Story of longest-serving Catalan president's 'fall to hell' arrives in cinemas

Anybody following Catalan politics in 2014 was left stunned in July of that year when the former Catalan president, Jordi Pujol, who had held office for 23 years, confessed to having a family fortune in an Andorran bank account.

The news came after a report published by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo. Over a decade later, Catalan actor Josep Maria Pou portrays Pujol in the new movie 'Parenostre', which follows the tribulations of Pujol in the hours before his 545-word written confession.

"I like to represent characters who, in a precise moment, have lost something important and are at a low point, who are suffering, and Jordi Pujol at that moment had a lot of internal pain, and was in some way a loser," Pou told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) in an interview.

Filmmaker Manuel Huerga directs the movie, and he told Catalan News that Pujol was "the most prominent figure of the last 30 years of the previous century, as he was in power for 23 years." He had been in power in the territory from 1980 until 2003.

He says it’s important to watch the film and to learn about the story as "this president fell to hell directly," going from being the "most important to the least important" politician after it was revealed that the Pujol family had money in Andorra, which is considered a tax haven.

'Parenostre' fictionally relates the conversations and inner thoughts of the former president, his wife Marta Ferrusola, and his children during the hours prior to and after the report was published.

In his written statement at the time, the former politician said it was all his fault and that his late father, Florenci, had left the money in the Andorran bank.

"The movie is looking inside the house, and how they manage the problem that comes the next day, and how they manage the drama which is about to arrive," Huerga told this media outlet.

"I think it is interesting for people living in Catalonia [to watch the movie], as you must know this story," he said, in reference to younger generations of Catalans who may not be familiar with the story, as well as the increasing immigrant population. 

Older generations were shocked when the news broke, as many loved, admired, and believed in him, especially as Pujol is a very religious person. 

"He was a traitor for Catalonia," Huerga told Catalan News, as the movie tackles the Pujols’ "double standards, as they are a religious family, but on the other side, they are corrupt."

The movie does not take sides. It is "neutral," but the film director mentions that there are "lights and shadows in one person," inviting moviegoers to "judge for yourself."

A message shared by journalist and scriptwriter Toni Soler, who says that the movie pushes the spectator to "understand Pujol's character, which is not the same as justifying his actions or understanding his tragedy, if it can be defined as such."

"Opinions will be very different and will be based on previous biases. It is a film that will be watched with preconceptions which will be intensified," Soler told ACN.

'Parenostre,' directed by Manuel Huerga and written by Toni Soler, premieres in cinemas on April 16.

Corruption trial

The movie tells the story of Jordi Pujol's confession in July 2014. The corruption trial against the former Catalan president and his family is scheduled to start in Spain’s National Court on November 10, 2025. 

The family is accused of unlawful assembly, money laundering, crimes against the tax office, and forging documents.

Pujol and his seven children will be part of the trial, spanning 55 sessions until April 23, 2026. Jordi Pujol's wife, Marta Ferrusola, was also under investigation, although charges were dropped for health reasons months before she passed away on July 8, 2024.

Spain’s National Court indicted Pujol and his relatives in April 2021, including his wife Marta Ferrusola and their seven children.  Spain's National Court prosecution office is asking for nine years in prison for Jordi Pujol and between 8 and 29 years for his seven children and the ex-wife of the eldest son, Mercè Gironés.

The public prosecutor is requesting 29 years behind bars for Jordi Pujol Ferrusola (the son) and up to 17 years for Mercè Gironés, as well as 14 years for Josep Pujol Ferrusola and 8 for his remaining siblings: Pere, Oleguer, Oriol, Mireia, and Marta. The dozen businesspeople under investigation are facing up to 5 years each.

Tainted political legacy

Jordi Pujol, aged 94, was the longest-serving president in Catalonia’s democratic history, but his mammoth political legacy was tainted by subsequent corruption scandals.

First appointed president in 1980, Pujol was reelected in five consecutive elections and ruled uninterrupted until 2003, leading Catalonia from Spain's democratic transition to the new millennium.

Pujol was also the founder of Convergència Democràtica de Catalunya (CDC), for years Catalonia’s hegemonic center-right party, until corruption scandals and tensions caused by the independence bid led to its dissolution, with its offspring dispersed between Junts per Catalunya and PDeCAT parties, among others.