The Teatro Zorrilla was the venue chosen to present the world premiere of Memento Mori, a television adaptation of the crime novel of the same name by Valladolid-born César Pérez Gellida. Filmed and set in Valladolid, it is part of the third edition of the UNESCO Valladolid City of Film Gala, an event within the framework of Film Week that celebrates Valladolid’s designation four years ago in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network as a City of Film.
The series begins with the discovery of a corpse with its eyelids amputated, and marks the beginning of a thriller in which a serial killer commits his crimes with music in the background and leaves poems written on the bodies.
The gala was presented by Roberto Lozano, who welcomed the attendees and thanked them for “being able to share this evening at the Zorrilla”. Among the personalities present there was the mayor of Valladolid, Jesús Julio Carnero, who referred to the Zorrilla as “the true home of the people of Valladolid”.
After thanking the Provincial Council of Valladolid for being able to use the space for the premiere, he recalled the history of the theater. “On this site long ago was the Convent of San Francisco, which housed the mortal remains of Christopher Columbus. In 1984 the theater was inaugurated with José Zorrilla, alma mater of poetry and theater and Valladolid to the core. History continued, and today we find that we are going to make history again,” said Carnero, who said he was delighted to celebrate the event thanks to the Seminci and through the series.
After the words of the mayor of Valladolid, the founder of Zebra Producciones and executive producer of Memento Mori, Jose Velasco, thanked the City Council of Valladolid and the whole city “for the welcome during the months of filming”.
The thanks also went to Ricardo Carbonero, director and head of content for Amazon Spain and Portugal. “It is a series in which we believed from the beginning, in which Valladolid is one more character and that deserves to be here because of the quality of the production. It is a different bet, with a double aspect of being commercial and quality, and that we will not be able to stop watching,” said Carbonero.
The gala was also unable to miss César Pérez Gellida, original author of the novel on which the thriller is based and who was acclaimed with applause and cheers before detailing the process of creating the work. “Since 2015 I have been managing this joy little by little. Many things have happened: joys, disappointments… because the project has been transforming. But the illusion of being here, sharing the premiere with my family, with my people… I am very excited, but I am not able to transmit it” he declared, also asking for a round of applause for “all the people who have worked on the series”.
After the first speeches, it was the turn of Olivia Baglivi, Francisco Ortiz and Yon González, actors of the series who wanted to join the premiere. Olivia remarked her enthusiasm for “belonging to such a genuine project, so special, because it is not always possible to get such special projects”.
On the complexity of the character, he assured that it was not at all difficult: “When the story is so well written and the character’s impulses are so clear in the script… It’s an immersive journey, and in a way it was easy for me because when you’re in front of a good story we actors just have to trust”.
Francisco Ortiz also wanted to express his happiness for being present at the Zorrilla: “I started with classical theater, and the truth is that it is a great pleasure to be in a city like Valladolid, which has always treated us so well”. Ortiz also shared his vision of the series as a whole: “We have in our hands a work that I feel very gratified about. I love the profession and the audiovisual, and we have done the job in the most honest way we could”.
The words of the cast concluded with Yon González, who plays the murderer in the plot and who laughingly said that it was “a relief to have stepped out of character”. Yon thanked not only Valladolid for the “amazing” welcome they received during the shooting, but also the project team. “They have made the series putting their soul, and I think it reflects well that the package is so good. I’m super proud to be here and I hope you like it,” concluded the actor. The presentation was followed by a screening of the first two episodes of Memento Mori, which will be available along with the rest of the episodes starting Friday, October 27 on Prime Video.
