

‘El mal donat’ - Hector Mas y Alfons Casal (Noves Visions) 

‘Imago’ – Rafa Dengrá (SOFC) 

'Kokuhaku' - Adrià Guxens (Sessió especial)

La valla - Sam Orti (Anima’t) 

‘Los comensales’ – MJ Fuentes (Sesiones Especiales) 

‘Malet’ - Roger Danès y Alfred Pérez Fargas (SOFC) 

‘Tengo que acabar el puto TFM’ - Estíbaliz Burgaleta y Andrea Casaseca (Sesiones Especiales) 

‘The Merchant’ – Gabriel Campoy y Guillem Lafoz (Sesiones Especiales) 

‘Triangle’ - Joseph Díaz (SOFC) 

‘When It Comes (It Will Have Your Eyes)’ - Izibene Oñederra (Anima’t) 

Brigadoon 

‘Céntrico’ - Luso Martínez (Short Film) 

‘El Cristo de la Calavera’ - Chus Lara (Short Film) 

‘El fantasma de la mediocridad’ - Naxo Fiol (Short Film) 

‘Este será el último. Naxo Fiol y su camarita’ - Carlos J. Lafuente Cerdán & Xavier Gullaumes (Largometrajes Documental) 

‘José Lifante, una aventura en el cine’ - David García Sariñena (Largometrajes Documental) 

‘La tumba de la isla maldita’ - Julio Salvador & Ray Danton (Largometrajes) 

‘Los albores del Kaiju Eiga’ – Jonathan Bellés 

‘The Harvest’ - David Barrera y Manuel Carballo (Short Film) 

‘Voyager’ - Pablo Pagán (Short Film) 

Sitges Family 

‘Cuando llegue la inundación’ - Antonio Lomas Domingo (Short Film) 

‘El atrapasueños’ – Guillermo Patrikios (Short Film) 

‘Flocky’ - Esther Casas Roura (Short Film) 

‘Gizaki’ – Xanti Rodríguez (Short Film)

‘La gran cita de Conej’ - Pablo Río Gómez (Short Film) 

‘Sincopat’ - Pol Diggler (Short Film) 

‘Superklaus’ - de Steve Majaury & Andrea Sebastiá (Feature Film) 

‘Un placer (A pleasure)’ – Sonia Estevez (Short Film) 

‘Malas hierbas’ - Cristina Merino (Short Film) 

‘Buffet Paradís’ - Héctor Zafra y Santi Amézqueta (Short Film)