His work is increasingly visible and recognized. They monopolize prizes after their bets for first films or for (a priori) ‘small’ stories become internationally acclaimed films. And even more so, that they are able to bring the public to the theaters to discover these little jewels. Far from the image of that powerful classic producer, that of the cigar, today a new generation of young producers stands out with a more pragmatic, collaborative, less competitive and more caring way of managing, they say.
In these lines we highlight four of the production companies that have made possible the Spanish cinema that triumphs today. There are many more and, they say, there is a good harmony between them. Some have created their own companies, with a reduced structure, which later join forces with others to co-produce specific projects. In this way they reduce risks and share problems and crises that usually arise in these processes. Their role goes far beyond financing, they are also involved in the creative phase, marketing, throughout the long gestation of a film, in addition to often acting as “psychologists of film egos”, adds Marisa Fernández Armenteros.
They agree that raising films in this country is difficult and being a woman, even more so. Now they celebrate the growing female presence in decision-making, a process that they see as “unstoppable.” According to the association of women filmmakers CIMA, the number of female producers is currently 26%, still far from parity. The aid policy, a points system that favors women in positions of responsibility, has made this push possible, which now must be consolidated so that it does not remain a passing fad.
In this context, successful producer-filmmaker, screenwriter or production director tandems have emerged, where in the recent Goya awards there was a full female in their category. It was also significant that among the five candidates for best film, three were directed by women (Carla Simon, Alauda Ruiz de Azúa and Pilar Palomero).
These production companies have opened doors (and windows) to new or emerging filmmakers, many of them women, without this being exclusive for a good male project, says Valérie Delpierre. Today, stories labeled ‘female cinema’ are a trend, around motherhood, but with a realistic and unsweetened approach, harsh at times, a subject that could be seen as a handicap when it comes to expanding the box office. Instead, they have known how to make the feminine universal.
It’s a fashion? Sorority made into a movie? “It is a symptom of the times,” answers María Zamora. Society is aware of inequalities that have been dragging on for centuries and sees the need to express them”. Cinema as a message and as a factor of change. Regarding whether there is saturation of female cinema, the producer Sandra Tapia is blunt: “How many stories of revenge and murders are there? And thrillers? And no one is crying out loud if more films of this type continue to be made. What is essential is the look of the author”. And today it is more plural.
A year ago, not only Carla Simon made history at the Berlinale. Alcarràs also made this 46-year-old from Valencia the first Spanish production company to win the Golden Bear. In the recent edition of the festival, the filmmaker was part of the jury and María Zamora presented Matria, by Álvaro Gago.
She was trained in Economics, but she was fascinated by cinema to the point of turning it into a profession and the ideas promoted by women, her goal. “In 2005, when I saw that no female projects were coming to me, I went out looking for that talent. And in the schools, in the CIMA association, I found women who were waiting for an opportunity”.
In 22 years he has accompanied directors such as Beatriz Sanchís, Nely Reguera or Clara Roquet. Meeting Carla Simon was a before and after: Summer 1993 (which she produced with Valérie Delpierre), Alcarràs and Romería, which will be shot in 2024 and will close the filmmaker’s intimate trilogy, which is preparing a third change for later. “She is already writing something in a field far removed from herself, in a different genre, although with her stamp and her gaze, of course,” she explains.
Mother of two children, aged 13 and 9, María Zamora reconciles as best she can after the ‘Alcarràs maelstrom’. “There is no reconciliation, everything happens to have a partner, be it a man or a woman, co-responsible for the upbringing of the children.” She is proud of the bet with Carla, but she is prudent: “We must not be clouded by these things from Hollywood, from American agents, and continue together on the path that we have been building. I don’t think now is the time to jump with an international cast into something very powerful.” She is now working on the new films by Mar Coll, Jaione Camborda, Paula Ortíz and Elena Martín Gimeno and the debut of Marta Nieto.
She studied Hispanic Philology, Audiovisual Communication and Screenwriting and after several scholarships she came to Euroimages, a world that captivated her. Santanderina, her 16 years at Mediapro (from 2004 to 2020) were “a great school, there I saw films by Woody Allen, León de Aranoa, Coixet developed…” In 2021 she joined her production company, Buenapinta Half. “It’s my candy. He demands a lot of sacrifice.” For this reason, she is in favor of co-producing even if “it is a marriage in crisis from minute 0. But I understand cinema that way. Four eyes see more than two and I prefer not to be alone in conflicts. Of course, you have to choose partners who prioritize the film and not their ego ”.
Regarding his job, he points out that “we are those silenced figures, whose work is quite unknown; a lot of pedagogy is needed to explain what exactly we do”. And he highlights gender differences: “Women are very practical, and that sense makes us approach problems in a non-hierarchical way but in a more collective and agile way. The hierarchy doesn’t matter as much as the ‘let’s solve’”.
