Veneno, the biographical series of Cristina Rodríguez, better known precisely as Veneno, was a success inside and outside of Spain. Her legacy lives on and this Sunday her sequel, Vestidas de azul, comes to Atresplayer, an adaptation of the book of the same name also written by Valeria Vegas in which she shows the lives of the six trans women portrayed by Antonio Giménez-Rico in the 1983 documentary. Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, who directed Veneno, have dedicated themselves to the production this time while the direction has been carried out by Ian de la Rosa, Mikel Rueda and Claudia Costafreda.
“The series is the continuation of Veneno, which for us was very special because it changed everything. Now we are not going to tell a single story, but six wonderful stories, with which we are also going to portray an era and give a voice to people who did not have one," said Atresmedia's fiction director, Montse García, during the presentation of the new series to the media.
García specified that the fiction will follow the same structure as its predecessor, moving between the past and the present, to see how the decisions that were made some time ago affect them today. “We go back and forth to the eighties, addressing transsexuality in a very hostile time for this group, and it is a place where we must approach it in the most faithful way,” he added.
The fiction takes place two years after the death of Veneno, when Valeria Vargas returns to Valencia. There is the video of Vestida de azul, Giménez-Rico's documentary that narrated the experiences of six transsexuals in Spain in the early 1980s and that will inspire her new book.
For this new installment part of the Veneno team returns. Lola Rodríguez once again takes on the role of Valeria and Goya Toledo takes on the role of her mother Lola, while Paca la Piraña and Juani Ruiz continue playing themselves. “For us it is a gift, because it is a series that has a lot of heart and love behind it, and we are not coming from something new like the previous one. They have encouraged us, they have given us an opportunity that the trans community also deserves.”
Rodríguez also highlighted that the series “does justice with the six women who appeared in the documentary, who were promised a better life after it and nothing came of it. It is a nice tribute, and that two of its members who are alive can see it, it is a pride.”
In addition to the repeat team from Veneno, there are new additions to the cast. “Valeria opens six worlds during her investigation and we had to find six actresses who look like the protagonists of Dressed in Blue,” revealed Andrea H. Catalá, executive producer of Suma Content.
One of those actresses is Penélope Guerrero, who during the presentation wanted to highlight that “with this series we remember the memory of six women who were totally different from each other, but who at the same time lived some very difficult experiences for the simple fact of showing themselves to the world as they were.” and what they were like.”
When asked if they had seen the 1983 documentary, another of the signings, Geena Román, responded: “It came to me when I wanted to transition, but I didn't understand it very well. With the passage of time I have been giving meaning to what they told. And look, now I'm playing one of its protagonists. Destiny".
The entire Vestidas de azul team expressed the hope that the series reaches many people to raise awareness and make visible the situation of trans people.
