Activities
More than shorts
CONCERT. CHUS PAZOS ENSEMBLE
FRIDAY 4TH AT 8:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR.
CONCERT. CHUS PAZOS ENSEMBLE
FRIDAY 4TH AT 8:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR.
Chus Pazos Ensemble will be opening the 19th edition of FICBUEU. Chus Pazos is one of the leading drummers on the Galician jazz scene, with a career spanning more than twenty years on stage. At FICBUEU, he will present a trio concert alongside two outstanding accompanists: Álex Touceda on double bass and Dani Font on guitar. The repertoire will combine original compositions with great American jazz standards, in a programme that bridges the gap between tradition and contemporary creation.
OPENING AND SCREENING OF LA JETÉE BY CHRIS MARKER
FRIDAY 4TH AT 9:00 PM. AUDITORIUM
OPENING AND SCREENING OF LA JETÉE BY CHRIS MARKER
FRIDAY 4TH AT 9:00 PM. AUDITORIUM
Manuel Pena will present the programme for the 19th edition of FICBUEU, in a small opening ceremony which will be accompanied by a screening of the classic La Jetée. This work brings together some of the fundamental pillars of this edition: the short film as a vanguard format, cinema that explores its boundaries, and experimentation in the science fiction genre.
The film, which is part of the Retrospective Section, is set after an apocalyptic nuclear war that has left the world devastated. A group of scientists from the victorious side concludes that the only way to save humanity is through time travel: either by sending a person to the past to ask for help, or to the future to find a solution to the present situation.
ROUND TABLE. LIMITS, POSSIBILITIES, AND PARADOXES OF REPRESENTATION IN CONTEMPORARY CINEMA
SATURDAY 5TH AT 10:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
ROUND TABLE. LIMITS, POSSIBILITIES, AND PARADOXES OF REPRESENTATION IN CONTEMPORARY CINEMA
SATURDAY 5TH AT 10:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
What happens when a camera chooses what to show and what to leave out of the frame? Who decides how a people, a leader, or a movement is portrayed? Oriol Erausquin, Ricci Galiano and Layla Martínez will explore through two specific cases the pitfalls and potential of the cinematic image. The first: the portrayal of the Palestinian people. The dominant humanitarian approach, centered on the figure of the victim, tends to render their resistance invisible or to portray it as something uncomfortable—if not to criminalize it outright.
The second: the figure of Trump and the contemporary far right. Political satire has found a goldmine in him, but what is lost when we reduce him to a caricature? Does it truly help us understand the phenomenon, or does it instead trivialize it and overshadow the economic interests and power structures that explain his rise to power and his shift toward fascism? And, if we focus on portraying the far right, what role does organized resistance play?
This conversation aims to argue that thinking about representation is not an aesthetic exercise, but a deeply political issue: deciding where we place our focus is also an exercise of power that we must reflect on, question, and challenge.
Layla Martínez is an editor and writer. She has published the essay Utopía no es una isla (2020) and the novel Woodworm (2024). She is currently writing her first screenplay and editing her second novel.
Oriol Erausquin holds a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and is the author of La Rabia es Nuestra (2025). His public activities encompass activism, digital communications and cultural production. He is currently completing his doctoral thesis in sociology on far-right conspiracy theories.
Ricci Galiano is trained in stage direction and contemporary theatre at the Real Escola Superior de Arte Dramático and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. He researches the role of art and culture as political mediators, combining this with the queer cause, the solidarity movement with Palestine and anti-imperialism.
MASTER CLASS. SELF-CENSORSHIP AND CANCEL CULTURE IN THE FILM INDUSTRY
SATURDAY 5TH AT 12:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
MASTER CLASS. SELF-CENSORSHIP AND CANCEL CULTURE IN THE FILM INDUSTRY
SATURDAY 5TH AT 12:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
Who can direct what? Who can play whom? This lecture examines how cancel culture, identity representation and self-censorship are reshaping and influencing filmmaking. From diversity algorithms in screenplays to DNA-based casting, with examples such as the controversy surrounding Nolan’s Odyssey, the session analyses these phenomena in the light of the thinkers who have best described them, with Pier Paolo Pasolini as the guiding thread, and addresses the problems that can arise from cultural homogenisation.
