The “Luz y Sombra” [Light and Shadow] cycle, dedicated to representations of the Middle Ages in cinema, which took place last year at the Portuguese Cinematheque, has opened its second edition at the Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid, continuing throughout December and January in two Madrid venues: the Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid and the Filmoteca Española.

The cycle’s programme has obeyed several criteria, starting with the aesthetic and thematic relevance of the films. For this reason, films by Fritz Lang, Carl Theodor Dreyer or Youssef Chahine are included. However, the organisation wanted to ensure that “in addition to the classic films about the Middle Ages made by some of the most renowned directors in the history of the seventh art, the project also focused on specific perspectives, which made it possible to create different sections, such as the Global Middle Ages and the Iberian Middle Ages”. The aim was also for the selected films to “allow viewers to reflect on some of the main challenges facing contemporary society”.

The second edition of this cycle, an initiative of the inter-university research group “Using the Past. The Middle Ages in the Spotlight”, has the collaboration of a wide range of cultural and university institutions. More than twenty films will be screened, intended for different audiences — from children to adults, from cinephiles to the curious, for specialists in the Middle Ages and those interested in the medieval past. The cycle’s full programme is available at this link [in Spanish, updated on 21 December].