Spain’s Bendita Film Sales Pounces on Berlinale Perspectives Title ‘The Devil Smokes‘ (EXCLUSIVE)
Leading Spanish arthouse sales outfit Bendita Film Sales has swooped on the international sales rights of Ernesto Martínez Bucio’s “The Devil Smokes” ahead of its world premiere at the Berlinale’s new Perspectives sidebar.
Co-written with Karen Plata, Martínez Bucio’s debut feature delves into sibling relationships and how fears are passed down from one generation to the next.
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Set in mid-90s Mexico City, “The Devil Smokes” revolves around five young siblings whose grandmother is their sole guardian after the sudden disappearance of their parents. As they fight to survive, the line between reality and something darker starts to blur. The grandmother, haunted by eerie visions and deepening fears, becomes more distant, while the children’s grip on reality begins to unravel. After a clash with their neighbors, the siblings withdraw even further into isolation, cutting themselves off from the outside world.
Said Bendita Film Sales CEO, Luis Renart: “We were captivated by Ernesto Martínez Bucio’s deeply personal vision for ‘The Devil Smokes.’
“His debut feature portrays childhood fears and family bonds with rare intimacy and poetic nuance. We believe it will strongly connect with arthouse audiences and find meaningful opportunities on the festival circuit,” he added.
Martínez Bucio’s shorts have premiered at top-tier festivals including Cannes, San Sebastian and Rotterdam.
“The Devil Smokes” is produced by Carlos Hernández Vázquez, Gabriela Gavica, and Alejandro Durán at Mandarina Cine (Mexico), with the support of the Mexican Film Institute (Imcine), the State of Jalisco, the State of Guanajuato, the Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund, the Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola and EAVE Puentes.
With its latest acquisition, Bendita Film Sales underscores its commitment to notable arthouse cinema, with such pickups as Costa Rica’s Oscar entry “Memories of a Burning Body,” Chile’s “The Hyperboreans” and Lois Pati?o’s “Samsara,” to name just a few.
In an exclusive interview with Variety, Martínez Bucio drilled down on the making of his feature debut:
It’s said that working with children and animals is the most challenging for directors. How was your experience directing them?
Directing the kids was my biggest fear before starting the film. I knew it would be challenging and wasn’t sure I could do it well. I was excited about the scenes during the writing process, but I kept wondering, ‘How will I direct five kids?’ I knew I’d need help, so we brought in actress Michelle Betancourt as the casting director. We spent two months casting, then another two months doing an acting workshop with the kids. Michelle coached them during filming, and I was involved every step of the way, doing exercises, playing and filming with them. I learned a lot, had fun and also faced challenges. Working with kids isn’t difficult, but it’s energy-draining. Each child has a different personality and age, so you can’t approach them all the same way.
The workshop was key. We didn’t rehearse movie scenes but focused on building trust and relationships. By the time we were on set, the kids had already bonded and had the tools to transition between reality and acting.
Did they have any prior acting experience?
Donovan, the oldest, had the most experience. Laura had been in a short film and taken a few acting workshops. The three youngest – Alejandra, Mariapau, and Rafael – had no acting experience at all.
What were you aiming to achieve with the use of different cameras?
All scenes are filmed with just one camera at a time; we never used two simultaneously. The ARRI AlexaMini captures the present moment, the here and now. The Handycam Hi-8, on the other hand, plays with time. At times, it feels like memories, but it could also be later recordings. The texture from the Handycam gives a roughness to the image, representing both the era and the emotional state of the children. The recordings are also manipulated, adding another layer of meaning—there’s someone behind the camera. Who is it? At one point, we considered using the Handycam for everything, creating gaps, mistakes—similar to how memory works.
Is the story based on personal experiences or stories you’ve heard?
A lot of it comes from Karen — she has an amazing poetry book, so definitely check it out. Some of it is from my own experiences. It’s a mix of both. Memory isn’t pure; it’s shaped by imagination. We remember concepts, not the exact details. If we remembered everything exactly as it happened, we’d be like “Funes the Memorious” and unable to live. We’d need an entire day just to relive one. Forgetting is necessary to remember, no matter how much that sounds like an Arjona song. So, we approached it like this: remembering, erasing, imagining, inventing, reinterpreting. Fiction isn’t the same as lying; in fact, it’s the opposite.
Please explain the first scene with the nurse, which sets the tone for the rest of the film.
I try not to rely on metaphors, but to materialize things. The first scene shows hands gluing broken family photos onto paper, drawing in what’s missing — someone is trying to fix, to reconnect. There’s an implicit desire right from the start. The sound of colored pencils leads to the next shot: the nurse, getting out of a car, looking somewhat sad or melancholic—we’re not sure. She’s someone who’s leaving. She looks off into the distance, then removes her cap as the sound of a plane and the pencils overlap. Two timelines merge and intertwine.
What themes are you interested in exploring in your work?
I don’t like approaching a film with a set theme. Right now, we’re working on a story about two teen cigarette smugglers in the Basque Country in the ’80s, with friendship likely as the central theme.
But here’s something Karen Plata wrote that might better explain our approach:
‘Mom is dead, dad has Alzheimer’s, a friend disappeared last week and they found his body this week. The world is chaos: people kill, bombs go off, planes crash, lives are dictated by where you’re born, cities burn, floods swallow everything.
I used to search for someone to blame, but I’m tired of it. Blame doesn’t bring understanding. Understanding comes from observing, questioning our place in the world. I know this sounds grand, but it’s what I believe. Our film asks if it’s possible to create something beautiful out of chaos.
I’m hopeful that it is. That the characters’ journey can help them see the world differently. That it’s possible to mend broken things and create something new. I’m almost sure of it.’
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