On 12th October, A Level and Pre-U Hispanists attended an A Level Spanish study day at the Midlands Art Centre in Birmingham, where we were thrilled to spend a day learning about one of the most well-known film directors in Spain, Pedro Almodóvar.
We arrived in time for our first session, which was an interactive workshop about the backstory of Almodóvar and his works. We learned facts not only about the film we are studying, Todo sobre mi madre, but also others including Volver and La mala educación.
What we found particularly thought-provoking was exploring the links between films (la intertextualidad) and delving into common themes used by Almodóvar. An aspect that was touched upon frequently was the use of colours and music. We were shown various clips and trailers of films by Almodóvar and it was interesting to see the similarities in colour and sound that were used to create mood and atmosphere in his melodramas.
After lunch, we went back to the cinema room where we watched a screening of Volver. In the first part of the day, Volver was one of the films we talked about the most. Therefore, it was absorbing to link the themes we discussed in the morning to the full film. Everyone was on the edge of their seats throughout and we did not want the film to come to an end.
It was an enjoyable, yet educational day and I am sure everyone who came agrees with me that what we learned will be hugely beneficial to our studies of Spanish and Almodóvar in the future.
Our thanks to Mr Sumner, Mr Moya, and Mrs Mooney for taking us.
Sophie, SFC2 (Year 13)
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