November 6, 2023.- The Festival de Cine Fantástico de Canarias Ciudad de La Laguna Isla Calavera makes visible the presence of women protagonists and creators in fantastic cinema with the participation of four essential names: Amber Heard, Manuela Velasco, Marta González de Vega and Silvia Tortosa.
The actress Amber Heard, popular for her role as the Atlantean queen Mera in the superhero film 'Aquaman' of the DC Extended Universe, and soon in its sequel 'Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom', will visit this edition of the Isla Calavera Festival to attend the Spanish premiere of her new film, the supernatural thriller 'In the fire', written and directed by Conon Allyn. The screening will take place on Sunday, November 12, at 6:00 pm, at Multicines Tenerife, and will also be attended by actor Eduardo Noriega, co-star, and producers Pascal Borno and Alain Gillissen. Set in the 1890s, it is the story of Don Marquez, who after losing his wife hires Grace Victoria Burnham, an American psychiatrist, to find out what is wrong with his son, who seems to have inexplicable abilities.
Amber Heard had her first starring role in the horror film 'All the Boys love Mandy Lane' (2006), and has participated in other genre titles such as 'Machete Kills' (2013), 'Blind Fury' (2011), alongside Nicolas Cage, 'Welcome to Zombie Land' (2009) or 'Locked Up' (2010), under the orders of John Carpenter.
Manuela Velasco, winner of the Isla Calavera Honorary Award
For her part, Manuela Velasco will visit the Festival de Cine Fantástico de Canarias Ciudad de La Laguna to collect the Honorary Isla Calavera Award at the Closing Gala on November 18.
The actress began her career as a television presenter, but became an icon of Spanish fantastic cinema after giving life to the reporter Ángela Vidal in the film '[REC]' (2007), by Paco Plaza and Jaume Balagueró. For her performance, she won the Goya Award for Best New Actress and was also recognized as Best Actress at the Sitges Fantastic Film Festival. In '[REC] 2′ and '[REC] 4: Apocalypse' she brought the character back to the big screen. Her film debut took place as a child, in 'La ley del deseo', by Pedro Almodóvar, and she extended her popularity with her roles in series such as 'Aída' or 'Velvet'.
He also has a starring role in the cast of 'Cuando los amos duermen', by Santiago Alvarado Ilarri, which can be seen at the Festival Isla Calavera in the Official Competition Feature Film Section.
Marta Gonzalez de Vega, S. S. Venture Award
The S. S. Venture Award to the Canary Islands talent of the Festival Isla Calavera will go this year to the Canarian screenwriter and actress Marta González de Vega, who triumphs in Madrid's Gran Vía with the eighth season of her play 'De Caperucita a loba en solo seis tíos', while she signs with Santiago Segura the script of the highest-grossing sagas of Spanish cinema in recent years, in which she also takes part as an actress: 'Padre no hay más que uno' and 'A todo tren'. Considered one of the most influential women in the Spanish film industry, Marta González de Vega will receive her recognition this Friday at the Festival's opening ceremony.
On the other hand, actress, singer and presenter Silvia Tortosa will attend the Canary Islands Fantastic Film Festival to participate in a special event in tribute to director Eugenio Martín, who passed away last January and which will be dedicated to the Spanish fantaterror classic 'Pánico en el Transiberiano' (1972), where he shared the bill with Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. This event, which will also include the participation of filmmaker and genre expert Víctor Matellano, will take place on Thursday, November 16, at 8:30 p.m. at Multicines Tenerife.
