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Follow the controversy of Víctor Erice in Cannes 2023: the director explains his absence at the premiere of ‘Cerrar los ojos’ at the festival

What has undoubtedly been one of the most important films that Spanish cinema has premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in recent decades was screened without the presence of its director. Víctor Erice did not attend the presentation of Close the eyes, his new feature film in 31 years, nor was he able to live the ovation received by his monumental testamentary film, the culmination of an incomparable film career.

The absence of Víctor Erice from Cannes 2023 was the subject of profuse speculation among the press. Yes, part of its leading cast went to cover the film (Manolo Solo, Jose Coronado, Ana Torrent, Maria Leon and Helena Miquel), but that Erice was not there was openly strange, since it is usual for the directors of the titles programmed in the Cannes Première section to also attend the festival, as they have done Takeshi Kitano. What had driven Erice away from Cannes?

Willing to cut with the rumors and speculations about his absence, the director of The spirit of the hive has published an open letter in The country where he details his version of the facts and blames the lack of communication on the part of the Cannes Film Festival and its general delegate, Thierry Fremaux, that he finally made the decision not to be seen in the movie theater on the Croisette.

Eric’s answer

Against what is put forward by sources of the contest stating that Close the eyes did not enter the competition for the Palme d’Or because the film was not finished until the selection of titles was closed, Erice explains that on March 24 he already sent the final cut of Close the eyes to the Selection Committee of the festival, in the absence of digital grading and the final sound mix.

“It gave a reliable account not only of the existence of the work, but of its cinematographic entity”, affirms the filmmaker, adding that this procedure is common. In fact, he affirms that around the same dates he received an invitation from the Filmmakers’ Fortnight for their film to be the opening film of this prestigious non-competitive sample that is held in parallel to the Cannes Film Festival.

“I immediately wrote to Thierry Frémaux to tell him that if Close the eyes was not going to be selected, she told me in advance so that I could consider the other options,” writes Erice. “But in that waiting time, Frémaux never gave any sign of life. The Quinzaine committee maintained its offer for weeks, until the time of its protocols ran out.”

Fremaux’s silence

Erice did not know the fate of Close the eyes in the Cannes Première section (created in the 2021 edition of the event to host the latest works by important directors who have not been accommodated in the competition) until the public communication of the programming of the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival on 13 April at a press conference. “On the 28th of that same month, I informed Frémaux of my desire not to attend his presentation,” says Erice.

“What moved me then has little to do with a reaction of protest or rejection for not having included my film in the competition,” he explains. “When deciding the world premiere of Close the eyes, between two interlocutors like Thierry Frémaux and myself (director and co-producer of that film), who had known each other for some time, the natural thing would have been dialogue and consultation. That is, the consideration of the other”.

“It’s just what I have missed in his relationship with me”, concludes. “And not so that he would grant me a favor or a privilege, but rather so that he would give me the opportunity to assess and choose between the other alternatives that Close the eyes had”.

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