Tag Archives: Susana Abaitua

The J.A. Bayona-Produced “Un Fantasma en la Batalla” to Debut at San Sebastian Film Festival

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J.A. Bayona’s latest film will be getting its world premiere in his native Spain.

The 50-year-old Spanish filmmaker’s political thriller Un Fantasma en la Batalla will debut at this year’s San Sebastian Film Festival.

J.A. BayonaThe title, produced by Bayona, was among several other Spanish titles announced by the festival.

Directed by Agustín Díaz Yanes, the film stars Susana Abaitua, Andrés Gertrúdix, Iraia Elias, Raúl Arévalo and Ariadna Gil.

Producing along with Bayona are Belén Atienza and Sandra Hermida.

The film’s synopsis reads: Inspired by the lives and experiences of several members of the Guardia Civil directly involved in the fight against terrorism and grounded in the historical, political, and social context of the 1990s and 2000s, Un fantasma en la Batalla tells the story of Amaia, a young civil guard who spends more than a decade working as an undercover agent within ETA, with the aim of locating the band’s hideouts in the South of France.

Un Fantasma en la Batalla is a Netflix title.

Filmmaker Alberto Rodríguez will return to San Sebastian this year with two projects. First, Anatomía de un instante, a 3-episode mini-series based on the book of the same name by Javier Cercas about the attempted coup d’état in Spain on 23 February 1981. The series stars Álvaro Morte as President Adolfo Suárez, Eduard Fernández as the communist leader Santiago Carrillo, Manolo Solo in the part of the army officer and politician Gutiérrez Mellado, and David Lorente as the lieutenant colonel leading the coup, Antonio Tejero.

The second Rodríguez title is Los Tigres, a feature written with Rafael Cobos, in which Antonio de la Torre and Bárbara Lennie play siblings who work as professional divers for an oil company. Their lives change when Antonio has an accident and learns that he can no longer dive.

Elsewhere, Jose Mari Goenaga and Aitor Arregi return to San Sebastian with Maspalomas, while José Luis Guerin returns to the official competition with a new non-fiction work, Historias del buen valle, which he shot in Vallbona, a Barcelona district known for its migrant communities.

This year’s San Sebastian Film Festival runs from 19-27 September.

Canal+ Acquires HBO Europe’s “Patria,” Starring Susana Abaitu

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Susana Abaitua’s land is expanding…

France’s Canal+ has acquired HBO Europe’s first Spanish original drama, Patria, starring the 29-year-old Spanish actress.

Susana Abaitu

With a narrative that spans more than three decades, Patria tells a story of the Spanish Basque country threatened by the terrorism of the leftist separatist group ETA, as seen through the eyes of two families divided by the violent conflict.

On the day ETA announces a ceasefire, Bittori (Elena Irureta) visits the cemetery where her husband Txato, who was murdered by the terrorists, is buried. She tells him she’s decided to return home to the village where they lived together to try and get closure.

Bittori’s presence in the village causes chaos — enraging Miren (Ane Gabarain), her neighbor, once a close friend, and the mother of Joxe Mari, an imprisoned terrorist and the probable killer of Txato. The rift between the two women and their deeply held convictions make trying to forget impossible. The question is, will they be able to forgive in a community shattered by political fanaticism?

In addition to Abaitua, who portrays Nerea, Irureta and Gabarain, the series also stars Iñigo Arambarri, Mikel Laskurain, Loreto Mauleón and Jon Olivares.

Patria was created and written by Aitor Gabilondo, based on the bestselling novel by Fernando Aramburu.

The series will premiere in HBO Europe’s 21 territories on September 27, while it will be released on the same day in the U.S. on HBO and HBO Max.