This 2023, the La Roca Village shopping center is celebrating. It is celebrating its 25th anniversary and one of the activities it is carrying out to commemorate it are the Roca Village Talks, moderated by journalist Bibiana Ballbè and which have the objective of supporting talent in different artistic disciplines, "promoting initiatives that value projects and creators venues in the field of fashion, design, art, music or cinema".
One of the most notable was Women and Cinema, and featured the participation of Mireia Oriol, leading actress of the series Alma; Fabiola Ordoyo, Goya-winning sound director for As Bestas; Júlia Molins, actress in Maricón Perdido o Madres and also director; Alba Bresolí, documentary director; and Carla Quílez, whose performance in La maternal earned her an award for best new actress at the Gaudí Awards and a Silver Shell at the San Sebastián Festival.
The numbers speak for themselves. As recalled in the talk, only 32% of the film industry staff in Spain are women. And given these data, Bibiana Ballbè asked the first question: "Are there more women now than 10, 20 or 30 years ago?"
The data presented by Fabiola Ordoyo are more pessimistic, and there are sectors in which the female presence is even lower. "I have been dedicating myself to sound for quite a few years and they have been quite lonely, I would have liked to have had much more female company," she said, while regretting "the false belief" that there are more women than men in the industry.
For her part, director Alba Bresolí stated that "from the outside it is thought that there are only female references because everyone talks about Carla Simón, but there are few of us and we are related to intimate cinema." Part of the blame for this perception is the aid that seeks to encourage female presence. "There are people who still have the old view that since we now have quotas, everything is given away," she said.
What the actresses do highlight is that "luckily, there are more and more directors and creators who tell real women's stories." However, Júlia Molins also regrets the lack of diversity among actresses, because "they are women who continue to be very normative, who do not represent society."
During the conversation, another recurring theme was how important the female point of view is when telling stories. "In variety lies the possibility of touching on different topics, and if we relegate the world of direction to men we are limiting those topics," said Fabiola Ordoyo. For her part, Mireia Oriol agreed when she said that "there are themes that, when it comes to being directed and interpreted, I like a woman to deal with them."
And what does it mean to make films from the female perspective? For the five guests, it implies a different way of leading. "A more open, collaborative type of leadership has appeared in cinema," reflected the presenter. "I really like when Carla Simón talks about leading from doubt: you have to coordinate, but also know how to listen and have the right and ability to doubt to be receptive," said Alba Bresolí. And Carla Quílez, the youngest, feels lucky with her beginnings: "I had a director, Pilar Palomero, and I fell into very good hands. The leadership she had in me helped me a lot."
One of the things that actresses suffer much more than actors is aesthetic pressure. "We always have to look pretty, they are good actors and that's it," said Júlia Molins. Mireia Oriol, who years ago had dedicated herself to modeling, acknowledged that "even so, the number of hours I spend a day thinking about my physique, the frustration and discomfort it generates, is extremely hard." It was then that she told an anecdote in which she was reviewing a sequence and a colleague lamented that she could see a wrinkle on the shot. "For many people I am still the pretty, thin girl, regardless of what I can do with my job," she lamented.
Although at the event it was clear that the weight of the industry continues to fall on men, there is a strong movement that functions as a support network to promote female talent. “Dones Visuals has done a great job, it is a before and after that there is an association that is bringing together women and that is fighting to create initiatives to promote and create other types of dynamics," celebrated Alba Bresolí.
For her part, Mireia Oriol acknowledged feeling a deep admiration for her colleagues who are venturing into writing and directing. "I hope that this sisterhood of women continues to grow, we give each other strength and support and I believe that it is the main value that will help us move forward," she said.
At the end of the talk, the protagonists talked about the future of the industry and agreed on the need for new generations to have inspiring role models. “When it doesn't occur to a girl that she can become a technician, she won't go there,” argued Fabiola Ordoyo. And Júlia Molins agreed: “Men have become more visible in absolutely all sectors, but in recent years there has been progress and awareness, and there is no one to stop this.”
The most optimistic was Carla Quílez after her experience working with a director and an almost entirely female cast: "We are in a strong moment and I am happy to see projects full of women."
"We have opened the way and now it can only go further," said Alba Bresolí, which meant an enthusiastic ending that closed with a toast while waiting for the next act of the Roca Village Talks.
