Top contemporary Spanish films to be shown at film fest in October

 
Thirty of the best contemporary Spanish films will be featured at Pelicula-Pelikula, the upcoming Spanish film festival at the Greenbelt 3 Cinemas in Makati City. It will run from October 8 to 18.

A project of the Instituto Cervantes, the Embassy of Spain-AECID, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) and Intramuros Administration, the festival aims to strengthen cultural ties between the Philippines and Spain.

This year's festival will include the participation of Spanish journalist Ramón Vilaró on October 12 and Czech filmmaker Lenka Kny on October 13.

Vilaró will present his 2014 documentary film “De aliados a masacrados” (2014) about the killings of Filipino-Spanish citizens during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines.


Kny will present his 2013 comedy “Milagro en Praga,” about a Mexican family and a Czech family who cross paths in Prague at Christmas.


During the festival, audience members will be given stubs to rate the movies they have watched. Every five movies watched will qualify you to join a raffle with the grand prize of a round-trip ticket to Spain.

The importance of Español

The Philippines was Spain's lone colony in Asia for nearly 400 years, from 1521 to 1898—so it is important for Filipinos to learn Spanish because “much of our historical materials are in Spanish,” said noted economist and historian Dr. Benito Legarda Jr.

At the sidelines of the annual Spanish book festival Dia del Libro, held earlier this year, Legarda told GMA News Online that Jose Rizal's writings alone are mostly in Spanish.

“We should be able to read them in the original, not in some translation,” he said.

Instituto Cervantes director Dr. Carlos Madrid agrees. “Spanish culture is part of the Philippine identity,” he said.

Spanish used to be the lingua franca in the Philippines, he also said, adding that many Filipinos spoke it, not just the Spaniards.

Madrid encouraged Filipinos to study Spanish at the Instituto, saying that the cost is “quite inexpensive.”

He mentioned that many professionals, such as nurses or sailors who intend to work in Spanish-speaking countries, study Spanish at the Instituto, the global cultural institution created by the Spanish government in 1991 to promote Spain's culture and language. — BM, GMA News

Instituto Cervantes de Manila (526-1482) has offices in Ermita and Makati.

For the Pelicula-Pelikula film lineup and screening schedules, visit www.manila.cervantes.es or Instituto Cervants' Facebook page.