La inútil

Synopsis

Things aren’t going well for 33-year-old Merche: life isn’t great, money is tight and she is in danger of losing her best friend. She spends more and more time at a job she hates and finds it increasingly difficult to break out of herself. But Merche is far too proud to say how she feels inside. And, truth be told, she feels completely hopeless.
Neus Ollé makes striking use of 16 mm film to create a 1970s look and texture that captures in keeping with how Merche feels.

Bio/Filmo

Belén Funes (Barcelona, 1984) studied directing at ESCAC and screenwriting at EICTV, Cuba. She has worked as script supervisor and assistant director on a number of productions. Her first short, Sara a la fuga (2015), won a Biznaga Award for Best Short and for Best Director at the Málaga Film Festival; her debut feature, La hija de un ladrón (2019), was in competition at the San Sebastián International Film Festival and won a Gaudí Award for Best Non-Catalan Language Film and for Best Director, as well as a Goya Award for Best New Director.

Neus Ollé graduated from ESCAC and has an MA in Cinematography from the National Film and Television School in London. She has worked on over thirty Catalan and international productions, including fiction films, advertising pieces, documentaries and music videos, and won two Gaudí Awards: for her work on El cant del ocells (Albert Serra, 2008) and La hija de un ladrón (Belén Funes, 2019). La inútil won Best Cinematography Award at ALCINE Festival de Cinema d’Alcalá de Henares. Her style has been defined as an exquisite mix of naturalism and elegance.