01/08/2022 - The Spanish duo are gearing up for their ambitious new film, a comedy with fantastical elements starring Brays Efe, Luis Tosar, Anna Castillo, Bruna Cusí and Roberto Álamo

Actor Brays Efe (centre) and directors Burnin' Percebes (Juan González and Fernando Martínez) preparing the shoot of Golem (© Mara Sanz)

In an industrial warehouse on the outskirts of Madrid, the final touches are being added to the sets that will be the backdrop for half of the scenes in Golem [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Burnin’ Percebes
film profile], the new escapade by Burnin' Percebes, the duo made up of Juan González and Fernando Martínez, directors of cult titles such as Searching for Meritxell, Ikea2 and The Queen of the Lizards [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]. This feature film is backed by Pedro Hernández Santos, of Aquí y Allí Films, one of the bravest producers in Spain, as he is behind such wonderfully intrepid works as Contando ovejas [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: José Corral Llorente
film profile], by José Corral Llorente, and Magical Girl [+see also:
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interview: Carlos Vermut
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interview: Carlos Vermut
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"This looks like Algete-wood", jokes Hernández enthusiastically in front of the enormous set, worthy of the Mecca of cinema, which recreates the rooftop (surrounded by a magnificent backdrop reproducing the Madrid skyline, showcasing brutalist architectural details) and the home of the star of his new project, the biggest project to date for the winner of the John Cassavetes Award at the 2018 Independent Spirit Awards for Life and Nothing More [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Antonio Méndez Esparza
film profile], who next year will also release the new film by Antonio Méndez Esparza (read more).

Filming will start on Golem on 17th August, and for five weeks the main character, Juan, played by Brays Efe (popular after playing Paquita Salas in the acclaimed series of the same name), will live on the set, where, from the very first scene, he will be involved in a plot as surreal as it is Kafkaesque. His friend David, drunk after a crazy night of partying, falls naked from the roof of his building and lands on a car parked in the street, shattering into a thousand pieces like a porcelain vase. But this will surprise no one... well, only him. From then on, he will dive into an adventure he never imagined, where it will even rain pianos.

We won't reveal any more of the plot. A comedy of entanglements and magical realism, with a touch of thriller and fantastic cinema that is written by its imaginative directors, who play in the same narrative/humoristic league as filmmakers such as the Coen brothers, José Luis Cuerda, Spike Jonze, David Robert Mitchell and Pedro Almodóvar, and where shady organisations, emotional dependencies and complicated parent-child relationships come into play, reflecting the absurdity of the times in which we live.

Completing the spectacular cast of what is undoubtedly one of the most incredible films of 2023 are Luis Tosar (who we recently saw in Maixabel [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Icíar Bollaín
film profile] and Código emperador [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and will see in Juan Diego Botto’s debut, On the Fringe [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Juan Diego Botto
film profile], at the upcoming Venice Film Festival), Anna Castillo (seen last year in Mediterráneo: The Law of the Sea [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], and who will be at San Sebastian in September with Wild Flowers [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Jaime Rosales
film profile], by Jaime Rosales), Roberto Álamo, Bruna Cusí, Javier Botet, Tito Valverde, Roger Coma, Nao Albert and Henar Álvarez.

Golem is a production by Aquí y Allí Films in association with Roberto Butragueño (Elamedia), Ghost Story AIE and the Romanian company Cinelab, with the support of Castilla La Mancha Media, selective backing from the ICAA and financing from Crea SGR. Also, as a project, it won a Special Mention at the sixth edition of Ventana CineMad.

(Translated from Spanish by Vicky York)