DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO 50 Years of the other

Xcèntric presents
DEL ÉXTASIS
AL ARREBATO
50 Years of the other
Spanish Cinema
Produced by
CCCB Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona
(Contemporary Cultural Centre of Barcelona)
SEACEX Sociedad Estatal para la Acción Cultural Exterior
(State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad)
with the support of ICIC/Filmoteca de Catalunya
DEL ÉXTASIS
AL ARREBATO
50 YEARS OF THE OTHER
SPANISH CINEMA
FILM PROGRAMME CURATOR / Antoni Pinent
DVD CURATORS / Andrés Hispano and Antoni Pinent
COORDINATOR / Gloria Vilches
DIRECTOR / Carolina López
PRODUCTION / Audiovisual Department CCCB - Ángela Martínez, director
DVD PRODUCTION / Cameo, CCCB and SEACEX
A PRODUCTION BY
CCCB - Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona
Contemporary Culture Centre of Barcelona
SEACEX - Sociedad Estatal para la Acción Cultural Exterior
State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad
with the support of ICIC/Filmoteca de Catalunya
Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona
Dpt. Audiovisuals i Multimèdia
Montalegre, 5 / 08001 Barcelona
+ 34 933064100 ext. 139
[email protected]
www.cccb.org
Xcèntric, the CCCB’s Cinema
Xcèntric was created in 2001 to showcase less conventional cinema (experimental, avant-garde, art films and
creative documentary). With 300 original programmes over the years, Xcèntric has presented the work of
outstanding directors and young talent.
As well as organizing regular screenings in Barcelona, Xcèntric carries out other activities relating to the cinema
it promotes. Some of the projects it has created include the Xcèntric Archives, digital archives for free public
consultation of experimental and independent cinema (since 2006); the exhibition That’s Not Entertainment:
Cinema Begets Cinema (2006); the book Xcèntric: 45 films against the grain (2006); the travelling film
programme (in Spain), Film Visits Art: Journeys to Creative Processes (2008) and the Xcèntric Classroom
(since 2008), a space for studying experimental and independent cinema. These activities prove Xcèntric an
ideal vehicle for undertaking the project DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO (FROM ECSTASY TO
OUTBURST) 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 2
Ere erera baleibu izik subua aruaren, José Antonio Sistiaga, 1968-70
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 3
The project
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO (FROM ECSTASY TO OUTBURST) 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema
is our first international project. Our wish is to present Spain’s experimental cinema since the 1950s beyond our
borders, by showing a film programme on the large screen and publishing a catalogue in DVD format. This is a joint
production between the CCCB and SEACEX (State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad), with the
collaboration of Cameo DVD publishers and distributors (www.cameo.es) and the support of Filmoteca de Catalunya.
Despite its interest, Spanish experimental cinema is widely unknown both in our country and beyond our borders
and has not been properly reviewed since the early 1980s. This is why we consider our initiative so necessary.
By bringing to light works that do not generally circulate and which have had to be rescued from the files of film
libraries and even the homes of the filmmakers themselves, our initiative provides a source of knowledge for the
uninitiated and encourages rigorous research on these unknown, fascinating works of the history of Spanish cinema.
We have already undertaken the exhaustive documentation and classification of more than 1000 titles, from
which 44 works have been selected by two outstanding specialists in the subject, Antoni Pinent and Andrés
Hispano.
In order to guarantee the best possible technical quality, we have worked on the restoration, new film printing
and digital transfer of the selected works.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 4
Project format and calendar
The film programme includes 44 titles by different authors (2 feature films and 41 short films) and is divided into
6 sessions of approximately 70 minutes each. The films will be shown on film (35 mm) or video support, depending on the availability, condition and the characteristics of each work. The works on video can be delivered on
DigiBeta (PAL/NTSC), Betacam SP (PAL /NTSC) or DVD (PAL /NTSC).
The programme will be accompanied by a special edition catalogue of two DVDs with their corresponding
booklet, which will contain a selection of works, texts by specialists and additional information on the films and
authors included (in Spanish and English). CAMEO will distribute it internationally to centres where the film
programme will be screened.
Most of the films have no dialogues. For those in Spanish, Catalan or other languages, we offer copies (in either
film or video format) with English subtitles.
The film programme will be available from September 2009 until September 2012.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 5
Exp. 1 y II. Joaquim Puigvert, 1958-59
Travelling, Lluis Rivera, 1972
Photomatons, Eugeni Bonet, 1976
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 6
Film programme contents
The film programme is designed to broadly cover the most significant works in the little-known history of
experimental cinema in Spain. The series consists of a retrospective of Spanish experimental cinema from the
late 1950s (José Val del Omar, Josep Mestres and Eugenio Granell) to the current production of young
generations (David Domingo, Oriol Sánchez and Laida Lertxundi), along with the work of classics such as Carles
Santos, Javier Aguirre, Eugeni Bonet, José Antonio Sistiaga or Iván Zulueta. The collection is divided according
to thematic sections or sessions that nurture dialogue between the classics and more recent works.
