Fernando Franco: Last News

Netflix’s global non-English charts this summer and 17 Basque films of ever greater renown participating at the San Sebastian Festival, led by Mikel Gurrea’s feature debut “Suro” and Fernando Franco’s “The Rite of Spring,” the region’s film and TV industry has flashed signs of real growth and international recognition.  Further advances are expected next year with the launch of up-to-70% tax credits in Bizkaia.  Leading Basque production company Irusoin backed “Suro” and is producing Disney+’s most notable TV project in Spain, “Balenciaga.” “It makes perfect sense; Disney wanted to make it here because the character and the story originate from the region,” says Irusoin producer Xabi Berzosa who has observed an already crowded market with three to four shoots happening simultaneously, including The Mediapro Studio’s “Pelotaris.” 

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Fernando Franco’s “Lorca,” Caru Alves de Souza’s “A City for Christine” and Diana Toucedo’s “To Live in a Shout” look like possible standouts at next week’s 2025 Malaga Festival Fund & Co-Production Event (MAFF), one of Europe’s principal forums for projects from Spain and Latin America seeking new partners and distribution. Also sparking good word of mouth are “A Decorous Woman,” headlined by “The Maid” star Catalina Saavedra, Fernando Tato’s family drama “Goodbye Berta,” Alvaro López Alba’s “Three Summer Days,” an intimate three-parter, and LGBTQ coming of age story “Her Ocean.” The 25-title selection also boasts a notable line in buzzy genre movies from Latin America from young women directors: Paula Martel’s Argentine teen Western “First We Take Anillaco,” the Dominican Republic’s “Maguana Racing” from Maia Otero and Juliano Kunert and immigration horror tale “The Tenants,” from Peru’s María Paz Barragán.

Jim Sheridan and David Merriman’s real crime re-imagination “Re-Creation,” Alberto Rodríguez’s big-scale “Los Tigres,” Paz Vega’s directorial debut “Rita” feature in Spain’s lineup at this year’s AFM. They are joined at the Spanish Screenings on Tour by “Nightfall,” a Federico García Lorca focused real life horror film from “Wounded” director Fernando Franco, and “Wolf Night,” the latest from Guillem Morales (“The Uninvited Guest,” “Julia’s Eyes”). Rich on crime thrillers, this year’s Spanish slate also plays to two of Spain’s strengths, the subject of Spanish Screenings showcases, which luckily enough are also proved to be of general market demand: animation and genre/fantasy.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent MALAGA, Spain —  “My Parents’ Great Bazar,” from “Ane is Missing” co-scribe Marina Parés, bio “Costus,” on the iconic Madrid Movida artists, and “Villa Futuro,” a queer old age drama from “Locked Up” star Alberto Velasco, all feature among eight winners of Tell Us the Stories That Nobody Tells, a diversity drive contest for movies and TV shows backed by Netflix and Dama, the Spanish audiovisual authors’ rights collection body. Announced Wednesday at an awards ceremony hosted by the Malaga Film Festival, the winners of the competition, which forms part of the partners’ Cambio de Plano initiative, will receive €6,000 ($6,348) a piece. 

‘The Magic Flute’ To World Premiere At Zurich, First Image Of Jack Wolfe In Lead Role Released Florian Sigl’s contemporary reimagining of Mozart’s opera classic The Magic Flute, which is executive produced by Roland Emmerich, will make its world premiere at the Zurich Film Festival (Sept 22 to Oct 2) as part of its music-themed Sounds sidebar. The production has released a first image of Shadow And Bone star Jack Wolfe in the lead role of a 17-year-old boy who is sent from London to Austrian Alps on a singing scholarship, to coincide with the announcement. Other highlights of the section include the Swiss premiere of drama Taurus starring Machine Gun Kelly. The US rapping star is due to attend a gala screening of the film, which originally world premiered at the Berlinale. Further world premieres in the sidebar include bio-doc about Irmin Schmidt, who shot to stardom with the Cologne band Can and composed the music for many of Wim Wenders’ films.