Once the domain of a few noted auteurs such as Luis Bunuel, Spanish-language cinema has exploded in recent years to encompass everything from audacious art-house dramas (the masterpieces of Albert Serra) to genre-bending sci-fi films (F. Javier Gutierrez’s BEFORE THE FALL). Audiences in Spain are growing, and viewers are considerably younger, encouraging a range and adventurousness in that country’s cinema that is revitalizing movies around the globe -- a situation that is enhanced by the fact that links between Spanish and Latin American cinema are stronger than ever. Latin American actors, directors and technicians are enriching the Spanish industry, and co-productions are at an all-time high.

Meanwhile, contemporary Spanish directors have led the way in exploring new approaches to traditional film genres, many of which can be appreciated in this year’s selection. This collection of vital new Spanish films includes . Raul Garcia & Manuel Sicilia’s animated film THE MISSING LYNX as well as movies that reinvent existing genres -- Gutierrez’s BEFORE THE FALL, for example, offers a distinctive brand of science fiction that favors suggestion and speculation over special effects. We’re also showing the latest film by acclaimed director Alex de la Iglesia (THE OXFORD MURDERS) and showcasing up and coming filmmakers like Santiago Zannou (THE ONE-HAND TRICK). Add in stunning new performances by Maribel Verdu, Javier Camara, Diego Luna, Ariadna Gil and Victoria Abril -- along with six-Goya Award-winner CAMINO and two-time winner THE ONE-HAND TRICK -- and you’ve got a crash course in the most exciting movement currently going on in world cinema. All films in Spanish with English subtitles unless otherwise noted.

We’re thrilled to welcome at the Egyptian and Aero Theatres actress Ariadna Gil and directors Javier Fesser, Alex de la Iglesia, Javier Gutiérrez, Raul Garcia and Santiago Zannou!

Friday, June 5 - 7:30 PM
New Talent Double Feature - Goya Award Winner: Best New Director and Best New Actor! BEFORE THE FALL (3 DIAS), 2008, 93 min. The Secretary General of the United Nations makes an important announcement: A giant meteor is headed towards Earth, and scientists believe its impact will destroy all life on the planet in about three days. For Alejandro (Victor Clavijo), a frustrated young man who lives with his mother in the isolated village of Laguna, the impending end inspires him to spend his last days shut away, getting drunk and listening to his favorite music. All is well, until a stranger arrives and unsettles the town. First-time director F. Javier Gutiérrez masterfully creates the atmosphere of a world literally waiting for its own destruction; facing the inevitable end, what should you still care about? "One of the most original genre films in years, a quadruple winner at the Málaga Film Festival. Shocking and brilliantly executed, F. Javier Gutiérrez's first feature will leave you shaken."-- Lane Kneedler, AFI Festival; "Spanish writer-director F. Javier Gutiérrez proves that films about armageddic meteorites crashing into the earth can be both intelligent and moving." Rebecca Davies Telegraph.co.uk Trailer

Los Angeles Premiere! THE ONE-HAND TRICK (EL TRUCO DEL MANCO), 2008, 87 min. Dir. Santiago Zannou. Twenty-eight-year-old Enrique Heredia (El Langui) is afflicted by cerebral palsy and has difficulty walking. He and Adolfo (Ovono Candela), a downbeat 30-year-old who lives with his alcoholic father, decide to open a music studio, where they can earn a living while working with music, their passion. To accomplish this goal, they surround themselves with men and women of different origins and cultures but with whom they all share the common denominator of belonging to a long-suffering and deprived urban community. Their philosophy : "Don’t tell me it can’t be done." Winner of 3 Goya Awards, including Best New Director and Best New Actor. Discussion in between films with director Javier Gutiérrez and director Santiago Zannou (Zannou will not be in attendance as previously announced). Trailer

Saturday, June 6 – 4:00 PM

Family Matinee – Animated Film from Spain!

