Jaime Chávarri presents the film about the cantaor in Seville and San Fernando

Carlos Sánchez. Seville, October 20th, 2005

Camarón de la Isla now has his film. Following its appearance at the San Sebastián Film Festival, a simultaneous sneak preview took place on October 20th in Seville and in San Fernando (Cádiz) of ‘Camarón’, the first film to deal with the life of the flamenco myth, with the presence of the director and main actors. The movie, directed by Jaime Chávarri, is a journey through the life and work of the unique Cádiz-born artist which will be at Spanish cinemas starting on November 4th. A peculiar vision from a non-documentary perspective of one of the top figures flamenco has ever known.

Frame from 'Camarón'

‘Camarón’, in the words of its director, Jaime Chávarri, is a “fictional film in which believable things are attempted to be told. It's not a lie”. The Madrilenian filmmaker's intention is not to give an exact reflection of the facts and personages. Nevertheless, he wanted to preserve the most significant places in the life of José Monge Cruz. The movie was shot in Madrid, Chinchón, San Fernando, Bologna and Paris.

As far as the cast is concerned, the actors' youth stands out. On the one hand, Óscar Jaenada, an actor who has already shone in films like ‘Noviembre’; and Verónica Sánchez, a Sevillian actress currently successful in the TV series ‘Los Serrano’. Both actors appear very excited and satisfied with the results of the film. Jaenada stresses “the difficulty of facing the character. I confronted him like a blank slate”. But far from being frightened, the Catalan actor confesses the motivation which playing such hard roles provides him with. “This kind of role motivates me; I've put my body and soul into this character”. With regards to the characterization, Jaenada points out “it wasn't too hard to put myself in the character's shoes”. The young actor, who had to perform original songs by the cantaor in playback, affirms that “the most complicated thing was learning how to control my breathing”.

In the case of Verónica Sánchez, she faces a complicated role, given that the personage she plays is present. The young actress elaborated that she is a “specific, fictitious Chispa who doesn't necessarily have to be real”. She has had a Sevillian's usual contacts with flamenco. But now is “the first time she fully plunges into that world. I don't fool around; rather, I explore”. In the musical aspect, ‘Tirititando de frío’ is the song she likes most in the movie. In that sense, Chávarri emphasizes the great work done by the sound technician in recovering José Monge Cruz's songs. It must be insisted that all the tracks appearing in the film are original, including his great classics like ‘Soy gitano’, ‘Como el agua’, ‘Volando voy’ and ‘La leyenda del tiempo’. The Madrilenian director also notes the collaboration of Paco de Lucía. “I sent him the script and when he read it he called me for us to meet. He helped us with certain things”, the filmmaker admitted.

The film

The film is divided into three periods: the discovery, confirmation and the recognition and farewell. In each of them, Camarón de la Isla is surrounded by personages from flamenco culture such as Paco de Lucía, Tomatito, Manolo Caracol, Antonio Mairena, Paco Cepero... They are mixed in with real artists such as guitarist Juan Parrilla, Enrique Pantoja and Jerez-born clappers Chícharo, Gregorio and El Bo. The part of the movie reflecting his most prolific period presents lights and shadows reflected in his love affairs, his national and international recognition, the recording of albums that revolutionized the performance of flamenco, his wedding with Dolores la Chispa, flirting with drugs and his physical deterioration at a very early age.

‘Camarón’, which had a budget of four million euros, premieres on November 4th. According to its producer, Miguel Menéndez, we will have to wait for the audience's reaction. “The film is a long journey, the word-of-mouth type. It was made from a conservative viewpoint. At first about one hundred fifty copies will be distributed to cinemas all over Spain”, Menéndez asserted. Camarón fans are in luck. The myth lives on.

Frame from 'Camarón'

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