The Raindance Film Festival is celebrating its 31st edition this year, which will take place in London from October 25 to November 4. Consolidated as the largest independent film festival in the UK, the event will welcome Catalonia as the guest of honour, a presence promoted by the Ministry of Culture through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies (ICEC) and its brand for the internationalisation of the Catalan audiovisual industry Catalan Films and the Ramon Llull Institute (IRL), with a curated selection of Catalan titles and professional activities.

Within the framework of the International Competition, four feature films have been selected. At the top of the list is Isabel Coixet's latest film, Un amor (Monte Glauco AIE, Radio Televisión Española - RTVE, Movistar Plus, Buenapinta Media, Perdición Films), a movie that premiered in the Official Section of San Sebastian International Film Festival and that will be the closing film of the festival.

Raindance will also showcase the animation by Juanjo Sáez Tender Metalheads (La Productora de Juanjo Sáez, Televisió de Catalunya), that premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and the documentary La Singla (La Fábrica Naranja, Malandar Films, Inselfilm Produktion), a film by Paloma Zapata that has had a great journey of international festivals such as the Thessaloniki Film Festival or the Malaga Festival.

Finally, the feature film Upon Entry (Zabriskie Films, Basque Films, Sygnatia), a thriller by Juan Sebastián Vásquez and Alejandro Rojas that made its World Premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, where it won the FIPRESCI prize, will also be part of the selection.

In addition, the Catalan focus of Raindance will host a programme of six short films. First of all, there will be two short films produced by ESCAC that have had a wide international screening: Crack of Dawn, by Anna Llargués, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and Daydreaming so Vividly about our Spanish Holidays by Christian Avilés, selected at the last Berlinale.

Catalan animation will also be present, with the short films He Ran alongside his Comrade (BOL Production House), a black comedy by Genís Rigol that was part of the latest edition of Shortcat, and Lost at Sea (Noon Films), a documentary by Lucija Stojevic and Andrés Bartos, presented at the Annecy International Animation Festival.

Lastly, Cordelia Alegre will present her short film Mistral (Fractal 7), premiered at the D'A Film Festival, and Miguel López Beraza will present Ponto Final (Ringo Media, Makers, Matiné, Bro Cinema), a short documentary that was showcased at the Warsaw International Film Festival and took part in the Shortcat 2022.

As for industry activities, the festival will offer different talks, a co-production meeting and a masterclass with Catalan director Carla Simón.

The Ministry of Culture, through ICEC (Catalan Films and Catalunya Film Commission) and IRL will be present at the festival, representing and promoting the Catalan audiovisual industry at one of the leading events for independent cinema. The founder of Raindance and the British Independent Film Awards, Elliot Grove, highlighted Catalan independent cinema with these words: “Catalan films tick all the boxes that Raindance is known for: new voices, original stories and innovative cinematic style. A grateful thank you to our friends at Catalan Films and Institute Ramón Lull for their support and efforts for championing independent cinema. We are thrilled to host Catalonia as our Guest of Honour at the 31st Raindance Film Festival.”

The importance of the Catalan audiovisual industry

For a few years now, Catalan cinema has left an important footrprint on Europe. Audiovisual productions of fiction, animation and documentary play a very important role in festivals all over the world, receive international awards and are showcased worldwide. The recognition of critics and international audiences is unanimous, and the prestige of Catalan professionals is a reflection of a very powerful industry, with an undeniable talent and training.

The audiovisual sector is, due to the weight of its industry, its potential as a strategic sector and its capacity for internationalization, one of the axes of the Ministry of Culture for this legislature. It is a priority to promote it as a sector that creates imaginary and references, that promotes our language, our culture, our landscapes. . . and that dynamizes the economy.

In 2022, the Ministry of Culture invested €40 million to the audiovisual sector. It is the highest number dedicated to audiovisual companies and professionals in recent years and it is planned to be maintained like this for 2023. The grant lines managed by ICEC cover the entire audiovisual value chain, with headings e. g. for development and co-production. This support has helped to render visible and consolidate some of the values for which Catalan audiovisual stands out: the talent of its professionals, the existence of internationally recognised training centres, the work and commitment of a powerful audiovisual industry, which draws on a long tradition and generates an enormous variety of productions, and the richness of a large number of festivals that place the country on the international map.