Filmed through the prism of grief, documentary ‘Almudena’ is director Azucena Rodrigues’ ode to one of Spain’s renowned writers who was also a dear friend. The late Almudena Grandes was “the voice of her generation, exploring not only contemporary issues but dwelling as well in the memory of the Spanish Civil War,” said Latido’s Antonio Saura, who added: “This will be a must-see documentary for everyone interested in Spanish and world literature, and for Latido, an honor to bring to the world.”
Premiering March 15 in a special screening at the Malaga Film Festival, “Almudena” began as a project about Sara Gómez, a character from Grandes’ novel ‘Los Aires Dificiles,’ according to Rodrigues, whose credits include “Women in Prison,” starring Penelope Cruz. This led to her meeting with Grandes and the start of a lifelong friendship. In 1995, Rodrigues made a film adaptation of Grandes’ novel ‘Atlas of Human Geography’ from a screenplay written by both.
“Many years later, in 2018, I began working on a documentary about her work. I managed to film some initial material, which was supposed to form the foundation of the project, but the pandemic, her illness and her passing disrupted everything,” she recalled.
After Grandes’ demise in 2021, Rodrigues spoke with producer Mariela Besuievsky, a partner in Tornasol Media, about the idea of making a documentary about Grandes. Besuievsky was all in. “At the time, I was still deep in mourning, and it was painful to confront images of her speaking and laughing as if nothing had happened. But it was precisely the idea of keeping her alive—even if only on screen—that motivated me,” she added.
In the documentary, Grandes speaks as she describes her worldview and how she sees life and the art of writing. The film seeks to preserve her memory and honor her life and work while also acknowledging the profound emptiness her passing has left behind. Luis García Montero, her husband, steps into that void, offering a deeply personal reflection on a writer who, like few others, captured the essence of her generation’s collective voices.
“Almudena Grandes was a star since her first novel, the bestselling “Las edades de Lulu,” whose adaptation to cinema by Bigas Luna, was not only a huge success, but Javier Bardem’s debut in movies. Since then, Almudena was the voice of her generation, exploring not only contemporary issues but dwelling as well in the memory of the Spanish Civil War,” said Saura.
The Madrid-based writer was the author of a dozen acclaimed novels, six of which were adapted into films.
“With ‘Almudena’ and ‘Chillida’ in Arantxa Aguirre’s documentary presented in San Sebastian, together with Anton Alvarez’s documentary about Yerai Cortes, Latido is bringing to the world a fine collection of the top Spanish contemporary artists,” noted Saura.
The 28th Malaga Film Festival runs March 14-23.
