The municipality of Los Llanos hosted the presentation of the trailer and official poster for 'Consuelo 1994', an audiovisual project shedding light on a pioneering case in the investigation of sites of repression. The Minister of Presidency of the Government of the Canary Islands, Nieves Lady Barreto, presented the work, funded by the Ministry and produced by T-REC.
Minister Nieves Lady Barreto explained that the documentary addresses the first judicial exhumation of victims of the Franco regime in Spain, which took place on May 7, 1994, near the Pino del Consuelo in La Palma. Driven by a family's perseverance, this intervention led to a pioneering judicial procedure and the first investigation using advanced forensic methodology in this field.
Journalist Javier Rodríguez, responsible for the investigation, highlighted the discovery of a judicial file hidden for over three decades, revealing the extraordinary scientific rigor and legal relevance of the exhumation carried out in La Palma, making it the first known precedent for historical memory in Spain.
“"This documentary tells a story of memory and justice, but above all, a profoundly human story: that of families who, ninety years later, continue to seek solace for a pain that never disappeared."
Javier Rodríguez thanked the Ministry of Justice and the T-REC team for their support, emphasizing that the story is 'built by and for the people,' contributing to healing open wounds.
Besay Viña, director of the feature film, noted that 'Consuelo 1994' moves away from the usual narrative on historical memory to offer an intimate account of silence, inherited fear, and the transmission of memory across generations, combining unpublished testimonies, reenactments, and extensive documentation.
Representatives from producer T-REC highlighted that the project, born and produced on the island, features a team committed to journalistic and audiovisual rigor. Its historical relevance will allow it to be shown in national and international circuits, positioning the story appropriately within the debate on memory and rights.
Key findings of the project include access to the complete judicial file of the exhumation, including reports from the Forensic Anatomical Institute of Madrid and extensive photographic documentation. The conclusions of these reports, hidden for over thirty years, will be revealed for the first time through the documentary.
Following the trailer screening and official poster presentation, a panel discussion took place with Cesáreo Rodríguez, Vice-Minister of Justice and Security of the Government of the Canary Islands, film team members, and some of the story's protagonists, who delved into the research process and the extraordinary human and judicial journey of events silenced for decades.
'Consuelo 1994' is funded by the Presidency Department of the Government of the Canary Islands as part of its democratic memory initiatives and produced by T-REC, with the collaboration of the Cabildo de La Palma. It promotes the recovery of a historical episode that places La Palma at the origin of a new way to judicially investigate disappearances caused by the Civil War and the dictatorship.
