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On July 17, 1936, under the leadership of General Francisco Franco,
a military coup by anti-democratic and anti-communist generals began
against the elected republican government of Spain.
The coup marked the beginning of a three-year civil war,
which led to the end of the Republic in Spain and to the Francoist dictatorship,
which would remain in power until Franco's death in 1975.
Today, historians estimate 200,000 to 500,000 victims
of the Spanish Civil War.
It is estimated that tens of thousands were buried in mass graves,
which have been exhumed by private initiatives since the year 2000,
to give them a dignified burial...
Laura, we've got them all.
- How many in total? - One hundred and four.
BARCELONA, 2010
Hello?
Yes, but he isn't here.
His granddaughter.
Sorry?
I'm sorry, I don't know. What papers?
No, my grandad is in a care home. He can't go anywhere.
Yes, of course. I'll tell him.Thanks.
Hi, Grandad.
How are you today?
- Where's she? - With the babysitter.
Grandad, some association phoned.
They say you've been looking for your father.
What was that?
He signed some documents years ago to request the exhumation of a mass grave.
Is that right, Dad?
Mum.
Grandad was from Burgos, right?
Yes, he was born in Briviesca.
A mass grave has been found in that area.
My great-grandad's body might be there.
Didn't you know about it?
He never told us anything.
Grandad, let's go for a walk.
Do you remember when you taught me to fish?
THE TEACHER WHO PROMISED THE SEA
Mum, do you like it?
What is it? A heart?
I love it.
Go on, finish it.
I want to go.
- Where? - To La Pedraja.
Grandad can't go.
- Will you go? - No.
I'll go then.
Ari...
Now that you're feeling better
perhaps you could go back to your job.
You have a daughter to look after.
I want to help Grandad find his father.
And I'd like to know why he never told us.
You shouldn't go alone.
Ari.
- Arianna? - Hello.
Hi.
How are you doing?
- How was your trip? - Fine.
Would you like to eat, or rest a while?
No, thanks.
Okay.
- Let's go to La Pedraja. - All right.
It's your great-grandfather, right?
Let's hope we have some luck.
Bear in mind there's still a lot to be done in this area.
What do you do for a living?
I'm on sick leave.
We're here.
Why are all these people here?
They're from the neighbouring villages.
Some have opened their doors to us and invited us to lunch.
To sleep even.
Others don't even look at us.
Laura.
Excuse me a minute.
Mum, what do you want?
Yes, I got here okay.
I can't talk right now. I'll call you later.
Okay, bye.
Are you Catalonian?
Yes, from Barcelona.
I'm from Bañuelos de Bureba. It isn't far from here.
My name's Emilio.
I'm Arianna.
Nice to meet you.
Another Catalonian could be buried down there, you know?
His name was Antonio.
Antonio Benaiges.
He was...
my teacher.
BAÑUELOS DE BUREBA, 1935
Thanks.
Hello?
Come up, I'm upstairs. Come on up.
- I'm, Jaime, the mayor of Bañuelos. - Antonio Benaiges. Pleased to meet you.
- Welcome to Bañuelos de Bureba. - Thank you.
- I hope you had good journey. - Yes.
Well, along one.
- What do you think? - It's fine.
Very...
cosy.
A bit of a clean and it will be like new.
What happened to the previous teacher?
Let's say...
The Republic decided he was no longer needed.
Father Primitivo, the village priest.
- You'll get to meet him. - Sure.
- Well, I'll leave you to unpack. - All right.
If there's anything you need, just ask for me.
Thank you.
Father.
Thank you.
Good morning, teacher, sir.
Good morning.
What's your name?
Emilio, sir.
Emilio Martinez.
Nice to meet you, Emilio. My name's Antoni.
But you can call me Antonio.
- But no calling me "sir." - Yes, sir.
I mean, yes, Don Antonio.
Antonio without "Don"?
Just Antonio.
Good, you're getting the hang of it.
Do you want to come in?
- With you. - All right.
Is anyone else going to come?
Well,
let's start then.
Good morning.
Come in.
- What's your name? - Josefina Zamero.
The mayor's daughter.
And that's my place.
Hang on a minute. In this school, no one has their own place.
You can sit wherever you like each day. Okay?
Fine. That seems fair.
I'm Antonio Benaiges.
Right...
First question.
