Basque cinema looks to Valencia

Fernando Albizu, the film “Maixabel”, Kiko de la Rica, Antxon Gómez, the animated film “Zutik”, the short film “Nacer”… Several Basque film productions and professionals have an appointment this Saturday, February 12, in Valencia , city in which the Spanish Film Academy will deliver its annual awards in the Les Arts space.

The movie “Mayabel”one of the biggest cinematographic phenomena of the year, is nominated in fourteen categories: best film, best direction (Icíar Bollaín), best original screenplay (Icíar Bollaín and Isa Campo), best original music (Alberto Iglesias, also recently nominated for the Oscar), Best Leading Actor (Luis Tosar), Best Leading Actress (Blanca Portillo), Best Supporting Actor (Urko Olazabal), Best New Actress (María Cerezuela), Best Production Direction (Guadalupe Balaguer), Best Editing (Nacho Ruíz Capillas ), best artistic direction (Mikel Serrano, winner of two Goyas for “Handia” and “Akelarre”), best costume design (Clara Bilbao), best makeup and hairdressing (Karmele Soler, winner of a Goya for “The skin I live in “, and Sergio Pérez Berbel), best sound (Alazne Ameztoy, winner of a Goya for “The Infinite Trench”, Juan Ferro and Candela Palencia).

But the film about the meetings between Maixabel Lasa, widow of the politician assassinated by ETA Juan María Jauregui, and the members of the commando that assassinated him, which has the participation of EITB, is not the only option for a prize for Basque cinema. The screenwriter Jorge Guerricaechevarria (“The day of the beast”, “Celda 211”, “Carne trémula”…), for example, is nominated for the award for best adapted screenplay for his work with director Daniel Monzón to bring Javier Cercas’s novel “Las border laws.

The animated short film is also a Basque production “Born”since the film directed by Roberto Valle from Toledo has the support of Bilbao producer Ivan Miñambres, from the production company UniKo.

Continuing with the animated film, “Zutik”, directed by Iker Álvarez and Haizea Pastor, will compete in the best animated film section. The Basque film, in which EITB also participates, conveys a social and environmental message, and will face a curious rival in its category: “Gora automatikoa!”.

Although its name suggests otherwise, “Gora automatikoa!” It is not a Basque production. The filmmakers David Galán Galindo, Esaú Dharma and Pablo Var have created this film with the sole objective of winning a Goya award, since last year the award in this category went to the only film that was eligible for it, “La gallina turuleca” . The reason given for putting the title in Basque is that “Basque films are the most nominated in recent years” (sic).

“The Good Boss”, by director Fernando León de Aranoa, has become this year the film with the most nominations in the history of the Goya Awards, twenty, surpassing precisely “Counted Days”, by Imanol Uribe, who in 1995 opted for to nineteen prizes.

Well, one of those nominations, in the category of best supporting actor, is that of the Vitorian Fernando Albizuwho plays Roman, a timid security guard, in that film.

Cate Blanchett and Jose Sacristan

During the Goya gala, the veteran actor José Sacristán will receive the Goya de Honor award, while the Australian Cate Blanchett will be the first recipient of the new International Goya award.