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The return of Cines del Sur is wonderful news for Granada and its cultural life. After several years of absence, our city is once again reunited with a festival that, since its inception in 2007, has decisively contributed to opening new windows to international cinema and positioning Granada as a reference point for emerging cinematographies from Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
After its disappearance in 2018, many people continued to consider this festival an important part of Granada's recent cultural memory. Therefore, this twelfth edition does not only represent the return of a film event: it also symbolizes the recovery of a collective project that is part of our city's cultural identity.
The City Council has sought to promote this new phase with the aim of providing it with continuity, stability, and a future. Cines del Sur returns to stay, to grow again, and to strengthen its role as a meeting place for cultures, creators, and audiences.
The festival's return also connects with one of Granada's major cultural aspirations: our bid to become European Capital of Culture in 2031. We aspire to build a culturally ambitious city, open to the world, contemporary, and capable of dialoguing with other realities through artistic creation. Cines del Sur fully embodies this vision of Granada as a city of exchange, diversity, and coexistence among cultures.
Granada has historically been a place of cultural blending and encounter. During these days, squares, venues, and neighborhoods will once again be filled with stories from different corners of the world, reminding us that cinema remains an extraordinary tool for understanding other realities and recognizing ourselves within them.
I want to thank all the individuals and institutions who have made this recovery possible, and especially the commitment of the people of Granada, whose memory and support have kept the spirit of Cines del Sur alive throughout these years.
I invite you to intensely enjoy this new phase of the festival and to join us in the challenge of consolidating it and projecting it into the future.
Marifrán Carazo
Mayor of Granada
