Living utopia (Vivir la utopia) – Unique documentary on Anarchists in the Spanish Revolution (1936)

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“Vivir la Utopia” (Living Utopia) is a unique 1997 feature-length documentary by Juan Gamero (Spanish with English subtitles) which chronicles the origins and evolution of the Spanish anarchist movement and its important role during the Spanish Revolution (1936-1939).

The largest anarchist community of its kind in Europe at the time, millions of peasants and urban workers successfully established a society based on equality, mutual aid, participatory democracy and self-organization – all without a central state or government. This fascinating yet largely unknown non hierarchical sociopolitical experiment was eventually destroyed by forces from inside and outside the country.

Featuring rare archival footage and interviews with surviving participants, Living Utopia is considered to be one of the most important documentaries on the subject and what it lacks in high-brow cinematic quality it makes up for with the passion of the people whose story it tells.

Spain, 1997
ASSISTANT DIRECTORS: Francesc RIOS and Mariana ROCA
WRITING CREDITS: Juan GAMERO, Francesc RIOS, Mariana ROCA, Mitzi KOTNIK
EDITING: Ramón RULL CINEMATOGRAPHY: Francesc RIOS
SOUND: Jordi SOROLLA, Ramón GABARRÓ
PRE-EDITING: M. PAZ DE VILLANUEVA
LIGHTS: Juan ALCOBENDAS, Alfredo CARRACEDO
TECHNICAL ASSISTANT: Dolores MARÍN
TECHNICAL DOCUMENTATION: Abel PAZ, Antoni CASTELLS, José Luis GUTIÉRREZ, Ignacio SORIANO; EL CABRERO
LYRICS: José DOMÍNGUEZ, Elena BERMÚDEZ
INTERVIEWERS: Mitzi KOTNIK, Juan GAMERO
VOICE OFF: Maribel SÁNCHEZ-MAROTO, Manuel CARVAJAL
POST-SYNCHRONIZATION: Xavier CARDONER, Albert TODA
DOCUMENTATION: Francesc RIOS, Alex BALDORNÁ, Mariana ROCA
COLLABORATION: CNT FUNDACIÓN ANSELMO LORENZO; ATENEU ENCICLOPEDIC POPULAR; NODO; FILMOTECA ESPAÑOLA, ARCHIVO
TVE PRODUCER: Joan GASCH
PRODUCTION COMPANY: TVE CATALUNYA.