Antonio José Navarro is a Spanish film critic. Throughout his career, he has contributed to numerous magazines and programs specializing in film, such as the radio program Parlem de Cinema and the magazines Dirigido Por, Imágenes de actualidad, Quatermass, and Nosferatu. In addition, he has worked as a programmer at the Sitges International Film Festival, collaborated on the organization of film series at the Film Archive of the Government of Catalonia, the Basque Film Archive, and the Film Archive of the Government of Valencia, and has taught at various Spanish universities. Among his publications, the following books stand out: Alien / Los inconquistables (1995), El imperio del miedo. El cine de horror norteamericano post 11-S (2016), and Clash of the Titans: 50 Essential Films on the Cold War (2017).
MASTER CLASS. BLURRED BOUNDARIES: INDUSTRY AND ITS PERIPHERIES
SATURDAY 5TH AT 4:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
MASTER CLASS. BLURRED BOUNDARIES: INDUSTRY AND ITS PERIPHERIES
SATURDAY 5TH AT 4:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
The term “industrial cinema” is often used to refer to a specific production model, but for years now its boundaries have become increasingly difficult to define. Where does the industry end and where does independent cinema begin? Is this an economic, aesthetic, or distribution and exhibition issue? Building on these questions, the talk will explore the tensions running through contemporary cinema: the coexistence of formal risk and market demands, the growing dependence on festivals as spaces for legitimization, the concentration of financing and distribution in the hands of a few agents, the transformation of films to adapt to specific exhibition circuits, and the contradictions that arise when works conceived from the margins end up becoming integrated into industrial dynamics.
Jara Yáñez has been editor-in-chief of the magazine Caimán Cuadernos de Cine since January 2022, a publication she has been working for since its foundation in 2007 as Cahier du cinéma. España. Since 2014, she has also been a lecturer on the Master’s in Film Criticism at ECAM; she is a regular contributor to the programme Historia de nuestro cine (TVE) and the author of books such as La aritmética de la creación. Entrevistas con productores del cine español contemporáneo (in collaboration with Luis L. Carrasco, 2009), La medida de los tiempos. Spanish Short Films in the 2000s (2010) and Femenino plural (edited jointly with Andrea Morán in 2017), as well as being the author of other contributions to anthologies. She has worked at festivals such as DocumentaMadrid and the Alcalá de Henares Festival, and on programmes such as Museocinema at the Reina Sofía National Art Centre and Madrid en Corto.
ROUND TABLE. AUDIOVISUAL COLONISATION AND PERFORMATIVE RESISTANCE IN CONTEMPORARY CINEMA
SATURDAY 5TH AT 6:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
ROUND TABLE. AUDIOVISUAL COLONISATION AND PERFORMATIVE RESISTANCE IN CONTEMPORARY CINEMA
SATURDAY 5TH AT 6:30 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
A discussion between Álvaro Peña, Yago Paris, Pepa Llausás and Ariadna Cordal on audiovisual colonisation. The debate will explore the failure of militancy and resistance to the sources of oppression and marginalisation faced by new filmmakers, in contrast to the militant cinema of the 1960s and 1970s or the marginal film movements that emerged in the 1990s and 2000s thanks to the internet and new physical formats. Focusing on the formal and narrative structures that permeate contemporary audiovisual production, the discussion will examine the extent to which new creators may end up tacitly collaborating with the very powers they seek to resist.
Yago Paris is a postdoctoral lecturer in the Department of Arts and Humanities at Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid and writes as a critic for magazines such as Cine Divergente (of which he is co-editor) and El Antepenúltimo Mohicano. He created the podcast Críticas Sobre La Marcha and co-edited the book Lo que nunca volverá: La infancia en el cine (2022).