Why do you think I've come to this village?
- To teach us. - Exactly. Correct. Very good.
But I've also come to learn.
And I want to try to help you to discover
that within each one of you
there is a person full of knowledge.
And also the will to learn.
- Don Antonio. - Yes?
- The cross has fallen off the wall. - No.
It hasn't fallen off. I took it down.
Because we're in a school.
We aren't in a church.
Second question. Who can tell me
what meteorology is?
Yes, Emilio?
- What? - Look,
see this?
It's a thermometer.
Look.
Do you know what it's for?
To measure the temperature. Look. Touch it.
Every day, one of you
will be in charge of this thermometer and you'll note down the temperature.
This is how we're going to learn.
Experimenting, all together.
What are you doing?
I thought you were going to hit me.
Here.
Let's see...
Here in this school,
no one is going to hit anyone.
My dad says slackers only learn with a good beating.
Well,
at school, we'll learn with music.
- With music? - Yes, music.
And I'll teach you to dance.
At school?
What about sums and things?
We'll learn maths by solving day-to-day problems.
And to read and write...
I'll leave reading and writing for tomorrow.
You know what?
I want you to tell your parents, brothers, sisters and cousins,
tell them all to come here tomorrow because it will be a special day.
Because tomorrow...
Tomorrow we'll do magic.
Hello?
Good afternoon.
- I've come to clean up. - Oh.
The mayor has sent me.
Fine. Come in.
My name's Antonio.
I know. We soon find out everything around here.
Yes, I can imagine.
What's your name?
Charo. My name is Charo.
Nice to meet you, Charo.
I'll start downstairs, so you can carry on.
Take care.
Alfonso?
Antonio.
- How's it going, man? - Fine.
Everyone calls me Rodriguez here.
- Shall we sit down? - Sure.
- So then, how is Bañuelos treating you? - Bañuelos, good.
- Up to now. - Good.
How about you and the new government?
It has to come to an end.
Articles like yours are more necessary than ever.
By the way, did you talk to the press?
Yes, the director of La Voz de la Bureba is a friend.
- He's eager to meet you, so... - Good.
- It's no problem. Okay? - What can I get you?
Two glasses of wine, please. Thanks.
What's the delicate matter you want to talk about?
Yes.
Right...
I need to ask you a favour, Antonio.
I have a good friend. Bernardo.
He's been in prison since the right-wing won.
And... well, he has a kid.
An eight-year-old son who helped him in the fields.
Now he goes from house to house, getting into trouble.
Kids' stuff. But this last time has been...
a bit more serious.
What did he do?
He threw stones at the Guardia Civil barracks and...
Yes, just imagine.
- Thanks. - Thank you.
It would be good to get him away for a while.
He's no mum, he's having a rough time and...
I thought maybe...
Well, he could stay and live with you, in the school.
- Antonio, he's a really bright kid. - Right.
If he's with you, he won't get into trouble.
I know it's a lot to ask, but Bernardo's a good friend.
I'd like to help him out with his kid.
What's his name?
Carlos.
Good morning.
SPANISH FALANGE, DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT
Excuse me.
Are you sure you gave me all the documents?
Yes.
There's no record of the prison admissions and discharges.
There should be a record.
Briviesca prison burned down a long time ago.
That's all we have.
I'm sorry.
Thank you.
From Briviesca
you take this track, past the chapel in Espinosilla,
and you cross the Bureba salt works.
The same track takes you to the shrine.
It's beautiful.
Thanks.
Do you know an old man named Emilio in the village?
Yes, there's an Emilio in the village. The man from the cheese farm.
- Do you know where he lives? - Yes, I'll write it down.
- Arianna? - Mum, is my little girl okay?
- Yes, but... - Please, can you stop calling me?
Ari...
Hello.
Hello there, Catalonian.
Hello.
Emilio.
The other day, you talked to me about your teacher.
- A man called Benaiges. - Antonio Benaiges.
That's the one.
Right, my great-grandfather
shared the same prison cell.
What was his name?
Bernardo Ramirez.
Bernardo.
It could be Carlos' father.
Carlos Ramirez.
Carlos is my grandad.
Go ahead.
My dad is Camilo and he's very strong. When I grow up I'd like to be like my dad.
I can lend you one if you like.
I worked at the library in Briviesca nearly all my life.
Look, look.
