| Frontier | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Catalan | Frontera |
| Directed by | Judith Colell |
| Screenplay by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Andreu Adam Rubiralta |
| Edited by | Liana Artigal |
| Music by | Liesa Van der Aa |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Filmax |
Release dates |
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| Countries |
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Frontier (Catalan: Frontera) is a 2025 historical drama film directed by Judith Colell from a screenplay by Miguel Ibáñez Monroy and Gerard Giménez. It cast is toplined by Miki Esparbé, Maria Rodríguez Soto, Asier Etxeandia, Bruna Cusí, Kevin Janssens, and Jordi Sánchez. The film is a Spanish-Belgian co-production.
Plot
The plot is set in 1943 against the backdrop of World War II. In a small border village close to Sort, customs officer Manel Grau defies his superiors embarking on a dangerous mission to help Jews flee from Vichy France through the Spanish-French border with help from neighbor Juliana and French smuggler Jerôme.[1][2]
Cast
- Miki Esparbé as Manel Grau[3]
- Bruna Cusí as Juliana[3]
- Jordi Sánchez as Ovidi[3]
- Asier Etxeandia as José Antonio Sánchez[4]
- Maria Rodríguez Soto as Mercè[3]
- Kevin Janssens as Jerôme[5]
- Maria Molins as Flors[3]
- Tian Tosas as Quimet[3]
- Pepa López as Neus[3]
- Lauren Müller as Saskia[5]
- Joren Seldeslachts as Rudolph Meyer[5]
- Anna Franziska Jäger as refugee[5]
Production
The film is a Spanish-Belgian co-production by Crespeth Films Coming Soon Films and Diagonal (Banijay Iberia) alongside Bulletproof Cupid, with the participation of RTVE and 3Cat, and backing from ICEC, ICAA, Screen Flanders, the Belgian Federal Government, BNP Paribas and Creative Europe MEDIA.[6][1] Shooting locations included the Pallars.[3] It was shot in Catalan, Spanish, German, and French.[3]
Release
Frontier was presented at a RTVE gala of the 70th Valladolid International Film Festival (Seminci) on 25 October 2025.[7] Filmax released theatrically the film in Spain on 12 December 2025. Menemsha Films acquired North American rights to the film.[8] The film's festival run also included selections for screenings at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and the 37th Palm Springs International Film Festival (for its California premiere).[9][10]
Reception
Raquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas gave the film 57 points, praising "the cinematography, the production design, and certain well-resolved moments of tension", but lamenting the "little emotion in a story that should make our hair stand on end".[11]
Toni Vall of Cinemanía rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, writing about how Colell achieves "great depth" with "an almost flawless film, precise in what it tells and how it tells it, in its actors, in the dramatic nuances, and in the uncertainty" inhabiting its characters.[12]
Carmen L. Lobo of La Razón rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, positively mentioning the technical features, but lamenting how the story that the film tells "is terrifying, but it rarely manages to shock" the viewer.[13]
Luis Martínez of El Mundo gave the film a 3-star rating, finding the screenplay to be flawed, as "in its desire to tell everything, to bring in more voices and characters than the logic of the drama can digest, the film ends up confusing and confusing itself".[14]
Accolades
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2026
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18th Gaudí Awards | Best Film | Pending | [15] | |
| Best Actress | Maria Rodríguez Soto | Pending | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Bruna Cusí | Pending | |||
| Best Supporting Actor | Asier Etxeandia | Pending | |||
| Best Art Direction | Marta Bazaco | Pending | |||
| Best Costume Desig | Mercè Paloma | Pending | |||
| Best Visual Effects | Xavi Molas, Oliwa Trybel | Pending | |||
| Best Makeup and Hairstyles | Barbara Boucke | Pending | |||
See also
References
- ^ a b Sánchez Sequera, Marco (9 December 2025). "'Frontera' – estreno en cines 12 de diciembre". Audiovisual451.
- ^ Beraldi, Camila (12 December 2025). "Judith Colell rescata la memoria de los judíos que cruzaron los Pirineos en 'Frontera'". La Vanguardia.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Úbeda-Portugués, Alberto (9 December 2025). "Los estrenos del 12 de diciembre. 'Frontera'. Siempre en peligro". Aisge.
- ^ Jiménez, Jesús (26 October 2025). "Judith Collel presenta 'Frontera' en la Seminci: "Queremos que sea una película que llame a la acción"". rtve.es.
- ^ a b c d "Frontera: Flanders comes to Spain". ScreenFlanders. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
- ^ Cabeza, Elisabet (27 September 2025). "The hottest Spanish film projects in the works". ScreenDaily.
- ^ "RTVE presenta 'Frontera' en su primera gala de estreno de la 70ª Seminci". rtve.es. 26 October 2025.
- ^ De Pablos, Emiliano (8 September 2025). "Menemsha Films Takes North America to WWII Thriller 'Frontier' From Filmax (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.
- ^ "El Festival Black Nights de Tallin (Estonia) dedica un foco al cine catalán con 30 producciones". Europa Press. 4 December 2025.
- ^ "Palm Springs Film Festival Announces 2026 Lineup". RogerEbert.com. 2 December 2025.
- ^ Hernández Luján, Raquel (11 December 2025). "Crítica de Frontera, un drama histórico de posguerra al que le falta gancho". HobbyConsolas.
- ^ Vall, Toni (11 December 2025). "Crítica de 'Frontera': Miki Esparbé y María Rodríguez Soto se consagran como reyes de las miradas". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
- ^ Lobo, Carmen L. (12 December 2025). "Crítica de 'Frontera': judíos en los Pirineos ★★★". La Razón.
- ^ Martínez, Luis (11 December 2025). "Frontera: La Guerra Civil, el Holocausto y los guiones discutibles (***)". El Mundo.
- ^ Gaviria, Pere (16 December 2025). ""Romería" i "Sirat" lideren les nominacions als Gaudí 2026: quines pel·lícules opten a premi". 3CatInfo – via 3Cat.
External links
- Official website
- Frontier at IMDb
