Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem lead the Spanish options for the Golden Lion of Venice

Penelope Cruz y Javier Bardem will lead the Spanish presence in the official competition of the 83rd edition of the Venice International Film Festival with ‘Bunker’, the new film by Florian Zeller, and the Spanish-Italian co-production ‘It’s Going To Happen Tonight’directed by Nanni Moretti, who will also aspire to the Golden Lion, as announced this Thursday by the organization of the Mostra when presenting the Official Section of the contest.

‘Bunker’ represents the cinematographic reunion of Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem, who once again share the spotlight eight years after ‘Everyone knows it’ (2018), by Asghar Farhadi. ‘Bunker’, written and directed by Florian Zellerwinner of the Oscar for best adapted screenplay for ‘The father’, follows a prestigious architect who agrees to build a survival bunker for a billionaire in the technology sector, a decision that leads his wife to question their marriage after seventeen years of living together.

The cast is completed with Stephen Graham, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Paul Dano, Mark Gatiss and Eileen Atkins, in a production filmed between Spain and the United Kingdom.

The other representative with Spanish participation will be ‘Succederà Questa Notte’, directed by Nanni Moretti and starring Louis Garrel. The film, a Spanish-Italian co-production, loosely adapts the short story collection Hungry Heart (‘Lev Raev’), by Israeli writer Eshkol Nevo, and will mark the return of the Italian filmmaker to the competition for the Golden Lion.

The festival organization has announced the official competition which includes new films by filmmakers such as Cassey Affleck, Hirokazu Koreeda, Martin McDonagh and Werner Herzog. The 83rd edition of the Mostra will be held between September 2 and 12 on the Venice Lido, with a jury chaired by Maggie Gyllenhaal and with George Clooney and Ellen Burstyn as the next honorary Golden Lions.