Basque Film Series in Chile

In Santiago, Chile, the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile will host a Basque film series this October, with support from the Basque Delegation in Chile and the Etxepare Basque Institute. The following Basque productions will be screened: ‘The Williams’, ‘Ciento volando’, ‘Marco’, ‘Bizkarsoro’, and ‘When a tree falls’, with screenings taking place from 6 to 10 October. 

‘The Williams’ (Raúl De la Fuente, 2024)

Many migrants live in search of a mirror in which to recognize themselves; they are not from here, but they are not from there either. Los Williams / The Williams, a feature-length documentary, familiar and sporting, told in first-person by Iñaki and Nico Williams. Two brothers, footballers, Basques and "beltzas" or black, of Ghanaian descent, reveal their incredible tale across the two most crucial years of their lives. From their historic participation in the Qatar World Cup with two different selections, to the long-awaited victory of the Athletic Club in the Copa del Rey after 40 years, and Nico´s triumph at the European Championship. Two international stars, face to face with their past and their future, through the conflicts that have marked their lives: racism, identity, frustration, ambition, and success.

‘Ciento volando’ (Arantxa Aguirre, 2024)

Daybreak in summer. A young girl from San Sebastian makes her way to the Peine del Viento (Wind Comb). She remembers the old sculptor Eduardo Chillida, who had been coming here since he was a boy. Today his three sculptures anchored to the rocks, in permanent conversation with the sea and the wind, have become a distinguishing feature of his city and of the whole Basque coast. At dawn, the young Jone asks herself about the sculptor and promises herself that she will go and find him.

‘Marco’ (Jon Garaño & Aitor Arregi, 2024)

Based on true events, Marco explores the story of a concentration camp deportee who never existed. Enric Marco, an immensely charismatic man who, for years, was able to maintain, before public opinion and his own family, a deeply complex lie: that he had been a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp. A man who rose to the presidency of the Spanish Association of Holocaust Victims, who became a prominent and admired figure for his supposed bravery and suffering. Until one day, a historian discovered that his survival story was, in fact, a complete lie.

‘Bizkarsoro’ (Josu Martinez, 2024)

In a non-existent town, five true stories based on oral testimonials and texts by writers take place between 1914 and 1982. Through them, we see the social changes experienced throughout the 20th century by a small town in the Northern Basque Country, the deep-rootedness and approximation of a language, and the struggle for survival.

‘When a tree falls’ (Asier Altuna, 2015)

The latest film from the Basque moviemaker, Asier Altuna. A family tale of conflict between the urban and rural worlds, past and present, parents and children. Two different ways of understanding life, and a grandmother who observes the world from deeply eloquent silence. Starring Iraia Elias, Amparo Badiola, Ander Lipus, Manu Uranga, Kandido Uranga and Klara Badiola.