Spain is a funny country: an interview with David Trueba

On Wednesday, November 1, David Trueba's new film titled "Saben aquell," about the life and work of comedian Eugenio, is released in theaters. The director spoke about his work and the details of the movie, in which David Verdaguer and Caroline Juste play the roles of Eugenio and his first wife Conchita. The movie offers the viewer a fascinating chronicle of Spanish society in transition, where women played a crucial role, as well as a reflection of the present day. It is a biography of a young Catalan jeweler who became a comedian, and an account of society. The movie also tells a love story, and one day features music by Spanish artist Nino Bravo.

Trueba revealed why he chose Eugenio as the main character''movie.

He believes there is mystery, pain and conflict behind the character, which makes movies interesting. He doesn't like movies where the main driving factor is just the fame of the character. He wants movies to be creative and tell a story that has value because of the presence of conflict elements. There is a lot more behind the Eugenio we all know from television and the little known. Trueba finds this interesting and believes that you can build a story around it and fully immerse yourself in it.

The movie is not only interesting for its main character, but also offers a fascinating chronicle of Spanish society during the period of transition. This was an important time in Spanish history - the transition from dictatorship to''democracy, as well as the great social revolution when women could leave the house, join the nightlife and no longer be so controlled. It was a time of change that also affected the arts sector. The faces of people involved in music, humor or movies changed. These are social revolutions that after a while seem very simple, but are actually not so easy to explain. There was an established order, actually, the art world had its own order, which was through organized theaters, censorship, with television, etc., and suddenly the door opened and new, random artists came in. Some of them couldn't sing very well, but they had convincing lyrics, others were no longer 'artists' in quotes, but people with''s own individuality. There were also new, spontaneous people in humor, showing a different kind of humor from the one now exploited.

The movie shows how a woman, Conchita, helps Eugenio. He then helps her pursue her artistic career. There seems to be a symbiosis here that they were looking for. It seemed groundbreaking at the time, but today it is no longer so. Trueba also believes that Conchita helped Eugenio to swim in the turbulent wave of show business and life. Her absence makes it so that he no longer has that support or swimming lap. She was also a great spokesperson for telling the story that there were three or four generations of Spaniards who, because of the society they had to live in,''had to be realized through their children or husbands with complete abandonment of their professional lives for lack of time. These women did not end their journey with much frustration or anger. They added to it with great generosity, were very unique people, and I think that sometimes the modern perspective looks at them with some superiority, even as if they failed in the revolution. I believe they did it silently and under a heavy ceiling. Conchita is one such character who doesn't convey disappointment, even though she had to sacrifice her career so that another could continue it. In a way, they are connected. Things don't happen all at once. This was a very interesting story.

Trueb doesn't like it very much''telling jokes.

He also disliked being told jokes, especially at the dinner table. He has always felt that they disrupt the conversation. He much prefers humor that arises spontaneously. But he admits that Eugenio always caught his attention, he thought it was the art of interpretation, he was very good with it.

Trueba has written scripts, songs, books and more, but he is not going to write jokes.

The movie is relevant.

It's bilingual, in Catalan and Spanish, and there's a reference to the 1977 amnesty. It sounds relevant now. Are we in the same place or a different place? - The setting changes, but the argument of the movie remains the same. We are still in the same places, and I think the languages are even receding in some respects. Eugenio has made bilingualism his banner, and we are retreating, trying to lead''behave as if one language excludes the other. It also surprised me that Conchita is a girl who came to Barcelona from Huelva when she was 17 and started speaking and singing in Catalan. Many people thought she was Catalan. That's not so easy today. Why was it easy in the 70s? Why did we build a country we wanted to be diverse, free, where everyone could fit in, and now we find ourselves excluded? That's the question we need to ask ourselves.

Is today's Spain a joke?

In many ways yes, as in all countries. Fortunately, humor is what exposes countries, power.

Good or bad? -Spain? Well, I'm not one of those who sees everything in black. I think there are a lot of positive things, and when you look''round, you see other countries that have the same problems. For a while we believed that the two Spains were a feature only of ours, but now we see that there are two France, two Germany, two United States, two Argentina, and we see that we are more accompanied in this madness.

We have to learn to laugh at ourselves? - I don't know why people go to the gym instead of laughing at themselves when they look in the mirror in the morning. We lack more self-criticism before we start criticizing others. The flavor of perfection we have to put on the social media showcase is hurting us. Humor starts with the self and what is closest. From this we can help resolve the dogmas and knots that power tries to establish.

Such as you'.