Following the public acclaim enjoyed by the first edition of the CROSSROADS – ZINEMALDIA | FICX cycle, an initiative which attracted an average of more than 200 spectators per title to the cinemas in our city during the 56th Edition of the Gijón/Xixón International Film Festival, the two events have decided to renew this agreement which seeks to find a new framework regarding the policy of exhibiting films at the different International Festivals dedicated to the Seventh Art.

This common meeting space specifically takes the shape of the joint screening of various films of special interest which certify the interest of both festivals in fostering their circulation, independently of the policy of exclusivity maintained by the regulations for their competitive sections. Furthermore, the Crossroads - – Zinemaldia | FICX cycle serves as a proclamation and confirmation of the geographical and historical cultural ties which both cities, San Sebastian/Donostia and Gijón/Xixón, have sustained over the years and continue to sustain today.

The San Sebastian Film Festival and the FICX will therefore continue to show their interest in joining forces which help them to increase the visibility of works which are key to understanding the new forms of contemporary cinema and their links with today’s society. This interest takes the shape in the programme of five outstanding titles from this year’s film scene, selected by the San Sebastian Festival. As well as their screening, the Asturian public will be able to enjoy presentations such as those made in the first edition by Maialen Beloki, Deputy Director of Zinemaldia since 2016, and Amaia Serrulla, a member of its selection committee. 

Within the said selection, we can already announce one of the participating titles. We refer to Las letras de Jordi (Jordi’s Letters), the first work from the filmmaker Maider Fernández, which will have its premiere in the New Directors sectionof the San Sebastian Festival 2019. This is a project developed in the Ikusmira Berria residencies programme, winner of the REC Grabaketa estudioa post-production award which also participated in the Push Play Work in Progress Session, within the FICX Industry Days initiative in the year of its creation, 2017.  

The other contents of the cycle will be revealed once again in a presentation to take place on September 23 in San Sebastian at 17:00 with José Luis Rebordinos, Director of the San Sebastian Festival, and Alejandro Díaz Castaño, Director of the Gijón Film Festival.