Earlier this week, we zipped over to Madrid with Lacoste to escape the winter blues for a bit of Spanish sunshine — but mainly for the anticipated release of La Guitarra Flamenca de Yerai Cortés, or The Flamenco Guitar of Yerai Cortés, which hits the big screen today. 

The debut feature film by director Antón Álvarez won critical acclaim and a special mention from the jury after its premiere at the San Sebastian Film Festival, scooping up nominations for Best Documentary and Best Original Song at the upcoming Goya Awards in Granada next February, with the international release at the same time at the Rotterdam Film Festival.

So who are Yerai Cortés and Antón Álvarez? What’s the feature film about? And why should we be talking about it? We sat down with the duo to find out.

Antón Álvarez, better known under his pseudonym C. Tangana, is a renowned Spanish artist and songwriter who's been dabbling in the music world since being a teenager in high school — but now the musical talent has turned to film after a chance encounter with flamenco guitarist, Yerai Cortés. 

Little Spain

Álvarez was working on his album when he met Cortés, who already had an audiovisual project in mind. Álvarez became fascinated with Cortés's talent, story, family history, and connection to the flamenco world. The two joined forces to recount a story of Spanish heritage, passion, love, sorrow, and forgiveness—and what came from this collaboration was, well, an outstanding and pretty emotional film. 

“It has been a blessing that this man entered my life,” says Cortés of Álvarez, “he allowed me to enter into my emotions.” If you watch the feature film, you’ll understand what Cortés means — the piece is a unique musical journey that unravels how he uses his instrument and sound to heal family wounds and pull the audience into his world. 

Little Spain

“The night I met Yerai, I instantly knew he was different. Not only did he have immense talent, he also had an aura, a way of understanding and being in the world that was captivating, says Álvarez. “We started a fascinating and grueling process that has been life-changing for him,  his family, and myself. I was always mindful to avoid surpassing boundaries unnecessarily and wanted to give him and his parents the space to speak and be heard. I would have never imagined working on my first film with real people, with real stories.”

Adrián Rios

Now in true Highsnobiety spirit, we had to sneak in a cheeky fashion-related question. When asked what their best piece of style advice would be for a film premiere, the duo, both dressed in Lacoste for the interview, responded (somewhat telepathically) like this:

Álvarez: “Do not wear sneakers with a suit, respect the suit, give it back its dignity, and make sure you have a good collection of shoes to match”

Cortés: “I've always liked shoes because, in flamenco, the shoe is a piece with a lot of meaning, mainly because of the sound it makes. A good, sounding shoe, that is the best garment you can wear. Oh, and watches — I love them”

Now, we can’t tell you more about the feature—it would ruin your experience—so we highly recommend you go check it out for yourself. La Guitarra Flamenca of Yerai Cortés is released in cinemas today.

Find out more about Lacoste here.