That was Antonio.
That's me.
And that's Carlos.
Your grandad.
Carlos Ramirez.
He was a real mischief.
We were jealous of him
because he lived with the teacher.
He lived with the teacher?
It's a long story.
Sit down. Would you like some coffee?
"Bañuelos de Bureba Mixed State School, 1936."
Does the school still exist?
Yes.
Do you want to see it?
There are only a few of us left.
Many years ago
people started to drift away
gradually.
This was the school.
It's been closed for years.
I can't understand why my grandad never mentioned any of this.
The truth is
none of us talked about our teacher ever again, in all these years.
Well,
thanks for your help.
It's true, it isn't a palace,
but we'll have a good time.
Are you good with that?
Do you want me to show you?
Hey, what are you doing?
Carlos!
Carlos, that's my bed.
Well, I'm glad to see so many new faces around here.
First of all, I want to introduce you to a new boy in the village,
his name is Carlos.
And I hope you look after him, and between us
we'll help him to adapt.
Okay?
And now, I'll introduce you to what will be
our main tool
in our lessons.
It's a printing press.
With this, we will publish
our own books.
And in them, you will write about everything that interests you.
Your dreams.
Your desires.
Your fears too.
You'll become writers,
reporters
and poets.
It will be like a small newspaper.
Our own newspaper.
Do you fancy having your own newspaper?
- Was this the magic thing? - Josefina, surrender to amazement.
Come here. All of you!
Come on. Don't be scared.
To learn together, we must make mistakes together.
Get up off your benches. Get off your backsides. Come here.
- See these small pieces here? - Yes.
They are called types.
They are the letters we will use to write.
We can start with the name of this village, which is called...?
- Bañuelos de Bureba. - Good.
We take the galley
and we place the first letter.
- Which letter? - "B."
Now, you can help me
find the letters.
Very good.
That's right. Good.
And we're done. Very good.
And now, carefully, we place it here.
Now it's time for the ink. Do you want to help me?
Look, we take the ink,
we spread it out a bit...
Good, everywhere. That's it.
Who'll take charge of the paper?
You? Hold it carefully...
It looks like you've done this before. Good!
We close it and we press...
The pressure you apply has to be just right.
We open up
and now the moment you've all been waiting for.
The magical moment.
- Who wants to try first? - Me!
You all want to?
Good morning.
I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Antonio Benaiges, the new teacher.
Father Primitivo.
Nice to meet you.
How can I help you?
What right do you think you have to take down our Lord?
Look...
I'm sure you're already aware
that in Spain, since the Republic won,
education is secular.
And there is no law or rule
that binds me to have a crucifix hung on these walls.
I see.
You're an atheist.
I can't do anything about that.
But there are good Catholics here and you should respect their faith.
I respect their faith.
But faith and religion belong to the realms of family and church,
not school.
I am an atheist, but I assure you
my only aim here is for these children to learn,
to be good people, that's all.
And do you think that this is respect?
Learning like feral beings
running around the school.
What isn't respect is what you are doing here.
- I can tell you... - No, I'll tell you.
It turns out this is my school now, not yours.
And from now on, things will be done my way.
So, if you'll excuse us,
we have a lot of work and I'm sure you have better things to do
than interrupting lessons. Goodbye.
My family, at the beach.
Do you miss them?
Yes, I do, actually.
My husband was born in Catalonia too.
How come you never told me your husband is Catalonian?
He was.
I'm sorry, Charo.
I've seen that book you've made with the children.
Really? Did you like it?
If you like, I'll read one of the stories to you.
I can read.
Well, in that case, look...
Take one.
Please.
- No... - Honestly, take one home.
- No, thank you. - Seriously.
All right.
Thank you.
Well, I've finished, I have to go.
Charo, stay and have dinner with me.
- Thanks, but no thanks. - Please, I insist.
I've been having dinner on my own for days
and I don't want to anymore.
Besides, Carlos is asleep, and look what I've made.
Look at this treat.
Toast with garlic, tomato, oil, and salt.
- Commonly known as... - Pan tumaca.
- Pan tumaca, yes. - I haven't seen it in years.
Come on, please.
Stay.
- That's enough. - Can I ask you a question?
- Yes. - Do you have children?
No?
Have you lived here in Bañuelos all your life?
Yes.
How did you meet your husband?
