Celebrities give their full support to ‘Black Bread’ in its quest for an Oscar nomination

Barcelona (ACN).- Celebrities from all fields have given their full support to ‘Pa Negre’ (‘Black Bread’) and have explained what the film means to them. They have participated in a video that presents the film representing Spain at the Oscars, and listed some of the awards it has received so far. The celebrities that have backed ‘Black Bread’ are: Literature Nobel Prize winner Mario Vargas Llosa, chef Ferran Adrià, tenor Josep Carreras, soccer player Gerard Piqué, artist Miquel Barceló, filmmaker Isabel Coixet, psychiatrist Luis Rojas Marcos, chef José Andrés, dancer Rafael Amargo, architect Ricardo Bofil, economist Xavier Sala Martín, top model Andrés Velencoso, filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona, and the President of the Spanish Film Academy, Enrique González Macho. The movie chosen to represent Spain at the 84^th Academy Awards was shot entirely in Catalan. ‘Black Bread’, whose original title is ‘Pa Negre’, depicts the dark period just after the end of the Spanish Civil War through the experiences of a young boy living in a rural village in Catalonia.

More than 60 movies from all over the world are vying to become one of the five nominees for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 84^th Academy Awards Ceremony. The nominees will be announced on January 13^th. ‘Pa Negre’ (‘Black Bread’) is the Spanish Film Academy’s entry at the Oscars. The movie was the absolute winner at the last Spanish Academy Awards, winning 9 prizes including best director, best movie and best-adapted screenplay. Agustí Villaronga directed the film and was shot entirely in Catalan.  ‘Black Bread’ is based on the book by Emili Teixidor. Through the eyes of a young boy, the film deals with the repression in a rural village, while a mysterious crime is investigated.

Support from internationally recognised Spanish celebrities

The Oscars are extremely competitive and the pre-selected movies have to make a considerable effort to publicise the film. For that reason a campaign to support the Catalan film representing Spain has been launched. In addition to the President of the Spanish Film Academy, twelve internationally recognised Spanish celebrities endorsed ‘Black Bread’ in its quest for an Oscar nomination, They have participated in a video produced by Catalan Films, the Barcelona/Catalunya Film Commission, and Massa d’Or (Black Bread’s production company), and it has benefited from the cooperation of Catalonia’s Public Television Broadcaster, Spain’s Public Television Broadcaster, the Academy of Catalan Cinema and Spain’s Film Academy.

Nobel Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa: “The story is told from a child’s perspective. Their performance is extraordinary”

The Peruvian writer and Nobel Prize Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa explained that “the story is told from a child’s perspective. Their performance is extraordinary”. The Catalan architect Ricardo Bofill, who designed the Shepherd School of Music in Houston and the Citadel Center and the RR Donnelley Building in Chicago, explained what the movie was about: “The Spanish Civil War’s aftermath was a horrible […] and sinister time, when Spain went through some really hard times, when our people lived miserably and there was plenty of unrest. ‘Black Bread’ is a snapshot of that tough period”.

Tenor Josep Carreras: “As a child of the post-civil-war era, ‘Black Bread’ really struck a chord with me”.

The psychiatrist and former director of New York’s public hospitals, Luís Rojas Marcos explained that the Catalan movie “represents the psychological trauma that children go through after witnessing horrible situations”. Catalan opera-singer Josep Carreras, who was one of the ‘Three Tenors’ together with Luciano Pavarotti and Plácido Domingo, was particularly moved by the film: “As a child from the post-civil-war era, ‘Black Bread’ really struck a chord with me”. FC Barcelona player Gerard Piqué, who last Monday was selected to be part of FIFA’s World’s Best Eleven of the Year, was also touched by the movie: “‘Black Bread reminds me of when my grandfather used to tell me how Catalonia was after the war, it was as if I was there, seeing it through his eyes”.

Chef José Andrés said he “loved ‘Black Bread’

José Andrés, chef and owner of ‘Thinkfoodgroup’, with several restaurants in Washington DC and Vegas, said he “loved ‘Black Bread”. He added: “I grew up in Catalonia. This could be my story”.

Filmmaker Isabel Coixet: “You don’t have to know about history to have a wonderful experience with the film”

The painter and sculpture-maker Miquel Barceló, whose work is exhibited at the Louvre Museum, the Centre Pompidou or Bilbao’s Guggenheim Museum, defined ‘Pa Negre’ as a universal story: “‘Black bread’ gives a local story a universal meaning”. In fact, Isabel Coixet, director of films such as ‘My life without me’, ‘Elegy’, and ‘The Secret Life of Words’, stressed the universal nature of the movie and its entertainment value by stating that “you don’t have to know about our history to have a wonderful experience with the film”.

Black Bread’s director, a teacher of a new generation of Spanish filmmakers

Not only the movie but also its director, Agustí Villaronga, have received recognition. The filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona said that he has “always considered Agustí Villaronga the teacher of a new generation of Spanish filmmakers and with ‘Black Bread’ he is able to get to a point where only the big masters can get”. Flamenco artist and dancer Rafael Amargo said “any artist dreams to work with him”.

Catalonia backs ‘Black Bread’

The selection of ‘Black Bread’ to represent Spain at the 84^th Academy Awards was great news for Catalonia, since the film was shot entirely in Catalan (one of the two official languages in Catalonia together with Spanish). The man considered for many years the best chef in the world for his restaurant El Bulli, Ferran Adrià, said: “If ‘Black Bread’ wins the Oscar, it would mean that dreams can come true”. Model and actor Andrés Velencoso said: “Everybody in Catalonia is going to cheer for ‘Black Bread’.”

 

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