Renowned filming locations
The coast has fond and perhaps nostalgic memories of the time when American films such as Albert Lewin's Pandora and The Phantom Ship, shot in 1950, attracted Hollywood stars who contributed to its renown. As symbolized by Elisabeth Taylor and, above all, Ava Gardner, for whom the town of Tossa has erected a statue facing the sea. Although this era may be a little bygone, the region nonetheless offers sumptuous and varied backdrops, inspiring films such as Tom Tykwer's The Perfume (2006), for the castle of Requesens in the Sierra de l'Albera, or Luis Buñuel's The Golden Age, for Cap de Creus. In the Baix Empordà region, the S'Agaró watchtower was used as a film location for Orson Welles' Mr Arkadin (1955), as well as for Alejandro Amenábar's Mar Adentro in 2004. In 2015, visitors flocked to the small village of Monells, thanks to its presence in the film 8 apellidos catalanes, one of Spain's box-office hits. In the same year, part of season 6 of the famous HBO series Game of Thrones was filmed in Girona's historic center. The city's architectural heritage, once walled in, provided the perfect backdrop for the series' plot: the steps of the Cathedral, the Plaça dels Jurats and the rue Sant Martí were just some of the places the actors visited.
Institutionalization of cinema
In recent years, film shoots seem to have deserted the coast. No wonder! The Costa Brava is taking matters into its own hands, setting up a number of institutions and events to keep the 7th art alive. Starting with the Tomàs Mallol Film Museum-Collection. Inaugurated in 1998 in Girona, this museum brings together the collection built up by Tomàs Mallol i Deulofeu (a Spanish photographer and film director), retracing 400 years of cinema history. On the events front, there are two festivals honoring the 7th art from Spain and beyond. On the one hand, the Begur International Film Festival, located in the eponymous town in the Baix Empordà region, promotes feature-length and short films dedicated to the comedy genre. On the other hand, in a different style, the Girona Film Festival screens numerous cinematographic works from all over the world before a jury of professionals and organizes meetings between artists, with the aim of highlighting filmmakers unknown to the general public and bringing a little "glamour" to the city of Girona. Finally, every two months, the Costa Brava Film Festival organizes meetings between young filmmakers and film professionals.
