November 10 2016

A meeting was held at lunchtime today (November 10 2016) to discuss and confirm the 20th Festival de Málaga which will be held on 17 to 26 March 2017.

In attendance at the meeting were:

Francisco de la Torre: Mayor of the Ayuntamiento de Málaga
Elías Bendodo: Presidente of the Diputación de Málaga
Gemma del Corral: Councillor for Culture at the Ayuntamiento de Málaga
Carlos Arrabal: Representative for Málaga de Gas Natural Andalucía
Esther Cabrera: Representative for Cruzcampo
Manuel Castillo: Director of Diario Sur
Juan Antonio Vigar: Director of the Festival de Málaga

The poster for the upcoming event was also dunveiled to rapturous applause.

20th Festival de Málaga — Javier Calleja presenting the new poster.

Its designer, Málaga born Javier Calleja said, “The poster of the 20th Malaga Festival can be interpreted in several ways. I try with my work to reach the viewer and provoke in him feelings or contrasted emotions, an intention that is close to that of any film director.”

“With this poster I wanted to escape from the topics that characterize many of the posters around Malaga: kebabs, anchovies, cenacheros or verdiales… as well as those images already used in previous movie posters, such as popcorn, movie tapes, red carpets, etc.”

“We are facing the 20th edition of the Festival, and this number implies that we have reached a certain age and maturity, so it is a number that should undoubtedly be the focus of this edition. I have done so literally and with a sense of humor (characteristic of our city) an angle that shows us a poster with the number 20, making the Festival itself the protagonist of it.”

“But not everything is humor, irony or superficiality, I would also like to go further. That’s why the poster is made simplifying the colors to white and black, dressing it up. A poster full of lights and shadows so characteristic of this world, and so we can remember the darkness of a movie theater.”

Audiovisual grants

Also confirmed was the provision of grants encouraging and stimulating audiovisual creation in the area.

The grants are to be awarded to projects that will produce short films of fiction, animation or documentary. Each film must be no longer than 30 minutes.

The grants vary in amount with a mmaximum of €6000 for an indiviudla project. €50000 has been allocated as a maximum for the 2017 financial year.

Anyone in Málaga province is welcome to participate, regardless of age. However, participants must have a connection to Málaga province – by means of birth, residency, study or work. Also permitted are companies in the audiovisual sector whose tax is registered in Málaga Province.

The deadline for submission is February 6, 2017.

For publicity purposes, a selection of the works will be included in a special section of the 21st Malaga Festival in 2018.

Festival Sponsors

CRUZCAMPO: One of Spain’s majot beer brands. Cruzcampo regularly sponsors events in the sporting and cultural world.

GAS NATURAL FENOSA. The energy company, which will sponsor the event for the ninth consecutive year, demonstrates its social commitment and strong business ties with Malaga. It maintains a commitment of collaboration with society and especially with the world of cinema, through its support to the main festivals and cinemas of the country. In addition to the Malaga Festival, Gas Natural Fenosa also sponsors, among others, the San Sebastian Festival, Madrid Premier Week, the Sitges Fantasy Film Festival, the Cartagena International Film Festival and the critics’ Feroz Awards as well as more than 40 Cinemas of the Cinesa network in Spain. With its support for the cinema, Gas Natural Fenosa works with one of the industries that has been most affected by the crisis, and especially in the case of festivals, which have seen their sources of funding reduced.