Carlos Saura

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Peppermint Frappé opens to the image of a pair of hands meticulously cropping images from a fashion magazine for a personal scrapbook. The hands belong to an unassuming and conservative physician named Julian (José Luis López Vázquez) who runs a radiology clinic from his personal residence, assisted by a shy, mild mannered nurse named Ana (Geraldine Chaplin). One afternoon, Julian pays a visit to his childhood friend, Pablo (Alfredo Mayo), a charismatic and sophisticated adventurer who has recently returned from Africa with the unexpected news that he has married a beautiful and carefree young woman named Elena (Geraldine Chaplin). Read More »

A look at the history and traditions of flamenco music and dance through the live performance of a wide variety of pieces.Read More »

A musical in which the folkloric tradition of the music and dance of Mexico is taken up. Recovering the connection that existed between Spain and Mexico, with new and modern versions.Read More »

Carlos Saura’s peculiar take on the origin of art. The acclaimed and multi-award winning director, with more than 50 films to his name, portrays the evolution and relationship of art with the wall as a creative canvas from the first graphic revolutions of the prehistoric caves to the most avant-garde urban expressions. A thrilling and personal journey in the company of figures including Juan Luis Arsuaga, Miquel Barceló, Zeta, Musa 71 and Suso 33.Read More »

Quote:
In an early episode in Carmen, Carlos Saura’s second dance film with renowned flamenco artist Antonio Gades (in what would inevitably prove to be the second film of their collaborative Flamenco trilogy), a group of musicians rehearse at a large, open dance studio within earshot of the choreographer, Antonio (Gades) as he struggles to find the proper tempo suitable to adapting the Seguedilla from Bizet’s opera for a flamenco performance. Reinterpreting the operatic work from a waltzy, 3/4 timed vocal piece to a sprightly, improvisational bulería, the musicians perform their rendition to the receptive Antonio who, along with his studio partner – and perhaps, erstwhile paramour – Cristina (Cristina Hoyos), begin to re-envision Carmen, not as a French composer’s projection of the fiery gypsy seductress – and more broadly, a foreigner’s stereotypical notions of Spanish culture – but rather, as an indigenous adaptation of Prosper Mérimée’s novel, disconnected from the now iconic flourishes of Bizet’s opera. Read More »

On a secluded farmhouse in Castile and León, Luis is reuinted with his estranged daughter, Elisa after a 20-year separation. On the farmhouse, Luis writes what appears at times to be both an autobiography and a novel. The book is played out, with memories of the past, such as when Luis walked out on his family and is mixed with fantasies about Elisa’s adult life as well as her failed marriage.Read More »

In an isolated village in Extremadura (Spain), the Jiménez and Fuentes families have a violent history of land disputes, jealousy, envy, and violence.Read More »

In the twilight of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship, an 8-year-old orphan and her two sisters find shelter in the house of their stern aunt and try their best to acclimatize to a new reality. Can they summon up the courage to grow up?Read More »

Quote:
The architect, a contemporary master, Renzo Piano. The filmmaker, another contemporary master, Carlos Saura.Read More »