Pan Seco

(Pan seco)
Cadhla Kennedy, Román Cadafalch | Documentary

2020 | 74 minutes |

At 93 years old, Justo is taking an unconventional spiritual path. With the asceticism of a monk with the imagination of the architect, he has been building a Cathedral since 1961.

Synopsis

At 93 years old, Justo is the living embodiment of someone taking an unconventional spiritual path. Coupling the asceticism and the moral rectitude of a monk with the imagination of the architect and the dexterity of a bricklayer, he has been building a Cathedral since 1961.

After being expelled from the monastery where he had entered seven years earlier, Justo Gallego bought a booklet of castles and cathedrals and prepared himself to pave five thousand square meters on an inherited plot of land. He was determined to build a Cathedral honoring the Virgin of Pilar.

Often considered the madman of the town, Justo has invested the last sixty years of his life in this project. His unwavering faith and little more than a piece of dry bread a day have been the only things needed to raise twenty-four domes and eight towers forty meters above the ground over the last sixty years. Of a magnitude that takes one’s breath away, the Cathedral has been erected mostly with donated or recycled materials: wires, plastics, mountains of broken marble, sacks of cement and defective bricks from the neighbouring factory. It is a work of self-taught architecture, and in the eyes of some, a ruin under construction.

By his side, Angel, a former gunner, devout hunter addicted to risk and tobacco, has been helping him for more than twenty years. He lives with Justo in the Cathedral, building, feeding him and caring for his old-age needs. A figure that oscillates between sinner in search of redemption and a devout Christian, Angel is the heir assigned by Justo to finish the work.

The documentary portrays the day to day of this peculiar space in the outskirts of the big Spanish capital. With strokes of surrealism, the story dives into the psyche of these two ambivalent characters that make up the bizarre microcosm of the “Cathedral of Faith”.

Built on the grounds of fervor and divine inspiration, the Cathedral is the magnanimous offering to God of a devotee who defies contemporary agnosticism.

Citation
Main credits

Cadafalch, Román (film director)
Kennedy, Cadhla (film director)
Grbic, Katarina (film producer)

Other credits

Cinematography, Román Cadafalch; editing, Anna M. Beltri; music, White Flower.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
lone hero,visual anthropology,lifework,temple,freak architecture,Catholicism,elderly,female directors,biography,autobiography,biopic,memoir,life history,bio,biographer,biographical,personal account,personal history,diary,personal narrative,sketch,profile,personal letters,letters,journal,personal record,religion,spirituality,organized religion,soul,spiritual beliefs,religious beliefs,belief systems,branches of religion,religious sects,sects,gods and goddesses,monotheism,theism,pantheism,polytheism,spiritual awakening,iberian studies,iberian peninsula,mediterranean,andorra,spain,andorra studies,spanish studies,portuguese studies,portugal,health,healthy,physical health,mental health,emotional health,health equity,public health,health care,health policy,fitness,veracity,welfare,soundness,aging,age,old age,senior,youth,middle age,aging gracefully,advanced age,collective health,maturity,activism,activist,digital activism,advocacy,advocate,involvement,militancy,militant,logrolling,striking,boycotting,championing,champion,effecting change,engagement,supporter,protest,protester,demonstrator,organizing,labor organizing,revolution,revolutionary,community organizing,effecting change,striking,labor strike,labor organizing,anthropologically,cultural anthropology,forensic anthropology,anthropologist,human nature,physical anthropology,ethnocentric,ethnography,functionalism,cultures,societies,human people,human society,functionalism,globalization,ideology,pragmatism,dogmatism,social change,society,sociology,anthropology,psychology,sociological,sociological perspectives,conflict theory,human conflicts,sociological thinking,conflict perspective,topics in sociology,sociology topics,sociology studies,social studies,people and cultures,human relations,human relationships,cultural studies,culture studies,pan seco,Justo Gallego,Angel López; "Pan Seco"; Pragda Films
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Festivals

Spain Cerdanya Film Festival

DIRECTOR: Cadhla Kennedy, Román Cadafalch

NATIONALITY:

YEAR: 2020

GENRE: Documentary

LANGUAGE: Spanish

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School, College, Adult

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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