The world premiere of the Argentine series Nothing (Nada) directed by Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, will open the Culinary Zinema section of 2023 San Sebastian Festival, and The Pot au Feu (La passion de Dodin Bouffant) by Tran Anh Hung, winner of Best Director in Cannes, will bring it to a close.

In the section, jointly organized by the San Sebastian Festival and Basque Culinary Center, four productions will compete for the Culinary Zinema Best Film Award, along with 10,000 euros for the winning film

Nothing (Nada), a fiction mini-series of 5-episodes running for 30 minutes each, will open the section. Directed by Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn, Nada is the tale of a food critic in dire straits due to the lack of resources and the death of his maid. The series features Luis Brandoni and Majo Cabrera, and Robert De Niro as a Special Guest Artist in the latest episode.

Tran Anh Hung won Best Director Award at Cannes for The Pot au Feu (La passion de Dodin Bouffant), the film closing the Culinary Zinema section. In the movie, set in the late 19th century, Juliette Binoche plays Eugenie, who has cooked during 20 years for the gourmet Dodin (Benoît Magimel), but has never agreed to marrying him.

The five foodie films in the section will be accompanied by themed dinners, to take place at Basque Culinary Center.

Nothing (Nada)
Series
Mariano Cohn (Argentina), Gastón Duprat (Argentina)
Country(ies) of production: Argentina
Cast: Luis Brandoni, Majo Cabrera, María Rosa Fugazot, Azken atalera gonbidatutako Artista Berezia / Artista Especial invitado en el último episodio / Special Guest Artist in the last episode: Robert de Niro
Opening Night Film

A sophisticated gastronomic critic, art lover and provocateur (his business card gives his name, indicating “nothing” underneath, thumbing his nose at professions and roles) has lived for decades with a woman who does everything for him, a sort of personal assistant, housekeeper and cook. One day she dies and he realises that he is incapable of doing anything for himself. Deciding to take in an untrained, naïve girl from Paraguay, he has to teach her from scratch about the countless aspects of his life (his relationships, personal tastes, culture, gastronomic preferences, etc.). This cultural and generational clash will lead to unusual, intense, contradictory and tender situations that will serve as a learning curve for both of them. TV mini-series with 5 episodes.

The Pot Au Feu (La Passion De Dodin Bouffant)
Tran Anh Hung (Vietnam)Country(ies) of production: France
Cast: Juliette Binoche, Benoît Magimel, Jean-Marc Roulot
Closing Night Film

1885. Chef Eugénie has worked for the famous gourmet, Dodin, for the last 20 years. With the passing of time, their gastronomic endeavours and mutual admiration has turned into a romantic relationship. Their association has led to unique dishes, capable of satisfying the most demanding palates, but Eugénie values her freedom and has never wanted to marry Dodin, prompting him to do something he has never done before: cook for her.

Back To The South (Nan Fang Nan Fang)
Xiao Haiping (China)
Country(ies) of production: China
Cast: Liu Baisha
After drifting in Beijing for many years, Lin Shanshan returned to her hometown in the south and transformed the old house she once lived in with her grandmother into a homestay. Here, she experienced four wonderful and heartwarming stories with her guests.

Pachacútec, The Improbable School (Pachacútec, La Escuela Improbable)
Medium-length film
Mariano Carranza (Peru)
Country(ies) of production: USA – Peru
Not in competition

In a hidden spot in the outskirts of Lima, in a poverty-stricken district, is a school that the whims of fate decided should exist: the Pachacútec Cookery School. For more than 15 years the school has changed the lives of more than 400 men and women chefs, giving them a profession that has lifted them out of their destitution while filling their lives with dreams, thus forging a new generation of Peruvian cooks. This documentary follows the case of three young alumi from the school, who now enjoy success in different parts of the world. In San Francisco, what started as work experience earned Jhosmery the position of pastry chef in a reputed Peruvian restaurant. In Luxembourg, Gerson takes up the reins of a kitchen with modernist ambitions. And in Lima, Alan runs a successful ceviche business. All saw gastronomy as a chance to get ahead.

She Chef
Melanie Liebheit (Germany), Gereon Wetzel (Germany)
Country(ies) of production: Germany – Austria
She Chef is the portrait of young chef and recent culinary world cup winner Agnes on her journey to mastery through three of the most outstanding restaurants in the world.

PROGRAM

Monday 25 – Basque Culinary Center
Nada / Nothing

CHEF: Narda Lepes
With a vocation encompassing cuisine, communication and gastronomic enterprise, Narda Lepes is highly versatile. Her skill in all areas can be seen from her literary works, including Ñam – Manual para alimentar a un pequeño omnívoro and 201 tips para no comer como el or**, her fortnightly column in the Argentinian daily La Nación, and her TV collaborations. In 2017 she opened Narda Comedor, a landmark thanks to which she was listed among Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants, and in 2019 Narda Comedor Diario –now turned into the sophisticated pastry shop Lepes –followed by Narda Lokanta in 2022. In 2023, her creative vision led her to open Kona, an innovative tribute to the Japanese foodie culture. In November 2020, her influence earned her recognition of The World’s 50 Best as Latin America’s Best Woman Chef.

