# Elisa K
**Elisa K** is a 2010 Spanish drama film in Catalan, co-directed by Jordi Cadena and Judith Colell and adapted by Cadena from Lolita Bosch's short novel *Elisa Kiseljak* (2005). It follows Elisa, a girl who is raped by a friend of her father shortly before her eleventh birthday, represses all memory of the event, and collapses fourteen years later when the memory returns.[1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) • [2](https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20100924/54011703933/elisa-k.html) The film competed in the official section of the 58th San Sebastián International Film Festival and won the Special Jury Prize there.[3](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/2010/sections_and_films/official_selection/7/580057/in)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Directors | Jordi Cadena and Judith Colell, their first feature co-direction; each directed one of the film's two parts[4](https://www.3cat.cat/tv3/Sala-33-recorre-els-laberints-de-la-memoria-amb-Elisa-K/noticia-arxiu/413920/) |
| Source | Novel *Elisa Kiseljak* by Lolita Bosch (Ed. La Campana, 2005); screenplay by Jordi Cadena[4](https://www.3cat.cat/tv3/Sala-33-recorre-els-laberints-de-la-memoria-amb-Elisa-K/noticia-arxiu/413920/) |
| Release | Spain, 23 September 2010 (ICAA resolution date 20/07/2010); Catalan-language, drama, rated not recommended under 12[1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) |
| Runtime | 72 minutes per the ICAA record; Catalan Films lists 85 minutes[1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) • [5](https://catalanfilms.cat/ca/produccions/elisa-k) |
| Spanish box office | €41,938.22 from 7,657 spectators[1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) |
| Principal awards | Special Jury Prize, San Sebastián 2010; Sant Jordi Award for Best Spanish Actress (Aina Clotet), 2011; Goya nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/) |
## Spoilers
### Story
Elisa, who will turn eleven in the summer, spends days in Barcelona with her father and brothers after her parents' separation. A friend of her father makes her cry and then tells her, "If you stop crying I'll give you a silver bracelet." Nobody realizes what has happened; Elisa is just "a bit odd." Fourteen years, four months and a few days later, she calls her mother in fright: "Help me, I've just remembered something horrible."[3](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/2010/sections_and_films/official_selection/7/580057/in) The film is not, as the Filmoteca de Catalunya puts it, the story of the rape itself but of its remembrance and its effects on the protagonist.[7](https://filmoteca.cat/web/es/node/45612)
The title surname carries a deliberate meaning. According to the directors' note, Kiseljak is a small town in [Bosnia and Herzegovina](https://www.edgepedia.org/bosnia-and-herzegovina) that was besieged for a long time during the Balkan wars, a metaphor for a life besieged by something that happened in childhood and that the protagonist remembers nothing of until it erupts when she is twenty-four.[8](https://www.lahiguera.net/amp/cinemania/pelicula/5357/comentario.php)
## Structure and style
The film is built as a diptych of two clearly differentiated parts, before and after the traumatic event, each with its own visual style. The first part, directed by Cadena, is shot in black and white with fixed, often symmetrical framing and an insistent third-person voice-over (spoken by Ramon Madaula) that runs a few seconds ahead of the images; the rape itself is announced by the narrator and shown elliptically, through fragments of the house and terrace and finally the victim's crying face.[2](https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20100924/54011703933/elisa-k.html) • [9](https://www.elespectadorimaginario.com/pages/octubre-2010/festival-de-san-sebastian/seccion-oficial.php) The second part, directed by Colell, takes place in the present: the voice-over disappears, color replaces black and white, and the camera becomes nervous and handheld as the adult Elisa, living in London, is reminded of the past by images and music from a television and breaks down.[2](https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20100924/54011703933/elisa-k.html)
The directors described the aesthetic approach in each part as inspired by painting: the black-and-white childhood part references Vilhelm Hammershøi, while the second part references [Lucian Freud](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucian-freud) and [Egon Schiele](https://www.edgepedia.org/egon-schiele).[10](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/admin_img/diarios/archivos/diario_108.pdf?date=20251122043949) Critics divided over the design. La Vanguardia's Jordi Batlle Caminal called the film "frankly appreciable" and praised the two lead performances, while Amber Wilkinson of Eye for Film argued that the heavy narration and the stylistic switch kept the viewer at arm's length from Elisa's emotion.[2](https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20100924/54011703933/elisa-k.html) • [11](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/elisa-k-film-review-by-amber-wilkinson)
## Production and cast
The film was produced by Oberon Cinematogràfica with the participation of Televisió de Catalunya and Indigo Media, with Antonio Chavarrías as producer. Shooting ran from 16 November to 16 December 2009 in Barcelona, La Floresta (Sant Cugat), Sabadell, and Valls.[12](https://www.cultura.gob.es/dam/jcr%3A1abedef2-7322-46af-826b-5f59f3b905f5/Largos2010-CaE_opt72.pdf) Sergi Gallardo was the cinematographer, David Gallart the editor, and Isaac P. Racine the production designer.[5](https://catalanfilms.cat/ca/produccions/elisa-k)