She produced El agente topo (2020), nominated for an Oscar and this year she has done wonderfully with Cinco lobitos (“who would have told us!”): “She talks about motherhood as a pretext to deal with imperfect families. And we all have one, because there are no perfect families.
Now he is co-producing Un amor, the novel by Sara Mesa that Isabel Coixet is already filming with a very female team. Then she will repeat with Alauda Ruiz de Azúa, who is writing her new script. Is her job more difficult because she is a woman? Of course! Paternalism persists, I still have to hear myself sometimes: ‘You are the fashion producer’. They never say that to a man. We women have had to ask for a lot of permission and a lot of forgiveness. I miss that sometimes we are not more warriors”.
Regarding the idea of ??whether his sector is experiencing a sweet moment, he reflects: “I only wish and hope that my generation is not a ceiling for those who come after. The essential thing is that there are more and more women who have the decision of which films are going to be produced. Because you are putting issues on the table, betting on filmmakers, screenwriters, teams… I don’t see it as a question of power but of social responsibility”. And for this, she highlights the crucial role of positive discrimination. “Now there is a current of betting on women. But because there are economic policies in this regard. This is not about creative will. If there is money, there are possibilities, ”she concludes.
Exultant after receiving the Goya from Penélope Cruz, he remembers how captivated he was by the script for Sorogoyen and his As bestas. “We jump headlong” from the production company that she shares with two partners. She has a degree in Audiovisual Communication, she started in the trade as a “private soldier”, and she has been in Arcadia for 13 years. Her first film, Snow White (2012) was another target: Goya for Best Film. Then came Madre, Mediterráneo… Now, she has to premiere El cuerpo en llamas (Netflix) about the crime of the Urban Police, Celia Rico’s Little Loves and Pablo Berger’s Robot Dreams.
His work requires “curiosity and nose to choose that script that attracts you enough to spend three years of your life and that the project is also viable.” He thinks that as producers they have a responsibility to support films that are worthwhile, “that make you reflect, excite, as well as entertain. As a Mediterranean, that you come out wanting to be a little better person ”. And he adds: “I prefer a path that doesn’t embarrass me over a lot of money in the bank,” he says.
In the case of As bestas, the bet could not have gone better. “And that a priori was not easy, it was a demanding proposal, author, without actors well known to the general public. Also, it is not folded, it was due to our stubbornness and it has to be highlighted. It makes me very happy that people who rarely go to the movies anymore have come back to see it. It gives me a lot of strength.” And it still adds prizes; a few days ago the César for the best foreign film.
He has been lucky, he assures, with his colleagues – “they have empowered me a lot, without misgivings” – and with the filmmakers with whom he has worked, such as Pablo Berger, Marcel Barrena or Julio Medem. “I have always felt their admiration for the producers, something that is essential because our job is to accompany them from start to finish and you must understand each other very well. I already have a degree in psychology of filmmakers! ”, she jokes.
She thinks that producing continues to be more complex for women. “Part of the industry is not yet ready. And for conciliation: continuous travel, hellish schedules. I don’t have children, I don’t know if I will, because it is a very demanding job; I see my fellow mothers how they juggle, I admire them”. Her great desire: that after the gender gap we reflect on the class issue. “I come from a town, Celrà (Girona), from a working family and public education. And I know that the stigma of class exists. Culture must be democratized.”
He created his company in 2006 in Barcelona, ??where he lives. She is French, born in Monaco, 52 years old, she started producing documentaries. “Being a mother (I have 3 children) determined my availability to throw myself into my profession. Work was part of my life, but it wasn’t everything. I liked the documentary, and it had less media coverage, it was a space in which I felt comfortable to grow and reconcile”.
His turn to fiction came with B de Barcenas, which had a Feroz award. And the leap came with Summer 1993, which was the best debut film in Berlin. “We bet (together with María Zamora) on Carla Simon, it was risky as it was a film in Catalan, but it is clear that it was a success.” She then produced Pilar Palomero’s acclaimed debut, Las niñas, with whom she reprized in La maternal. With this film she went to the last Goya, happy for her three nominations. And she has just competed in Berlin with 20,000 species of bees, Estibaliz Urresola’s first film with the Spanish Sofía Otero, only 9 years old, she won the Silver Bear for best leading performance.
She feels proud to be part of the films that currently contribute so much, “that they identify me with this quality Spanish cinema. Small stories in which you see great potential to reach the viewer and decide to support them”.
She explains that the rise of women producers has been gradual. “We are not rookies, we have been working for many years and now we are reaping the harvest. When I started I had no references, they were all producers. From my way of seeing and experiencing cinema, I only felt close to one producer, Elías Querejeta. Now, on the other hand, I see my schedule and I never feel alone”.
