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The Motive (Manuel Martin Cuenca / Mexico - Spain / 2017 / 112 min)

Synopsis

Alvaro dreams of becoming a great writer, but he is incapable of producing anything other than tedious, pretentious drivel. He works as a clerk for a notary in Seville and his passion for writing is the only thing that brightens up his otherwise dull existence. His wife Amanda couldn’t be more different. She’s always been down-to-earth and never dreamed of becoming a writer, yet she’s the one whose first novel ends up being a best-seller. Just one of life’s little ironies…

The couple’s separation is inevitable and acts as the push Alvaro needs to finally realise his dream of writing a great novel. But when he finally sits down to write, he can’t do it… He not only lacks talent, but imagination as well. Guided by his writing teacher, Juan, Alvaro discovers that truly great fiction is drawn from reality and so embarks on a mission to create his own story. By manipulating his friends and neighbours, Alvaro gets his plot, but will his true story have a happy ending…?

About the Director

Having directed the feature-length documentary El juego de Cuba in 2001, Manuel Martin Cuenca presented in San Sebastian’s Zabaltegi section his directorial debut, La flaqueza del bolchevique (The Weakness of the Bolshevik), Goya Award® for Best New Actress (María Valverde). In 2005 he competed in San Sebastian Festival’s Official Selection with Malas Temporadas. He returned to documentaries with Últimos testigos: Carrillo comunista (2009) and La cara B (2013), and again to fiction with La mitad de Óscar (2010) and Caníbal (Cannibal, 2013), Best Cinematography Award in San Sebastian and a Goya Award® in the same category.

Spanish Cinema Days is curated by Marta Sánchez, Director, PRAGDA, and Laura Turégano, Associate Director, KJCC.

Produced by KJCC and PRAGDA.

Free and open to the public.

All films have English subtitles.