Disney+ has announced the name of the actor who will play the role of Christopher Balenciaga in the biopic that he prepares about his figure. Albert Saint John will be in charge of interpreting the iconic designer in ‘Balenciaga’, the provisional title of the series.
The interpreter, winner of the Goya for Best Leading Actor for ‘Under the Stars’ and Best Supporting Actor for ‘Sentimental’, has stated that participating in this project is “a luxury” for various reasons: “Because of the character, the scripts, the directors and the team in general. It’s a challenge for everyone. As always, but a little more.”
“Is almost how to shoot three movies in four months, in several languages and with a passage of time of several decades between the beginning and the end. In short: a joy!”, says San Juan, who has also developed a prolific career in the theater.
Saint John joins in this way a team led by Jose Mari Goegana, Jon Garaño and Aitor Arregi. The creators of ‘Loreak’, ‘Handia’ and ‘The infinite trench’ are scriptwriters -together with Lourdes Iglesias- and directors of the series.
“As soon as Alberto San Juan arrived at the test we felt we had found our Cristóbal Balenciaga. We are very proud to have him. His dedication and involvement in the project is total. He is the absolute protagonist, present in almost all the scenes of the series and playing a fashion designer, which implies learning to sew or to manipulate a fabric”, say Goenaga, Garaño and Arregi.
Costume designer Bina Daigeler, nominated for an Oscar for the live-action film ‘Mulán’, and costume designer Pepo Ruiz Dorado, run a department of 30 people which is recreating the designs of the master of Getaria.
They are part of a team of 100 professionals and 2,000 extras that, during the eighteen weeks that the filming lasts, they play a hundred characters. ‘Balenciaga’ takes place from the Spanish Civil War to the early 1970s and will be filmed on more than 90 sets from Spain -Basque Country, Navarra and Madrid- and France -Paris, Bordeaux and Toulouse-.
Synopsis for ‘Balenciaga’
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‘Balenciaga’ (provisional title) tells the story of a man who, through his natural talent, perseverance and nose for business, he dared to challenge his social status as the son of a dressmaker and a fishermanbecoming one of the most relevant designers of all time.
series is a portrait of the search for identity in the face of adversity and the challenge of social conventions over the years. Obsessed with finding his own style among the voices that judged his work and with the loneliness that comes with being an artist, the public will witness the constant deconstruction and reconstruction of the great losses of this master: his life partner, his mother and his country.