The documentary ‘José Luis Espinosa, the spy’, by Alfonso Palazón, won the world premiere of feature films and the Competition Prize, while the short film ‘Sorda’ won, among others, the prize for best actress for Molinense Miriam Garlo
The film ‘José Luis Espinosa, the Spy’, directed by Molinense Alfonso Palazón Meseguer, won two major awards at the Avanca International Film Festival, recently held in Portugal: the Feature Film World Premiere Award and the Avanca Competition Award. The film, co-produced by the Portuguese production house Filmografía and the Spanish Pasajes Invisibles, received the support of the city council of Molina de Segura.
At the same international festival, the short fiction film ‘Sorda’, directed by Eva Libertad and Nuria Muñoz, also with the support of the city council of Molina de Segura, won the prize for best actress, awarded to Miriam Garlo, also from Molina, to sound and the award presented by the International Federation of CineClubs. On the other hand, the short documentary ‘Espejismos’, also directed by Alfonso Palazón, received the «special mention» from the festival jury.
In the words of Soledad Nortes, Councilor for Culture, “This international success shows the success of the City Council in betting on film creation in Molina de Segura, with the celebration this autumn of the Second Week ‘Molina is Cinema’, and with the sponsorship of different films according to a double criterion: promoting the Molina de Segura brand as a cultural city and promoting local filmmakers and artists».
José Luis Espinosa Pardo, the main character of Alfonso Palazón’s documentary, was a carpenter born in San Javier, whose profession was only a cover for his real activities. A man of a chameleon character, he was a fugitive from the Spanish military service, a political exile, a guerrilla member of the Algerian FLN, an active member of armed groups (Frap, Grapo, Mpaiac), a confidant of the Franco police, a deputy to the Socialist Congress of Suresnes, a spy, a secretary general of the UGT of Murcia, arms dealer and seven years prisoner in Carabanchel prison. The novel Espinosa Pardo was published a few months ago. Story of a confidant of Paco Lopez Mengual, also from Molin, co-writer with Alfonso Palazón of the documentary film now being awarded in Portugal.
The short ‘Sorda’, co-directed by Eva Libertad from Molin together with Nuria Muñoz, dives, from fiction, into a reality little known to society in general, which seeks to make visible and publish the concerns of people with hearing problems. In 2022, this film fiction won, among other things, the audience award at the XIX Ibero-American Contest of Spanish Version Short Films, organized by TVE.
To tell the story of Dario and Ángela (a character played by the deaf actress and artist from Molina de Segura, Miriam Garlo), locations were sought that are dear and familiar to the inhabitants of Molina. The couple lives in a house in the garden, with orchard, chicken coop and veranda. In addition, to shelter from the stifling Murcian heat, they escape to the small oasis of freshness, Soto de los Álamos, on the banks of the River Segura.
The Avanca International Film Festival takes place every year in Avanca and is organized by the Avanca Cinema-Club and the Municipality of Estarreja with the support of the ICA/Ministry of Culture, the Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth, the Tourism Center, the Parroquial Council, Parroquia de Avanca and Agrupamento de Escolas de Estarreja, in addition to several international organizations and local entities.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
