The debut feature film by Malaga director Sergio Siruela, Aullar, takes its first steps in the ‘5 Minutes of Cinema’ section of the Festival de Málaga
On the afternoon of Wednesday the 6th of March, the Aullar feature film was presented in the ‘5 Minutes of Cinema’ section, where the director Sergio Siruela, producer Ezekiel Montes and actress Elena
Sergio Siruela is from Malaga, but until now his professional career had been spent in Mexico. Out of an interest in how to work with Latin America, he travelled to Mexico when he got his first professional opportunity and stayed there for ten years. During that time, he has directed series for Sony Pictures, Fox, Disney+, Claro Video, Televisa Studios/Univisión and Vix+ (Los elegidos; Promesas de campaña, nominated for the International Emmy Award - Best Comedy Series 2021; Sin miedo a la verdad 3; Herederos por accidente and three seasons of Viaje al centro de la tierra). Now, he's returned to his hometown to shoot Aullar with actress Elena Martínez and producer Ezekiel Montes.
Aullar was born from a feeling Elena Martínez had, according to the producer, who explained that they’ve not yet started shooting, but that they will do so this coming September.
The film revolves around redemption, alcoholism, broken families and poverty, themes that touch Montes closely and remind him of both his childhood and his neighbourhood, which is why he wanted to shoot it entirely in Malaga, 'probably in La Palmilla or Carranque areas', Montes said.
Elena Martínez took the floor to denounce the fact that alcoholism is an illness that can go unnoticed in society, which’s why it is difficult to detect and overcome. In the film, Mamen is a local woman from the neighbourhood who tries to escape from her reality. She has a son and works in a club as a dancer. Due to life’s circumstances, she ends up forcibly reuniting with her father, with whom she had lost all relationship and whom she’ll have to help during the film.
The story will be based in present-day Malaga in 2024 and promises to be full of hard-hitting moments, but all part of reality. They’re currently in the middle of the casting process for the role of the son, and have already seen more than 18,000 applications.
The producer, Ezekiel Montes, will also be the screenwriter for the project that has brought filmmaker Sergio Siruela back home. 'I focused my career on the world of television and relegated feature films, but now I’m getting it back thanks to this project, and I’m very happy to do so. I wanted to return to my homeland, and I wanted to tell real stories, and here I am about to do so'.
The film will start shooting next September in Malaga and all signs point to Antonio Dechent being responsible for bringing the protagonist’s father to life on the big screen.
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