On Friday, director Alejandro Amenábar praised ‚La bola negra‘, the film by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, and quipped that «apart from Feijóo» it is difficult to find anyone in Spain who hasn’t seen it, before predicting that it would enjoy widespread international success.
«Is there anyone in this country, apart from Feijóo, who hasn’t seen ‚La bola negra‘?» asked Amenábar during an appearance in Tenerife alongside the actor Eduardo Noriega, to mark the tenth edition of the Canary Islands City of La Laguna Isla Calavera Fantasy Film Festival.
Amenábar, who is to receive the Isla Calavera Award of Honour, has said that he is «thrilled» by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi’s film and that its directors «deserve all the good things that are happening to them».
Spanish cinema: Amenábar and Noriega are in the running for Oscar nominations
«I’m sure they’ll be bringing home more than one Oscar,» added the filmmaker, who described the film as «miraculous» and pointed out that those behind it now face an intense international promotional campaign, although «the hard work is already behind them».
Noriega also highlighted the «enormous talent» of the Javis, whose career he described as «meteoric», and particularly emphasised their ability to direct actors.
In his view, everything suggests that ‚La bola negra‘ will receive «a few nominations», something he has described as «extremely important for Spanish cinema».
Tenerife celebrates 30 years of 'Tesis' with a restored version
Amenábar and Noriega are in Tenerife to mark the 30th anniversary of ‚Tesis‘, the director’s debut film and a film in which the actor starred alongside Ana Torrent and Fele Martínez; a remastered version of the film will be screened at the festival, followed by a discussion with both of them.
The director pointed out that the award comes just a week before the film’s re-release in cinemas and admitted that this sort of award is «a symbolic gesture, but a very exciting one».
He emphasised that ‚Tesis‘ has managed to remain relevant despite being a thriller, a genre which, in his view, can quickly become dated, and praised the fact that it resonates not only with those who saw it three decades ago, but also with younger audiences.
«It’s inevitable that when you reach a certain age, you look back,» admitted Amenábar, who hopes the award will recognise a «logical» career path, built on ensuring that each of his films made sense.
Restoration corrects the frame rate and sound of 'Tesis'
The new restoration has also made it possible to restore the film’s original pace.
They explained that ‚Tesis‘ was filmed at 25 frames per second and will now be screened at 24, which alters its running time and corrects some of the timing issues they encountered at the time.
Noriega also highlighted the work carried out on the sound, for which the original tapes have been recovered after some of that material was lost during previous remastering processes.
For Noriega, ‚Tesis‘ remains one of the films from his career about which he is most frequently asked, particularly by people involved in the film industry, and he has highlighted the fact that it is used in schools and has helped to inspire a passion for filmmaking.
The actor also pointed out that the character of Bosco was created by Amenábar and that the two had already known each other from their short film days.
Amenábar, for his part, has admitted that he occasionally revisits his earlier work, although he finds it harder to watch his first short films because he feels that in them he was still «finding his feet» as a filmmaker.
Canary Islands: Amenábar is considering filming there thanks to film funding
When asked about the possibility of working on the islands, he stated that the Canary Islands currently have a «very attractive» incentives scheme and expressed his desire to film in the archipelago.
Amenábar and Noriega were welcomed this Friday at the Tenerife Island Council by its president, Rosa Dávila, alongside the directors of *Isla Calavera*, Ramón González and Daniel Fumero.
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