The success of Spanish film

For several decades now, the likes of Almodóvar, Cruz and Banderas have become household names for everyone outside Spain. Films like “Volver”, “The Others”, and “The Impossible” have packed cinemas all over the world. Our feature films are exported to great acclaim and are gaining ever more recognition. We invite you to take a look at our most famous international films and actors –after all, film is another excellent and entertaining way of learning our language.

“Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown”, “Talk to her”, “Volver”, “All about my mother” and many more. There's no doubt that Pedro Almodóvar is one of the most widely known Spanish directors all around the world. He has numerous awards to prove it, including two Oscars and two Golden Globes.

Another Spaniard known the world over is Malaga-born Antonio Banderas, who first made a name for himself in the American film world thanks to his starring role in the “Zorro” saga alongside Katherine Zeta Jones. He currently combines his facet as an actor with that of director and producer.

The couple formed by the Spanish actors Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz are widely known internationally. Penélope Cruz gained worldwide fame with her starring role in “Volver”, which earned her her first Oscar nomination for Best Actress in 2006. Two years later she won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”. Javier Bardem also captivated Hollywood in 2007 with his performance in “No country for old men”.

Other Spanish actors have also managed to find a place in the hearts of foreign audiences. This is the case of Victoria Abril, for example, very familiar to French audiences, and Elsa Pataky, who has recently featured in the two latest instalments of the action saga “Fast&Furius”.

And that's because in Spain we make a lot of very good films. If you decide to come and visit us, we invite you to take a good look at our films, where you'll find titles such as “Eight Basque surnames”, “The kid”, “Marshland” and “Regression”, all of which will introduce you to our customs, landscapes –and of course our language. You can find more information on feature films made in Spain at the following link.

www.shootinginspain.info/index.php/es/se-rodo-en-espana-3/peliculas-espanolas-relevantes.html
 
 

But Spain does not only export talent in the world of the seventh art –it also attracts it by serving as a film set for numerous foreign films. Specifically –according to data from Shooting In Spain, a website associated to the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport– our country was chosen as the setting for 166 foreign feature films between 1916 and 2015. Madrid, Barcelona, the desert of Almería, and even our islands have lent their landscapes to act as sets for films such as “Doctor Zhivago”, “Lawrence of Arabia”, “Indiana Jones”, “The neverending story” and “007: Quantum of Solace” –right down to “In the heart of the sea”, the latest American film to be shot in Spain, specifically in Alajeró (La Gomera) and Yaiza (Lanzarote). And not only films –the producers of “Game of Thrones” have also chosen locations in Almería, Girona and Castellón –among others– to shoot several scenes in this hit series.

Thanks to these collaborations, Spain also offers a number of routes relating to the world of film. Andalusia, for example, offers tours based on films like “Alatriste”, “Summer rain” or the above-mentioned “Lawrence de Arabia” and “Doctor Zhivago”, while Barcelona promotes itself with the film route for “Vicky, Cristina Barcelona”, which is very popular with visitors to the city. Salamanca, Santiago, Cantabria and Extremadura are also beginning to design interesting routes related to the seventh art

If you want to come to Spain and you're interested in learning Spanish with our films, remember that the Filmoteca Nacional-Cine Doré –the national film archive– in Madrid specialises in screening themed seasons of feature films in the original version. The Film Academy screens several Spanish films every week in its site at Calle Zurbano in Madrid. You'll find all the information these two initiatives at the following links:

www.academiadecine.com/agenda/index.php?id_s=4&mes=1446332400
www.mecd.gob.es/cultura-mecd/areas-cultura/cine/mc/fe/cine-dore/programacion.html