Aina Clotet plays the adult Elisa and Clàudia Pons plays her as a child; the cast also includes Lydia Zimmermann as the mother, Hans Richter as the father, Jordi Gràcia as the father's friend, Pep Sais as a teacher, and Ramon Madaula as the narrator.[12](https://www.cultura.gob.es/dam/jcr%3A1abedef2-7322-46af-826b-5f59f3b905f5/Largos2010-CaE_opt72.pdf) Cadena and Colell, both Barcelona filmmakers, had long wanted to work together; the two-part novel gave each a section to direct in their own style, with artistic, costume, lighting, music, and casting decisions shared and agreed between them.[13](https://www.elperiodico.cat/oci-i-cultura/20100922/-elisa-k--de-491370) • [8](https://www.lahiguera.net/amp/cinemania/pelicula/5357/comentario.php)
## Release and reception
The film premiered in the official competition of the [San Sebastián](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-sebastian) festival (17–25 September 2010) and opened in Spanish cinemas on 23 September 2010, distributed by Wanda Visión.[3](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/2010/sections_and_films/official_selection/7/580057/in) • [1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) It went on to festivals including Stockholm, Montpellier, Montreal, Toulouse, and the [BFI London Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/bfi-london-film-festival) 2010, and later screenings at Nantes, Manchester's ¡Viva!, and [Marseille](https://www.edgepedia.org/marseille).[5](https://catalanfilms.cat/ca/produccions/elisa-k)
Its commercial run in Spain was small: 7,657 spectators and €41,938.22 in receipts.[1](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209) Critical response was mixed but generally respectful of the film's restraint on a difficult subject. decine21 scored it 4 out of 10 while noting that the film avoids sensationalism in depicting the rape; the San Sebastián daily noted that the film "flees morbidity" and centers on "the return" of the memory.[14](https://decine21.com/peliculas/elisa-k-21046) • [10](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/admin_img/diarios/archivos/diario_108.pdf?date=20251122043949) Time Out gave it three of five stars and called it "impressively naturalistic, though that means it's not always easy to watch."[15](https://www.timeout.com/movies/elisa-k)
## Awards
- **San Sebastián International Film Festival 2010**: Special Jury Prize[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/)
- **Premis Sant Jordi de RNE 2011**: Best Actress in a Spanish Film, Aina Clotet[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/)
- **Goya Awards 2011**: nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay (Jordi Cadena)[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/)
- **Gaudí Awards 2011**: nominations for Best Director, Best Leading Actress (Clotet), Best Supporting Actress (Lydia Zimmermann), and Best Film in Catalan Language[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/)
- **Festival du Cinéma Espagnol de Nantes 2011**: special mention; **Abycine 2010**: audience award[5](https://catalanfilms.cat/ca/produccions/elisa-k)
## References
1. [ELISA K, ICAA Catálogo de Películas, expediente 88209](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=88209)
2. [Jordi Batlle Caminal, "Elisa K. Un largo olvido", La Vanguardia, 24 September 2010](https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20100924/54011703933/elisa-k.html)
3. [Elisa K, 58th San Sebastián Film Festival, Official Selection](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/2010/sections_and_films/official_selection/7/580057/in)
4. ["Sala 33" recorre els laberints de la memòria, amb "Elisa K", TV3, 3 April 2012](https://www.3cat.cat/tv3/Sala-33-recorre-els-laberints-de-la-memoria-amb-Elisa-K/noticia-arxiu/413920/)
5. [Elisa K, Catalan Films](https://catalanfilms.cat/ca/produccions/elisa-k)
6. [Elisa K (2010) Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1563655/awards/)
7. [Elisa K, Filmoteca de Catalunya](https://filmoteca.cat/web/es/node/45612)
8. [Elisa K, nota de los directores, La Higuera](https://www.lahiguera.net/amp/cinemania/pelicula/5357/comentario.php)
9. [Elisa K: el saber narrar una historia, El Espectador Imaginario, October 2010](https://www.elespectadorimaginario.com/pages/octubre-2010/festival-de-san-sebastian/seccion-oficial.php)
10. [San Sebastián Festival daily, festival diary PDF](https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/admin_img/diarios/archivos/diario_108.pdf?date=20251122043949)
11. [Amber Wilkinson, Elisa K film review, Eye for Film, 17 March 2011](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/elisa-k-film-review-by-amber-wilkinson)
12. [Largometrajes 2010, Ministerio de Cultura de España (ELISA K credits sheet)](https://www.cultura.gob.es/dam/jcr%3A1abedef2-7322-46af-826b-5f59f3b905f5/Largos2010-CaE_opt72.pdf)
13. [Olga Pereda, "'Elisa K' impacta a Sant Sebastià", El Periódico, 22 September 2010](https://www.elperiodico.cat/oci-i-cultura/20100922/-elisa-k--de-491370)
14. [Crítica Elisa K (2010), decine21](https://decine21.com/peliculas/elisa-k-21046)
15. [Sarah Cohen, Elisa K review, Time Out, 15 October 2010](https://www.timeout.com/movies/elisa-k)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Drama and biographical films (individual works) › Drama films 2010 to 2014 › Psychological and social drama films*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license