F. Javier Gutierrez’s Rural Thriller The Wait (La Espera)
Makes North American Premiere at Fantastic Fest
Following World Premiere at the Oldenburg Film Festival
Following a world premiere at Germany’s Oldenburg Film Festival, Fantastic Fest has the North American premiere of F. Javier Gutierrez’s third feature film The Wait (La Espera). The rural thriller from the director of Before the Fall and Rings will bow in Austin at the largest genre film festival in the US, specializing in horror, fantasy, sci-fi, and action movies from all around the world. After Oldenburg and Fantastic Fest, The Wait will make its Spanish premiere at the Sitges Film Festival.
The Wait is produced by Gutierrez’s Unfiled Productions, Nostromo Pictures (Buried, Penny Dreadful), and Spal Films (Before the Fall). The folk horror tragedy stars Victor Clavijo (Before the Fall), Ruth Diaz, Manuel Moron, and Luis Callejo (Below Zero). Film Factory is handling international sales.
The Wait, set in the remote, magical, and forgotten Andalusian countryside has been described as a “love letter to the horror/fantasy genre,” as well as Gutiérrez’s “most intimate and brutal film” to date.
Gutierrez shares: “After Rings, I felt the need to return to Europe, to Spain, to Andalucía, and shoot something personal. As a good friend told me once, “one for them, one for me, for my soul”. The Wait belongs to the latter. No doubt, this film brings me back to my roots, my land, my memories, my most personal storytelling, along with my childhood nightmares. As I did in Before the Fall, beneath the story, I push the boundaries, to go deeper, through layers, symbols, exploring once again the complexity, darkness, beauty and weakness of our human nature. Death. Grief. Guilt… All disguised as a disturbing folk horror, brutal, uncompromised, with the soul of a western. That’s The Wait. A suffocating step towards the edge, into our inner fears. No answers. No mercy. Too harsh? Maybe. But you know, to see a candle’s light, one must take it into a dark place.”
The Wait (La Espera) at Fantastic Fest:
Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar
Saturday, September 23, 2023 7:55 PM CDT
Theater 7
Tuesday, September 26, 2023 11:30 PM CDT
Theater 4
Eladio has been hired to watch over the hunting grounds of Don Francisco’s estate, somewhere in rural Spain. The estate is divided into ten hunting stands, spaced far enough apart to avoid incidents. After three years of service, Don Carlos — Don Francisco’s second in command — offers him a bribe to add an additional three stands to the property. Eladio initially hesitates, but his wife eventually convinces him to take the money. Eladio’s greed has unfortunate consequences that drag his entire family to perdition.
The Wait (La Espera): 99 minutes / Spain
Spanish w/ English subtitles