THE MISSING LYNX: PAWS ON THE RUN (EL LINCE PERDIDO), 2008, 97 min. Dirs. Raul Garcia & Manuel Sicilia. Don't miss the Winner of the Goya Best Animated film! Felix the Lynx, an endangered feline prone to accidents, lives in the breathtaking landscapes of Southern Spain. Together with his motley crew of animal friends (featuring Gus the chameleon and Bea the wild goat) they’re now fighting for their lives as they try to escape the blood thirsty Newmann, a world famous hunter hired by the eccentric millionaire Noah in his well meaning but dangerous plan to rescue every endangered species on earth. Co-produced by Antonio Banderas. Discussion following with director Raul Garcia. Trailer

Saturday, June 6 - 7:30 PM
Thriller Double Feature:
Los Angeles Premiere! JUST WALKING, (SOLO QUIERO CAMINAR) 2008, 129 min. Dir. Agustín Díaz Yanes The action opens in Andalucia as four women -- Gloria (Victoria Abril), Aurora (Ariadna Gil), Ana (Elena Anaya) and Paloma (Pilar López de Ayala) -- are poised to rip off Russian gangsters in Spain. Things go awry and Aurora is left behind, receiving a lengthy jail sentence. Paloma falls in with a visiting Mexican mafia delegation, which includes a garish, pimpish crime boss, Félix (José María Yazpik) and his good-gangster sidekick, the baby-faced Gabriel (Diego Luna). In Spain, meanwhile, Gloria and Ana hatch a plot to spring Aurora from jail. Reunited in Mexico, the girls plot a new heist. Goya Award for Best Cinematography. "The men have the brawn but the women have the brains in…a stylish femme-driven thriller that grips in the first scene and never lets go. Hyperactive style -- with rapid-fire editing and constant narrative jumps."-- Jonathan Holland, Variety Trailer

Los Angeles Premiere! THE OXFORD MURDERS (LOS CRIMINES DE OXFORD), 2008, 108 min. From the wildly talented Spanish filmmaker, Alex de la Iglesia (DAY OF THE BEAST; LA COMUNIDAD) a riveting thriller in English. American student Martin (Elijah Wood) arrives in Oxford on a foreign exchange program and gets tongues wagging when he challenges the theory of Professor Seldom (John Hurt) that math doesn't hold the exact answer to everything. But this mismatched pair are thrown together when a series of murders starts that seems to throw both their theories into disarray. A box office hit in Spain.  "Movie buffs will enjoy references to Hitchcock, SLEUTH and THE USUAL SUSPECTS, among others"-- Jonathan Holland, Variety Trailer Discussion in between film with actress Ariadna Gil (will not be in attendance as originally announced) and director Alex de la Iglesia.

Sunday, June 7 - 7:30 PM
Historical Drama - Double Feature:

Los Angeles Premiere! THE BLIND SUNFLOWERS (LOS GIRASOLES CIEGOS), 2008, 98 min. Dir. Jose Luis Cuerda. In the immediate post Spanish Civil War period, Elena (Maribel Verdu) has assumed the role of head of the household, as her left-wing schoolteacher husband, Ricardo (Javier Camera), is in hiding in the house. This is only one of the family’s secrets -- Elena’s pregnant daughter has run off with a boy who is a fugitive from the authorities. When Salvador (Raul Arevalo), a local deacon, part-time schoolteacher and devoted right-winger, becomes obsessed with the supposedly widowed Elena, her secret life is threatened with exposure that could be disastrous. Goya Award winner for Best Adapted Screenplay. Trailer

EL ESCORIAL CONSPIRACY (LA CONJURA DE EL ESCORIAL), 2008, 128 min. Dir. Antonio del Real. In the late 16th Century, in the Court of Philip II, the House of Alba is fighting to regain the King’s favour and displace the rival faction of the House of Mendoza, led by the Princess of Éboli (Julia Ormond). On the night of Easter Monday, 1578, paid assassins ambush Juan de Escobedo (Joaquim de Almeida) and kill him. Mateo Vázquez, (Jordi Mollà) a priest and incorruptible official in the Kings service, is charged with the investigation of his murder.