Álvaro Peña, who holds a degree in East Asian Studies, is co-editor of Cine Divergente. He has contributed to publications such as Contemporary Paranoia. Cinema in the Society of Control (2019), Lo que nunca volverá: Childhood in Cinema (2022) and Blade Runner: Do Androids Still Dream? (2023), and has edited various books on cinema, such as The Legacy of Akira Kurosawa (2018). He also founded the online magazine Cosas de Cine and the podcast Perros Verdes.
Pepa Llausás is a narrative analyst, writer and essayist, and has focused her career on the study and teaching of screenwriting and, currently, on research into narrative structures and collective imaginaries. She developed the theory of Narrasis and runs Calma Gris, a publishing imprint and podcast dedicated to cultural analysis.
Ariadna Cordal is a director, editor and researcher, trained in audiovisual editing and holding a PhD from Pompeu Fabra University. As a director, she has made short films such as They Ponder (2017), Papá por que quitas la música (2019) and O patio (2024).
SCREENING. LES RENDEZ-VOUS D’ANNA, BY CHANTAL AKERMAN
SUNDAY 5TH AT 8:30 PM. AUDITORIUM
SCREENING. LES RENDEZ-VOUS D’ANNA, BY CHANTAL AKERMAN
SUNDAY 5TH AT 8:30 PM. AUDITORIUM
As the culmination of the Seminars, the film Les Rendez-vous d’Anna, directed by the Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman and released in 1978, will be screened. Anna is a film director, a profession that takes her travelling throughout Western Europe. Wherever she goes, Anna has some intimate relationship established or, if she doesn’t, she finds one quickly. People are drawn to her and tend to reveal their most intimate secrets, even though Anna shows no interest in knowing them.
Les Rendez-vous d’Anna challenges the boundaries of cinema by offering a minimalist, immersive proposition in which the observation of the everyday is stretched through long takes, connecting and fusing the aesthetic construction with the protagonist’s emotional disconnection. In this way, Akerman subverts traditional narrative to make cinema an intimate and unsettling experience.
PRESENTATION OF FICBUEU MONOGRAPH #7. SHORT FILMS: A TESTING GROUND AND THE VANGUARD OF SCIENCE FICTION
SUNDAY 6TH AT 11:00 AM. AMALIA DOMÍNGUEZ BÚA ROOM
PRESENTATION OF FICBUEU MONOGRAPH #7. SHORT FILMS: A TESTING GROUND AND THE VANGUARD OF SCIENCE FICTION
SUNDAY 6TH AT 11:00 AM. AMALIA DOMÍNGUEZ BÚA ROOM
FICBUEU Monograph #7 explores the relationship between science fiction narrative, visual experimentation, and the short film format. The essay traces a journey from the early days of cinema, when fictional short films were particularly prolific, through the genre’s golden age in the 1950s and 1960s and the success of B movies about apocalyptic futures and alien invasions, up to the present day, highlighting the variety of styles, cinematography, and themes in the works studied.
This analysis highlights the short-form narrative (in both literature and audiovisual media) as ideally suited to science fiction, demonstrating its advantages in tackling narratively complex and visually ambitious stories. The short films examined in this issue also demonstrate how this format is accessible and inspires debut works that have often served as a stepping stone to feature-length films. Special attention is given to the hybridization of science fiction with other genres, such as fantasy, comedy, horror, and romance.
The author of FICBUEU Monograph #7 is Irene de Lucas Ramón, who holds a PhD in Audiovisual Communication from the University of Valencia. She is the author of numerous articles on film analysis in specialized journals and is a regular contributor to the monographs published by Shangrila Ediciones and the SOLARIS Collection. Her research focuses on the work of pioneering female filmmakers, such as Alice Guy and Helena Cortesina, on whom she curated an exhibition at the 38th edition of the Mostra de València-Cinema del Mediterrani. In addition to her career as a researcher, she is a short film director, and a jury member at various festivals in Spain and abroad.
