Tardes de soledad

Matador Andrés Roca Rey is considered a star among bullfighters. Albert Serra accompanies the 28-year-old Peruvian as he travels from one Spanish arena to the next. But this bloody business requires the utmost concentration: from getting dressed in his hotel room to the traditional movements in front of the agitated animal to the final death blow. Albert Serra documents the controversial spectacle with sober, haunting images. And so the matador's lonely hours and his dancing choreography in his embroidered costume seem as strange as the entire spectacle. And the last seconds of the bull seem like an eternity. Director Albert Serra, known for his uncompromising visual language, chooses a mixture of documentary observations and artistically stylized sequences. Long shots, a precise soundtrack, and the deliberate reduction to gestures and glances make the protagonist's loneliness palpable. The bullfight is not romanticized, but staged as a mirror of human borderline experiences. AFTERNOONS OF SOLITUDE (TARDES DE SOLEDAD) celebrated its world premiere in 2024 at the San Sebastián International Film Festival, where it was awarded the Golden Shell – the festival's most important prize. It was subsequently presented at other renowned events such as the Viennale, where Serres' distinctive artistic signature was once again in the spotlight. With this combination of festival success and provocative subject matter, AFTERNOONS OF SOLITUDE (TARDES DE SOLEDAD) established itself as one of the most talked-about European films of the year.