Fuego en Castilla, José Val del Omar, 1959.
De purificatione automobilis, Gabriel Blanco, 1974.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 7
Souvenir, Silvia Gracia and José Luis Guerin, 1985.
Session 1. DOCUMENTS / ITINERARIES
Session 2. APPROPRIATIONS / GREAT SUPER 8
The inaugural session of this film pack opens with
This session presents a series of pieces done in Super
a piece by José Val del Omar, a visionary, inventive
8, a format created in 1965 but still in use today, and
film director and one of the most relevant figures to
other films belonging to the subgenre of found footage
emerge in the Spanish film industry. Fuego en Cas-
film. Some of the works are both found footage and
tilla forms part of his unfinished “Tríptico elemental
done on Super 8, such as Eugènia Balcells’ For/
de España”. Other filmmakers included in this session
Against and David Domingo’s Súper 8. In this pro-
are the architect Gabriel Blanco, better known as an
gram, a dialogue is established between filmmakers
animator but represented here by a documentary
of different generations: those who participated in
showing a typical Sunday for a Spanish citizen in
the avant-garde endeavor in the field of experimental
an outlying urban area; the multidisciplinary artists
film, based in Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia during
Benet Rossell and Antoni Miralda, with a look at mili-
the 70s (headed by Eugeni Bonet, Juan Bufill, Manuel
tary iconography; and José Luis Guerin, who, after
Huerga and Eugènia Balcells) and the latest genera-
debuting with the full-length film, Los motivos de
tion, active from the late 90s to the present.
Berta (1983), created this short with certain reminiscences of the genre known as essay film. The session
For / Against, Eugènia Balcells, 1983.
closes with a documentary by Virginia García del Pino
Minnesota 1943, Toni Serra, 1995.
on the job identity of people exercising professions
Alice in Hollywoodland, Jesús Pérez-Miranda, 2006.
having to do with death, dirt or sex.
Súper 8, David Domingo, 1997.
Bloodfilm, Marcel Pey, 1975.
Fuego en Castilla, José Val del Omar, 1958-59.
Roulette Wheel, Luis Cerveró, 2005.
De purificatione automobilis, Gabriel Blanco, 1974.
Signaturas (síntesis), Juan Bufill, 2008.
Miserere, Antoni Miralda and Benet Rossell, 1979.
I Love You Because, Lope Serrano Sol, 2007.
Souvenir, Silvia Gracia and José Luis Guerin, 1985.
22arroba, Maximiliano Viale, 2008.
Lo que tú dices que soy, Virginia García del Pino, 2007.
Photomatons, Eugeni Bonet, 1976.
A escala del hombre, David Reznak, 1991.
Copy Scream, Oriol Sánchez, 2005.
Brutal Ardour, Manuel Huerga, 1979.
Minnesota 1943, Toni Serra, 1995.
Súper 8, David Domingo, 1999.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 8
Roulette Wheel, Luis Cerveró, 2005.
Session 3. ANIMATED EXPERIMENTS: RHYTHM,
Session 4. PAINTING – MOVEMENT
LIGHT AND COLOUR
...ere erera baleibu izik subua aruaren..., a series of
This third collective session covers very different pe-
meaningless words, is the title of the first full-length
riods of the history of cinema in Spain, though all the
film in the history of Spanish cinema –and the only
films share the common denominator of experimen-
one to date– painted entirely in the cameraless ani-
tation in the field of animation, but ranging widely
mation technique. José Antonio Sistiaga uses 35mm
from pure abstraction to narration. The techniques
celluloid as a blank –or transparent, to be more preci-
and results are likewise distinct: classical studies on
se– canvas, directly applying paint onto the film em-
color-music correspondences (Aguirre, Mestres, Si-
ploying different techniques. Created over the course
rera), cameraless cinema (Puigvert, Artigas, Granell),
of 17 months, lacking figurative elements and sound
stop motion (Marimón, Pié Barba), the drawn line as
accompaniment, the result is a piece impossible to
a sketch or rough draft (Amat, Oñederra, Etcheverry),
describe in words, designed to be viewed in projected
cut-out collage animation (Herguera) and sand on
format. In sum, a nonpareil pleasure for the eyes.
glass animation (Vicario).
…ere erera baleibu izik subua aruaren…,
Forma, color y ritmo, Josep Mestres, 1956.
