Industry

The Beloved, the new Movistar Plus original film directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, premiered in the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival this weekend, where it was met with strong critical reception and a standing ovation lasting more than seven minutes. The screening also reportedly saw the audience begin applauding at two separate moments during the film.
The premiere brought together key cast and creative talent on the red carpet, including Javier Bardem, Victoria Luengo, Raúl Arévalo and Marina Foïs, alongside director Rodrigo Sorogoyen, screenwriter Isabel Peña, and producers Guillermo Farré (Movistar Plus), Eduardo Villanueva and Nacho Lavilla (Caballo Films).

The film marks the first of three Movistar Plus titles selected for this year’s Official Selection. In the coming days, La bola negra by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, and Amarga Navidad by Pedro Almodóvar — both with prominent participation from Movistar Plus — will also compete at the festival.

Rodrigo Sorogoyen said: “I think we’ve been improving and making qualitative leaps with every film. We wanted to write a screenplay that felt very different from As Bestas. In El ser querido, we shot the most complex scene of my career. It was in the script from the very beginning. Once it was written, we realized how important this sequence was, and later it became the hardest thing to shoot. A 15-minute sequence took us five days to film. That’s something you can handle when you’re surrounded by the right people. Once we had shot that sequence, we felt the rest would be easier. (...) We couldn’t be more grateful to Cannes Film Festival. Last night was truly unforgettable".
Javier Bardem noted: “It was very easy to find a balance with Victoria Luengo. She is extraordinary — she’s not afraid to go wherever the character takes her. One of the things I appreciate most is Rodrigo’s ability to bring out the best in us. (...) I want to thank Thierry Frémaux and the festival for bringing Spanish cinema to this event. The three Spanish films that are here truly deserve it. The fact that they are here says a lot about our industry, and it makes us very proud. (...) Rodrigo is a great director. The level of precision he has achieved in the performances has to do with what’s written, with very precise notes that call for truth, that touch the honesty they are searching for, and then placing the camera… You can tell he enjoys it, and he communicates that".

Victoria Luengo said “Javier and I didn’t see each other during the preparation of the film. Rodrigo wanted to keep us apart in order to create that real sense of distance, so the first time we saw each other was while shooting the opening sequence. Rodrigo and I wrote a biography for Emilia’s character. What mattered was everything the character had bottled up and was unable to say. Standing in front of Javier and letting myself go. I felt a level of freedom that is very difficult to achieve on a film set. (…) Cinema is a mirror that confronts each of us with the stage of life we are going through at that moment. I’ve been fortunate to express things through the characters I’ve played. That has been healing for me".

Isabel Peña added:“We want ed to tell a different kind of story. A story about people, where the screenplay itself would feel more invisible. The project originated during a lunch among friends in Bilbao, where we started talking about relationships with our parents. Although the contexts were very different, the common elements were what gave rise to this story. A year later, we met Javier at the Hôtel Martinez in Cannes, and he loved the project. That’s why the character’s surname is Martínez, in honor of that lunch".
Marina Foïs stated: “In Rodrigo’s cinema, stories don’t exist just for the sake of existing. His working method is very special because he gives actors an extraordinary sense of confidence".

In Spain, the film will be released in cinemas on 26 August, distributed by A Contracorriente Films, and will later arrive exclusively on the Movistar Plus platform.