Seattle International Film Festival 2024

This year’s edition of SIFF celebrates its 50th anniversary with a selection of international features, short films, and documentaries, including seven movies from Spain.

Established in 1976, SIFF is Seattle’s primary year-round film organization. It organizes the annual Seattle International Film Festival, drawing nearly 150,000 attendees to celebrate films from over 80 countries and regions. The event showcases features, short films, and documentaries that may not return to US cinemas, offering a platform to explore new and underrepresented voices and stories.

Spanish films at SIFF 2024

Un Amor

• On Saturday, May 11 at 11 am. At SIFF Cinema Egyptian.
• On Sunday, May 12 at 6:30 pm. At SIFF Cinema Uptown.
• Directed by Isabel Coixet, 2023, Spain, 127 minutes.
• In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

From acclaimed Spanish writer-director Isabel Coixet (The Bookshop) comes this tale on the idea of love —of self and others— about existential doubt, the role of being a woman, and the transformative power of acting upon one’s earnest desires. Upon settling in the countryside village of La Escapa, Nat accepts a disturbing sexual proposal by neighbour Andreas, paving the way for a self-consuming passion.

Saturn Returns

• On Saturday, May 11 at 8 pm. At SIFF Cinema Uptown.
• On Sunday, May 12 at 4 pm. At SIFF Cinema Egyptian.
• Directed by Isaki Lacuesta and Pol Rodriguez, 2024, Spain, 105 minutes.
• In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

It’s the late 1990s, and Granada indie music group Los Planetas is about to record their third album. But with the band in turmoil, they find themselves on the brink of success… or total destruction. Can they come together against all odds or collapse in a ball of fire?

The Quiet Maid

• On Sunday, May 12 at 6:30 pm. At AMC Pacific Place.
• On Monday, May 13 at 12:30 pm. at SIFF Cinema Uptown.
• Directed by Miguel Faus, 2023, Spain, 92 minutes.
• In Spanish and Catalan with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

What’s it like to work for the wealthy elite? In this drama of class conflict presented by Steven Soderbergh, Columbian maid Ana (Paula Grimaldo) has just arrived at the Costa Brava vacation estate of her rich new art collector employers, only to discover she’s being taken for a ride.

Rioja: The Land of a Thousand Wines

• On Sunday, May 12 at 2:30 pm. At SIFF Cinema Uptown.
• On Sunday, May 19 at 4: pm. At Shoreline Community College
• Directed by José Luis Lopez-Linares, 2023, Spain, 96 minutes.
• In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

This documentary film explores the human stories behind the entire value chain that gives life to Spanish wine, showcasing the cultural, historical, oenological, and sensual aspects of wine from Rioja. Through the stories of the people involved in the wine-making process, from the vineyards to the wine cellars, the film reveals the moment of emergence that the wine region is experiencing, with the talent and contribution of new generations living alongside historic wineries.

Close Your Eyes

• On Monday, May 13 at 9 pm. At Majestic Bay
• On Wednesday, May 15 at 12:30 pm. At AMC Pacific Place
• Directed by Víctor Erice, 2023, Spain, 165 minutes.
• In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

In his first film in over 30 years, Víctor Erice (The Spirit of the Beehive) presents an ode to cinema following a reclusive former filmmaker investigating the two-decades-old disappearance of one of his actors. Nominated for 11 Goya Awards.

Holy Mother

• On Thursday, May 16 at 6 pm. At Shoreline Community College.
• On Friday, May 17 at 1:15 pm. At AMC Pacific Place.
• Directed by Antonio Chavarrías, 2024, Spain, 122 minutes.
• In Spanish with English subtitles. Watch trailer.

In this historical drama set during the Early Middle Ages, Emma of Barcelona is a Catalan nun who defied the odds —both against her country’s enemies and her own clergy— in her God-granted mission to repopulate Spain’s embattled border territories.

My Sextortion Diary

• On Thursday, May 16 at 1 pm. At AMC Pacific Place
• On Saturday, May 18 at 7:30 pm. At SIFF Film Center
• Directed by Patricia Franquesa, 2024, Spain, 63 minutes.

When film producer Pati Franquesa’s computer is stolen, she becomes trapped in a blackmail scheme when the hacker demands $2,400 or he will release a handful of lewd, private photos to her coworkers. Will the authorities help, or will she have to take matters into her own hands?