Conflict and coexistence through the eyes of cinema

It will soon be 50 years since Iñaki Nuñez premiered his short film ´Estado de excepción´ (1976) at the San Sebastian Film Festival. This was the first production to address the Basque conflict, telling the story of a family marked by the Spanish Civil War. The father was killed in the bombing of Gernika, while the son was arrested, tortured, and executed by Franco´s police. During the production of the short film, several crew members, including the director Iñaki Nuñez, were arrested and imprisoned on charges of discrediting the police. Since then, the Basque conflict has left a significant mark on the world of cinema, inspiring numerous fictional works and documentaries. It´s a complex, contentious issue that evokes strong reactions from all sides. So, why even make a film or a documentary, one might ask. There are several reasons, but perhaps the most crucial is to make sure this story doesn´t fade into oblivion. Each creator must decide how much time and distance are needed to bring a historical event to the big screen. What is clear is that these films, through the lens of cinema, offer a deeper understanding of the conflict and coexistence within Basque society.

The Imanol Uribe trilogy: ‘El proceso de Burgos’ (1979), ‘La fuga de Segovia’ (1981) and ‘La muerte de Mikel’ (1984)

Filmmaker Imanol Uribe made the so-called "Basque trilogy" between 1979 and 1984. The Burgos trial was a court martial, or summary military trial conducted in December 1970 against 16 members of ETA. The event held significant public importance. Based on the trial, Uribe made ´El proceso de Burgos´, a documentary featuring a compilation of interviews and testimonies of people imprisoned and prosecuted in the court martial. The film also covers the state of emergency that was established in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa and the hundreds of arrests that ensued. The trial was a milestone in the fight against the Franco dictatorship: rather than simply trying the 16 ETA militants, the defendants succeeded in challenging the regime itself, mobilising society and sparking a wave of international solidarity. ´El proceso de Burgos´ won the Cantabrian Pearl Award for Best Film in Spanish at the 1979 San Sebastian Film Festival.

In 1981, Uribe directed the second film in his trilogy, based on the Segovia prison break, which tells the story the 29 prisoners who escaped from Segovia prison on April 5, 1976. Since he was not authorised to film inside Segovia prison itself, the prison sequences were shot at the Escolapios school in Tolosa. Thanks to the various works dedicated to the event – a book, a song, and, of course, this film – the testimony of this mass escape has endured in the collective memory. The escape had great international repercussions: the newspaper Le Monde, for example, published the story on the front page with the headline "La Grande Évasion".

The feature film ´La muerte de Mikel´, discussed in the article ´Five Basque films where queer meets rural´, closes the trilogy. Based on a real event, the film had important consequences for the Spanish political transition. Mikel (Imanol Arias), a young pharmacist, homosexual and militant of the Basque pro-independence movement, is found dead one day. The story plays out in reverse, starting from that day, told in flashbacks.

‘Ander eta Yul’ (1989, Ana Díez)

Ana Díez´s first feature film is the story of a tragic relationship between two friends, Yul, a member of ETA – although not explicitly mentioned – and Ander, a drug dealer from Errenteria, recently released from prison. It´s a film with intimate nuances, steering clear of conventional hero and villain narratives. Its imagery delves into the emotional layers of these tormented characters. ´Ander eta Yul´ was presented at the San Sebastian Film Festival and received the Goya Award for Best New Director in 1990. An interesting anecdote: The Spanish Ministry of the Interior refused to permit the use of its props in the filming after reviewing the script. As a result, the film does not include the Spanish police uniform.

‘Yoyes’ (1999, Helena Taberna)

Dolores González Katarain, known as Yoyes, was the first woman to rise to the top leadership of ETA. When she left the organisation, she was considered a traitor. She returned to the Basque Country after her exile in Mexico and attempted to rebuild her life. However, on September 10, 1986, ETA assassinated Yoyes in her hometown of Ordizia, causing a significant social upheaval. Helena Taberna brought this story to the screen in the film ‘Yoyes’, starring Ana Torrent in the role of Dolores Gonzalez Katarain. The 2022 short film ´Hirugarren koadernoa´ (The Third Notebook) directed by Lur Olaizola, is also worth mentioning, as it is directly related to the film. Based on Yoyes´ diary, Torrent and Olaizola read an imaginary screenplay.

‘La pelota vasca’ (2003, Julio Medem)

Julio Medem brings together seventy interviews centred on the Basque conflict. The interviews are interspersed with aerial images of the Basque Country, moments from a Basque pelota match, scenes from related films, and media footage. The work received enormous media coverage, and the project was launched in five formats: book, documentary, three-part series, web and DVD. ´La pelota vasca´ was nominated for Best Documentary at the Goya Awards and the European Film Awards.

‘Barrura begiratzeko leihoak’ (2012, Josu Martinez, Eneko Olasagasti, Mireia Gabilondo, Enara Goikoetxea, Txaber Larreategi)

The film consists of five independent short stories by five different directors about five prisoners. Josu Martínez´s work is based on the experience of Irati Tobar. Tobar knew she was going to be arrested, and Martinez captures her fears and experiences leading up to the moment of her arrest. Txeber Larreategi recounts the story of prisoner Ion Ugarte Zinkunegi, who is released after serving a sixteen-year sentence. Mireia Gabilondo describes the situation of Gotzone López de Luzuriaga. Gotzone was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 and underwent surgery at a hospital in Jaén. She had been in prison for 23 years. Enara Goikoetxea chose to tell the story of Jesús Mari Zalakain, who was imprisoned for being a member of the board of directors of the newspaper Egin. Zalakain was tried in the 18/98 macro-trial and sentenced to eight years in prison. Finally, Eneko Olasagasti delves into the story of Mikel Albisu, known as Antza, and completes his segment from a personal perspective.

