30 APRIL / 11 MAY

SECTIONS // RETROSPECTIVE

RETROSPECTIVE: FERNAND MELGAR

Born into a family of Spanish unionists exiled in Tanger, Fernand Melgar (1961) was raised in Switzerland, where his parents emigrated when he was just a kid. Having Spain as a reference of his childhood (he spent his summers in Andalucia), this lover of the real thing celebrates life and cinema as a moment of encounter, exchange and reflection. Cultural agitator and creator of spaces such as Cabaret Orwell (mecca of the Swiss underground culture), or the internationally known rock club of Lausanne La Dolce Vita, Melgar joins the filmmakers collective *Climage. Thus he turned sideways towards documentary filmmaking, directing more than a dozen titles considered milestones in the immigration and identity themes, which are now positioned under the spotlight of the maximum authority.

Involved in cinema and reality, with a strong feeling of rebellion against the injustice, Melgar compares the rigidity of the world against the simplicity and the humanity of each one of the character he portrays.

DocumentaMadrid offers a retrospective of his more distinguished works, composed by six full-length films and a programme of seven short films that reflect the profound respect of Fernand Melgar for “the other”. As the main character of one of his documentaries puts it: “we accept our differences, our life choices and the difficulties of the others”.

The retrospective is backed by Swiss Films and has the support of the Swiss Embassy in Spain.

The director Fernand Melgar will visit DocumentaMadrid to present his work, offering a discussion after each projection, as well as an interesting MasterClass that will take place on Saturday, May the 3^rd.

The Films of this section are: