“The reception in cinemas in this city is good and even allows friends and family of Nevenka Fernández to interact with some spectators.” This is what Icíar Bollaín, director of “Yo soy Nevenka”, said yesterday about how the society of Ponferradina received her film. She did not say them in the capital of Bierzo but in Zamora, where she went to participate in a meeting about the film, since it was in the Romanesque city and on the Duero river that the director shot a large part of the film faced with the refusal of the Ponferrada Town Hall to give up places because it does not consider them “practical”.
A direct witness to this good reception is Jesús Álvarez, director of the La Dehesa multiplex, whose largest room, where “Soy Nevenka” is shown, has 300 seats. It is the only cinema in Ponferrada: “We are happy, even if we always expect more when we see something that may have possibilities.” This nevertheless confirms that it is one of the most profitable Spanish films of recent months. Only surpassed by Santiago Segura’s summer bet from this year, “Father, there is no more than a 40”. This impact is also reflected in the fact that “today we are the number one cinema in Spain in terms of film collection and we are very happy about it.”
The businessman also comments in this newspaper that “curiously” the greatest response comes from young people, between 25 and 30 years old.” Regarding his reaction, he emphasizes that “it is very varied.” “When they leave, they generally give a very personal opinion on the fiction they watch “They cannot understand how the story is represented, how people experienced it, because they have not experienced it.” therefore that the “interest” of these viewers is due to the fact that “the promotion and launch campaign was very good”.
“Yo soy Nevenka” was released in theaters last Friday after the filmmaker presented in the official section of the San Sebastián Festival this film which tells of the fight of the former PP councilor after denouncing the former mayor of Ponferrada. Despite the welcome and interest with which the capital of Bierzo followed the filming, Icíar Bollaín will not stop in Ponferrada to participate in a meeting as he already did yesterday in Zamora or is planned to do in Madrid. The city council refused to allow the filmmaker to film in city spaces such as the town hall itself and the castle. “No obstacle, but I think you know the mayor’s feelings about the use of spaces. Since he took possession of the Town Hall, press conferences have not taken place in the plenary room, certain uses are made of the public space of the Town Hall and he does not find this practical. In this case it is a significant impact on a public building and that is the only problem,” said the spokesperson for the Coalition for Bierzo, Iván Alonso. Many residents of the municipality believe that this affair remains an open wound.
In 2002, some 3,000 people, summoned by nine municipal mayors of the PP, defended during a demonstration in Ponferrada (León) the management of the former municipal councilor Ismael Álvarez, convicted of sexual harassment, while 300 supported the harassed woman, the former councilor of the same party and municipal council, Nevenka Fernández.
