MADRID — "The Endless Trench," a film about a man who hid for decades after Spain's 1936-39 Civil War, will represent the country in the competition to be nominated for this year's Oscar for Best International Feature Film, Spain´s Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences said Tuesday.
The film, starring Spanish actors Antonio de la Torre y Belén Cuesta, tells the story of a man who remained for years hiding in his house for fear of arrest following the war that led to nearly four decades of dictatorship under late Gen. Francisco Franco.
It is directed by the trio of Aitor Arregi, Jon Garaño and José Mari Goenaga.
The film, whose original title in Spanish is "La Trinchera Infinita," was first shown at the 2019 San Sebastián film festival where it won best director and best screenplay.
Spain has been nominated more than a dozen times in the Best International Feature Film category and has won the Academy Award four times, most recently in 2005 with Alejandro Amenabar's "The Sea Inside" ("Mar Adentro").
Academy Award nominations are due to be announced on March 15 next year. The awards ceremony, postponed due to the new coronavirus pandemic, is scheduled for April 25.