- He was a travelling salesman. Fabrics. - Right.
Have you never thought of leaving?
Where would I go?
Where your husband was born, for example.
No.
What about you?
How come you ended up here?
Me?
I was appointed to this post.
I was appointed to this post...
And I took it.
I don't know...
There's a lot of work to be done.
Right, but what do you mean?
Look...
You know they say that school helps us to become adults?
In my opinion, my pupils...
My pupils have to learn to be children first.
What I mean is
they didn't let us be children. They wanted us to be men.
So we wouldn't be a burden, right?
Well, my job as a teacher, here in Bañuelos or anywhere in the world,
is to prevent precisely that.
Because children...
Children must be whatever they want. But above all, they must be children.
You're the strangest teacher ever to set foot here.
I used too much ink here.
Do you want to do it again?
Yes? All right.
Does anyone know why Emilio hasn't come to school for days?
He'll be with his dad.
Shall we read a bit of Platero y yo by the fire?
- Yes! - Yes?
Shall I sit here?
"Chapter one: Platero."
- Who wants to read? - Let Carlos read.
- Josefina. - Leave me alone.
What's wrong? Can't you read?
- Josefina. - Yes, I can.
Really? Go on then, read.
Hey.
I won't tolerate this behaviour in class, Carlos.
This mustn't happen again.
As for you, Josefina, respect your classmates, please.
Carlos! Carlos, come here.
Carlos! Carlos, come here. Carlos!
Come back, please. Carlos!
Leandro, you fancy reading?
- Yes. - Yes?
Good.
"Platero is small,
furry, soft,
so soft on the outside
that you'd say he was like cotton wool."
Camilo.
Excuse me.
I wanted to talk to you because...
Emilio hasn't come to school for days and I wanted to know why.
There's lots of work with the cows.
Right.
Do you know Emilio is the best reader in the whole school?
What my son must do is real work,
or he'll be useless in life.
Look...
I can understand your way of thinking.
Believe me, it's quite the opposite.
The more he learns at school, the more options he'll have later on.
You aren't going to tell me what is best for my son,
are you?
Carlos.
Can we talk about what happened today with Josefina?
I don't care what that stupid girl thinks.
My dad couldn't teach me to read and write.
And you miss him, right?
I have an idea.
What if I teach you to read and write?
No.
No? Why not?
Because you're not my dad.
Carlos.
Come on, it's time for dinner.
- Good night, my love. - Good night, Mum.
See you soon.
I'll show you my new pyjamas.
Let me speak to Gran.
Gran!
Ari, when are you coming back?
I don't know yet, Mum.
What you're doing for grandpa is great but you've been away for a week.
Don't you understand? I'm not doing it just for Grandad.
Why didn't you ever ask him about his dad?
He didn't want to talk about that period.
Or about his father, or about when he was young.
You know your grandad didn't talk much.
Mass graves all over Spain.
There were executions everywhere.
The red marks are the ones that have been dug up,
the green ones are yet to be dug up.
Lourdes, any news?
Yes, look, we found this watch in the trouser pocket.
Good grief! That's good news.
Good. Thanks, Lourdes.
Laura, how did you locate the mass graves?
Well, sometimes we find documents that help us.
Other times, it's the locals themselves who tell us.
Many people in the villages were forced to dig these mass graves.
Then cover them over again.
- Laura. - What is it?
When will they be dug up again?
No one knows.
At least now there is some political will but...
we've had to wait over 70 years to start work.
And as you can see, there's still a lot to do.
Excuse me a minute.
This is all I found on Antonio Benaiges.
Thank you.
RESOLUTION. PERMANENT DISMISSAL
Purge record.
Exactly.
Look, from 1939.
But of course, his death wasn't official.
So, they took statements from the villagers,
and they made up arguments so they could dismiss him.
"The mayor, priest, parish priest, and residents
say that this teacher's conduct was unpatriotic,
antisocial,
and frowned upon by everyone."
They didn't settle for just erasing all memory of him.
- Antonio. - Yes?
Where does this river lead to?
The Pecesorios?
It joins the River Tirón
and then that one joins a bigger river, called the Ebro,
and finally all this water reaches the sea.
Is it pretty?
- What? - The sea.
The sea? Is it pretty?
It's the prettiest thing ever, Emilio.
Have none of you seen the sea?
No.
