PREVIEW: 2025 HSBC SPANISH FILM FESTIVAL

The 2025 HSBC Spanish Film Festival will be bringing the fiesta to cities around Australia this June with a curated selection of thirty films from Spain and Latin America.

Opening Night honours have gone to the hit comedy SAMANA SUNRISE (Amanece en Samaná; pictured, below), featuring Luis Zahera, María Luisa Mayol, Luis Tosar and Bárbara Santa-Cruz. The story follows two Spanish couples celebrating their 20-year friendship with a trip to a beachside resort in the Dominican Republic, where a confession about the past leads to a reality-shifting ‘Sliding Doors’ moment.

The Centrepiece of the Festival is Marcel Barrena’s highly acclaimed EL 47, winner of five Goya Awards including the coveted Best Film. This biographical drama starring Eduard Fernández follows a bus driver in an act of peaceful dissidence that transformed modern Barcelona during the 1970s.

UNDERCOVER (La infiltrada), co-winner of Best Film at the 2025 Goya Awards, is a gripping crime thriller based on the real-life story of Aranzazu Berradre Marín, the pseudonym for the only police officer in Spanish history to infiltrate the terrorist organisation.

From celebrated auteur Julio Medem comes OCHO (8), a romantic drama that spans a century of Spanish history, tracing Octavio and Adela’s tumultuous and passionate relationship, while mirroring pivotal moments in the country’s history. Based on Elia Barceló's critically acclaimed novel, THE GOLDSMITH’S SECRET (El secreto del orfebre) stars Mario Casas as a goldsmith who revisits his Spanish hometown, reconnecting with a great love affair from 25 years prior.   

Executive produced by Steven Soderbergh and fully funded by NFTs is THE QUIET MAID (Calladita; pictured, right). This compelling class conflict drama follows a Colombian maid working in a luxurious mansion, until she realises how to find her own ways of enjoying the summer. Gripping thriller MARCO, THE INVENTED TRUTH (Marco) stars Eduard Fernández in a standout performance as a charismatic man who spent years harbouring an unimaginable lie.

Icíar Bollaín’s taut drama I AM NEVENKA (Soy Nevenka) explores consent and structures of power and is inspired by the true case of a young woman who courageously reported workplace harassment; Yolanda Centeno’s THE STEPMOTHER’S BOND (Tras el verano) draws on her own life and the fragility of relationships in blended families; and, LITTLE LOVES (Los pequeños amores) is an intense mother-daughter relationship drama from up-and-coming director Celia Rico Clavellino.

The ever-popular Spanish comedy selection includes the No. 1 box office hit WOLFGANG (Wolfgang Extraordinario), a heartwarming comedy that follows a nine-year-old boy forced to live with his newfound father in Barcelona; audience favourite Paco León stars as a carefree man suddenly thrust into fatherhood, in Spanish box office hit BABIES DON’T COME WITH INSTRUCTIONS (Sin instrucciones); and, Dani Rovira leads a stellar ensemble in THE BUS OF LIFE (El bus de la vida), a music-centred, life-affirming journey about a music teacher facing his fears. 

Based on incredible true events, MAY I SPEAK WITH THE ENEMY? (Es el enemigo? La película de Gila; pictured, right) is a sensitive tribute to comedian Miguel Gila, who pioneered stand-up comedy in Spain; in the bittersweet comedy SUMMER IN DECEMBER (Verano en diciembre; pictured, top) four generations of women gather in Madrid for a family reunion; and NO GUILT (Culpa Cero) is a tragicomedy about a successful self-help writer whose life is shaken up when she is accused of plagiarism.

This year’s Cine Latino selection features a strong representation of Argentinian cinema including crime thriller A SILENT DEATH (Una muerte silenciosa), a gripping tale of guilt, suspicion and truth set in 1980s Patagonia; WHAT WE WANTED TO BE (Lo que quisimos ser), heralds the long-awaited return to directing of Alejandro Agresti, along with veteran actors Luis Rubio and Eleonora Wexler who star in this tribute to cinema.

Drawing comparisons to the work of Wes Anderson, quirky thriller EL JOCKEY tells the story of a legendary jockey’s self-destructive behaviour; directed by and starring Adrián Suar, Argentinian box office hit MAZEL TOV is a family drama about forgiveness, sibling rivalry, and coming home. Also family-themed is Mexican/US co-production LAS TRES SISTERS, an adventure comedy about three Mexican-American sisters who embark on an adventure to follow in the footsteps of their grandmother while working to repair their relationships.

Two standout documentaries in this year’s line-up feature a focus on distinctive aspects of Spanish culture - food and music. Winner of the Culinary Zinema Award at the San Sebastián International Film Festival, MUGARITZ. NO BREAD, NO DESSERT (Mugaritz. Sin pan ni postre) invites the viewer behind the scenes of the Michelin starred restaurant Mugaritz. THE FLAMENCO GUITAR OF YERAI CORTÉS (La guitarra flamenca de Yerai Cortés; pictured, right) is unique musical experience, featuring some spectacular set pieces of flamenco.

 In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the brilliant and highly lauded crime thriller NINE QUEENS (Nueve reinas), the Festival will close with the 4K remastered classic starring festival favourite Ricardo Darín and Gaston Pauls.

The 2025 HSBC Spanish Film Festival will take place nationally from 11 June to 9 July (dates vary by city) in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Melbourne, Ballarat, Sydney, Ballina and Byron Bay. Tickets are now on sale at the festival’s official website.