Ana Belén, Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi will be in charge of presenting the next edition of the Goya Awards, which will be presented on February 10, 2024 in Valladolid. “I couldn’t be happier,” Fernando Méndez-Leite, president of the Film Academy, acknowledged this morning during the press conference in which the names of the hosts of a gala were announced that, they hope, will be “exciting and fun”.
It is not an easy task to be the presenter of a gala that often garners good television audience data, but which also unleashes the fiercest criticism on social networks. However, the singer and actress Ana Belén did not think much about it and she decided to “jump into the pool” at the insistence of Méndez-Leite – “he told me that if he didn’t do it, he would die” – and the presence of the Javis. She admitted, however, that the first word that came to her mind when it was offered to her was “brown.” “Then I thought that since I’m old, the critics are going to be more condescending to me and that they, who are young, are going to take all the horror,” she said, laughing.
At his side, Javier Ambrossi denied the major. «I have never been convinced by those ‘openings’ in which whoever said yes to presenting the gala says that he is a brownie. I don’t see things like that. It is a privilege, something super nice and an opportunity to pay tribute to the cinema that has made me better and that I love and that is how we are going to try to defend it, enjoying having a good time, laughing and trying to contribute what we can. Javi and I are so used to criticism that there comes a time when what people think doesn’t matter to me,” said one half of the duo that just released ‘The Messiah’.
For his part, Javier Calvo described responsibility as an “honor.” “As a child,” he explained, “I watched the gala and dreamed of being part of that place and participating in those films that have shaped me.” The actor also took advantage of one of his interventions to praise the figure of his partner: “I have listened to all her songs and I have seen her films and to be presenting the gala with a muse like her is a dream,” said someone who claims that they have opted for this project “to break prejudices and change the discourse.”
A fresher script
Creators, directors and scriptwriters, the Javis will not be the ones to write the script for the awards ceremony co-directed by Tinet Rubira and Ángel Custodio, from Gestmusic, but they will try to contribute everything they are given. «For many years, I have imagined my dream Goya gala, who would open, with what song, what tribute we could do… And they have told us that they are open to listening to everything we want to contribute, so we will work hand in hand with the screenwriter of the gala and we will try to give it our brand and our personality. We will try to give a freshness there,” Calvo said. “It is very difficult for us not to get involved 100%,” Ambrossi reasoned, aware that we will have to seek “agreements” between all parties and see “how far we can go.”
Often, the gala has also been a stage for political demands, and although they still do not know where the shots will go, “the fact that the three of us are presenting the gala is already something political and a declaration of intentions,” Calvo made clear.
It will not be, it seems, a gala in which the gags are as strong as in some of the previous installments. «I don’t like to act funny. “I wouldn’t want to work with a script of jokes or ‘sketches’,” Ambrossi acknowledged, who did open the door to the “natural and spontaneous” grace that may arise in the moment. “I would like to start from the idea of the dream and how important movies have been in our lives, but I don’t see myself doing chin pum and waiting for laughter because then it never comes.” Despite everything, “there will be humor because we like to tell things with humor,” added Ana Belén. Not in vain, both Ambrossi and Calvo pointed to Rosa María Sardá as the best presenter that the Goyas have had over these 37 years. “She was unforgettable, natural, fun without forcing and super assertive.”
And there will be, it seems clear, musical moments. “The dream of my life is to sing with Ana Belén,” said Javier Calvo. “There are still many things that we don’t know, but I wouldn’t like to finish this dream without singing all three,” Ambrossi pointed out for his part. “There is nothing more to ask for,” Ana Belén concluded.
«A real relief»
Regarding Spanish cinema throughout this year, the three celebrated its great quality. «Many of the films that connect with me the most are by people who are just starting out, like Elena Martín’s second film, ‘Creatura’, or Itxaso Arana’s first, ‘The girls are fine.’ Suddenly I see very strong voices and I think that is also why we are here because there is a real change, with new voices that are beginning to set the level for those who were already there and that the Film Academy is beginning to listen emphatically and I hope that they look at the nominations,” summarized Ambrossi.
Finally, the three said goodbye expressing what they expect from the gala. “I hope to have a great time and enjoy it and that it is one of those deliveries that make you vibrate,” commented Calvo. Ambrossi, for his part, wanted “to be able to express how much those of us here care about cinema and I would like to be able to pay tribute to the films that we like and for which we have dedicated ourselves to this.” Ana Belén hoped that when it’s over people won’t say: ‘Oh, it’s so long.’ “We already know it’s long because there are a lot of awards, but let’s see if when it’s over they say it wasn’t that bad.” “I’m going to wear it again,” Ambrossi completes.
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