THE WATER
A feature film by Elena López Riera, 2022, 104', DCP color
With Luna Pamies, Bárbara Lennie, Alberto Olmo, Nieve de Medina, Irene Pellicer, Nayara García, Lidia Cánova, Pascual Valero
It is summer in a small village in south-eastern Spain. A storm threatens to cause the river that runs through it to overflow again. A popular old belief claims that some women are predestined to disappear with each new flood, because they have the “water inside”.
A band of young people is trying to overcome the weariness of a summer in the village that smells of death by smoking, dancing, and lusting after each other. In this electric atmosphere that precedes the storm, Ana and José live a love affair until the storm bursts.
PREMIERE AU FESTIVAL DE CANNES - Quinzaine des réalisateurs
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - TIFF Comtemporary World cinema
SAN SEBASTIAN FILM FESTIVAL - Zabaltegui Tabakalera
PRIZES
GOLDEN VIOLET at CINESPAÑA, Toulouse
JURY PRIZE Festival International du Film des Femmes de Salé, Marrocco
JURY PRIZE - Ourense Film festival
Premio "Fundació la Caixa", Clam - Festival Internacional de Cinema Social de Catalunya
BERLANGA PRIZE of the Valencia Cinema Academy - Best actesse for Luna Pamies
BERLANGA PRIZE of the Valencia Cinema Academy - Best actor for Pascual Valero
FICAL Festival de Almería - Best direction Prize
Festivals:
Festival du film romantique de Cabourg
Quinzaine au Forum des images, Paris
International film festival de La Rochelle
New Horizons International Film Festival, Pologne
International Young Audience Film Festival Ale Kino
FID Marseille - Film d'ouverture
Rencontres Cinéma de Gindou
A Simana di a Providenza, Corse
Reykyavik IFF
Mannheim Film Festival
Bogota IFF
Valdivia film festival
Zurich Film Festival
Viennale
Sao Paulo International Film Festival
Valdivia IFF
FIDOCS
Black Canva FCC
Batalha Centro de Cinema, Portugal
Tokyo International Film Festival
Espoo Ciné International Film Festival
Helsinki IFF
Stockholm International Film Festival
FESTIVAL FEMMES MEDITERRANNEE – MARSEILLE
CLAM Festival Manresa
Abycine
MOSTRA, Valencia
Seminci Valladolid
Temporada Alta, Girona
22º Festival de Cine Ópera Prima, Tudela
Elena López Riera was born in Orihuela (Spain) in 1982. After completing her doctoral thesis on contemporary Argentinean cinema, she teaches comparative literature at the University of Geneva, Carlos III University in Madrid and Valencia.
She has been a member of the selection committee of the Festival international de Belfort Entrevue since 2016, collaborator and consultant at the Seville European Film Festival and member of the selection committee of the Festival Visions du réel, Nyon.
She directed the short films Pueblo (presented at the Quinzaine des réalisateurs of Cannes Film Festival 2015, and Las vísceras (presented at the Locarno Festival, international competition Pardi di domani, distinguished by the Mikeldi Silver Award at the Zinebi International Festival).
Her short film Los que desean was nominated for the European Film Awards and won the Pardino d'Oro at the Locarno Festival in 2018.
She participated in the Berlinale Talent Campus of the 2017 Berlin International Festival.
El agua, her first feature film, made its world premiere at the Directors' Fortnight of the Cannes Film Festival 2022. It was subsequently selected to Toronto and San Sebastián, and was nominated for the Goya Awards for Best First Film and Best Lead Actress, as well as the Quartz-Prix du Cinéma Suisse for Best Film and Best Editing.
Selected at Cinéfondation, residency of Festival de Cannes.
Selected at Ikusmira Berriak, residency of San Sebastian Film Festival.
Ikusmira Berriak Award - REC Grabaketa Estudioa, San Sebastian Film Festival.
Prize for Best Cinéfondation pitching at Cannes Film Festival.
With the support of l'Office Fédéral de la Culture, Cinéforom, Loterie Romande, Institut Valencià de la Cultura (IVC), Instituto de la Cinematografía-Gobierno de España (ICAA), RTVE, Cinémas du Monde / Institut français, Eurimages, À Punt Mèdia, Arte/Cofinova 17, Suissimage, Media Desk Suisse.
Production: Alina film (Switzerland)
In co-production with SUICAfilms (Spain),
Les films du Worso (France)
Script: Elena López Riera, Philippe Azoury
Direction: Elena López Riera
Producers: Eugenia Mumenthaler, David Epiney
Coproducers: Rafa Molés, Pepe Andreu
Sylvie Pialat, Alejandro Arenas
Executive producer: Natalia Maestro
In coproduction with the Radio Télévision Suisse,
Françoise Mayor, Carole Thévenaz
Director of Fotography: Giuseppe Truppi
Sound: Carlos Ibañez
Production designer: Miguel Angel Rebollo
Costumes: Nuria Pascual-Andujar
Make-up and Hair: Katrine Zingg
Gaffer: Fafa Fierz
Key Grip: Sophie Poncin
Casting: Cendrine Lapuyade
Unit production manager: Andrés Mellinas
Location Manager Patrizia Picazo
1st asistant director: Adrián Orr
Editing: Raphaël Lefèvre
Sound editing: Mathieu Farnarier
Sound mix: Denis Séchaud
Internationale sales: Elle Driver
Swiss Distribution: Cineworx
Spanish Distribution: Filmin / Elastica
French Distribution: Les films du Losange
PRESS
INTERVIEW
