"Young people don't get tired quickly if the content is of quality"

BarcelonaAt an underground party at the Tres Xemeneies del Besòs, Nico, a young dancer, is found dead. His sister, Lola (Zoe Bonafonte), 17, must delve into a hidden world of dance battles to uncover the truth and reconnect with her passion for dance. This is the premise ofTo fire, debut in the long run of Barcelona native Estel Díaz, director of series such as Red flags (Atresplayer) and Missing (Netflix). Produced by Atresmedia Cine, Sábado Time and A Contracorriente Films, the film premieres this Friday after passing through the Atlàntida Mallorca Film Fest. Díaz builds it as thriller a frantic pace and eclectic choreographies. “There is a conception that young people get tired quickly when watching audiovisual content. And no. Young people don't get tired quickly if the content is of quality. You have to give them quality, and above all, the images that fill the screen must make sense,” Díaz explains to ARA.

“I thought about what movie I would have liked to see when I was a teenager,” says Díaz, who in At the fire unfolds a very wide range of dance styles –from classical ballet to urban hip-hop–, with well-orchestrated choreographies by Anna Macau and a musical selection that includes songs by Ruslana, Bad Gyal, La Zowi, and Mushkaa, among others. The director explains that the choice was not an easy task. “I based it on the music my circle listens to. But many of the musicians were difficult to contact, because they didn't have email, for example. There's a punk element in the way we found the artists”.

To fire places us in El Búnquer, the epicenter of partying and dancing on the outskirts of Barcelona. The decision to locate this space in the Besòs Three Chimneys was an accident. "Initially, they were supposed to be abandoned pools. But one of the executive directors noticed the Three Chimneys," recalls Díaz, for whom "it is important to reclaim this part of the Barcelona metropolitan area." According to her, the old Besòs thermal power plant has become over the years like "a kind of cathedral".

Besides the coming of age and mental health issues in adolescence, the film explores gentrification as an everyday element in the lives of young people. “I am part of the Futuroa collective, where we organize parties queer and drag, and we also feel displaced from places. After the eviction of the old Massana in Raval organically arose the fact of incorporating this issue into the film", he says.

From song to dance

In a cast full of young talents like Marc Soler, who comes from co-starring Viva (2026), Aina Clotet's debut as a feature film director, and Omar Banana, nominated for a Goya for I'm Madly in Love with You (2023), Zoe Bonafonte's performance stands out. The 22-year-old actress from Barcelona made her film debut with the role of Joana Vital in "The 47 (2024), which earned her a Goya Awards nomination for best new actress. In the film Marcel Barrena, Bonafonte shone with his interpretation of the song Red rooster, black rooster by the singer-songwriter Chicho Sánchez Ferlosio. Now, the actress is taking the leap from singing to dancing. "In The 47 I learned that, even though I'm not the best singer, I can convey emotion with my voice. I've tried to do the same with the character of Lola, who expresses everything she can't handle through dance,” explains the actress. Following the success of Barrena's film, Bonafonte details how her assimilation process went. “I learned to differentiate my worth as a person from my worth as an actress. Awards are very elitist, and depend on many factors beyond quality – she says –. It was more important that in The 47 so that people would know the reality of Torre Baró, not the awards we won”.

The actress also celebrates sharing the screen with actors her age. “I do a lot of period films, playing the daughter of older actors. And I have no problem with that; in fact, with the Clara Segura we are very good friends. But I was very eager to work with people of my generation,” she explains. In the film, Ruslana, a singer and contestant on Operación Triunfo 2023, with whom the director was surprised. “In just two hours, Ruslana already knew the entire choreography perfectly, it comes naturally to her,” says Díaz, for whom the film implicitly leaves two messages for new generations: "The first is the importance of having a network and not losing emotional connections with your loved ones. The other is to keep fighting and looking for spaces when we are expelled from places, without losing the sense of community".