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PRODUCTION / FUNDING Spain

Los pacientes del doctor García to become a series

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- This small-screen adaptation of the Almudena Grandes novel of the same name, which is currently being shot, is directed by Joan Noguera, and toplined by Verónica Echegui, Tamar Novas and Javier Rey

Los pacientes del doctor García to become a series
Director Joan Noguera and actors Javier Rey, Verónica Echegui and Tamar Novas (© Pablo Mª García Llamas)

The news of the death of Almudena Grandes, at the age of 61, shook the world of Spanish culture to the core in late 2021. The Madrilenian author left behind a legacy of remarkable books, some of which have already been adapted for the big screen, such as The Ages of Lulu (a film helmed by Bigas Luna in 1990, notable for featuring the debut performance by Javier Bardem), Malena es un nombre de tango (Gerardo Herrero, 1996), Castillos de cartón [+see also:
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(Salvador García Ruíz, 2009) and Rough Winds (another Herrero effort, from 2006), among others.

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Now, another one of her novels, Los pacientes del doctor García (which won the 2018 National Literature Award for Narrative and which is part of the literary saga dubbed Episodios de una guerra interminable, or “Episodes from an Endless War”), is about to become a series (comprising ten episodes and bearing the same title as the book). It is currently being shot in Segovia, helmed by Joan Noguera (Matadero, Mercado Central), and it stars Verónica Echegui (who appeared in the entertaining ensemble comedy Donde caben dos [+see also:
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and made her directorial debut with the short film Tótem Loba), Javier Rey (seen recently in The House of Snails [+see also:
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and El verano que vivimos [+see also:
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, and set to grace screens on 25 March in Beyond the Summit) and Tamar Novas (Elisa & Marcela [+see also:
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, the Netflix titles The Mess You Leave Behind and 1000 Miles from Christmas).

With a screenplay penned by José Luis Martín (Isabel), Los pacientes del doctor García tells of how, after Franco’s victory, Doctor Guillermo García (played by Javier Rey) continues to live in Madrid, but under a false identity. The documentation that spared him from the firing squad was a gift from his best friend, Manuel Arroyo (Novas), a Republican diplomat whose life he saved in 1937. The doctor believes he will never see him again, but in September 1946, Manuel returns from exile on a secret and rather perilous mission: to infiltrate a clandestine organisation, a network intended to help war criminals and fugitives from the Third Reich, which is being masterminded from the Spanish capital by a German-Spanish woman, a Nazi and Falangist named Clara Stauffer (Eva Llorach).

While García allows himself to be recruited, another Spanish man crosses paths with the two friends: Adrián Gallardo (played by Jon Olivares), who had his moment of glory as a professional boxer before enlisting in the Blue Division to continue fighting as an SS volunteer and play his part in the last stand to defend Berlin. Now he is struggling to get by in Germany, blissfully unaware that someone is attempting to steal his identity to flee to Perón’s Argentina.

The cast of the series is rounded off by the aforementioned Olivares and Llorach, in addition to Stephanie CayoClaudia TraisacRaúl JiménezNancho NovoPepa PedrocheLuis BermejoEnrique VillénMario de la RosaDaniel Albaladejo, Martina GusmánItziar AtienzaToni Sevilla and Iñaki Miramón.

Los pacientes del doctor García – the shoot for which is set to continue until June on location in Madrid and Guadalajara – is a co-production between RTVEDiagonal TV (Banijay Iberia) and DeAPlaneta, which boasts the involvement of Netflix.

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(Translated from Spanish)

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