AFI European Union Film Showcase 2020
In its 33rd year, the “AFI European Union Film Showcase” continues its tradition of bringing the best in European cinema to our audiences, and this year will take place online for the first time.
This year’s Showcase features 48 films representing 25 E.U. member states, including award winners, regional box-office hits, debut works by up-and-coming talents and new works by leading auteurs, plus nine of the top contenders for this year’s Academy Award® for Best International Feature Film and 12 U.S. and North American premieres.
Spanish Films at the 2020 AFI European Union Film Showcase
Rosa’s wedding
- Available for purchase from Dec. 5 at 9 am to Dec. 27 at 11:45 pm.
- Directed by Icíar Bollaín, Spain, 2020, 97 minutes. Original title: La boda de Rosa.
- Winner, Special Jury Award and Best Supporting Actress (Nathalie Poza), 2020 Málaga Spanish Film Festival. Official Selection, 2020 Miami and San Sebastian film festivals.
- In Spanish and Valencian with English subtitles. Watch trailer.
Veteran actress and director Icíar Bollaín crafts this comedy of self-realization starring Candela Peña as Rosa, the dependable mainstay, underpaid employee and selfless family member who suddenly decides to start living for herself… much to the dismay of everyone around her. As Rosa’s 45th birthday approaches, it begins to dawn on her that she’s never really cared for herself and has never learned to say “no,” or to truly love the person she is. Her solution? To elope and marry the one person she realizes she has neglected the most: herself. As shocked family members and friends slowly adjust to Rosa’s internal transformation and the wedding day looms, it becomes clear that changing her life is going to be anything but easy. Called “a feel-good film par excellence” by Screen Daily, Rosa’s Wedding is a warm and laughter-filled tale of one woman’s journey to the ultimate self-acceptance.
Schoolgirls
- Available for purchase from Dec.17 at 9 am to Dec. 20 at 11:45 pm.
- Directed by Pilar Palomero, Spain, 2020, 97 minutes. Original title: Las niñas.
- Winner, Best Film, Best Spanish Film and Best Cinematography, 2020 Málaga Spanish Film Festival. Official Selection, 2020 Berlin and Chicago film festivals.
- In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.
Spanish director Pilar Palomero’s debut feature, produced by Valérie Delpierre and Alex Lafuente, is a 90s-set coming-of-age tale which explores the tensions and anxieties of adolescence against the backdrop of Spain’s immediate post-Franco years. Fifteen years of democracy separate the country from the dictator’s rule, but the Catholic church with its prevailing moral code still dominates much of society. It’s 1992 and 11-year-old Celia (Andrea Fandos) lives in the provincial town of Zaragoza with her mother (Natalia de Molina). She studies at a strict religious school run by nuns and is a responsible student and considerate daughter. But when the impossibly cool Brisa (Zoe Arnao) arrives from the far more cosmopolitan Barcelona, the two girls unexpectedly become fast friends, and Celia soon finds herself swept up in a rebellious clique. With her eyes newly opened to the world, Celia begins to raise questions about her own family background, including the fate of her absent father.
The Spanish films at the AFI European Union Film Showcase 2020 are available to viewers located anywhere in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.