I heard it must be huge.
And very deep.
The rest of you, how do you imagine the sea?
It's where they catch all the hake.
- And the cod. - And the sharks.
It's true, my dad told me.
What else do you know?
- The water must be really warm. - No way!
It's really cold. Colder than the river.
Listen up.
Do you want to write everything you know about the sea?
Yes!
Shall we go back to school and write a special book about the sea?
Yes!
Let's go then.
Don Antonio, my dad has bought me a new dress to go to church.
- Really? - Will you come and see it?
I'm afraid not.
My dad says that people who don't go to church end up in hell.
What do you think?
If you don't go to church, you won't see my new dress.
When will you talk to me on equal terms?
- You don't know? - We'll see.
That's nice.
Don't ever stop drawing, Josefina. You have a gift for drawing.
- Antonio? - Yes?
The Sea: pictured by children who've never seen it.
This book
will go down in the history of books.
It's turned out fantastic. Congratulations, all of you. Honestly.
Well done!
Here.
Would you like to go and print more books?
- Yes. - Really?
You want to see the sea?
Yes!
I want you to show this book at home.
Get your parents to read it.
And tell them something very important:
that this summer your teacher will take you to see the sea.
Seriously?
Don't you like the idea, Josefina?
- Will you take us to Bilbao? - No.
I'll take you to my homeland.
To Tarragona. To my village.
Mont-Roig del Camp.
On a donkey?
On a donkey? No way!
We'd never get there on a donkey, Emilio.
We'll go on something better. We'll go on a train.
But you have to help me persuade your parents.
Will you help me?
Yes!
- Yes? - Yes!
All right, let's get started, we'll need many more books.
"See you soon, dear son.
All my love,
from your father, who never forgets you.
Bernardo."
Carlos, look...
I know you don't want to.
Okay?
But if you let me teach you,
you'll be able to read
and answer your father's letters.
Because being locked up...
without seeing anyone, or you...
It must be tough.
But if you tell him what you're doing,
and you tell him you're okay,
I'm sure he'll be thrilled.
It's really hard though.
Yes, it's very hard.
But you have right next to you
one of the best teachers in the world who wants to teach you.
What do you say?
What you're listening to is a waltz.
And you dance like this...
One, two, three. One, two, three.
You dance in pairs. So, grab a partner
and dance.
One, two, three. Count!
One, two, three. One, two, three.
One, two, three. And one, two, three.
One, two, three. One, two, three.
"It's chilling to think that there are millions of humans
without the bare necessities in life.
This happens
because those who produce nothing
and enjoy everything
accumulate as much wealth
as moral inferiority."
La Voz de la Bureba.
"It's humanly inconceivable.
Socially intolerable.
Financially
suicidal and stupid.
So much knowledge of figures
yet they didn't envision
the financial imbalance
of their capitalist system.
Living should be a much greater harmony.
Being satisfied with ourselves at all times
and aspiring to be better.
Opening one's eyes isn't easy.
Nor convenient.
It requires effort,
and sometimes pain.
Very few embark on that journey.
Let's caress the word:
light."
These children are too young.
If they want to see the sea, we can take them to Santander one day.
Yes, of course, Josefina can go to Santander.
But what about Emilio?
Can the rest go to Santander to see the sea?
I understand your concern,
and I also understand, it's true, the kids have never been on a trip.
But I guarantee, it will be a safe trip.
The only cost is the train ticket,
because I'll take care of the rest.
Look, honestly,
do you think anyone would leave their child with you?
The parents should be the ones to voice their concerns,
- not you. - Antonio.
A lot has happened these past few months.
Disrespect for our religion.
That strange way of yours of teaching pupils.
Your left-wing articles
that compromise all of us.
And now, the bright idea
of taking them to the sea.
Jaime, the kids are excited about it.
Honestly.
Josefina won't be going on that trip.
She's never slept away from home.
Nothing more to be said.
Don Antonio, I suggest you focus on the syllabus.
Good afternoon.
Hello, Charo.
Antonio, what's the matter?
I don't understand these villagers, Charo.
That's the matter.
Truly, I don't understand their fear!
Actually, the problem is mine.
I promised these kids something without knowing if I could.
And now, I'm going to let them all down.
They'll never trust me again, Charo.
Don't talk nonsense. Of course they'll trust you.
