The short films Maruja, directed by Álvaro G. Company, and Medusas, by Iñaki Sánchez Arrieta, are the respective winners of the first and second prize of the Loterías Award, the competitive section for short films on social topics, organised by the San Sebastián Festival and the Sociedad Estatal Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE).

The second edition of the competition received the submission of more than a hundred works, from which the selection committee chose six for appraisal by a jury presided over by the actress Carmen Machi alongside the Deputy Director of Communication at Loterías, María Núñez, and the director of the San Sebastián Festival, José Luis Rebordinos. All three attended this afternoon’s screening of the films at the Trueba cinema, followed by the awards ceremony, also attended by the President of Loterías, Jesús Huerta.

Maruja, winner of the first prize coming with 10,000 euros, addresses the vulnerability of an 80 year-old widow targeted by the occasional cold caller. For its part, the short film Medusas, winner of the second prize with its 5,000 euros, portrays how we cannot turn a blind eye to the people arriving on the coasts of Spain in search of a better life. The other four finalists were Campolivar, by Alicia Moncholí Lueje; Cólera / Rage, by José Luis Lázaro; Mi tía, by Mikel Urretabizkaia, and Origami, by Álvaro León.

The goal of the competition is to use the audiovisual medium to send positive and heartening messages advocating the redistribution of wealth, the elimination of inequalities and social justice. In line with that goal, the main themes of the short films submitted were loneliness and caring for the elderly, the drama of emigration, the problems faced by cancer patients and their families, and gender-based violence.

Having thanked Loterías y Apuestas del Estado for their “necessary backing”, the Director of the San Sebastián Festival, José Luis Rebordinos, voiced his “satisfaction” at the response to the second call of the Loterías Award. “Like last year, the standard of the short films is very high, both in regard to their filmmaking and to the topics addressed, once again proving that the cinema is, as well as entertainment, a tool for raising social awareness”, he stressed.

For his part, the President of Loterías, Jesús Huerta, emphasized that “Loterías and the San Sebastián Festival share an awareness of social issues, and with this second edition of the Loterías Award we add our grain of sand to making people realise that, only by attending to the groups in greatest need can we progress towards achieving a fairer and more egalitarian society”. Jesús Huerta also stressed that “culture is an element of social cohesion and generates a debate typical of advanced societies such as our own” going on to highlight that “the short films submitted reflect a critical stance and a social commitment necessary for moving forward together as a society”.