José Antonio Sistiaga, 1968-70.
Ballet Burlón, Fermí Marimón, 1959.
Exp. 1 / II, Joaquim Puigvert, 1958-59.
Pregunta por mí, Begoña Vicario, 1996.
Pintura 63, Ton Sirera, 1963.
Hezurbeltzak, una fosa común, Izebene Oñederra, 2007.
Ritmes cromàtics, Jordi Artigas, 1978.
Spain loves you, Isabel Herguera, 1988.
Espectro siete, Javier Aguirre, 1970.
Lluvia, Eugenio Granell, 1961.
La 72.024 mil·lèssima part d’un any,
Marcel Pié Barba, 2008.
Danse noire, Frederic Amat, 2006.
Monos, Juan Pablo Etcheverry, 1997.
Signaturas (síntesis), Juan Bufill, 2008.
I Love You Because, Lope Serrano Sol, 2007.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 9
22arroba, Maximiliano Viale, 2008.
Session 5. INVESTIGATION / METACINEMA
Session 6. ENRAPTURED
The last of the collective sessions is designed to reflect
The film pack closes with Iván Zulueta’s masterpie-
the essence of cinema in its different facets, from
ce, a cult film in Spanish cinema history. The author
reflection on the film media itself or metafilm essay
combined many of the techniques he had put into
(Lertxundi, León Siminiani, Rivera, de Pedro) to the
practice in his previous shorts, such as A Mal Gam A,
blank screen (Casas Brullet), as well as contact with
Frank Stein or Kinkón, done in Super 8, while delving
other art disciplines such as dance (Marimón and Ra-
into a series of themes that had preoccupied him since
mos), performance (Santos), photography (Lacuesta /
childhood. A full-length film as hypnotic as they come,
Humberto Rivas, Cosmen) and poetry (Padrós). This
charged with a certain mysticism and eliciting nume-
session contains a set of endeavors representing the
rous readings, Arrebato is an indisputable masterpie-
different branches of which the great tree of cinema is
ce whose unwarranted neglect beyond the Spanish
comprised.
borders we hope to mitigate.
Blanc Dérangé, Blanca Casas Brullet, 2008.
Arrebato, Iván Zulueta, 1980.
Límites (1ª persona), Elías León Siminiani, 2009.
Travelling, Lluis Rivera, 1972.
Teoría de los cuerpos, Isaki Lacuesta, 2004.
Figura, Gonzalo de Pedro, 2007.
In girum imus nocte et consumimur igni,
Jorge Cosmen, 2003.
BiBiCi Story, Carles Durán, 1969.
Farce Sensationelle!, Laida Lertxundi, 2004.
In crescendo, Joan Marimón y Jesús Ramos, 2001.
Ice Cream, Antoni Padrós, 1970.
LA RE MI LA..., Carles Santos, 1979.
Arrebato, Iván Zulueta, 1980.
Ice Cream, Antoni Padrós, 1970.
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 10
Spain loves you, Isabel Herguera, 1988.
The curators
Antoni Pinent (Lleida, 1975)
Independent contemporary art curator, cinema programmer (experimental, animation, documentary and
independent film) and experimental filmmaker. Content designer and teacher of specialised art courses (CCCB’s
Aula Xcèntric; Fine Arts programme at the UPV in Valencia; Fundación Autor, SGAE, Barcelona and Valencia;
Observatorio de Cine, Barcelona, 2004-2006; Aula de Cultura CAM, Alicante/Alacant). Guest professor for the
Master’s Programme on designing and curating exhibits at Elisava, Barcelona. Creator and programmer of the
Cinema Invisible section (since 2004) of the Xcèntric permanent screen (CCCB, Barcelona). Co-founder and
member of the magazine and group, Cabeza Borradora (Madrid, founded in 2001). Co-director of the film
festival Xperimenta. Mirades Contemporànies al Cine Experimental (CCCB). Curator, in conjunction with
Andrés Hispano, of the exhibition That’s Not Entertainment: Cinema Begets Cinema (CCCB, 2006), which was
shown at the Centro Párraga in Murcia (2007) and Bancaja in Valencia (2008).
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 11
The curators
Andrés Hispano (Barcelona, 1964)
Independent curator, audiovisual filmmaker and illustrator. He publishes articles in La Vanguardia (Cultura s
supplement), where he has his own column and forms part of the editing staff. He is the author of David Lynch.
