See the Full ¡Viva! 2021 Festival Calendar
The ¡Viva! Spanish & Latin American Festival returns to HOME this Summer with a spectacular lineup of films, from the wildly enjoyable Argentinian heist film El Robo del siglo (The Heist of the Century) to the Spanish comedy El Inconveniente (One Careful Owner), via true crime, socio-political documentary, an LGBTQ+ love story and films tackling the most important issues facing us today.
With 18 feature films, including 11 UK premieres, and introductions from the curators, this 27th edition of the festival is not to be missed. Full details will be announced in July, sign up to the HOME mailing list to make sure you don’t miss out.
Our usual range of special events will be delivered slightly differently this year, to ensure the safety of staff and audiences during the pandemic. We’re thrilled that so many participating filmmakers have recorded special introductions for our festival screenings, which you can see both in the cinema and online. In addition, the festival programmers will introduce selected films in person, with the notes also available online. The final Saturday of the festival will see the return of the Café Cervantes, a free but ticketed event, offering you an opportunity to share your thoughts about the films you’ve seen while practising your Spanish with native speakers and other festivalgoers – weather permitting, this will be an al fresco event!
It’s a particularly strong year for Spanish titles, with eight films from Spain coming to our big screen in this summery ¡Viva! edition. Transport yourself to the sunny coast of the Basque Country with the delightful road movie Nora; and make your way to Valencia in Iciar Bollaín’s latest film, comic drama La Boda de Rosa. Then take a deep dive into post-dictatorship Spain with the epically proportioned and wonderfully absorbing documentary El Año del descubrimiento.
We have a trio of fantastic dramas from Chile this year, including the passionately romantic film Los Fuertes, which breaks new ground in Chilean cinema as a charmingly up-beat, same-sex love story.
On Wed 11 Aug we are delighted to present a preview screening of Mexican auteur Michel Franco’s Nuevo orden, which will be introduced by Jason Wood, author of the newly published The Faber Book of Mexican Cinema and HOME’s Creative Director: Film & Culture.
Amongst these and all the remaining titles – from Paraguay, Bolivia, Colombia, the Dominican Republic and Mexico – we’re sure you’ll find some cinematic gems to treasure, whether you’re after thrilling drama, joyous comedy or social analysis.
¡Disfrutad el festival!
All films will begin at the advertised time with no adverts or trailers. All films are in Spanish with English subtitles unless otherwise noted. All age certificates are local to Manchester City Council, unless otherwise stated.
¡Viva! is curated by Rachel Hayward, Head of Film, Jessie Gibbs, ¡Viva! Festival Coordinator, and Andy Willis, Professor of Film Studies at the University of Salford and HOME’s Senior Visiting Curator: Film.
In this festival
The HOME Film Podcast: ¡Viva! Festival 2021
Rachel Hayward (Head of Film), Andy Willis (Senior Visiting Curator, Film) and Jessie Gibbs (Viva Festival Coordinator) discuss this year's Spanish and Latin American Film…
Film
Programme revealed for ¡Viva! Spanish & Latin American Festival 2021
Lineup for 27th edition of the festival includes 11 UK cinema premieres.
News
Jason Wood talks to Michel Franco
Jason Wood talks to Nuevo orden director Michel Franco in this extract from The Faber Book of Mexican Cinema
Blogs
¡Viva! Film Notes – Sin señas particulares
Jessie Gibbs, ¡Viva! Festival Coordinator, explores Fernanda Valadez’s Sin señas particulares, screening as part of ¡Viva! Festival 2021.
Previously in this Festival
Cinema
UK Premiere/ El Robo del siglo
The outrageously entertaining true story of a 2006 bank robbery, one of the most famous and complex heists in Argentina’s history.
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Pseudo
A social thriller that takes a snapshot of a generation trapped between the passive old and the insurgent new Bolivia
event
¡Viva! 2021 Café Cervantes
An informal gathering of Spanish-speaking film lovers. Come and practise your language skills while sharing your opinions on this year’s ¡Viva! programme.
event
UK Premiere/ La Última primavera + introduction
Introduced by Andy Willis, Professor of Film Studies at the University of Salford and HOME’s Senior Visiting Curator: Film, on Mon 16 Aug.
event
Las Niñas + Introduction
Introduced by Rachel Hayward, HOME’s Head of Film, on Sun 22 Aug.
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Las Mujeres de mi casa
This quietly moving drama sees three generations of women living under the same roof, an old house that is full of memories but destined to…
Cinema
Agur Etxebeste!
Determined not to lose his power over local politics, Patrizio names his wife the town’s first female mayor. But María Luisa has no intention of…
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Nora
Winding along the sun-drenched Basque coastline, this funny and poignant summer road trip helps Nora to heal past wounds, to find passion and freedom, and…
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Mosh
Tackling serious topics but eschewing gritty realism, this is a dazzling riot of colour, music and movement that is by turns poignant, funny and tense.
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Los Fuertes
An intense romance highlights differences in terms of class, family, life goals and attitudes, but is nevertheless a joyful celebration of young love
Cinema
La Boda de Rosa
In the city of Valencia, wardrobe assistant Rosa is run ragged by her hectic job and heavily reliant family. She escapes to her peaceful hometown…
Cinema
UK Premiere/ El Inconveniente
Two women, so very different in age, experience and personality, yet united in their loneliness, form an unlikely friendship filled with tenderness and laughter
Cinema
El Año del descubrimiento
This documentary rewards the audience over the course of its extended runtime with a fascinating insight into contemporary Spain, through the lens of recent history…
Cinema
New Order / Nuevo orden
A shocking and provocative depiction of class warfare in contemporary Mexico. Winner of the 2020 Venice Film Festival Grand Jury Prize this is a gripping…
event
Preview/ Nuevo orden + introduction
The screening of Nuevo orden on Wed 11 Aug will be introduced by Jason Wood, Creative Director: Film & Culture at HOME, and Visiting Professor…
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Salvador
Bogotá, 1985. Amid growing insecurity in the city, a gentle passion develops between Salvador and Isabel. But is he the 'saviour' she’s looking for?
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Billy
The the testimonies of twenty-odd survivors of a notorious Francoist figure: police inspector Antonio González Pacheco, known as ‘Billy, the Kid’.
Cinema
Sin señas particulares
Magdalena sets out on a journey in search of her teenage son, who has disappeared en route to the US.
event
Sin señas particulares + introduction
Introduced by Jessie Gibbs, ¡Viva! Festival Coordinator, on Sat 14 Aug.
Cinema
UK Premiere/ La Última primavera
At the intersection of acting and reality, a family recreate the true story of their marginalisation and eviction from La Cañada Real, the largest shanty…
Cinema
UK Premiere/ Diablada
Based on the true story of the Alto Hospicio serial killer, who operated in Chile with total impunity from 1998-2001, this is a moving denunciation…
Cinema
Apenas el sol
In an attempt to preserve fragments of a disappearing culture, oral history archivist Mateo Sobode Chiqueno traverses the arid and desolate Paraguayan Chaco region: the…