TALKS WITH FILMMAKERS
SUNDAY 6TH AT 9:30 PM AND FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH AT 8:30 PM. AMALIA DOMÍNGUEZ BÚA ROOM
TALKS WITH FILMMAKERS
SUNDAY 6TH AT 9:30 PM AND FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH AT 8:30 PM. AMALIA DOMÍNGUEZ BÚA ROOM
To complement the screenings in the Official Section and the GZ_00 Section, the filmmakers behind the short films being screened will take part in Q&A sessions with the audience. The first series of discussions will take place on Sunday 6th at 9.30 pm with the filmmakers from the GZ_00 Section, and will continue from Monday 7th to Saturday 12th at 8.30 pm with the teams behind the films selected for the Official Section.
The discussions with filmmakers are an event open to the public, designed to provide a space to hear the perspectives of the directors, who will talk about their work and creative processes. They will facilitate a dialogue between attendees who wish to engage with the filmmakers, thereby enriching the audience’s experience at the festival.
The discussions will be streamed live and will be available online throughout the week to facilitate access for those attending the 9:30 pm screening.
FILM REVIEWS
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH
FILM REVIEWS
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH
In line with the festival’s aim to encourage reflection and delve deeper into the films being screened, we offer the audience attending the Official Section screenings a small booklet with critical analyses of the films included in each session. The publication, distributed in both physical and digital formats, seeks to offer the FICBUEU audience another perspective on the films, one that is less about opinion and subjective emotion and more about objective reflection on each film.
These texts will be written by Xavier Montoriol, a graduate in Modern Languages and Literatures from the Universitat de Barcelona, with a Master’s degree in Comparative Studies in Literature, Art and Thought from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and in Audiovisual Curatorship from the Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola. He is co-founder of Muelle5 and writes regularly for other film critics, with texts published in Outskirts, La pala de Walsh and Otros Cines Europa.
FICBUEU PLAYROOM
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
FICBUEU PLAYROOM
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
Continuing with our commitment to equality and work-life balance, FICBUEU 2026 will once again offer a playroom service to make it easier for parents to attend screenings and activities.
The FICBUEU Playroom will be located on the first floor of the Centro Social del Mar and will be a space for children between the ages of three and twelve. There, children will be able to take part in various cinema-related activities while developing their social skills in a playful environment. Each day will feature a workshop run by members of the Juan XXIII Association.
The FICBUEU Playroom will be available from Monday 7 to Saturday 12, enabling parents to enjoy all the sessions programmed within the Official Section.
Hours:
From Monday 7th to Saturday 12th: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM.
This initiative has the support of the Consellería de Política Social e Igualdade of the Xunta de Galicia through the Corresponsables Plan, Ministry of Equality.
FICBUEU 2026 AWARDS CEREMONY
SATURDAY 12TH AT 11:00 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
FICBUEU 2026 AWARDS CEREMONY
SATURDAY 12TH AT 11:00 PM. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
On Saturday 12th, once the screenings in all the competitive sections have concluded, the winners of the 19th edition of FICBUEU will be announced at the awards ceremony. The event will be open to the public and will be attended by filmmakers, members of the various juries, and representatives from the institutions and companies supporting the event.
The event will feature live music led by André Soaxe and Martiño Malleiro Díaz.
FICBUEU 2026 WINNERS SCREENING
SUNDAY 13TH AT 6:30 PM. AUDITORIUM
FICBUEU 2026 WINNERS SCREENING
SUNDAY 13TH AT 6:30 PM. AUDITORIUM
The day after announcing the list of winners for the 19th edition, the short films awarded in the various sections of the festival will be screened in a special session, so that those who were unable to see them in their respective screenings can catch up.
