More than a Hundred Spectators Enjoyed the First Catalan, Basque and Galician Cinema Season of Birmingham

The Catalan film “Elisa K”, the Basque “80 egunean” and the Galician “Crebinsky” were introduced by their respective directors and projected in the Midlands Arts Centre during May.

Birmingham, UK June 14, 2011 -- The renowned Midlands Arts Centre hosted more than 100 people that attended the first Catalan, Basque and Galician Cinema Season organized by the University of Birmingham. Three award-winning films were introduced by their directors. After the showings, debates took place in which the spectators had the opportunity to ask the directors about their works.



The season started with the showing of the acclaimed Catalan film Elisa K, co-directed by Judith Colell and Jordi Cadena. The film deals with the traumatic consequences of childhood sexual abuse, which are examined in the film. This Catalan-language production, itself adapted from Lolita Bosch’s book Elisa Kiseljak, relates how a 10-year-old schoolgirl, Elisa, was raped by a friend of her father's, and how she buries the fatal incident within her subconscious. The film director Jordi Cadena enjoyed the question and answer session that revolved around the relationship between plot and cinematic devices.

Basque cinema was represented by 80 egunean (For 80 days), a critically acclaimed film directed by Jose Mari Goenaga and Jon Garaño. 80 egunean is a sincere and humorous Basque-language drama charting the flourishing relationship between two women in their seventies who meet again by accident after fifty years. The director Jon Garaño was happy to talk about this charming story that deals with such topics as lesbianism between elderly people.

Finally, the Galician film Crebinsky was a fine ending for the cinema season. The Crebinsky brothers and their cow grew up at the foot of a lighthouse. They survive collecting things that the sea brings: the “crebas”, completely isolated from the military events that took place in Europe during the 1940s. Crebinsky’s peculiar universe full of imaginative realism gave rise to many questions that the director Enrique Otero answered in detail after the showing.

The three films were shown in their original version with English subtitles. All screenings were free of charge thanks to the generous support of the Etxepare Basque Institute, Institut Ramon Llull, Xunta de Galicia and the University of Birmingham.



About the Catalan, Basque and Galician studies in the University of Birmingham:
The University of Birmingham is the sole academic institution in the United Kingdom that offers Basque, Catalan and Galician studies to its students as an integral part of their degree. Thanks to successful agreements with the Institut Ramon Llull, the Etxepare Basque Institute and the Xunta de Galicia, a considerable number of students enjoy language and culture modules in Basque, Catalan and Galician.