The film is produced by REPOSADO P.C. and THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO
Fernando León de Aranoa wrote the screenplay together with the film’s director and is also one of its producers along with Patricia de Muns, Laura Fdez. Espeso and Javier Méndez
The cast also features Pedro Casablanc, Mirela Balić, Rocío Muñoz-Cobo, Juan Pablo Fuentes, Marta Aledo and Clara Sans, among others
‘THE TALENT’, the new film produced by REPOSADO P.C. and THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO, is set for general release in movie theaters on September 5, 2025, and its teaser poster and teaser trailer have been unveiled today. The film is directed by Polo Menárguez, who penned the screenplay together with León de Aranoa, producer of the film along with Patricia de Muns, Laura Fdez. Espeso and Javier Méndez.
Leading the cast are Ester Expósito (‘Elite’), winner of the Fotogramas de Plata award for Best Actress for her work in ‘Venus;’ and Pedro Casablanc (‘Querer’) winner of the Actors’ Union Award for best actor, the Sant Jordi Award, and a Goya nomination in the category of Best Leading Actor for his role in ‘B.’
Based on the Arthur Schnitzler novel ‘Miss Elsa’, published in 1924, ‘THE TALENT’ tells the story of Elsa (Ester Expósito), a promising cello student who is attending the exclusive birthday party of her friend Idoia (Mirela Balić) thrown by Idoia’s father (Pedro Casablanc). During this glimpse of the world of the well-to-do, Elsa receives an unexpected call from her mother that will force her to choose between her family’s future and her dignity.
Along with Ester Exposito, Pedro Casablanc and Mirela Balić (‘Elite’, ‘Zorras’), the cast also features Juan Pablo Fuentes (‘Bandits’, ‘Isla brava’), Rocío Muñoz Cobo (‘May God Save Us’, ‘The Age of Anger’), Marta Aledo (‘Vis a vis’, ‘4 estrellas’) and Clara Sans (‘Cardo’, ‘Celeste’), among others.
Polo Menárguez: “When I was a university student, I fell in love with Schnitzler’s work. The major dilemma his novel addresses remains just as relevant a century later. Being able to adapt it together with Fernando León de Aranoa still seems too good to be true. We went all in, imbuing the film with a radical perspective and almost real-time narration. This, combined with a daring blend of tones and genres, has injected ‘THE TALENT’ with immense personality. Thanks also to the best possible cast and a spectacular performance by Ester Expósito, the film addresses issues of social status, the price of talent, and the abuse of power. Its shocking climax leaves viewers grappling with a profound dilemma: “Would you have done the same?”
Fernando León de Aranoa: “For me, ‘THE TALENT’ arose from a collaborative effort, from the desire to promote, as a producer, the work of Polo Menárguez, with whom I have worked on several of my projects in recent years. It was his idea to adapt ‘Miss Elsa’ together. It proved challenging, given the difficulty of transforming the protagonist’s interior monologue into a fast-paced story while maintaining the continuity of space and action. Yet it was also an enriching process, allowing us to journey alongside young Elsa through each pivotal development during her most arduous night. Polo’s vision as director, his unique visual sensibility and his superb work with the cast did the rest”
Javier Méndez: “THE TALENT’ was filmed over five weeks in the Basque Country, with the production team facing the challenge for most of the shoot of maintaining the continuity in a story in which the action almost entirely unfolds over a single night at a party. Polo Menárguez has delivered a masterfully nuanced direction, backed by his own script – written together with Fernando León de Aranoa – which builds a psychological thriller atmosphere that escalates in intensity, confronting viewers with a highly relevant moral dilemma concerning the harassment and objectification of women”
‘THE TALENT’ is Polo Menárguez’s third feature film as director. A graduate in Audiovisual Communication from the Carlos III University of Madrid, Polo Menárguez is both a film and TV director and screenwriter. His film ‘El Plan’ premiered in the official section at Seminci in 2019 and earned two Goya nominations. He has directed episodes for TV shows such as ‘Los Farad’ (Prime Video) and ‘HIT’ (RTVE), and ‘Las Abogadas’ (RTVE). He is also the creator and director of the podcast La Esfera (Podium Podcast), winner of two Ondas Awards in 2022 and nominated for four Ondas Awards in 2024.
Fernando León de Aranoa and Patricia de Muns are the film’s producers from REPOSADO P.C., along with Laura Fernández Espeso and Javier Méndez from THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO.
‘THE TALENT’ was filmed on location in the Basque Country. The film will be distributed in Spain by Tripictures and internationally by Film Factory. It was made in association with RTVE, Movistar Plus+, and TV3.
About Reposado P.C.
REPOSADO is a film and TV production company founded in 2004 by director and screenwriter Fernando León de Aranoa. It produced ‘Princesas’ (2005), written and directed by Fernando León, the winner of three Goya awards from the Spanish Film Academy and the Ondas award for Best Film of the Year. ‘Invisibles’ (2007), a documentary directed by Wim Wenders, Isabel Coixet, Javier Corcuera, Mariano Barroso and Fernando León for Doctors Without Borders, won the Goya for best documentary. ‘Amador’ (2010), written and directed by Fernando León, was presented at the Berlin International Film Festival and picked up the awards for best actress and best director at the Guadalajara Film Festival in Mexico. ‘A perfect day’ (2015), written and also directed by Fernando León, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and won the Goya for best adapted screenplay. ‘The Good Boss (2021), written and directed by Fernando León de Aranoa and starring Javier Bardem, featured in the official section of the San Sebastián Festival, becoming the cinematographic success of the year. It bagged 3 Feroz awards, 2 Forqué awards, 4 Platino awards, and 20 Goya nominations – earning 6 Goya awards – among others, for best picture, best director and best screenplay. It was selected by the Spanish Academy to represent Spain at the Oscars, and received the Ariel award from the Mexican Film Academy for best Ibero-American film. Reposado also produced the documentary ‘Refugees’ for the UNHCR and the documentary ‘Politics: An Instruction Manual’ (2016), written and directed by Fernando León and presented at the Toronto and Berlin film festivals. Its latest hit in movie theaters has been the documentary ‘Sintiéndolo Mucho’ (2022), presented at the San Sebastian Film Festival and winner of the Goya for best original song.
About THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO
THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO is GRUP MEDIAPRO’s content creation, production and distribution factory. THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO integrates production houses with extensive experience, such as Globomedia, 100 Balas, El Terrat, Big Bang Media, K2000, Hostoil, Oficina Burman, Cimarrón and Fresco Film, and produces content of all genres worldwide, including fiction series, films, entertainment shows, short formats and documentaries. THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO empowers high-quality global projects, with great talents of recognized national and international prestige such as Paolo Sorrentino, Woody Allen, Isabel Coixet, Ran Tellem, Oliver Stone, Daniel Burman, Fernando León de Aranoa, Iván Escobar, Borja Cobeaga, Diego San José, Fernando González Molina, Berto Romero, Andreu Buenafuente, Clara Roquet, Marc Cistaré, Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn, Juan Carlos Aparicio and Lluís Arcarazo, among others. THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO works with key global industry operators such as Max, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, ViX, Paramount+, SkyShowtime, Movistar Plus+, Atresmedia and Mediaset, and its productions have won various international awards, including 2 Oscars, 2 Golden Globes, 2 Daytime Emmy Awards and multiple Goya awards.