No. 48 (2023) TOBACCO BARNS (SECADEROS). Palace Australia; Spanish Film Festival July 4th.

 

Film No. 48  (2023)  July 4th.  3:50 PM  PALACE Raine Sq, Cinema 8, Perth City.

"You can't get involved in Tobacco Barn's affairs. That is for grown ups!" (Young Vera is sad because her new friend, The Tobacco Monster, is sad. Something is happening to The Barn).

WINNER: (Rocio Mesa), New Director. NOMINEE (Rocio Mesa) Dunia Ayaso Award. San Sebastian International Film Festival.

SECADEROS is a deep, introspective coming of age film. Writer/director Rocio Mesa debuts here with a film that gives off an autobiographical feel. And while I have few criticisms of Mesa's film, I'm not sure I fully understand her message. But then again why does this whimsical film need to have a message? I'm assuming she has taken an important memory of her life, visiting her grandparents in rural Spain as a 7 year old. Perhaps it has helped to shape her to be the person she is.

Vera (Vera Centenera) and Nieves (Ada Mar) fill the screen in most scenes. Their lives parallel as girls growing up in the tobacco fields of southern Spain, at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. The region is a gift to Vera, a playground  in which to explore and run free. For Nieves it is a hindrance. She has worked hard there. She feels locked in. She dreams of "growing wings".  We meet them at a time tobacco is becoming yesterday's drug. The drop in demand means farms and their barns are becoming redundant. Both girls need to come to terms with change, something all of us face while growing up.

Mesa stamps herself as a director to follow. In this, her first feature, she has assembled actors with no experience, who live in the region. Her aim was always to capture all that was and is real in this region of Spain. Ada Mar (Nieves) in particular is being compared to a young Penelope Cruz. High praise indeed. And, Mar, herself is experiencing her big break in life as an actor.  

High naturalism in a film, never trying to be something it is not, takes skill and a keen eye. Ken Loach (I, DANIEL BLAKE, SORRY WE MISSED YOU) took years to master it ... So what becomes of these young ladies?  The answer to that is not told. They go on to have happy fruitful lives, I hope. Considering Vera is a version of herself (Mar) it would seem this to be the case. If you love the coming of age genre, and willing to experiment with how this style is served;  go see SECADEROS.  10GUMS.