Legarreta's "The Blind Ants" Premieres at San Sebastián as "Coastal — SkimNews
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- "The Blind Ants" ("Inurri Itsuak"), Igor Legarreta's third feature, world premiered Sept. 18 at the 74th San Sebastián International Film Festival's Zinemira section, competing for the Irizar Award for Basque Cinema with a Spanish theatrical release set for Oct. 9 via Buena Vista International Spain.
- The film is set in 1930 in the Basque Country, where the Jauregui family risks braving a violent storm on Biscay shores to salvage coal from a stranded English ship to survive winter, a decision that leads to tragic consequences.
- Legarreta based the screenplay on Ramiro Pinilla's novel, which he described as channeling the director's love of American fiction from the first half of the 20th century; Legarreta has defined the film as "a coastal Western."
- Producer Luis Ferrón framed the project as "a Basque-language film with international appeal and high production value," with Playtime handling international sales and Buena Vista distributing in Spain.
- The cast includes Goya-winning Urko Olazábal, Itziar Ituño ("Money Heist"), Josean Bengoetxea, Miren Gaztañaga, and Carlos Santos; Legarreta has known Ituño since their university short-film days, reuniting with her on "All the Moons" (2021).
- The production is a Basque-led effort by Lamia Producciones, Lamia Films, Lazona Zinema, Lazona Producciones, Buendía Estudios Bizkaia, Bruja del Norte AIE, and Sideral Cinema, co-produced with Belgium's Caviar Antwerp.
- The shoot required building a massive set to capture half the novel's action — a stormy night on a cliff — with production design by Mikel Serrano, after which the cast reportedly carried the Jauregui family bond beyond filming.
Why it matters: With international sales handled by Playtime and Spanish distribution by Buena Vista, "The Blind Ants" is being positioned as a high-production-value Basque-language film with crossover commercial potential, building on Legarreta's growing profile after "All the Moons" and a cast led by "Money Heist" star Ituño.
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