Estrany riu

In Jaume Claret Muxart’s tender, sensual debut feature, the Danube is by turns emerald green, deep blue or dull grey; a glittering, crystalline surface or an opaque screen. Its mercuriality reflects the longing that torments sixteen-year-old Dídac, contending with his first heartbreak during a family vacation along the river in southern Germany. While swimming, a naked boy his age appears in the water below, circling and teasing him. Is the boy real, a figment of his imagination, a fairy-tale spirit? His mysterious allure will tempt Dídac away from childhood and into a new stage of life, a transition that carries different sentimental implications for each member of the family. Claret Muxart sets ESTRANY RIU in a region home to both Friedrich Hölderlin, whose play Der Tod des Empedokles Dídac’s mother is rehearsing, and the Ulm School of Design, which the family visit. In line with Romantic tradition, the filmmaker’s exploration of the characters’ emotional world brings together nature and culture. Aside from literature and architecture, it also embraces painting, as evoked by the lush 16mm cinematography, and music, like the Grieg and Ravel heard on the soundtrack, endowing this queer coming-of-age story with a timeless and mythical quality. (Giovanni Marchini Camia)

In the presence of Jaume Claret Muxart, Sophie Ahrens (Producer), Francesco Wenz (Actor) and Clara Rus (Color Grading).
With the kind support of the Accion Cultural Española.

Jaume Claret Muxart: MIA I MARC (2019, K), EL BO INNOCENT (2020, K), ELLA I JO (2020, K), DIE DONAU (2023, K), LA NOSTRA HABITACIÓ (2024, K)