Claroscuro americano (1998) and has directed some of the less conventional television programmes in Spain,
such as Boing Boing Buda (BTV) and Baixa Fidelitat (XTVL). He has co-curated exhibitions such as That’s Not
Entertainment: Cinema Begets Cinema (CCCB, 2006), El rei de la casa (Palau de la Virreina, 2007) and
La ciutat dels cineastes (CCCB, 2001). Moreover, he has created video-installations for various exhibitions at
the CCCB and La Pedrera (Fundació Caixa de Catalunya), among others. He is guest professor at Pompeu Fabra
University and gives lectures at other universities and institutions. In the last three years, he has been a member
of the jury for the Barcelona City Arts Awards (Premis Ciutat de Barcelona) and the Catalonia National Culture
Awards (Premis Nacionals de Cultura de Catalunya).
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 12
Film programme’s
technical data
1. DOCUMENTS / ITINERARIES
Fuego en Castilla
José Val del Omar
35 mm
English subtitles
De purificatione automobilis
Gabriel Blanco
35 mm
No dialogue
Miserere
Antoni Miralda and Benet Rossell
35 mm
No dialogue
Souvenir
José Luis Guerín
Video
English subtitles
Lo que tú dices que soy
Virginia García del Pino
Video
English subtitles
For / Against
Eugènia Balcells
Video
No dialogue
Minnesota 1943
Toni Serra
Video
English subtitles
Alice in Hollywoodland
Jesús Pérez-Miranda
Video
No dialogue
Súper 8
David Domingo
Video
No dialogue
Bloodfilm
Marcel Pey
Video
Silent
Roulette Wheel
Luis Cerveró
Video
Original Version
Signaturas (síntesis)
Juan Bufill
Video
Silent
I Love You Because
Lope Serrano Sol
Video
No dialogue
22arroba
Maximiliano Viale
Video
No dialogue
Photomatons
Eugeni Bonet
Video
No dialogue
A escala del hombre
David Reznak
Video
No dialogue
2. APPROPRIATIONS / GREAT SUPER 8
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 13
Copy Scream
Oriol Sánchez
Video
Silent
Brutal Ardour
Manuel Huerga
Video
No dialogue
3. ANIMATED EXPERIMENTS: RHYTHM, LIGHT AND COLOUR
Forma, color y ritmo
Josep Mestres
35 mm
Silent
Ballet Burlón
Fermí Marimón
35 mm
No dialogue
Exp. 1 / II
Joaquim Puigvert
35 mm
No dialogue
Pregunta por mí
Begoña Vicario
35 mm
English subtitles
Pintura 63
Ton Sirera
35 mm
No dialogue
Hezurbeltzak, una fosa común
Izebene Oñederra
35 mm
No dialogue
Ritmes cromàtics
Jordi Artigas
35 mm
No dialogue
Spain loves you
Isabel Herguera
35 mm
No dialogue
Espectro siete
Javier Aguirre
35 mm
English subtitles
Lluvia
Eugenio Granell
Video
Silent
La 72.024 mil·lèssima part d’un any
Marcel Pié Barba
Video
No dialogue
Danse noire
Frederic Amat
Video
No dialogue
Monos
Juan Pablo Etcheverry
Video
No dialogue
José Antonio Sistiaga
35 mm
Silent
Blanc Dérangé
Blanca Casas Brullet
Video
No dialogue
Límites (1ª persona)
Elías León Siminiani
Video
English subtitles
Travelling
Lluis Rivera
Video
No dialogue
Teoría de los cuerpos
Isaki Lacuesta
Video
English subtitles
Figura
Gonzalo de Pedro
Video
English subtitles
In girum imus nocte et consumimur igni
Jorge Cosmen
Video
No dialogue
BiBiCi Story Carles Durán
35 mm
Original Version
Farce Sensationelle!
Laida Lertxundi
35 mm
No dialogue
In crescendo
Joan Marimón and Jesús Ramos
35 mm
No dialogue
Ice Cream
Antoni Padrós
35 mm
English subtitles
LA RE MI LA...
Carles Santos
35 mm
No dialogue
Iván Zulueta
35 mm
English subtitles
4. PAINTING – MOVEMENT
…ere erera baleibu izik subua aruaren…
5. INVESTIGATION / METACINEMA
6. ENRAPTURED
Arrebato
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 14
Contact information
Director Xcèntric
SEACEX
Carolina López
[email protected]
Eloísa Ferrari
[email protected]
Coordinator
Gloria Vilches
[email protected]
Head of the Audiovisual Department
Ángela Martínez
[email protected]
Contemporary Culture Centre of Barcelona
Montalegre, 5
08001 Barcelona
Tel. + 34 93 306 41 00
Fax. + 34 93 306 41 01
DEL ÉXTASIS AL ARREBATO. 50 Years of the other Spanish Cinema - 15
State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad
Gran Vía, 1-2º dcha.
28013 Madrid
Tel. + 34 91 702 26 60