The picture is Bayonas first Spanish-language film since the 2007 titleThe Orphanage, which also representedSpain.
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It was the first time that we were showing the film in Spain.
Juan Antonio Bayona and Gustavo Zerbino at San Sebastian gala screeningJuan Naharro Gimenez/Getty Images for Netflix)
It was very emotional to be back home shooting in your language again, after 16 years.
We had the warmest welcome you could imagine.
You could feel the love for the movie at the end.
There was a very long applause, Bayona told Deadline on the fringes of the cocktail.
We shot in very similar conditions to what they went through.
Once you see the film with the audience, it pays off.
I had the impression that they went through the same journey we did when we were doing the film.
Its been a very tough journey… very, very hard to get here on time.
We were almost mixing the sound while we were showing the film to them, he said.
Then, right after that we got to Venice.
We didnt have time to process where we were at that moment.
But here in San Sebastian, were more relaxed, more confident and it was a perfect night.
Its a film to be enjoyed on the biggest screen possible.
Lets see if we have the time to show it to all the Academy members on the big screen.
That would be fantastic, he said.
Bayonas long-time producer Belen Atienza, who was also enjoying the San Sebastian vibe, agreed.
TheSan Sebastian Film Festivalruns September 22 to 30.
