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Coven (Basque: Akelarre) is a 2020 historical drama film directed by Pablo Agüero, starring Amaia Aberasturi and Alex Brendemühl.
It won five Goya Awards from a total of nine nominations at the 35th Goya Awards. At the 8th Feroz Awards, the film was nominated in six categories.
The film was produced by Sorgin Films, Lamia Producciones Audiovisuales, Kowalski Films, Gariza Produkzioak, Tita Productions, La Fidèle Productions, Tita B. Productions and Campocine.
Plot
In 1609 in the Basque Country a group of five teenagers are captured and arrested as main suspects of witchcraft, as they celebrated a party in the woods. Judge Rostegui, given the task of purifying the region by the King, arrests the girls and accuses them of witchcraft. He decides to do whatever it takes to make them confess, and tell him what they know about the akelarre, a ceremony with magical connotations, during which the Devil is said to initiate his servants and mate with them.
Even though they deny it, and there is no evidence against them, they are arrested and tortured in order to force them to sign a written confession. After another of their friends is arrested, one of the girls, Ana, confesses to be a witch, claiming she cast a spell on the rest of her sisters and friends. Ana s plan is to gain enough time for the girls to organise an escape when the men of the village return from their fishing. As a result she spends a whole day confessing a detailed sabbath festivity – in reality a twisted version of the party she and the girls held before their arrest.
Judge Rostegui postpones the girls execution when Ana says she can only use her magic in every full moon night as she feels Lucifer s calling. Her portrayal convinces Rostegui who offers to deliver every item for the sabbath which causes some of his men to distrust him. One of his allies warns him that after the full moon, the village men will return and the girls will be set free. Rostegui rushes the girls execution and takes them to the woods for the ceremony with all of Ana s specifications. Understanding their situation, Ana leads her friends in a dance demonstration as they play along as witches and sing in the Basque language. Rostegui is entranced, but all of his men, along with village s priest are frightened of the sabbath .
Ana and the rest of the girls flee as Rostegui and his men have an argument; a chase through the woods ensues until the girls are cornered at a cliff. As they join hands, one of the village women elders sings in Basque about the tide brought by the full moon which motivates the girls to jump off from the cliff to Rostegui and his men s surprise.
Cast
- Amaia Aberasturi as Ana
- Alex Brendemühl as Rostegui
- Daniel Fanego as Consejero
- Garazi Urkola as Katalin
- Yune Nogueiras as María
Reception
Coven received generally positive reviews from film critics. It holds an 85% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes based on thirteen reviews, with an average rating of 8.8/10.
Awards
| Awards | Category | Nominated | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goya Awards | Best Actress | Amaia Aberasturi | Nominated |
| Best Cinematography | Javier Agirre | Nominated | |
| Best Art Direction | Mikel Serrano | Won | |
| Best Production Supervision | Guadalupe Balaguer Trelles | Nominated | |
| Best Sound | Urko Garai, Josefina Rodriguez, Frédéric Hamelin and Leandro de Loredo | Nominated | |
| Best Special Effects | Mariano García Marty and Ana Rubio | Won | |
| Best Costume Design | Nerea Torrijos | Won | |
| Best Makeup and Hairstyles | Beata Wotjowicz and Ricardo Molina | Won | |
| Best Original Score | Maite Arrotajauregi and Aránzazu Calleja | Won | |
| Feroz Awards | Best Drama Film | Nominated | |
| Best Trailer | Nominated | ||
| Best Film Poster | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress | Amaia Aberasturi | Nominated | |
| Best Supporting Actor | Alex Brendemühl | Nominated | |
| Best Original Soundtrack | Maite Arrotajauregi and Aránzazu Calleja | Nominated | |
| Year | 2020 |
| ReleaseDate | 2020-10-02 |
| RuntimeMins | 92 |
| RuntimeStr | 1h 32min |
| Plot | Basque Country, 1609. The men of the region are at sea and Amaia takes part for the first time in the nightly dances in the woods with the other villager girls. She is only 20. At dawn, they are all arrested. |
| Awards | Awards, 6 wins & 21 nominations |
| Directors | Pablo Agüero |
| Writers | Pablo Agüero, Katell Guillou |
| Stars | Amaia Aberasturi, Alex Brendemühl, Daniel Fanego |
| Produced by | Nicolás Avruj, Guadalupe Balaguer Trelles, Jokin Etcheverria, Iker Ganuza, Diego Lerman, Begoña Muñoz Corcuera, Fred Prémel, Koldo Zuazua |
| Music by | Maite Arroitajauregi, Aránzazu Calleja |
| Cinematography by | Javier Agirre |
| Film Editing by | Teresa Font |
| Casting By | Txabe Atxa, Nathalie Camidebach, Florencia Inés González |
| Production Design by | Mikel Serrano |
| Costume Design by | Nerea Torrijos |
| Makeup Department | Ricardo Molina, Araitz Pildain, Beata Wojtowicz |
| Production Management | Naiara Olite, Eduardo Rodriguez, Katixa Silva |
| Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | Ander Fernández, Silvina Guglielmotti, Nitya López, Sara Mazkiaran |
| Art Department | Gorka Arnoso, Virginia Arostegui, Gorka Irizar, Jesús Ortiz Fernández, Estíbaliz Salinas |
| Sound Department | José E. Caldararo, Jean Collot, Leyla de la Hoz, Leandro de Loredo, Lucile Demarquet, Urko Garai, Diego Gringas, Frédéric Hamelin, Emilio Martin Iglesias, Martin Litmanovich, Josefina Rodríguez, Gabriel Santamaria, Julián Sánchez Moreno, Paula Troia |
| Special Effects by | Patxi Crespo, Mariano García, Oier Hernández, Jon Serrano |
| Visual Effects by | Antonio Chumillas, Arturo Fernández de Castro, Juancho Fernández, David Garatachea, Guillermo García Romero, Abel Molina, Rodrigo Molina, Juanma Nogales, Borja A. Ortiz, Ana Rubio, Alberto Ruiz, Agustín Serna G. Lavín, Miguel Sánchez López-Ruíz |
| Stunts | Lorenzo Casares, Ana Martínez, Eduardo Moratilla, César Solar |
| Camera and Electrical Department | Txarli Arguiñano, Eva Aycart, Sonia Eguren, Adrián Hernández, David Herranz, Fabián Jiménez López, Denis Leitza, Youen Marivain, Carole Sainsard, Usue Sanz, David Sevilla, Txema Vega |
| Costume and Wardrobe Department | Noelia Arbosa, Alaia Arnaiz Del Escobal, Gema Martín Barbero, Ariane Núñez |
| Editorial Department | Leonardo Camporeale, Josefina Castillo Carrillo, Demetrio Elorz, Marta Longás, Santiago Montero |
| Script and Continuity Department | Gorka Cornejo |
| Additional Crew | Rafa Martínez, Riccardo Mimmi |
| Thanks | Natxo López |
| Genres | Drama, History |
| Companies | Sorgin Films, Kowalski Films, Lamia Producciones |
| Countries | Spain, France, Argentina |
| Languages | Spanish, Basque |
| ContentRating | TV-MA |
| ImDbRating | 6.4 |
| ImDbRatingVotes | 4869 |
| Keywords | basque country,spanish inquisition,accusation of witchcraft,accused of witchcraft,witches |