HBO Europe has asked five Spanish directors to reflect on coronavirus-induced confinement in a specially commissioned, fast-turnaround short film anthology series entitled “At Home.”
The five individual episodes will be filmed in the homes of the directors, who will collaborate with those they are isolating with. They have been provided with some basic equipment to create their episodes, including a smartphone.
The five Spanish directors working on the project include: Leticia Dolera, who helmed Canneseries TV festival winner and Movistar Plus original “Perfect Life”; Rodrigo Sorogoyen, whose political thriller “The Candidate” screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival; Paula Ortiz, whose film “The Bride” — based on Federico García Lorca’s “Blood Wedding” — played at San Sebastián in 2015; Carlos Marqués-Marcet, whose debut film “10.000km” in 2014 won the best new director award at the Goyas and whose recent credits include “Days to Come” and “Anchor and Hope”; and Elena Martín, who made waves in 2017 with “Julia ist,” which played at the Malaga Spanish Film Festival.
Each will create and direct an episode of the five-part series, which examines the situation created by COVID-19. “At Home” is scheduled to be made available in Spain in the next few weeks and other HBO Europe territories at a later date.
The anthology has been created by Warner Bros. Itvp España, in collaboration with Caballo Films, for HBO Europe. Each episode will be approximately 15 minutes long.
The series will span different genres, from romantic comedy to drama, and some with fantastical elements.
HBO Europe said each episode of “At Home” poses questions about living through lockdown, such as: What would happen if your boyfriend left you the morning the confinement was announced? Could being quarantined at home be a brutally liberating experience? What if isolating with your partner makes you discover they are not who you thought they were? Is it possible to travel in this context without leaving the same room? What would it be like to live this experience in a commune with seven friends?
Pictured above, from left to right: Leticia Dolera, Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Paula Ortiz, Carlos Marqués-Marcet and Elena Martín.