The Scotland Catalan Film Festival (SCAT) returns to Scotland tomorrow and runs until November 18. The festival begins with La Chana, a documentary following famous Antonia Santiago Amador - a famous Barcelona flamenco dancer, whose stage-name is La Chana, as she returns to the stage after three decades for a final performance.
Helmed b Lucija Stojevic, the film is one of more than 65 per cent of the films programme which is directed by a woman. Festival programmer Alberto Valverde says that the high percentage of female filmmakers is down to talent rather than design.
He said: “We picked our favourite films and it simply turns out that they are mostly directed by women. This is a new reality in Catalan cinema.”
The festival's theme for this year explores "the right to be doubtful", with many of the films considering the millennial generation and the challenges and prejudices they face.
The festival has also collaborated with Filmoteca de Catalunya to look at rare propaganda and documentary films made during the Spanish Civil War. The festival gathers a special joint programme with rare films from Filmoteca de Catalunya, National Libraries of Scotland Moving Image Archive and British Film Institute National Archive documenting the war from Catalonia and life in the republican side, as well as the Scottish volunteers that fought in the Spanish conflict.
Other films screening, include LGBT drama Anchor And Hope, which sees a lesbian couple's relationship tested when a Catalonia friend comes to visit, Julia 1st, about an Spanish Erasmus student's experience of moving to Berlin and The Night She Moves In (Yo La Busco), about a couple's break-up.
In addition to the feature programme, there is a short film showcase and a number of related cultural events.
Referring to the news attention that has been on Catalonia's political scene in recent months, Verde added: "The festival aims to debunk perceptions constructed in Scotland about Catalonia - particularly since last year's events - showing a plural, rich and diverse nation."
For more details about the full programme, venues and screening times, visit the official site.
