Broadcast Networks Fire Up San Sebastián

Atresmedia Cine heads to San Sebastián with four films across key festival sections: “El mal padre” in the main competition, “La Bola Negra” in Perlak (Atresmedia Cine has acquired free-to-air rights to the buzzy drama), “Karateka” at the Velodrome and “Blind Ants” (“Inurri Itsuak”), which opens Zinemira. Atresmedia Group will also present the series “Sira” and “Trazos ocultos.”

That breadth reflects the company’s role in Spanish film, says Jaime Ortiz de Artiñano, managing director of Atresmedia Cine. “The presence of four films and two series at this year’s San Sebastián Festival demonstrates the strength of a model that drives ambitious projects and accompanies them all the way to their encounters with audiences,” he says.

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San Sebastián is also a strategic launchpad. Ortiz de Artiñano calls it “one of the great international showcases for our cinema,” as well as “the starting point for many of our campaigns,” where Atresmedia begins building conversation around upcoming releases.

Atresmedia’s current strategy spans established franchises such as “Torrente Presidente,” large-scale productions including “Karateka” and “La Bola Negra,” and “El mal padre,” but all share “ambition, personality and the ability to move and connect,” says Ortiz de Artiñano. 

That audience focus is central to his view of Spanish cinema’s next phase. “The future of Spanish cinema does not lie in making more films, but in getting more people to want to see them,” he says.

Platforms are increasingly part of that equation. Ortiz de Artiñano points to Movistar Plus’ Original “La Bola Negra” and Netflix’s involvement in “Karateka” as examples of partnerships that help make more ambitious Spanish films possible.