I shouldn't fill these kids' heads with nonsense.
You're not filling their heads with nonsense.
You're opening their minds.
- Giving them hopes. - That's the problem.
That is precisely the problem.
Antonio.
Do you want to take them to the sea?
Of course I do.
Well then, you just need to persuade one person.
That was fun!
Hey, Antonio, you're not bad at the jota, being Catalonian.
He had a good teacher.
You dance better with good wine.
That's always true.
Could you tell?
He's slowly improving.
I'll be right back.
Would you like some?
No, thanks.
- Hey, Jaime. - Antonio, good afternoon.
Could I have some sugared almonds?
- Sure. - Yes?
- I saw you dancing. - Yes.
Did I do okay, do you think?
Better than how you write.
- Right. - Here you go.
- Thank you. How much? - Fifty cents.
Delicious.
I read a very interesting news article today.
Apparently, teachers who wish to change
can apply for transfer to another school.
Don't you want
to work closer to home?
How do you imagine Josefina
in 20 or 30 years' time?
I don't know...
When I'm in school
and I see all my pupils
I can't help imagining what they'll be when they grow up.
For example, Emilio, Camilo's son, he loves reading.
I always think he'll earn a living
in a literature-related job.
Yet, with Carlos
I'm not too sure.
Something more manual.
More physical. A trade.
What do you think Josefina will do?
You tell me.
Well, what she enjoys doing most is drawing.
She has such a strong personality
she'll achieve whatever she sets her mind on.
She's a great kid.
What worries me, Jaime, is that
these kids can't imagine a life away from here unless they're shown it.
Don't you want them to leave here and see how big the world is?
Antonio, I have to go.
As for your articles,
you're no fool, Antonio.
This isn't the time to do it.
The golden ratio
isn't just found in geometric shapes.
It is also found in nature, such as in flowers.
Come in.
- Don Antonio Benaiges? - Yes.
My name is Juan Llarena. I'm the chief school inspector.
Nice to meet you.
I have been notified
because it would seem your work here isn't satisfactory.
I'm sorry to hear that, sir.
I assure you that in this school the children learn and are happy.
I'm here to check that.
You. Read this here.
"Let me tell you, sir,
above all else,
my name is Lázaro deTormes, son of Tomé González
and Antona Pérez, natives of Tejares,
- a village in Salamanca." - That's enough.
You. Come to the blackboard.
Divide forty-eight by four.
Very good. Thank you.
Let's see...
You. Come and write.
Write: "The horse is wild."
Good.
THE HORSE IS WILD
- What's this? - A printing press.
We use it to make our books.
May I show it to you?
Yes, of course.
Look.
The pupils
choose the topics.
And they write stories.
And I help them to correct any mistakes.
Then we take a vote,
and we all decide which stories will end up in the finished book.
The children do this?
Yes, they even sort themselves out to do the printing, to...
Look, these drawings are done with gouges...
They design the pages... And this is really good, wait and see.
This...
You see, we share our books with other Freinet schools.
- Sorry? - Other schools that use the same method.
- Right. - For example, this is from Huesca.
Batec means "beat." Vilafranca del Penedès.
This is from Mexico.
- Mexico? - Yes, from Mexico.
And this one is from France.
We have books from Scotland, Argentina... lots.
This way, the pupils
learn the cultures of other countries, other people...
Other ways of doing things.
Keep whichever ones you like. It would be an honour.
They're the books we made in class, with our teacher.
I thought...
I'd never see them again.
How did you find them?
I got in touch with Antonio's family.
The teacher sent them a couple of copies,
they've been saved.
Are there any more of Antonio's pupils I can talk to?
Mum.
A girl has come to see you.
She's the granddaughter of a friend of yours.
Hello, Josefina.
I'm Carlos Ramirez's granddaughter.
Look.
Look. This is my grandad, Carlos.
In Bañuelos de Bureba.
And this is you, right?
What's all this about?
What do you want?
I'm looking for my great-grandfather, Bernardo Ramirez.
Your father was the mayor, I guess you can help me.
I want her to leave.
My grandfather is ill.
I just want to find his father before it's too late.
- Go away! - I just want to talk.
- You heard my mother. - I only want to talk.
You'd better leave.
- Are you okay, Mum? - Yes, I'm fine.
Hello.
- Good afternoon. - Good afternoon.
