UK Premiere: Amama

Directed by Asier Altuna

After delighting ¡Viva! audiences in 2014 with his highly original Basque music documentary Bertsolari, Altuna returns with another beautiful and moving film, a poetic family drama played out in the picturesque Basque countryside, with a dark fairytale atmosphere. The rural and the urban, the past and the present, parents and their offspring: opposing ways of life struggle against one another whilst, in eloquent silence, the grandmother – Amama – watches her family’s destiny unfold. Three grown-up siblings each grapple with this reality in their own way, in the case of Amaia, seeking to reconcile her artistic pursuits with the legacy of her ancestors, even against the uncomprehending stubbornness of her own father.

Duration:
103 minutes

Translated title:
When a Tree Falls

Languages:
Basque

Subtitles:
Full English

Country of origin:
Spain

Year of production:
2015