MONDAY 17 NOV – H 18:00 – ROOM 3

WHEN A RIVER BECOMES THE SEA Quan un riu esdevé el mar
SPAIN – 2025 – 182’

Direction: Pere Vilà Barceló
Screenplay: Pere Vilà Barceló, Laura Merino
Cinematography: Ciril Barba
Editing: Xavier Pérez Díaz, Pere Vilà Barceló
Production design: Dàmaris Torres
Sound: Pau López
Cast: Clàudia Hernández Surós (Gaia), Alex Brendemühl (Gaia’s father), Laia Marull (Diego’s mother), Bruna Cusí (teacher)
Producer: Xavier Pérez Díaz
Production: Fromzerocinema
World Sales: Antidote Sales

Synopsis
Gaia, a young archaeology student, sees her life shattered after suffering a sexual assault. The experience destabilizes her, affecting her relationship with her father, her friends, and her own identity. Her professor, who also experienced gender-based violence in the past, offers her a space for mutual understanding. Like in an archaeological excavation, Gaia must explore her own past and unearth layers of memories, fears, and silences as she tries to make sense of what happened and find a way forward.

the director: PERE VILÀ BARCELÓ
Pere Vilà Barceló is a Catalan director and screenwriter known for introspective films exploring social issues. He began his training in screenwriting at the Calassanç Center in Barcelona (later ESCAC). He directed several outstanding short films, such as Sabi (2005), Des del balcó (2005) and Els peixos del riu Leteo (2005). His debut Railroad Crossing (2007) screened at Rotterdam and San Sebastián, and La lapidation de Saint Étienne (2012) won the FIPRESCI Prize at Valladolid and was selected for Karlovy Vary FF. Later works like The Grave (2014) and The Invisible Artery (2015) earned international recognition. His latest film, When a River Becomes the Sea, addresses gender-based violence.

director’s statement
“When a River Becomes the Sea was born eight years ago in a high school where I was teaching film. There I met a 14-year-old girl who had been raped. That was the beginning of a path that has changed me both professionally and personally. With more than a hundred interviews and long conversations with women who survived gender-based violence, a project gradually took shape, one that has always sought to find a balance between cinematic aesthetics and a social discourse that gives it life. In every scene of this film, there are the voices of those women who believed that art can be a way to awaken awareness and change the way we look at things. That is how I feel this project: as a way to generate debate through art. We wanted to portray emotions worked through cinematic time. It was the most faithful and respectful way to honour all the women who made this film possible.”

filmography
2005 Sabi (short)
2005 Des del balcó (short)
2005 Els peixos del riu Leteo (short)
2007 Pas a nivell (Railroad Crossing)
2012 La lapidacion de Saint Étienne (The Stoning of Saint Étienne),
2014 La fossa (The Grave)
2015 L’artèria invisible (The Invisible Artery)
2018 El vent és això (This is The Wind)
2025 Quan un riu esdevé el mar (When a River Becomes the Sea)

awards and festivals
2025 Karlovy Vary IFF – Competition: Best Actor
2025 CinEspana FF, Toulose – Competition: Golden Violet for Best Film, Best Screenplay, Actor