BarcelonaFilmin’s editorial director, Jaume Ripoll, has reported that the platform’s headquarters in Barcelona have been vandalized with graffiti that reads “Collaborators with Spanish repression”. The message refers to the inclusion in its catalog of the documentary Icarus: the week in flamesdrawn from the testimonies of police officers who participated in the violent repression of the 2019 demonstrations in protest of the judgments of the Trial.
The graffiti bears the signature of NS!*X, which refers to Nostalre Sols! It is the same collective that takes the name of a nationalist group from the 1930s and that this summer took the lead in a similar act against an ice cream parlor in the Gràcia neighborhood that refused to serve in Catalan. In their Instagram profile they claim to be “young nationalists of the Catalan Countries born in the spirit of 2019”.
The appearance of the message comes after the controversy erupted on the networks. Ripoll had wanted to respond with a note in which he tried to justify his decision: “At Filmin we are very aware that the events of October 2019 are still an open wound for Catalan society. For this reason, we understand the discomfort and criticism it has caused. […] We are a company based in Barcelona, founded in 2007, and we know that this debate is not abstract: it crosses families, friendship circles and work environments”. The statement provoked numerous critical messages from people linked to the Process such as Antonio Baños, former leader of the CUP, or Joan Maria Piqué, head of press for Carles Puigdemont when he was president of the Generalitat.
Regarding the documentary in question, Ripoll admitted that it “contributes a specific, partial view” and that, therefore, “like any work it has a point of view and does not aim to cover all the complexity of what happened”. And he stressed: “Programming a film at Filmin does not equate to subscribing to its approach”. The platform also noted that they have not produced or distributed the piece, but that it has only been included “for a limited time” in the catalog and that it will no longer be available there on January 31.
“Filmin does not censor films because of their ideological orientation,” continues the note, signed by Ripoll. “Our commitment is to cinema and documentary as tools to understand, contrast and debate, always within the legal framework”. In this sense, they defend the plurality of their catalog, with more than 11,000 references, among which there are those that stand out with other points of view on the matter such as the next day, Cataluña-Spanish, dead city o Four of eleven, castle for independence. Finally, they express gratitude for the messages received, which they read “with respect” because they help them “think and improve”. And they conclude: “If something seems important to us right now, it is to remember that cinema should not be used to confirm what we already think, but also to help us face what makes us uncomfortable, with a critical spirit.”
The appearance of the graffiti has prompted a new message from Ripoll on the networks: “How sad to arrive at the office and find this. Pretty dusty, really.”
In her television review for ARA, Mònica Planas wrote: “With the full awareness that what you will see is pure propaganda, it is worth watching. With a critical look, interesting conclusions can be drawn. […] The musical emotionality is so obvious it’s laughable. But there are magnificent images showing the demands and protests for the sentence as we have not seen it before […]. Just as the documentaries of the US military’s elite corps have narratives of power and control where they boast of their expertise and strength, in Icarus: the week in flames his victimhood is even comical. There are moments that seem like a parody of the poland“.