This is for you.
What is it?
A surprise.
Thank you very much.
You're welcome.
That look on your face?
Well...
With Josefina's father's permission
in a few days, you'll have permission for all the children.
What about you? Will you come with me?
Come on, it'd be good to have another adult to control them.
Move over, I'm busy.
If you saw the sea...
You don't know what you're missing, Charo.
What's the matter?
Antonio.
Maybe you'd better leave this place.
Why say that?
I'm saying it because...
If there's a war, you could have problems.
What war, Charo?
I'm talking about the sea.
Haven't you heard the rumours going around Briviesca?
Everyone knows you.
You stand out. Everyone knows what you think.
What you've written.
Charo...
No one knows what is going to happen.
Okay?
And now, more than ever, it's time to live in the present.
"The teacher has a gramophone.
The teacher wants to take us to see the sea.
None of the children have ever seen it.
I'm fine, Dad.
But I'm longing to see you.
Your son.
Carlos"
It's a lovely letter, Carlos.
Honestly.
Your dad will love it.
How long do they take to reach him?
Not long. A few days.
I'll see to it. Okay?
It's time for bed. Come on.
Goodnight, Antonio.
Goodnight, Carlos.
Camilo.
Good morning, Camilo.
Good morning.
Take a seat.
- A glass of wine? - Yes, please.
I'm all ears.
I have permission from all the pupils,
except Emilio.
I told you everything I had to say.
Right.
Look, I came to bring you
this story that Emilio wrote at school, I'm sure you'll like it.
I can't read.
Well, in that case, if I may, I'll read it to you.
"My dad is Camilo,
and he's very strong.
He works hard.
He always says that men have to work hard, and be strong.
He sometimes gets angry with me.
I sometimes deserve it,
but not always.
But I know he does it because he wants me to be like him.
When I grow up I'd like to be like my dad.
I'd like to be strong
and hardworking."
- Yes, Ilaria? - Doce is written with "C."
Doce is with "C", well spotted.
Anyone else?
- Dionisia? - Ha with "H."
Ha with "H."
Casimiro, your turn.
- The "I" in podía has an accent. - The "I" in podía has an accent.
Very good.
Is this what I think it is?
Children,
we finally have Emilio's permission slip.
That means we'll all be going to see the sea soon.
Hurray!
Great!
Good morning.
- Hello. - I'm from Briviesca.
I've come to see if you want a photo of the children.
Yes. I've wanted a photograph with my pupils for quite some time.
- Perfect. - Fine.
Children, go home, get ready,
have a wash and come back, this man will take our picture.
- Run along. - Go on.
Carlos, don't be vain, come down.
Right, come on.
Stand where the photographer said.
Right, look this way.
Look at the camera.
Ready?
Here we go.
That's it.
- Is that it? - That's it.
- Where's the photograph? - He'll show it to us now.
- Antonio? - Yes?
What's a photograph?
A photograph
is the capture of a moment.
You'll soon understand.
- Can I play? - Yeah, sure.
- Antonio. - Yes?
Guess what.
- What? - My parents are going to take me to Burgos
- on holiday this summer. - Really? You're so lucky.
Are you going to miss us?
- No. - No?
- Not at all. - Will you draw the cathedral for me?
We'll see.
- Here it is. - Look!
Here it is, look!
Look!
- Wow! - It's really nice.
- That's me! - I'm here!
It's lovely.
Look how lovely. And look,
only one person has turned out looking gormless.
Excuse me.
What do I owe you?
- One peseta. - One peseta.
Here.
- Perfect. Than ks. - Thanks.
My pleasure.
Children.
Although it's not long now until our trip,
I wanted to tell you
it's been a real pleasure
to share this school year with you all.
I also wanted to thank you,
because I've been away from home
and I felt lonely at times,
and you made me feel at home.
And well...
I'll really miss our lessons.
Hey!
Laura!
Are you leaving?
We've finished.
You didn't tell me.
I phoned you but you didn't answer.
You'll have to wait a few months,
until we analyse the DNA of all the bones
and compare them with the samples.
Arianna, are you okay?
- Would you like a drink or a chat? - No.
I know it's hard to say this,
but...
Don't lose hope.
I have hope. What I don't have is time.
We'll be in touch, Arianna.
Arianna?
My mother asked me to give you these papers.
