Schoolgirls (also known as The Girls; ) is a 2020 Spanish coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Pilar Palomero, starring Andrea Fandos and Natalia de Molina.
The film had its world premiere at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival on 23 February 2020 ahead of its screening at the 23rd Málaga Film Festival, where it won the Golden Biznaga. It was released theatrically in Spain on 4 September 2020 by BTeam Pictures. It won four Best Picture, Best New Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the 35th Goya Awards.
Celia, an 11-year-old girl, studies at a nuns' school in Zaragoza in 1992. Celia is a good girl: a responsible student and a considerate daughter. The arrival of a new classmate opens a small window through which Celia discovers a whole new world. Together with her new friend and some older girls, Celia enters a new stage of her life: adolescence, a period of firsts. She feels the need to experiment, try new things, and stop being a little girl, even if that entails confronting her mother and everything that once meant comfort and security.
The film is an Inicia Films (Valérie Delpierre) and BTeam Prods (Alex Lafuente) production, with the participation of RTVE, TVC, Televisión de Aragón, and Movistar+, and backing from ICAA and ICEC. It boasted a â¬1.2 million budget.
The film premiered in the 'Generation K Plus' section of the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2020. Its festival run also included screenings at the Brussels International Film Festival (winning the Jury Prize in Directors' Week), and the 23rd Málaga Film Festival (winning the Golden Biznaga). Distributed by BTeam Pictures, Schoolgirls was released theatrically in Spain on 4 September 2020.
Schoolgirls holds a 90% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes based on 10 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10.
Jonathan Holland of The Hollywood Reporter summed Schoolgirls up in his bottom line as "Puberty and Prejudice", aligning the film as belonging to the "school-child-focused strain of quality Spanish cinema that stretches back as far as The Spirit of the Beehive".
|- | rowspan = "3" | || rowspan = "3" | 23rd Málaga Film Festival || colspan = "2" | Golden Biznaga for Best Spanish Film || || rowspan = "3" | |- | Silver Biznaga for Best Cinematography || Daniela CajÃÂas || |- | colspan = "2" | Feroz Puerta Oscura Award || |- | rowspan = "25" | | rowspan = "3" | 26th Forqué Awards || colspan = "2" | Best Fiction Picture || || rowspan = "3" | |- | Best Actress || Andrea Fandos || |- | colspan = "2" | Cinema and Education in Values || |- | rowspan=6 | 8th Feroz Awards | colspan=2 | Best Drama Film | | rowspan = "6" | |- | Best Trailer | Marina Francisco, Juan Gabriel GarcÃÂa Román | |- | Best Director | rowspan=2 | Pilar Palomero | |- | Best Screenplay | |- | Best Main Actress in a Film | Andrea Fandos | |- | Best Supporting Actress in a Film | Natalia de Molina | |- | rowspan=9 | 35th Goya Awards | colspan=2 | Best Film | | rowspan = "9" | |- | Best New Director | rowspan=2 | Pilar Palomero | |- | Best Original Screenplay | |- | Best Supporting Actress | Natalia de Molina | |- | Best Cinematography | Daniela CajÃÂas | |- | Best Editing | Sofia Escudé | |- | Best Art Direction | Mónica Bernuy | |- | Best Costume Design | Arantxa Ezquerro | |- | Best Original Song | "Lunas de papel" by Carlos Naya | |- | 63rd Ariel Awards || colspan=2 | Best Ibero-American Film || || |- | rowspan=6 | 8th Platino Awards | colspan=2 | Best Ibero-American Film || || rowspan = "6" | |- | Best Ibero-American Debut Film | rowspan=2 | Pilar Palomero | |- | Best Screenplay | |- | Best Cinematography | Daniela CajÃÂas | |- | Best Editing | Sofia Escudé | |- | Best Art Direction | Mónica Bernuy |