From an Oscar winner’s new work to edgy horror films that could become Spain’s next genre breakouts, Juan Sarda profiles the hottest Spanish films coming up in 2012

The Artist And The Model (El Artista Y La Modelo) 

In post-production

Oscar-nominated this year for his animation Chico & Rita, Spanish director Fernando Trueba steps back behind the camera for the live-action The Artist And The Model. Set in occupied France in 1943, it has an attractive cast led by Jean Rochefort, Claudia Cardinale and Aida Folch and follows a depressed sculptor who recovers his passion when he meets a Catalan refugee. The director’s company Fernando Trueba PC produced alongside France’s Bonne Pioche. Trueba’s credits also include The Girl Of Your Dreams and Belle Epoque, which won the best foreign-language film Academy Award.

Contact Fernando Trueba PC - nerea@fernandotrueba.com

The Body (El Cuerpo)

In production

Director Oriol Paulo was co-writer of Guillem Morales’ 2010 international breakout Julia’s Eyes, and makes his directorial debut with The Body. Like Julia’s Eyes, the thriller stars Belen Rueda and is produced by Rodar y Rodar. Jose Coronado and Hugo Silva also star. The Body follows the investigation after a body disappears from a mortuary. Antena 3, Canal Plus and Televisio de Catalunya co-produce. The film is shooting until mid-March in Barcelona.

Contact DeaPlaneta - international@deaplaneta.com

Childish Games (Dictado)

Completed

This intense psychological thriller with horror elements has landed a competition slot in Berlin. Childish Games stars Juan Diego Botto as a man who adopts the daughter of a childhood friend after his suicide — but the girl’s presence starts to have an adverse effect. The film stars Barbara Lennie (The Skin I Live In) and Nora Navas (Black Bread). Directed by Antonio Chavarrias — producer of Cargo and The Milk Of Sorrow and director of thrillers such as Susanna and Celia’s LivesChildish Games is produced by Filmax International and Chavarrias’ Oberon Cinematografica.

Contact Filmax International - i.diaz@filmax.com

Dream And Silence (Sueno Y Silencio)

In post-production

The latest film from Jaime Rosales is set in Paris and tells the story of a couple who lose their daughter in a car accident. When the man recovers from a coma, he is unable to remember the girl. The director says the film — which has a non-professional cast and was shot in Paris as well as Barcelona and Spain’s Ebro Delta — is an investigation of spirituality in modern times. Rosales’ previous two films, The Hours Of The Day and Solitary Fragments, both screened at Cannes. Dream And Silence should be a similarly attractive proposition for major festivals. Madrid-based Wanda Films and Fresdeval Films produce.

Sales Wanda Films - yolandaferrer@wanda.es

Foosball 3D (Futbolin)

In production

Argentinian director Juan Jose Campanella won the Oscar for best foreign-language film in 2010 for The Secret In Their Eyes and returns with this 3D animation that follows the adventures of Amadeo, a teenager who discovers the value of friendship with his team in a foosball league. The Argentina-Spain co-production is produced by Plural-Jempsa and Antena 3 Films in association with Catmandu and 100 Bares. It is backed by Antena 3 TV and Canal Plus. Based on a short story by Roberto Fontanarrosa, the film is set for delivery in December.

Contact Film Factory Entertainment - v.canales@filmfactory.es

Frozen Silence (Silencio En La Nieve)

Completed

Gerardo Herrero, who co-produced The Secret In Their Eyes, directs noir thriller Frozen Silence. The film follows the investigation by a former police officer into a series of mysterious murders in a Spanish battalion during the Second World War. Juan Diego Botto and Carmelo Gomez star. Budgeted at $6.7m, the film is produced by Castafiore Films. Frozen Silence opened in Spain in January to good reviews.

Contact Latido Films - latido@latidofilms.com

The Impossible

In post-production

The ambitious English-language debut of Juan Antonio Bayona (whose horror The Orphanage was a major hit in 2007), The Impossible stars Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts and Geraldine Chaplin in a story set against the 2004 Asian tsunami. Shot in Thailand and Spain, the film was produced by Apaches Entertainment and Telecinco Cinema. Summit is selling, while Warner Bros releases in Spain later this year.

Contact Summit International - summit-ent.com

The Last Days (Los Ultimos Dias)

In pre-production

A post-apocalyptic Barcelona is the setting for this $7m film by gifted young talents Alex and David Pastor, who made 2009 US thriller Carriers. The Last Days is a Spanish-language thriller about a mysterious form of agoraphobia that spreads around the world, keeping the entire population locked indoors. The protagonist, an office clerk, must reach his pregnant girlfriend — but cannot go onto the streets. Morena Films and Antena 3 produce the film, which is set to shoot in spring/summer.

Contact Morena Films - morenafilms@morenafilms.com

Invader (Invasor)

In post-production

Directed by Daniel Calparsoro, Invader is a psychological thriller about a doctor who returns from a mission with the Spanish army after a devastating accident. Suffering from amnesia, he investigates what happened, pitting himself against the establishment. The cast features Alberto Ammann, Antonio de la Torre and Karra Elejalde. Invader is produced by Morena Films and Vaca Films, with the participation of France’s Mandarin Cinema, which has French rights.

Contact Filmax International - i.diaz@filmax.com

Todo Es Silencio

In post-production

Galician director Jose Luis Cuerda scored international success with Butterfly’s Tongue in 1999, while his The Blind Sunflowers (2008) also played widely. Cuerda’s new film, set again in Galicia, is a thriller about tobacco smuggling. Todo Es Silencio takes place in the late 1980s when local mafia were in control of the regional economy, and is based in a novel by Manuel Rivas. It features popular young Spanish actors Quim Gutierrez and Miguel Angel Silvestre. Canal Plus Spain, TVE, Castafiore Films and Tornasol produce.

Contact Latido Films - latido@latidofilms.com

Windows

In pre-production

One of the hottest young film-makers in Spain, Nacho Vigalondo was Oscar-nominated for his short 7.35 In The Morning in 2005 and scored international acclaim for his debut feature Timecrimes. Vigalondo’s second feature, the alien invasion comedy Extraterrestrialopens in Spain in March, and he is in pre-production on Windows, to be shot later in the year. Budgeted at $6.5m, Windows explores the subject of watching and being watched through the internet. According to the director, it will be in a similar style to Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. Apaches Entertainment and Antena 3 produce and Wild Bunch has world sales rights. The film will be shot in both Spanish and English.

Contact Wild Bunch - cbaraton@wildbunch.eu