‘Asier eta biok’ (2013, Aitor Merino and Amaia Merino)

Asier Aranguren and Aitor Merino met as youngsters at school and grew up together in the Euskal Herria of the 1980s. Some years later, Merino moved to Madrid to fulfil his dream of becoming an actor, while Aranguren joined ETA after his friend´s departure. This documentary, directed by Amaia and Aitor Merino, delves into the Basque conflict through the friendship between Aitor and Asier. The film incorporates impartial elements, both pedagogical and social, to help viewers understand some of the key aspects of the conflict. More than providing answers, the documentary raises questions, presents alternative viewpoints, and, above all, encourages much-needed dialogue.

‘Lasa eta Zabala’ (2014, Pablo Malo)

The murder of Lasa and Zabala is another terrible episode in the Basque conflict. Joxi Zabala and Joxean Lasa were kidnapped in Baiona (French Basque Country) by a vigilante group of the Guardia Civil and taken to La Cumbre Palace in San Sebastian, where they were tortured. From there, they were transported to Alicante, where they were executed by gunfire, and their bodies buried. The kidnapping and subsequent murder marked the first action of GAL, an organisation, orchestrated by the state apparatus. In 2014, director Pablo Malo, a native of San Sebastian, brought the events to the big screen, choosing a raw, direct, and uncompromising narrative approach. Actors Jon Anza and Christian Merchan portray Lasa and Zabala. Both adeptly convey the fear and suffering of the characters.

‘Negociador’ (2014, Borja Cobeaga)

Even when tackling a raw and painful subject, filmmaker Borja Cobeaga has always deemed it essential to incorporate humour. In 2003, the director of the successful ETB program ´Vaya Semanita´ introduced a tone that had not previously been used to address the Basque conflict. Years later, following the success of directing and writing several screenplays, including the hit comedy ´Ocho apellidos vascos´, co-written by Diego San José, he released ´Negociador´, a dramatic comedy inspired by the negotiations between the former Basque MP of the Basque Socialist Party and ETA in 2005 and 2006. With this film, Cobeaga departs from the comedic style of his previous works and embraces a more tragicomic tone, creating a melancholic comedy with a rather dry sense of humour. There are moments that make you laugh, but these stem from the absurdity of the characters and situations rather than from specific jokes.

‘Non Dago Mikel?’ (2020, Miguel Angel Llamas, Amaia Merino)

Written and directed by Amaia Merino and Miguel Angel Llamas, this documentary recounts a state crime that shook the Basque Country, highlighting the importance of the right to truth. On 26 November 1985, the Guardia Civil arrested Mikel Zabalza and his cousin Manuel Bizkaia, as well as Idoia Aierbe and Ion Arretxe in San Sebastian. Twenty days after his arrest, Mikel Zabalza´s body was found floating in the river Bidasoa. His death sparked widespread outrage, leading to unprecedented social mobilization and violent protests in support of Zabalza´s family and to condemn his disappearance, which is deemed a state-sponsored murder. Merino and Llamas crafted a stark yet essential narrative. At the 2020 San Sebastian Film Festival, the film received a special mention in the Irizar Basque Film Award category. The web series ´Galdutako objektuak´ was created using additional material from the documentary. Complete information is available at mikelzabalza.eus.

‘Maixabel’ (2021, Iciar Bollain)

The title of the film refers to Maixabel Lasa, whose husband, Juan Mari Jauregi, civil governor of Gipuzkoa between 1994 and 1996, was assassinated in Tolosa by ETA in July 2000. Months later, Lasa was appointed director of Victims´ Services of the Basque Government. In her role, she organized and participated in meetings between victims and ETA prisoners. Her first encounter took place in 2011, and in 2014, she met with two of Jauregi´s murderers. Icíar Bollaín crafted an emotionally charged film, a solid, thought-provoking drama which explores the challenging themes of forgiveness and second chances. The performances are outstanding; the cast received three Goya Awards: Best Actress (Blanca Portillo), Best Supporting Actor (Urko Olazabal), and Best New Actress (María Cerezuela).

‘Karpeta urdinak’ (2022, Ander Iriarte)

Ander Iriarte completed a documentary in 2022 that delves into the reality of torture in the Basque Country. The director focused on tortures that leave no physical marks, following the official report of the Basque Institute of Criminology. It all starts when Iriarte suspects that his father may have been subjected to torture at the police station. To investigate his suspicions, he turns to a report on torture and ill-treatment in the Basque Autonomous Community between 1960 and 2014, compiled by the Basque Government as part of the Peace and Coexistence Plan. Alarmed by the findings published in the study, Iriarte meets with the doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, and lawyers who participated in the project. They discuss concepts such as "psychological torture," the "Istanbul Protocol," and the "statistical approach," shedding light on the reality of torture. Iriarte crafted a rigorous scientific documentary nearly two hours long. The tsunami of data, statistics, and conclusions it presents is immense, particularly because it is not a piece of opinionated filmmaking but rather an audiovisual presentation grounded in raw and profoundly real data.

´Indarkeriaren oi(h)artzunak’ (2023, Amaia Merino, Ander Iriarte)

The documentary rounding out this list recently received an award at the San Sebastian Film and Human Rights Festival. It was also acknowledged by the audience and received a special mention from the jury of the Amnesty International Award. In 1982, Esteban Muruetagoiena died three days after being released by the Guardia Civil following nine days of detention. Forty-two years later, his daughter, Tamara Muruetagoiena, has still not received recognition for being a victim of police torture. Amaia Merino and Ander Iriarte wanted to capture it in this documentary.