San Cristóbal de La Laguna, December 5, 2023.- The Festival de Cine Fantástico de Canarias Ciudad de La Laguna Isla Calavera takes stock of its recent edition, which closed its doors on November 19 after ten intense days of programming with great public success and a list of winners led by Spanish productions 'La Espera', by F. Javier Gutiérrez, with the awards for best feature film, direction, actor and wardrobe, and 'La mesaita del comedor', by Caye Casas, with the award for best screenplay and the Audience Award for best feature film. The Jury Award for Best Short Film went to 'Psicario', by Daniel Padró Targarona, while the Audience Award for Best Short Film went to 'La fianza', by Eduardo Cubillo, from the Canary Islands. An award ceremony sponsored by the City Council of La Laguna, through the Department of Culture, the Cabildo of Tenerife, Promotur, Canary Islands Tourism, Canary Islands Latitud de Vida, Canarias avanza con Europa; the Canary Islands Institute of Cultural Development, Canary Islands Film and Tenerife Film Commission.
More than 25,000 people of all ages enjoyed the program for this seventh edition of the event, with 50 screenings at Multicines Tenerife, including 13 feature films and 18 short films in competition, 2 documentaries, 13 classics and the national premieres of 'In the Fire', 'Last Sentinel' and 'Somewhere Quiet', in addition to the extensive program of parallel activities and presentations inside and outside the Canary Islands.
Star shower
A shower of stars paraded down the red carpet at the opening and closing galas of the Festival, held at the emblematic Teatro Leal in La Laguna. American actress Amber Heard ('Aquaman') and Spanish actor Eduardo Noriega ('Abre los ojos') visited the Festival surrounded by great expectation to present for the first time in Spain their new film, 'In the Fire'. Noriega also picked up the Honorary Isla Calavera Award, an award that this year also recognized the careers of American director and producer Joe Dante ('Gremlins', 'Howling') and Madrid actress Manuela Velasco ('[REC]'). Actor Sam J. Jones, who brought 'Flash Gordon' to life in the 1980 classic, and actress Silvia Tortosa ('Panic on the Trans-Siberian') received Legend of the Fantastic awards. Screenwriter and actress Marta González de Vega received the S. S. Venture Award for Canarian talent.
Other performers from the national and Canary Islands scene also visited the Festival, such as Víctor Clavijo, Llum Barrera, Mario Mayo, Eva Llorach, Alicia Rodríguez, Aïda Ballmann, dubbing actors Camilo García, Graciela Molina and Luis Posada, the master of special effects and makeup Colin Arthur and film critics and historians Jesús Palacios, Gloria Fernández and Enrique Garcelán, among others.
Parallel activities
Among the parallel activities, it is worth mentioning the fifth edition of the Rodar en Canarias Industry Meeting, which brought together with the local industry outstanding national and international figures such as producers Pascal Borno, Alain Gillisen, Nicolás Matji or the North American Elizabeth Stanley; directors such as Enrique Gato, F. Javier Gutiérrez, Caye Casas, Cyprian Hercka, Santiago Alvarado or Héctor Escandell; the director of Phenomena Barcelona Nacho Cerdá; the director and journalist Santiago Tabernero; Elisabet Campoy, decorator specialized in interior design; or Pablo Lozano, director of Cinefan Úbeda.
In the words of its co-directors Daniel Fumero and Ramón González Trujillo: "2023 has been a decisive edition to consolidate the growth of the Festival, which continues to be a unique event of its kind in the Canary Islands. In addition, great international icons of the fantastic have visited the Canary Islands for the first time and have been captivated not only by the goodness of the territory, but also by the incredible hospitality of the audience, which continues to grow year after year. We are very excited about the plans and possibilities that await us in the near future".
About the Festival de Cine Fantástico de Canarias Isla Calavera (Skull Island Fantastic Film Festival of the Canary Islands)
Organized by the Cultural Association Charlas de Cine, the Cultural Association Isla Calavera, Multicines Tenerife and the specialized publication TumbaAbierta.com, the Festival de Cine Fantástico de Canarias Ciudad de La Laguna Isla Calavera has been sponsored in its seventh edition by the City Council of La Laguna, through the Department of Culture, the Cabildo de Tenerife, Promotur, Turismo de las Islas Canarias, Islas Canarias Latitud de Vida, Canarias avanza con Europa; the Canary Islands Institute for Cultural Development, Canary Islands Film and Tenerife Film Commission; and the collaboration of the University of La Laguna, La Laguna Zona Comercial, Grupo Perla Negra, Zulay Panaderías, Grupo Fly Luxury, Juan Antonio Ribas Subtítulos y Ediciones Digitales, Reel One Entertainment, Playmedusa Videojuegos, CADEC, Cinedfest, Planta 0: Consultoría Digital, Consejo Regulador de la Denominación de Origen Tacoronte-Acentejo, CinemaNext, Iro Pictures, Teatro Leal, José Acosta Style, Audi Canarias, Coca-Cola. Fundación Diario de Avisos, Televisión Canaria and Canarias Radio participate as media partners.
The Isla Calavera Festival was born in 2017 and in its seven years of trajectory has achieved an important national repercussion and is already considered one of the five most relevant fantastic film festivals in the country. Internationally it has also become one of the appointments to take into account, thanks to the participation of such relevant figures as Belén Rueda, John Landis, Deborah Nadoolman, Sarah Douglas, Rick Baker, Caroline Munro, David Naughton, Jack Taylor, Enzo G. Castellari, Mick Garris, Neil Marshall, Álex de la Iglesia, Nicholas Rowe, Colin Arthur or Lamberto Bava. Other guests who have visited Tenerife as part of the Isla Calavera Festival and who have put the event on the map of film meetings include Paco Plaza, Carolina Bang, Paco Cabezas, Víctor Matellano, Juanma Bajo Ulloa, Eugenio Mira, Charlotte Kirk and Lola Dueñas, among others.
