Netflix Boards Film Adaptation of Cesc Gay’s Award-Winning Theatre Play “53 Domingos”

It’s Sundays fun days for Cesc Gay.

Netflix has boarded a big screen adaptation of the 57-year-old Spanish film screenwriter and film director’s award-winning theatre play 53 Domingos, which he’ll direct.

Cesc Gay, The drama, exploring family relationships, follows three brothers who meet to discuss what to do with their octogenarian father, who has started showing strange behavior.

As they discuss whether to move him to a nursing home, or into one of their homes, the initially civilized family discussion degenerates into an unexpected and hilarious fight.

The cast includes Carmen Machi, Javier Cámara and Javier Gutierrez.

Gay’s previous credits include international breakout Truman, the choral film Stories Not To Be Told and the television drama Félix.

The Netflix announcement rounds out a trio of Spanish feature productions unveiled by the streamer this week.

The previously announced titles span alongside political thriller Un Fantasma en la Batalla, produced by Society of Snow filmmaker J.A. Bayona, and investigative drama La Desconocida, written by journalist and author Rosa Montero.

The latter revolves around an investigation into the identity of woman found in a container located in the Barcelona docks, with no memory of who she is or how she got there.

FilmRise Acquires U.S. Distribution Rights to Darin’s “Truman”

Ricardo Darín’s Goya Award-winning performance will reach American audiences.

FilmRise has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Truman, the Cesc Gay-helmed film starring the 59-year-old Argentine actor.

Ricardo Darín in Truman

The Spanish-Argentinean comedic drama earned five Goya Awards this year, including Best Film and Best Actor for Darín’s performance.

Truman, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, explores the intimacy and tenderness of a lifelong friendship headed towards its imminent end. Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Julián (Darín) has decided to forgo treatment, and spend his final days tying up loose ends. When childhood friend Tomás (Javier Cámara) pays his ailing friend an unexpected visit, he quickly realizes he won’t be able to change his mind. In what will be their final reunion, the two friends set out to finalize Julián’s funeral arrangements, settle his accounts and find a home for his beloved dog Truman.

Truman will debut in U.S. theaters in winter 2017.

Darin to Receive Honorary Platino Award

Ricardo Darin will soon be shining as bright as platinum

The 59-year-old Argentine actor will be honored at the third edition of the Platino Awards, the Latin America equivalent of the Oscars, which will be held on July 24 in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

Ricardo Darin

Darin, who starred in Argentina’s 2009 best foreign-language film Oscar winner The Secret in Their Eyes and the Cannes Film Festival 2014 hit Wild Tales, is one of the most popular actors in Latin America and one of the very few who has box-office appeal across the region.

His popularity also reaches the Spanish market, where he recently starred in Cesc Gay‘s Goya winner Truman, a role for which he’s also nominated for a Platino in the best actor category.

Darin was recently confirmed as the star of La cordillerathe next movie from Argentina’s ascending indie filmmaker Santiago MitreThe film is Mitre’s follow-up to Critics’ Week winner Paulina and was selected for Cannes’ L’Atelier de la Cinefondation program. La cordillera is set during a three-day presidential summit in the Andes Mountains, and Darin will play the Argentine head of state.

The Honorary Platino will praise “the honesty, talent and charisma with which he has engrossed some of the most renowned films made in the last three decades of Ibero-American cinema,” according to a press release Thursday from the Platino Awards organization, led by EGEDA and producers federation FIPCA.

Previous recipients of the Honorary Platino were also actors: Antonio Banderas was honored in 2015 and Brazilian legend Sonia Braga (Aquarius) in 2014.

Camara Wins Best Actor Award at San Sebastian Film Festival

Javier Camara is having a Shell of an awards season…

The 48-year-old Spanish actor picked up the Silver Shell for Best Actor at the San Sebastian Film Festival, alongside co-winner Ricardo Darin.

Javier Camara

Camara and Darin won the double Silver Shell for their starring roles in Cesc Gay’s Truman, which was the most-applauded prize of the evening.

The film centers on Tomás (Camara), who returns to his hometown Madrid in order to convince his childhood friend Julian (Darin), whom he hasn’t spoken to in years, to continue his chemotherapy treatment.

Darin, a favorite at San Sebastian, quoted a tweet about the film that said, in Spanish: “at 23 I went to see a film about death and I think I learned everything about life.”

Meanwhile, Yordanka Ariosa took home the Silver Shell for Best Actress for her performance in The King of Havana, Agusti Villaronga‘s adaptation of the Pedro Juan Gutierrez novel.

It was a surprise win for the previously unknown Ariosa, who beat out Freeheld´s Oscar-tipped powerhouse Julianne Moore and Ellen Page.

In addition to the official awards, San Sebastian offered coveted cash prizes for competitions from many of the sidebars.

Argentinean filmmaker Santiago Mitre’s Paulina won the €35,000 cash prize that goes with the Horizontes Award for Latin American films.

Spanish filmmaker Asier Altuna’s Amama won the Irizar Basque Film Award with €20,000, given to a film with 20 percent financing from the local region. 

Brazilian director Eliane Caffe’s The Cambridge Squatter won the Films in Progress top prize, which awards post-production financing to a nearly finished film, in addition to a spot at the festival next year.