In July 2023, in Portbou, two fins made an appearance on the beach, very close to the sand, and swimmers didn't think twice. Some swam quickly towards the shore. Shouts and nerves. Others, about fifteen, opted to temporarily take refuge on a large platform floating in Portbou bay. The scare was significant: they were two blue sharks, popularly known as "tintoreras," calmly swimming near the beach. Some bathers even managed to record the two specimens from the sand. And once again, the videos went viral on social media.

Director Renny Harlin (The jungle 2), a relevant name from late last century's Hollywood, signs a new film that is nowhere and raised with international financing that includes the Barcelona-based production company Nostromo. The project has something of a digital update of a seventies disaster co-production due to its transnational nature and also a certain unspecific tone, a commerciality that tries to be for all audiences. On the open sea does not assume the apparent seriousness of somewhat more ambitious films such as the recent Labyrinth in flames, nor does it abuse the black humor of the most festively cruel B-movies.

Claudio Barría has spent many years of his life debunking Steven Spielberg's film SharkThis Chilean biologist, based in Catalonia, has focused his research on these animals—currently at the University of Oviedo but previously at the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM)—and is now one of the leading experts on Mediterranean sharks, probably the leading expert. It was precisely at a film forum for the 50th anniversary of this film, in which he participated, that the idea for the book arose. Sharks, together with Ana Colmenero (ICM), within the collection What do we know about? published by Catarata and the CSIC. Both the book and the conversation exude a wealth of knowledge and, above all, an enormous love for these animals, which are invaluable to marine ecosystems.

Another spin-off returns to theaters Shark? Not exactly. In Dangerous animals, the sharks are the special guests, the icing on the cake of a disturbing party in which the dangerous animals are humans. The whole thing is about a serial killer in a tour guide suit who shows sharks too closely and justifies his crimes with disbelievable discursive contortions (remember the antagonist ofHeretic?). One of his potential victims resists being so much that he becomes the protagonist of the story.

There are photographs in every home. Of children, granddaughters, parents, grandmothers. People are usually shown in a slightly artificial position, in the middle of some activity that defines them or at an emblematic moment in their lives: about to kick a ball, on top of a mountain, or dressed in a wedding suit. In the dining room of our house, there was a photograph of my great-grandfather Manelet next to a three-meter hammerhead shark. It had accidentally become entangled in the net of the boat in which he was fishing, and when they arrived at the port of Arenys, someone immortalized that extraordinary catch, which even made the news in the United States. The Vanguard. Like everything that becomes normalized because it forms part of the foundation upon which one acquires the use of reason, perhaps I never attributed to it the importance it had. It was simply there. It was part of the domestic landscape, like the rosebushes and loquats in the yard, the pottery workshop on the porch, or the Creedence Clearwater Revival vinyl records.

Patrici Bultó, a marine biologist, has retired in 2025 after 30 years at the Aquarium, where he worked as technical director and director of biology. "I love sharks," he says. And it shows in the passion with which he speaks not only about sharks, but about the entire seabed. Although he is concerned about the impact of climate change, he remains hopeful about humanity. "Good things have been done, like banning the killing and eating of sharks. If this has been done, it means other things can be done."

With more than 129,000 followers on InstagramGádor Muntaner (Barcelona, ​​​​1991) combines her work as a marine scientist with that of outreach. She is an ambassador for the National Geographic and exposes the true nature of sharks because she wants to raise awareness about the need for their preservation. We spoke with her shortly after returning from an expedition to the Philippines funded by Tropicfeel.