Film Series Highlighting the Impact of War Launches in Gran Canaria
A selection of 16 films and documentaries entitled “Malditas guerras” (Cursed Wars) will be showcased, featuring directors such as Karel Kachyña, Jean-Gabriel Périot, Charles Chaplin, Stefano Savona, Arthur Harari, Alekxéi Balabánov, Pablo Gil Rituerto, Juan Millares, and Carlos García-Alix. This series aims to confront “barbarism, war, and oblivion”, beginning this Thursday at 19:00 at the Centro de Cultura Contemporánea de Gran Canaria (CCA) in Schamann, Las Palmas (Calle Cádiz, 34, next to Don Benito Park), with free admission until capacity is reached.
Curated by Experts
The “Malditas guerras” series, selected through a cultural projects call by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, is curated and presented by Javier Tolentino, a well-respected critic and filmmaker based in Gran Canaria, known for his film “Un blues para Teherán” (2020), nominated for the Goya Awards. The production is managed by Siroco Factory, led by Canarian executive producer and filmmaker Ayoze O’Shanahan, who is also an expert in Communication and Armed Conflicts.
Tolentino emphasises that the series aims to provide a committed cinema that questions the violence and powers sustaining it. O’Shanahan, the creator of this series, highlights Siroco Factory’s commitment to innovative cultural proposals with international reach. Each Thursday’s screening, always at 19:00, will begin with contextual introductions, followed by discussions featuring various guests such as Sergio Millares Cantero, Juan Millares, Pablo Gil Rituerto, and Antonio Bordón, among others.
Film Selections
“Malditas guerras” will exhibit how international cinema and notable filmmakers have positioned themselves against war, violence, and the political powers that have sought to impose their ideologies through arms, conquer new territories, and subjugate societies governed by authoritarianism and military power. The 16 carefully selected feature films “capture the perspectives of filmmakers from different countries on war and the mistakes that lead societies to the most devastating drama: the death of women, children, and entire populations, who, instead of living in peace, are driven into suffering and destruction due to armed conflicts.” Tolentino and O’Shanahan have explored both restorations made by European film archives and those films that, despite critical acclaim, have gone unnoticed in exhibition and distribution circuits.
Programming Details
Each session will feature an introductory presentation by programmer Javier Tolentino, along with contributions from Ayoze O’Shanahan and Sergio Morales, Audiovisual Coordinator of CCA Gran Canaria, Cabildo de Gran Canaria.
“Malditas guerras” will always be shown in its original version with Spanish subtitles. The programming runs from Thursday 11 September until 27 November and will continue during February 2026, every Thursday. The organisers will provide further information regarding each title and guests for the discussions, which occur at the end of each session.
Kicking off the series, this Thursday will feature the screening of the feature film “La patria perdida” (The Lost Homeland) (Serbia, 2024) directed by Vladimir Perisic. Synopsis: Serbia, 1996. During student protests against Milosevic, 15-year-old Stefan undergoes the harshest revolution of all. He must confront his beloved mother, a spokesperson and accomplice of the corrupt government against which his friends are rising up.
The following week, on Thursday 18 September, the documentary “El Honor de las Injurias” (The Honour of Injurias) (Spain, 2007), written and directed by Carlos García-Alix, will be showcased. Synopsis: The film’s title stems from the marginal neighbourhood of Las Injurias in Madrid, now disappeared, but in the early 20th century was located near what is now Lavapiés and Embajadores. It is the birthplace of protagonist Felipe Sandoval, one of the most active and bloodthirsty anarchist gunmen during the Spanish Civil War. After the conflict, Sandoval is arrested in Alicante and taken to Madrid, where he is compelled to write a confession. The documentary uses this confession to reconstruct his pivotal role in repressing the Madrid fifth column during the war, tempered by the caution expected of a document directed to his captors.
Upcoming Films
In addition to these, the “Malditas guerras” cycle will screen “Loin du Vietnam” (1967), coordinated by Chris Marker, on 25 September; “Carruaje a Viena”, by Karel Kachyña, on 2 October; “El gran dictador” (The Great Dictator) (1940), by Charles Chaplin, on 9 October; “Nuestras derrotas” (Our Defeats), by Jean Gabriel Périot, on 15 October; “La familia Samuni” (2018), by Stefano Savona, on 23 October; “Ernst Cole: Lost and Found” (2024), by Raoul Peck, on 30 October; “El Fogonero” (2010), by Alekxéi Balabánov, on 6 November; “Hate Songs” (2023), by Alejo Levis, on 13 November; “Onoda, 10,000 Nights” (2022), by Arthur Harari, on 20 November; “Guernika” (1937), by N. Sobrevila; “Legión Condor” (1939), from the German Film Archive; and “Catalunya Mártir” (1938), by J. Marsillach, on 27 November.
Following the Christmas break, the series will continue in February with the titles: “Cuaderno de contabilidad” (Accounting Book) (2005), by Juan Millares, on 5 February; the first episode of the series “Las noches de Tefía” (2023), directed by Miguel del Arco and Rómulo Aguillaume, on 12 February; “Living the Land” (2025), by Huo Meng, on 19 February; and concluding the series with “La marsellesa de los borrachos” (The Drunks’ Marseillaise) (2024), by Pablo Gil Rituerto, on 26 February.
Overall, this series offers a space for reflection and memory around the consequences of war. Every Thursday at 19:00, with free entry until full capacity is reached, it invites the public to share, learn, and understand through the medium of film. As the organisers note, “the international community seems to be reliving Cold War tensions: the resurgence of armed conflicts in various regions, the sustained increase in military spending, and growing intelligence activity have created a concerning scenario. In this context, the shadow of a large-scale confrontation looms once more, with the spectre of a third world war hinting at its renewed force.”
