TRANSITION CYCLE: 50 YEARS OF SPANISH DEMOCRACY

TRANSITION CYCLE: 50 YEARS OF SPANISH DEMOCRACY

By Instituto Cervantes Leeds

Cervantes Institute presents to you the film El futuro in collaboration with the University of Leeds.

Date and time

Location

Parkinson Building SR (1.08)

University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT United Kingdom

Good to know

Highlights

  • 2 hours, 30 minutes
  • In person

About this event

To Celebrate 50 Years of Democracy in SpainThe Instituto Cervantes is pleased to invite you to a special screening of the film:🎬 El Futuro by Luis López Carrasco (2014)

Modern SpainWith the transition from dictatorship to democracy, Spain rapidly accelerated its modernization in cultural, social, industrial, and political terms. However, a wide range of films—past and present—show that “modernity” was far from a clear or unified ideal.

Francoist Spain’s tentative openness to tourism, the political transformation represented by the PSOE’s victory in 1982, and the 1980s countercultural movement known as La Movida all offer distinct—and often contradictory—visions of what it meant to be modern. At the centre of these reflections lies one fundamental question:What does modernity really mean in the Spanish context?

One of the key films in this section is El Futuro, a bold and evocative work by Luis López Carrasco. Set at a house party in Madrid just after the 1982 general election, the film uses punk music, archival aesthetics, and barely audible dialogue to immerse us in the euphoria of youth. Beneath the celebration, however, lies an atmosphere of uncertainty—one that foreshadows the complex and ambivalent years ahead.

A nostalgic and disorienting portrait of the hopes and contradictions that defined Spain’s democratic transition.

📽️ The film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles.

Con motivo de los 50 años de democracia en España,el Instituto Cervantes se complace en invitarle a la proyección especial de la película:🎬 El Futuro, de Luis López Carrasco (2014)

La España modernaCon el paso de la dictadura a la democracia, España aceleró su modernización en términos culturales, sociales, industriales y políticos. Sin embargo, un amplio abanico de películas —tanto del pasado como del presente— demuestra que la modernidad distaba mucho de ser un concepto claro o unificado.

El aperturismo franquista hacia el turismo, el cambio político que supuso la victoria del PSOE en 1982 y la eclosión contracultural de la Movida madrileña representan visiones distintas —y a menudo contradictorias— de lo que significaba ser moderno. En el centro de todas ellas late una misma pregunta:¿Qué significa realmente la modernidad en el contexto español?

Uno de los títulos clave de esta sección es El Futuro, una obra audaz y evocadora de Luis López Carrasco. Ambientada en una fiesta en una casa de Madrid justo después de las elecciones generales de 1982, la película utiliza música punk, una estética de archivo y diálogos apenas audibles para sumergirnos en la euforia juvenil del momento. Sin embargo, bajo la celebración se intuye una atmósfera de incertidumbre que anticipa los años complejos y ambiguos que estaban por venir.

Un retrato nostálgico y desconcertante de las esperanzas y contradicciones que marcaron la Transición democrática española.

📽️ La película se proyectará en versión original en español con subtítulos en inglés.

Want to learn Spanish?

We offer face-to-face and online Spanish courses accross different levels, days and times.

Visit our website for more information about our Autumn courses 2025.

Organized by

The Instituto Cervantes is the world's largest and most important institution dedicated to the teaching of Spanish and the other languages of Spain, as well as to the diffusion of the culture of Spanish-speaking countries.

The Instituto Cervantes of Leeds was inaugurated on April 23rd, 1993. Therefore, in 2018 we are celebrating our 25th anniversary. A quarter of a century collaborating actively in the teaching of Spanish and the spreading of the Hispanic culture.

Free
Nov 4 · 5:30 PM GMT