The Almería International Film Festival, FICAL, today presented the titles nominated in its National Television Series Competition ‘Almería 2021’, the great novelty this year. The Deputy for Culture and Film, Manuel Guzmán, accompanied by the Director of FICAL, Enrique Iznaola, announced the content of this new competition, to which 35 series have been submitted, three of which are documentaries, one web series and 31 fiction series.
Guzmán stressed that “television series have become the most popular audiovisual product in Spanish society, and every day more and more of us watch series. We wanted to back this format because there are few festivals in Spain where series have their own competition. We are positioning the Almería Film Festival as a reference, not only in first works and short films, but also in the series genre”.
“I think it has been the right decision because we have spent two years working on this event, discussing it with many people and seeing the reality of the audiovisual industry on a national and international level. In the end, I think we have made a decision that we are very satisfied with. From this year onwards, this Festival will include the three major film formats, such as short films, feature films and now also series,” said Manuel Guzmán.
“We are very happy with the demand for this event. Practically all the national platforms have participated, such as HBO, Movistar +, RTVE, Mediaset and Antena 3. We have also wanted to be ambitious in terms of the prizes that will be awarded in this competition, as there are 11 prizes with a total amount of 58,000 euros. It will be divided into three categories: drama series, comedy series and miniseries”, the deputy explained.
The prizes will be Best Drama Series Award, worth 9,000 euros and trophy, Best Comedy Series Award, worth 9,000 euros and trophy, Best Miniseries or Original Series Award, worth 9,000 euros and trophy, Best Showrunner or Creator of a Drama Series Award, 8000 euros, Award for the best showrunner or creator of a comedy series with 8000 euros, Award for the best female performance in a drama series with 2500 euros and trophy, Award for the best female performance in a comedy series with 2500 euros and trophy.
The Award for the best female performance in a miniseries is endowed with 2500 € and trophy, the Award for the best male performance in a drama series, endowed with 2500 € and trophy, the Award for the best male performance in a comedy series, endowed with 2500 € and trophy, and the Award for the best male performance in a miniseries, endowed with 2500 € and trophy. The awards for best creator or showrunner are given only to drama or comedy series, and those for best male and female performance are given to all three categories.
For his part, Enrique Iznaola stressed that “this is a historic moment for FICAL, discovering a new universe that we have been working on for some time. I must thank all the platforms and channels for the good reception and their efforts to participate in our Festival. We have a wide range of nominations that cover the entire spectrum of series”.
Iznaola announced that the last weekend of the Festival will see the awards ceremony and there will also be other activities in which series will play a major role. “Many of the round tables will focus on the universe of series and platforms, which are of such a high standard. We will have previews in this edition of the Almería International Film Festival”.
Nominations
Movistar + has 10 nominations. ‘Antidisturbios’ has four nominations (Best Miniseries; Best Actress Miniseries to Vicky Luengo; Best Actor Miniseries to Alex García and Best Actor Miniseries to Hovik Keuchkerian). La Fortuna’ has two nominations (Best Miniseries and Best Actor Miniseries to Karra Elejalde); ‘Vida perfecta’ has two nominations (Best Comedy Series and Best Showrunner Comedy Series to Leticia Dolera) and ‘Paraíso’, two nominations (Best Drama Series and Best Showrunner Drama Series to Fernando González Molina).
Antena 3 has nine nominations. La Cocinera de Castamar’ has five nominations (Best Drama Series; Best Drama Series Showrunner to Fernando J. Múñez, Best Drama Series Actress to Michelle Jenner; Best Drama Series Actor to Roberto Enriquez and Best Drama Series Actor to Hugo Silva); ‘Alba’ has two nominations (Best Drama Series and Best Drama Series Actress to Elena Rivera); ‘Luismelia’ has two nominations (Best Comedy Series Actress to Carol Rovira and Best Comedy Series Actress to Paula Usero).
Mediaset has nine nominations. La que se avecina’ has four nominations (Best Comedy Series; Best Showrunner Comedy Series to Alberto and Laura Caballero; Best Actress Comedy Series to Eva Isanta and Best Actor Comedy Series to Fernando Tejero). ‘Besos al aire’ has a nomination for Best Miniseries Actor for Paco Leon; ‘El Pueblo’ has a nomination for Best Comedy Series Actor for Carlos Areces; ‘Madres’ has two nominations (Best Drama Series Showrunner for Aitor Gabilondo and Best Drama Series Actress for Belén Rueda) and ‘Señoras del hampa’ has a nomination for Best Comedy Series Actress for Toni Acosta.
HBO has eight nominations. Patria’ is nominated for best miniseries and best actress for Elena Irureta. Treinta monedas’ has three nominations (Best Drama Series, Best Drama Series Showrunner for Alex de la Iglesia and Best Drama Series Actor for Eduard Fernández); ‘Venga Juan’ has three nominations (Best Comedy Series, Best Comedy Series Showrunner for Diego San José and Best Comedy Series Actor for Javier Cámara).
Televisión Española has eight nominations. ‘Estoy Vivo T4’ has three nominations (Best Comedy Series, Best Comedy Series Showrunner to Daniel Écija and Best Comedy Series Actor to Javier Gutiérrez); ‘Inés del Alma’ has two nominations (Best Miniseries and Best Miniseries Actress to Elena Rivera); ‘Ana Tramel, el juego’ has a nomination for Best Drama Series Actress to Maribel Verdú; ‘Hit’ has a nomination for Best Drama Series Actor to Daniel Grao and ‘La Caza: Tramuntana’ has a nomination for Best Actress Drama Series for Megan Montaner.
