The Prequel to ‘Close Your Eyes’, ‘The South’, Main Poster & Press Stills Released!

Regarded as an unfinished masterpiece that will remain in film history, 〈The South〉 has unveiled its main poster, evoking distant memories like an old photograph, ahead of its release on February 18. Additionally, it has garnered attention by releasing 8 press stills filled with the director's unique aesthetics of light and shadow.

Set to officially release on February 18, 〈The South〉 tells the story of Estrella, a girl who grew up in a remote house in northern Spain, confronting the silence and secrets of her father, who possesses a mysterious ability to find water veins, and ultimately developing a longing for the 'south' that she could never reach. It is a film completed by Spain's greatest master, Victor Erice, who left a distinct mark in film history with 〈Close Your Eyes〉(2023) and the immortal debut 〈The Spirit of the Beehive〉(1973).

〈The South〉 was left unfinished due to a halt in production, but it is recognized as an unfinished masterpiece, with its gaps and silences completing the film's emotion and aesthetics, and it competed in the Cannes Film Festival that year. The latest work, 〈Close Your Eyes〉, is a piece where the director, burdened by incompleteness, finally expresses the stories that have accumulated over 40 years. As a result, 〈The South〉 is recognized not only as “Victor Erice's greatest film” (BFI) but also as a prequel that must be experienced to fully feel the emotional resonance of 〈Close Your Eyes〉.

The released poster captures an image that stimulates nostalgia from childhood, resembling an old faded photograph. In the teaser poster released previously, the teenage protagonist Estrella was looking at a metal pendulum, but this time, her father is holding it, while the 8-year-old Estrella is trying to follow her father and place something in his hand. The main poster, depicting a happy moment between a father and daughter with the father's unique ability to detect water veins, evokes deep longing and allows viewers to feel the film's emotions. It provides hints about the purpose of the metal pendulum that appeared in the teaser poster and why the protagonist was gazing at it intently.

The released press stills capture classical painting-like beauty shaped by light and shadow. A seagull-shaped weather vane points to the 'south', reminding viewers of the film's title, while a two-shot of the protagonist and her father riding a motorcycle and harvesting herbs in the garden evokes memories of a radiant childhood under the sun. Additionally, the press stills include scenes of the protagonist buying tickets at the theater, being moved while looking at her father's pendulum, and reading a book with her mother. The last two stills feature a more grown-up protagonist and her father. It raises curiosity about what conversations the daughter, now in her teenage years, will have with her father, who cast a shadow over her childhood, and what secrets of the 'south' they hold. Meanwhile, expectations are building for the master's skill in harmonizing light and the emotions of the characters, as felt from the main poster and still images.