Tuesday 26 – Basque Culinary Center
Nan fang nan fang / Back to the South

CHEFS: Martina Puigvert (Les Cols) and Carlos Casillas (Barro)
The rural landscape of La Garrotxa is the setting for Les Cols, a restaurant committed to the environment, where value is placed on the produce grown in its vegetable garden. Marina Puigvert is currently head chef of the family establishment. An alumnus of the Basque Culinary Center, Martina completed a series of work experiences at prestigious restaurants including Lua (Madrid), Koy Shunka (Barcelona), Blue Hill at Stone Barns (New York) and Gustu (Bolivia).

Carlos Casillas, originally hailing from Ávila, opened the MûD Wine Bar in 2021 after completing his studies at the Basque Culinary Center. Gradually the project has evolved, abandoning its essence as a wine bar to emphasize its gastronomic aspect, finally opening the doors of the Barro restaurant in early 2023. Together with his team, Casillas offers a proposal dedicated to handing down the zone’s local gastronomic and cultural legacy through the product, its history and origin.

Wednesday 27 – Basque Culinary Center
Pachacútec, La Escuela Improbable / Pachacútec, The Improbable School

CHEFS: Alan Larrea (Percado), Gerson Atalaya (Sens Restaurant) and Jhosmery Cáceres (La Mar)
Alan Larrea discovered his passion for cooking while working as a dishwasher. Having stoked his interest in the sector thanks to his self-taught endeavours, the opportunity to make his dream come true finally arrived with support of the Pachacútec Foundation. Today, Alan works in the kitchen of Percado, a popular ceviche bar in Lima. His success is obvious, and he is in full swing of producing a new gastronomic vision: a more relaxed concept where he will serve burgers with sauces of his own creation.

Gerson Atalaya, originally from Peru, is one of the many young people to have benefitted from the Pachacútec Foundation, backed by chef Gastón Acurio and many other benefactors. He started studying gastronomy in 2014, prompting him to discover his true passion and talent. In 2019 he moved to Luxembourg to work at the Kay, a modern and creative restaurant concept, until February this year. Gerson is currently head chef at the Sens Restaurant, located in the same city.

Jhosmery Cáceres is a graduate in gastronomy from the Pachacútec Foundation. Thanks to her work experience at the Celler de Can Roca, she discovered her love for pastry-making. She later spent time at different restaurants in Lima. Today she is pastry chef at the La Mar restaurant, in San Francisco, owned by the famous Peruvian chef, Gastón Acurio.

Thursday 28 – Basque Culinary Center
She Chef

CHEFS: Agnes Karrasch (Koks), Poul Andrias Ziska (Koks) and Nino Fjordside (Koks)
Agnes Karrasch grew up in the small town of Murnau am Staffelsee, nestling in the Bavarian Alps. She began training as a chef in 2017 at the Steirereck restaurant in Vienna. She won the Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg in 2018 with the Austrian national juvenile team. After the competition, she worked at the Vendome, at Disfrutar in Barcelona and at the Koks on the Faroe Islands. What was meant to be a stay of two months has become her place of work ever since. Today she is the restaurant sous chef and is completing her second season in Greenland.

Poul Andrias Ziska (Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, 1992) studied gastronomy at the Food College Aalborg (Denmark), and has worked at renowned restaurants including Geranium (Copenhagen) and Mugaritz (Errenteria). He is currently head chef at Koks in the Faroe Islands, awarded two Michelin stars and one Michelin Green star for its commitment and efforts to represent the identity of the islands and the environment through a gastronomic proposal composed around ancient and local ingredients.

Nino Fjordside has been working at Koks Restaurant since 2021 as Head of Research and Development. Originally from Copenhagen, Fjordside studied cooking and pastry and has trained at renowned restaurants in Europe such as El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain), L’air du Temps (Liernu, Belgium), Geranium (Copenhagen) and Noma (Copenhagen), among others.

Friday 29 – Basque Culinary Center
La passion de Dodin Bouffant / The Pot au Feu

CHEFS: Sébastien Zozaya (Sébastien Zozaya) and Fabian Feldmann (L’Impertinent)
Sébastien Zozaya, born in Bayonne, has been the Meilleur Ouvrier de France (Best Worker in France) since 2019. Zozaya trained at the Tarbes CFA charcuterie school and at the CEPROC in Paris. He has spent time in the kitchens of Martín Berasategui, Louis XV – Alain Ducasse in Monaco and has enjoyed a variety of experiences in Barcelona and Dubai. At his Biarritz and Bayonne stores he produces charcuterie pâtissière, or charcuterie in pastry, using techniques and knowhow combining textures, flavours and disciplines.

Chef Fabian Feldmann received a Michelin star ten months after opening L’Impertinent in Biarritz in 2012. Born in Nuremberg (Germany), Feldmann spent time at some of Europe’s leading restaurants, where he trained with chefs including Michel Trama, the Raimbault brothers, and Pierre Gagnaire, among others. Feldmann’s cuisine is based on the balance of ingredients, regional products and modern techniques.