Feature Documentary, 80 mins, in post production
Currently in Post Production
Across several years, a group of Spanish theatre makers work with renowned Australian playwright Andrew Bovell to resurrect Franco era wounds of the past in the hope of making a cathartic work of theatre. Political and culture wars are waged outside the closed doors of the theatre studio – from the state violence to quell Catalan independence to the exhumation of Franco’s body and the rise of a new fascist movement – as these artists, young and old, bring stories of intergenerational pain to Bovell.
Using improvisations, shared and individual storytelling, dramatic explorations of the historical past, and the mining of family memories, a work of theatre slowly emerges. Intertwining narratives of stolen children, exile, torture and disappearances, and the possible redemptive power of love and forgiveness take shape. All enacted by a group of Spain’s most vital and adventurous theatre actors.
As the process of creating is observed through the deeply vulnerable subjects and their surrender to this outsider from Australia, a family forms between the artists, and a
bridge across cultural divides helps them to work through the pain of their families and the unspoken violence of the present. At once, an intimate exploration of what it means to create theatre, and the challenge of storytelling in times of political upheaval, this stark and bold documentary lets the deeply human connections of these artists tell a bigger story of the clash of ideas, art, memory and healing.
Directed by Rhys Graham
Produced by Philippa Campey, Rhys Graham & Molly O'Connor
A Daybreak Films and Film Camp Production
