Noticias

Buenos Aires — Representatives of Ibero-American film industry collectives gathered to discuss diversity, parity and equality in the audiovisual sector at a pair of panels held by Ventana Sur’s Punto Genero and industry strands in Buenos Aires on Thursday.

Moderated by Lyara Oliveira, São Paulo promotion agency Spcine’s director of innovation and audiovisual policies, the Punto Genero discussion focused on regional strategies toward greater diversity in the field.

Panelists included Annamaría Muchnik, president of Argentina’s Asociación La Mujer y el Cine, Cristina Andreu, president of Spain’s Cima, Mitzuko Villanueva, president of Mexico’s Mujeres en Cine y Televisión and Mónica Hernández, producer and member of the Rec Sisters collective, a space for women in Colombia’s audiovisual sector.

Muchnik opened with an emotive recounting of her experience in the sector, remembering a worthwhile yet unrelenting and diligent climb toward broader acceptance for women in cinema.

“When La...

Johnny Depp has garnered immense support from hundreds of thousands of fans across the world during his ongoing troubles with ex-wife Amber Heard, but not everyone is on his side. Recently, it was announced that the embattled actor would be honored with the Donostia Award at the 69th annual San Sebastian film festival next month. Many have applauded the decision to give Johnny Depp the festival's highest honor, but others have been crying foul.

Per the Associated Press, some Spanish female filmmakers are none too happy about Depp's award. They argue that honoring the actor gives the San Sebastian film festival a bad name following a British judge's controversial ruling that ex-wife Amber Heard's allegations of domestic violence were "substantially true." Cristina Andreu, the President of Spain's Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media, told the Associate Press that she was "very surprised" by the announcement.

"This speaks very badly...

Festival director Jose Luis Rebordinos issues statement.

San Sebastian Film Festival director José Luis Rebordinos has defended the festival’s decision to honour Johnny Depp with the Donostia Award at this year’s event (September 17-25).

In 2020, Depp lost his libel case against UK tabloid The Sun after it described him as a “wife-beater” in a 2018 article.

The festival has been hit with criticism from domestic abuse charities in the UK, who have described the decision as “insulting”. The Czech Republic’s Karlovy Vary Festival has also been criticised after it too decided to honour Depp this year.

In his statement,...

Festival director Jose Luis Rebordinos issued a statement defending decision to award the actor.

San Sebastian Film Festival director José Luis Rebordinos has defended the festival’s decision to honour Johnny Depp with the Donostia Award at this year’s event (September 17-25).

In 2020, Depp lost his libel case against UK tabloid The Sun after it described him as a “wife-beater” in a 2018 article.

The festival has been hit with criticism from domestic abuse charities in the UK, who have described the decision as “insulting”. Czech Republic’s Karlovy Vary Festival has also been criticised after it too decided to honour Depp this year.

The San Sebastian Film Festival has come out swinging against those who criticized it for bestowing its highest honor, the Donostia Award, to controversial actor Johnny Depp.

Among the critics were a group of Spanish women filmmakers who said they were “very surprised” that Depp is receiving the award. “This speaks very badly of the festival and its leadership, and transmits a terrible message to the public: ‘it doesn’t matter if you are an abuser as long as you are a good actor,’” Cristina Andreu, president of Spain’s Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media had told the Associated Press.

Depp lost his libel case last year against British tabloid The Sun that had accused him of domestic violence. Depp was refused permission to appeal the ruling in March, with the British court saying his appeal had “no real prospect of success.”

“In these present times, when lynching on social media is rife,...

Spain’s Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media is speaking out against this week’s news that Johnny Depp will be awarded the Donostia prize at the 69th San Sebastian Film Festival next month. The festival announced Depp will be given the event’s lifetime achievement prize Wednesday, Sept. 22, referring to the actor as “one of contemporary cinema’s most talented and versatile actors.”

Cristina Andreu, the president of Spain’s Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media, told the Associated Press (via The Guardian) that the group of women directors was “very surprised” over the decision to give Depp the Donostia prize. Depp has been accused of emotional and physical abuse by Amber Heard. Warner Bros. had Depp exit the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise last year after he lost a libel case to The Sun, which referred to Depp as a “wife beater” in an article about Depp and Heard.

A group of Spanish filmmakers denounced the San Sebastian’s film festival’s announcement that it would honor Johnny Depp with the Donostia Award at the 69th annual festival next month.

The Associated Press reported that the women filmmakers said awarding Depp the highest honor at San Sebastian gives the event a bad name after a British judge ruled last year that allegations of domestic violence against the actor were “substantially correct.” His ex-wife Amber Heard had accused Depp of domestic violence, charges that he denied.

Cristina Andreu, president of Spain’s Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media, said she was “very surprised” by the award. The Donostia Award is the festival’s top prize and aims to honor lifetime achievement.

“This speaks very badly of the festival and its leadership, and transmits a terrible message to the public: ‘it doesn’t matter if you are an abuser as...

President of Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media says film festival award ‘transmits a terrible message’

A leading group of Spanish women film-makers condemned the San Sebastián film festival’s decision to award Johnny Depp its highest honour, saying it gave the international event a bad name.

Cristina Andreu, the president of Spain’s Association of Female Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media, said she was “very surprised” by the decision to award Depp the Donostia award at the festival’s 69th edition in September. The award is the event’s top prize and aims to honour lifetime achievement. “This speaks very badly of the festival and its leadership, and transmits a terrible message to the public: ‘It doesn’t matter if you are an abuser as long as you are a good actor’,” Andreu told the Associated Press.

The festival’s communications head Ruth Pérez de Anucita will join the committee in 2019.

The San Sebastian International Film Festival is adding its head of communications, Ruth Pérez de Anucita, to its selection committee to ensure it is comprised of an equal number of women and men from next year.

The addition will take the committee to 10 members, five women and five men. The other members are Maialen Beloki, Quim Casas, Roberto Cueto, Joxean Fernández, José Ángel Herrero-Velarde, Victor Iriarte, Lucía Olaciregui, Ana Esperanza Redondo, and Amaia Serrulla.

The decision was announced on the same day San Sebastian became the...

Venice, Cannes, Locarno and Sarajevo have already signed document.

The San Sebastian International Film Festival will join Venice, Cannes, Locarno, Idfa and Sarajevo in signing a document committing to gender parity.

Festival director José Luis Rebordinos will sign the pledge alongside deputy prime minister Carmen Calvo; minister of culture and sport José Guirao; mayor of San Sebastian Eneko Goia and Cima president Cristina Andreu at a press conference on Sunday September 23.

The document, initiated by French organisation 5050x2020 and signed by Cannes’ chiefs in May, will see the festival pledge to:

Compile statistics broken down by gender, regarding both the...

Madrid – Spain’s San Sebastian Festival is expected to sign a pledge on gender parity Sunday, following in the footsteps of the Cannes, Locarno, Sarajevo and Venice film fests.

San Sebastian Festival director José Luis Rebordinos is to sign the Charter for Parity and Inclusion of Women in Cinema in the company of Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Carmen Calvo; the minister of culture and sport, José Guirao; the president of the festival’s board of directors and mayor of San Sebastian, Eneko Goia; and the president of Spain’s Assn. of Women Cineastes (Cima), Cristina Andreu. Cima vice-president Virginia Yagüe will host the ceremony.

The real news would have been if San Sebastian hadn’t signed. Like Cannes and Venice chiefs Thierry Fremaux and Alberto Barbera, respectively, Rebordinos has steadfastly opposed quotas obliging 50% of festival titles to be from female directors. But in some areas of the festival, parity for...