The filming of “Madres paralelas“, the latest film by Spanish director Pedro Almodódar, will start at the end of March. Besides Penélope Cruz, the leading roles are played by actresses Aitana Sánchez Gijón (known from “Velvet”) and Milena Smit.
For Cruz and Almodóvar, this will be the seventh collaboration in a film production. Sánchez Gijón, who is loved by colleagues, critics, and the public alike, has devoted herself mainly to television and theatre productions in recent years. Since 2014, she has only made two film appearances. The first was in Thi Mai: Rumbo a Vietnam and secondly in La cinta de Álex. Newcomer Milena Smit made her debut last year in the cinema film No matarás by David Victori. Smit plays a young woman who brings the main character, Mario Casas, to ruin.
Intense drama
In the press release accompanying the announcement of the new film, Almodóvar writes: “With Madres paralelas (parallel mothers) I return to the universe of women, to motherhood and to family; according to the importance of our forefathers and descendants. To the inevitable presence of our memory. There have been many mother roles in my films, but the mothers in my new film are different. As a director, I am most inspired by the imperfect mothers. The three mothers in my new film are played by Penélope Cruz, Aitana Sánchez Gijón, and the young Milena Smit. The main male role is reserved for Israel Elejalde. The actresses Julieta Serrano and Rossy de Palma very much appreciated by me also participate in the film. “Madres paralelas will be an intense drama. At least, I hope so ”.
Madres paralelas will be filmed partly in Madrid and partly in Castile-La Mancha. Because last November the regional government of the latter region made a film fund of 25,000 euros available. The storyline centres around two mothers who give birth on the same day and lead a similar life. Almodóvar wrote the script for the film in the spring of 2020. This was during the time when he had to stop working on the adaptation of “Manuel para las mujeres de limpieza” (by Lucia Berlin) due to the state of emergency. At the same time he shot the short film “La voz humana“, the adaptation of Jean Cocteau’s monologue starring Tilda Swinton. This film premiered in 111 theaters at the end of October last.
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