21st Edition – Core Programme
UK premiere
Followed by an on-stage conversation with director Alvaro Longoria
dir. Alvaro Longoria
with Jorge Coll, Maria Cristina Terzaghi, Filippo Benappi, Andrea Lullo, Mercedes Méndez Atard, Nicolás Cortés
Spain/Italy | 2025 | 78 min | cert. PG
In Spanish, English and Italian with English subtitles
Facing a move, the Pérez de Castro family puts up for sale at an auction house a painting that had been in their dining room for decades. The starting price, €1500. When antique dealers see the painting in the catalogue, they recognise it as a possible lost Caravaggio. Then an arduous and delicate process of restoration, attribution and sale starts.
More than a documentary, The Sleeper is a thriller where Longoria masterfully sheds light over the obscure intricacies of the antique art market, yet without letting it loose any of its fascinating mystery.
As part of the festival there will also be a screening of this film at the National Gallery on Wed 24 Sept at 3.00pm. Details