Documents that belonged to her father,
the mayor of Bañuelos.
VISIT REPORT
MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE
She was afraid of betraying his memory.
But later...
she asked me to give them to you.
I hope they help you find your great-grandfather.
Encarna.
Thank Josefina, please.
There are annotations on his collaboration with the military.
Jaime was the mayor.
Whether on one side or the other,
I'm sure he had no option other than collaborate.
How strange.
Not a word about Antonio.
Look at this.
That's my great-grandfather.
He was taken to Burgos.
Of course.
That's why you couldn't find him.
What's wrong?
It's good news.
We have a new clue.
I'm wasting my time.
Helping your grandfather isn't wasting time.
I'm not helping him.
I'll never find him.
Arianna...
Those were horrific years.
Many people died.
And those who survived...
we were forced to remain silent.
Don't stop searching.
Carlos.
Carlos!
- Where's Antonio? - I don't know.
Didn't he spend the night here?
- What's wrong? - Come on, come with me.
- Will Antonio be all right? - I hope so.
JULY 1 9, 1 936
From now on,
the army is taking control of this village, and the whole province.
If you collaborate, you'll have no problems.
Because this is what happens
to all traitors to this country.
This man is a Red, an atheist and an enemy of Spain.
Look at him!
Take a good look!
Let this be an example.
Mayor, do you know this Catalonian? Antonio whatshisname.
He's the schoolteacher.
Can you confirm he's a Red? And an enemy of the country?
That's right.
Is that man your teacher?
Yes.
What did he teach you at school?
I hear you made books.
I want everyone to go home, and bring any shit book or notebook
that has to do with this Communist teacher. Move it!
The box.
Let's go.
Come on, we haven't got all day.
You'd better not be hiding any.
Or else...
Hurry.
Look at your damn printing press.
This is the price to be paid
by those wanting to pervert Spain.
You got that?
Long live Spain!
Hurray!
Stop, stop right there.
Go on, towards Briviesca.
Hey.
Antonio.
Antonio, it's me, Rodriguez.
It's all right, easy now.
Look.
A bit of water.
Slowly.
Antonio, look.
This is Bernardo.
Carlos' father.
Thank you for looking after my son.
Look.
Okay, easy.
- Come on, move! - No, please!
- He's too weak. - Move over.
He can't move!
Please!
Now what?
Ari...
Your grandad has had another stroke.
Is he all right?
A bit better now.
But he hardly reacts to anything.
Ari, please, why don't you leave it and come back home?
We need you here, with us...
Mum!
I missed you.
I missed you too, lots.
What are you playing?
Hopscotch.
Run along then.
Grandad.
Dad.
Dad, Ari has come back.
Look, Grandad.
That's you.
Grandad, I'm going to read you something.
The Sea: pictured by children who've never seen it.
"The sea:
pictured by children who've never seen it.
The sea must be very wide and huge.
But most of all, deep."
"Boats sail on it.
There must be sand on the shore.
People will swim in it.
Nearby there'll be a hut to dry off when they come out of the water."
"Josefina Zamero."
"The sea is very big."
"And to get over to the other village
you have to go by boat.
I guess it must take over an hour.
The sea will be very clear.
Otherwise, people would be stupid to swim in it."
"Emilio Martinez."
"In the sea
there will be more water than all the earth I've ever seen."
"The water will be warmer than the water in rivers.
And it must be very salty.
They catch hake and cod in the sea.
All kinds offish.
I've never seen the sea."
"The teacher said
he'll take us to see it."
CARLOS RAMÍREZ
In the mass graves at La Pedraja the remains of 135 bodies were found.
None were the remains of Antonio Benaiges, who is still missing.
In 2015, the village of Bañuelos de Bureba founded the association
"Escuela Antonio Benaiges" to spread his memory and legacy.
Up to now, in Spain, the remains of 12,000 people have been exhumed.
It is estimated that thousands are still to be found.
Their relatives continue searching.
All my thanks to...
Miguel Angel Martinez Movilla,
for his fight for the exhumation of La Pedraja mass graves
Sergi Bernal, for researching and sharing the story of Antonio Benaiges
José Antonio Abella, for all his help during the film's documentation process
The Adeco Bureba Association, for their collaboration during the filming
The Escuela Benaiges Association, for keeping the teacher's memory alive
Antoni Benaiges' family