Screening Fri 6 Dec, 6pm – 9pm: FREE BOOK HERE

Screening Sat 7 Dec, 10am – 3.30pm: FREE BOOK HERE

Birkbeck Cinema, 43 Gordon Square, Bloomsbury, London WC1H 0PDBooking free via EventbriteBook online

“Prepare for some heart-wrenchingly beautiful melodies from the greatest Spanish divas spilling their sorrow in the form of singing known as Copla” – Helen de Witt, 63rd BFI London Film Festival.

Following its recent premiere at the 63rd BFI London Film Festival and the Seville European Film Festival, LUX, BIMI and the London Instituto Cervantes are delighted to present a screening of Nina Danino’s film I Die Of Sadness Crying For You (2019) on Friday 6 December which will be expanded and contextualised by a study-day on Saturday 7 December.

I Die Of Sadness Crying For You is a personal essay film on the performance of women’s sorrow, centred on copla—a Spanish genre of songs of great power and emotion. The film brings together filmmaker Nina Danino’s interest in the female voice with archive and newly filmed performances, setting out to look for the women and singers of copla as well as to reflect on the filmmaker’s own memory and experience of it.

The screening is followed by a conversation between Nina Danino and LUX Deputy Director María Palacios Cruz and a reception courtesy of Instituto Cervantes.

Contributors to the study-day on Saturday 7 December include Mercedes Carbayo Abengozar who has written on women and copla in its social and political context of desire; Nuria Triana Toribio a scholar whose main research is in the fields of popular culture and subculture in Spain including Punk women singers, Catherine Grant, Director of BIMI and writer on Hispanic cinema. In the second half, Nina Danino will discuss the voice and singers in her work, special guests Violeta Valladares singer and musician will give a recital of copla and artist Adam Christensen who uses vocal performance will give a presentation of his work.

The study day is free, but please book your ticket here.

Saturday 7th December. 10.00am – 3.30pm

10am-12.30pm: Morning session on social and cultural approaches to Copla with presentations by Dr Mercedes Carbayo Abengozar & Prof. Nuria Triana Toribio, followed by a discussion chaired by Prof. Catherine Grant and a recital by Violeta Valladares.

1.30pm-3.30pm: Afternoon session on the voice and performance with artists’ presentations by Adam Christensen and Nina Danino

In collaboration with :