The 64th
edition of the San Sebastian Film Festival came to an end last weekend. This
year the festival could boast the high number of film stars that attended this
annual event in the beautiful city of San Sebastián. I don´t know whether the sky was really full
of stars but what is sure is that the streets were full of film stars: Ethan Hawke,
Monica Bellucci, Ewan McGregor, Jennifer Connelly, Sigourney Weaver, Richard
Gere, Fan Bingbing … one can be tempted
to mistake San Sebastian for Hollywood, at least, for a few seconds, of
course!! What most film stars point out about this festival when they are
interviewed by the local press is the fact that the atmosphere is really great
in this city: the city is elegant but cosy and welcoming and traditional Basque
gastronomy is a great discovery for all of them.
Funnily enough, last
year there was some controversy because the actress who was chosen to be
presented with the Donostia Award was not regarded as the kind of film star
that is usually chosen for this award. But this year two Hollywood actors have
been chosen for such an honour: Ethan Hawke and Sigourney Weaver. Film
festivals call for the presence of film stars who catch the attention of the
mass media while they devote time to the promotion of their new films or they
receive awards. Obviously, without them, film
festivals wouldn´t make the headlines but don´t you have the feeling that
sometimes the media coverage focuses on the film stars too much? Those
headlines tell us about the arrival of those film stars surrounded by fans,
photographers and reporters but very often, they don´t tell us much more about
their work, that is, about the films they have made. That´s why, we shouldn´t
forget that beyond the glamour, the red carpet and the flashes what really
matters is the story that is worth telling about.
Sigourney Weaver´s acceptance speech was really touching.
