I recently returned from Spain where I attended the IV edition of the International Congress
of History, Literature and Art in Cinema in Spanish and Portuguese (June, 28-30). This event is one of the major academic gatherings on Spanish Cinema Studies worldwide and it is organized by one of the oldest universities in the world, which is also the country’s first higher education institute, the University of Salamanca.
At this conference, I presented my paper entitled “The Desires of the Flesh, the Desires of the
Eyes and the Pride of Life: Three Christian Temptations in La vaquilla (The Heifer) by Luis García Berlanga”. This research has been published in the conference proceedings. It was the result of the past academic year of work at the University of Washington where I have been studying the iconic Spanish filmmaker Luis García Berlanga (1921-2010). During the congress, I also took part in a course on film screenwriting conducted by Spanish scriptwriter Natxo López.
Attending this congress was an enriching experience. I had the chance to meet colleagues from other countries and we shared our recent findings in Spanish and Portuguese Cinema Studies. I returned with many ideas to use excerpts of Spanish-language films as well as creative writing activities that I can apply in the Spanish Language classes that I teach at the University of Washington.