Hungarian Filmmaker Béla Tarr, Guest of Honor at the Victòria & Savoy Film Series

The Victòria & Savoy film series, which brings auteur cinema to various towns in the Terres de l’Ebre region, will host a special event featuring Hungarian director Béla Tarr, widely regarded as a legend of contemporary cinema. Scheduled for Sunday, March 23, in Ulldecona and La Ràpita, the event will include two essential films that highlight the history of cinema and the evolution of its expressive language.

At 12:00 PM, The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) by Carl Theodor Dreyer will be screened in 35mm at the Ermita de la Pietat church in Ulldecona, introduced by Béla Tarr. This silent film masterpiece, featuring an unforgettable symphony of close-ups centered on actress Maria Falconetti, is one of the greatest works of early cinema.

At 6:00 PM, Damnation (1988), directed by Béla Tarr, will be screened at the Sixto Mir Auditorium in La Ràpita. This film marks the first full expression of Tarr’s distinctive style—the very approach that has cemented his status as one of modern cinema’s most important auteurs. Béla Tarr’s work, which earned him the European Film Academy’s Honorary Award in 2023, has been showcased at the world’s most prestigious festivals and museums. However, his films have rarely been shown in commercial theaters or in regions far from major urban centers, making his participation in this event even more significant.

This initiative has been made possible through the collaboration of the Ulldecona City Council (which organizes the Victòria & Savoy film series), the Centre d’Art Lo Pati (which facilitated the 35mm screening), and Cineclub La Ràpita (which helped arrange the screening of Damnation). Additional support has come from La Foradada Films and filmmaker Manel Raga Raga, who previously curated a Béla Tarr retrospective in Barcelona in 2024 and was his student at the Sarajevo film.factory for four years. Locally, key contributions have also been made by Restaurante L’Antic Molí and Oco! Bar Gastronòmic. Furthermore, the Barcelona-based film school ECIB, where Béla Tarr will conduct a practical workshop for master’s students in film directing during the week of March 24, and the D’A Film Festival Barcelona, which will present him with its Honorary Award on March 29, have also participated in making this event possible.

Practical Information

• Tickets for each screening: €8
• On Sunday, March 23, at 2:00 PM, a communal paella lunch will take place at the Ermita de la Pietat in Ulldecona.
• Ticket purchase links available at www.lopati.cat.