GALICIAN SCHOOLS CEREMONY
SATURDAY 19TH AT 11:00 AM. AUDITORIUM
GALICIAN SCHOOLS CEREMONY
SATURDAY 19TH AT 11:00 AM. AUDITORIUM
Awards ceremony in which the short films from the Education Centres Section will be screened and the awards for the winning entries in the Special Education, Infant and Primary Education and Secondary Education categories will be presented.
Organized with the support of the publisher Kalandraka, the gala will be hosted by writer and editor Olalla González, who will be accompanied by the live drawings and animation of visual artist Marc Taeger.
The event will feature live music by Martín, Carmen and Juan Sánchez Paz.
WORKSHOP. CINEMA POSTERS
SATURDAY 19TH AT 11:00 AM, 12:00 PM AND 4:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR
WORKSHOP. CINEMA POSTERS
SATURDAY 19TH AT 11:00 AM, 12:00 PM AND 4:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR
Alouette Machine’s mobile printing press will show us how movie posters were made in the past, using the letterpress printing technique. Letters, images, inks, paper, and presses—everything is ready for us to collaboratively create movie posters while experimenting with graphic elements.
The public will be able to access the facility free of charge to visit the poster exhibition and learn about printing methods. The company Alouette Machine will guide attendees through workshops organised in three sessions: at 11:00 AM and 12:00 PM for children aged 5 to 12, and at 16:00 PM for those aged 12 to 18. To attend the workshop, prior registration is required by emailing mariarey@ficbueu.com.
CONCERT. PAKOLAS
SATURDAY 19TH AT 5:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR
CONCERT. PAKOLAS
SATURDAY 19TH AT 5:00 PM. OUTSIDE THE CENTRO SOCIAL DO MAR
Before the screening of the Family Shorts Section, musician Pakolas will give a children’s and family rock concert As máis molonas! outside the Centro Social do Mar. Pakolas will guide us through a whole musical universe with his interpretative flair and humour, getting children involved with his rock style that enthuses young audiences. A show to learn and share with the little ones and the whole family.
Pakolas has been singing, playing and composing for young audiences for over 20 years. He was part of bands such as Mamá Cabra and A Gramola Gominola. His solo career began in 2015, and he has released several book-CDs.
FICBUEU PLAYROOM
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
FICBUEU PLAYROOM
FROM MONDAY 7TH TO SATURDAY 12TH. MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
Continuing with our commitment to equality and work-life balance, FICBUEU 2026 will once again offer a playroom service to make it easier for parents to attend screenings and activities.
The FICBUEU Playroom will be located on the first floor of the Centro Social del Mar and will be a space for children between the ages of three and twelve. There, children will be able to take part in various cinema-related activities while developing their social skills in a playful environment. Each day will feature a workshop run by members of the Juan XXIII Association.
The FICBUEU Playroom will be available from Monday 7 to Saturday 12, enabling parents to enjoy all the sessions programmed within the Official Section.
Hours:
From Monday 7th to Saturday 12th: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM.
This initiative has the support of the Consellería de Política Social e Igualdade of the Xunta de Galicia through the Corresponsables Plan, Ministry of Equality.
FICBUEU CHANNEL
FICBUEU CHANNEL
Various activities will be recorded and streamed live via the FICBUEU YouTube channel, where they will remain available to the public for later viewing, with a view to continuing to expand the festival’s audiovisual archive. The 5th Film Conference, the presentation of FICBUEU Notebook #7, the discussions with filmmakers, the Awards Ceremony and the Galician Schools Gala will be streamed live on the platform, which will also host a series of interviews with filmmakers, jury members and participants at FICBUEU 2026.
DONATIONS
DONATIONS
Once again, we will collaborate with the Vigo/Pontevedra Food Bank to conduct a collection of food, hygiene, and menstrual management products.
The collection boxes will be available throughout the festival at the entrance of the auditorium of the Centro Social del Mar.