• Two previously unseen films by Ricardo Bofill and his creative circle, shot in the 1960s, open the 22nd edition of Documenta Madrid
• The short film Maldito niño, by the Dentro Cine school, reinterprets colonial archives from Equatorial Guinea through the eyes of vulnerable youth
• The 2025 edition reaffirms documentary cinema as a tool for memory, resistance, and collective creation

Today marks the opening of the 22nd edition of Documenta Madrid, the International Film Festival of the Madrid City Council, organized by the Department of Culture, Tourism and Sport. Taking place from May 6 to 11, the festival opens with the screening of two previously unreleased films by architect Ricardo Bofill and his collaborators, under the title Destellos de utopía. El archivo cinematográfico de Ricardo Bofill, along with the premiere of Maldito niño, a collaborative piece created by young participants from Cineteca Madrid's Dentro Cine school.

The Hidden Legacy of Ricardo Bofill
The opening session features a remarkable cinematic discovery: two previously unseen films made in the 1960s by architect Ricardo Bofill. Recently found by chance in the archives of the Bofill Taller de Arquitectura, these works transport viewers to a time when cinema and architecture intertwined in the search for new ways of imagining space. Alucinación arquitectónica and Imagen de la ciudad, both from 1967, explore architecture and urbanism with irony and insight through a speculative lens.

Using an experimental approach, both films play with editing and narrative to challenge dominant urban models and propose alternatives that still resonate as radical visions today. Shot in Super 8mm format in collaboration with Óscar Tusquets, Xavier Bagué, and Peter Hodgkinson, the films reflect the utopian power of Bofill’s thought and his close ties with the intellectual elite of the time. Their rediscovery offers not only a new perspective on a lesser-known facet of Bofill’s career but also a window into a vibrant era of Spanish cultural creativity. Images from the past that inspire dreams of the future.

Imagen de la ciudad (Ricardo Bofill, Óscar Tusquets, 1967) is described by Tusquets as being created during a culturally pivotal time, just a few years before the dictator’s death, when "interesting things were starting to happen.” The film was made to be shown at the Architecture Congress in Tarragona (May 1967). During filming on the streets of Barcelona, Bofill shot in Super 8 while Tusquets drove a convertible. The interiors, filmed in the studio of photographer Oriol Maspons, feature Serena and Beatriz dancing. It's a modest yet carefree journey that juxtaposes the sinuous façades of Cerdà's Barcelona with the female body, creating a dialogue between modernist tradition, pop culture symbols, and the powerful visual language of the Archigram group.

Alucinación arquitectónica (Xavier Bagué, Ricardo Bofill, Peter Hodgkinson, 1967) is a visual tour of the spectacular forms of the first buildings designed by the Bofill Taller de Arquitectura. The performance by Serena and the narration explore the intimate relationship between architectural space and its inhabitant.

These films offer a unique glimpse into the early career of one of the most influential figures in contemporary architecture. Their restoration aligns with Documenta Madrid’s ongoing commitment to bridging cinema with other artistic disciplines.

The Colonial Archive Reimagined
Also premiering during the opening session is Maldito niño, directed by Violeta Pagán in collaboration with young people from the Dentro Cine school at Cineteca Madrid and Matadero Madrid. The short film draws from footage shot in Equatorial Guinea between 1926 and 1930, liberating nitrate emulsions from their original political purpose and reinterpreting them through a critical and poetic lens.

The film transforms colonial material into a cinematic fable exploring the relationship between humans and nature, while challenging the extractivist logics of the past. Created from archival images documenting the Spanish colonization of Equatorial Guinea between 1926 and 1930, the nitrate emulsions are freed from their initial propagandistic function.

Maldito niño is part of the research project El documental institucional y el cine de aficionado coloniales: análisis y usos, funded by Spain’s Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, and connected to the Instituto Universitario del Cine Español at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. It is supported by Filmoteca Española and the Asociación 24 Posibilidades por Segundo. The film is the result of a collaborative process involving adolescents and young people in especially vulnerable situations, developed through the educational initiatives of Dentro Cine at Cineteca and Matadero Madrid.

Documenta Madrid 2025
The 22nd edition of Documenta Madrid, the International Film Festival of the Madrid City Council, will be held from May 6 to 11, continuing its firm commitment to auteur documentary filmmaking, formal experimentation, and critical thinking. This year’s edition focuses on archival imagery as a means of generating new memories and cultural heritage, and on cinema’s potential as a tool for resistance, historical revision, and collective creation.

Organized by Cineteca Madrid, the festival remains a key platform for contemporary documentary and non-fiction cinema. This year, the three competitive sections — International, National, and Corte Final — return, with a total of €36,000 in prize money, along with a distribution award managed by Agencia Freak. A robust parallel program will include retrospectives, special screenings, professional meetings, and workshops. Cineteca Madrid will serve as the main venue and will exclusively host the Corte Final section.

In addition, Documenta Madrid 2025 will extend its reach to other major cultural institutions in the city, including Filmoteca Española, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, La Casa Encendida, ECAM, and Fundación Casa de México/UNAM-España. These venues will showcase a kind of cinema unafraid to look back in order to rethink the present. The festival is held with the support of Madrid Film Office, Acción Cultural Española (ACE), the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Embassy of Switzerland, Fundación Juan March, and Bofill Taller de Arquitectura, among other national and international cultural institutions.

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