“Film in Granada” reached a hundred locations in 2023 and hosted the shooting of “Segundo Premio”

Last year saw the release of films by Erice, Bayona and Rocío Mesa, all three of which were shot in the province of Granada

“Film in Granada” office, part of the Provincial Council, has closed the year 2023 with a “very positive” balance, both in the reception of projects and in the promotion of the audiovisual sector in Granada. Among others, “Film in Granada” attended last year the shooting of “Segundo Premio“, the awaited film about the band “Los Planetas”, directed by Isaki Lacuesta and produced by La Terraza and Áralan Films.

The provincial deputy of Culture and Education, Pilar Caracuel, on whom the office depends, has assured that “it is a real milestone for the province of Granada the premiere in the same year of two great films by two great directors of Spanish cinema, Victor Erice and Juan Antonio Bayona, which were shot in our province, and have given Granada international visibility in the Cannes, Venice and San Sebastian Film Festivals and in the Spanish film awards, especially in the Goya, where the two films have 24 nominations. In addition, “Clouse Your Eyes” and “Society of the Snow” were two of the three films shortlisted to represent Spain at the Oscars, and finally the Film Academy has sent Bayona’s film, shot in Sierra Nevada”.

Caracuel was also very pleased “that Film in Granada has been able to host and collaborate in the filming of Isaki Lacuesta‘s “Segundo Premio”, a project that the office has been working on for four years, and, above all, that 50 municipalities in Granada are represented in our provincial catalog of locations, which has already reached a hundred film sets”.

The search for these locations has been carried out at the request of the municipalities, through the Local Agreement 2022/2023 program. The “Film in Granada” office has provided technical assistance, visiting each municipality, documenting the spaces susceptible of hosting a filming and designing the files for each location, which are now available on its website. The municipalities that have joined the catalog in 2023 are Alhama de Granada, Las Gabias, Güéjar Sierra, Valderrubio, La Peza, Víznar, Güevéjar, Dehesas de Guadix, Alicún de Ortega, Albuñuelas, Fornes, Játar, Cortes y Graena, Beas de Guadix, Benamaurel, Castril, Cenes de la Vega, Chauchina, Láchar, Los Güájares, Rubite, Ventas de Zafarraya, Zafarraya and Capileira.

Bayona, Erice and “Los Farad”

Last year, two international productions were released with the collaboration of “Film in Granada”: “Society of the Snow” and “Close Your Eyes”. The first of them, directed by J.A. Bayona and produced by Netflix, is based on the novel by Pablo Vierci about the plane crash suffered by the Uruguayan rugby team in Los Andes in 1972. The film was shot over three months in Sierra Nevada, by a crew of 180 people and premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Among others, it has won the Audience Award at San Sebastian Film Festival and two European Film Academy Awards, and has been nominated for the Golden Globe for International Film and 13 Goya Awards, among other awards. It is the film chosen by the Film Academy to represent Spain at the next Oscar Awards.

“Close Your Eyes“, Víctor Erice’s latest work, is produced by Tandem Films and Pecado Films, with the support of the Granada Provincial Council’s Film in Granada office, and stars Manolo Solo, José Coronado, María León and Ana Torrent. Erice filmed in various locations in the Granada municipalities of Gualchos-Castell de Ferro, Rubite, Dúrcal and Nigüelas. It was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and has been selected for the Toronto, New York and London Film Festivals. It has won the Lisbon Film Festival Award and is nominated for 11 Goya Awards, 9 Feroz Awards and 4 Carmen Awards. 

On the other hand, other important productions that were shot in the province of Granada were released in 2023. These include the film “Tobacco Barns” by Rocío Mesa from Granada, a tribute to the Vega de Granada, which has the support of the Provincial Council; the documentary series “Portillo´s Andalucía” (Channel 5, UK), with a first episode shot in the city of Granada; and the fiction series “Los Farad” (Prime Video), directed by Mariano Barroso and filmed in Marina del Este and Motril.

In terms of activities, “Film in Granada” organized a meeting in April with screenwriter Fernando Navarro from Granada; collaborated in May with the University of Granada in the second “Filming Lab”, where casting directors Eva Leira and Yolanda Serrano reviewed their filmography through a master class at Condes de Gabia; held its III Industry Conference “Filming in Granada” in November, with the presence of producers Jose Alba, Cristóbal Garcia and Agus Jiménez; and also expanded its Professional Guide, which now includes 165 audiovisual technicians from Granada and 64 companies.