From filming their first stories on their mobile phones to winning the 2026 SanturZine Saregabe Prize. Asier Vela and Unax Espinosa, Year 16 pupils, were in for a huge surprise with *Memoria de un fugitivo*, a short film they wrote and directed, which the jury recognised as the most innovative and creative of the festival. They are the stars of our #Gaztegiro section.
Asier and Unax are from Santurtzi and this academic year they have joined Somorrostro from Patronato Ikastetxea. Film has been a part of their lives for some time: at first they used to film short stories with friends, just as a hobby. Last year they submitted their first short film to a festival and, since then, they’ve decided to take the project more seriously. *Memoria de un fugitivo* is their second ‘official’ film, although, as they explain, they’d already made other short films for themselves before that.
The story has family roots. Unax knew the tale of his great-grandfather during the Civil War and suggested turning it into a film. Building on that idea, the two of them worked together on the script, adapting the events to tell the story in just over thirteen minutes. In the short film, a person on the run encounters someone who decides to help them. The result is a story inspired by a true event, told from the perspective of two young people who have sought to preserve its essence and give it cinematic form.
They also took charge of the directing and appeared as actors, alongside two other friends. The team was small and resources were very limited: they filmed using a mobile phone and made use of various locations in Hormiguera, in Cantabria, Mount Serantes and El Pobal. They relied on their imagination to create the scenes and special effects. In one scene, for example, they simulated the impact of a gunshot by blowing earth through a tube.
“With just a mobile phone and the four of us, we managed to get the film off the ground,” they recall. Their work won the Saregabe Award for the most innovative and creative short film at SanturZine 2026. The festival brought together 37 short films from a variety of backgrounds and featured works linked to well-known figures on the national scene. That is why receiving the award was a particularly exciting surprise for both of them.
The prize includes 350 euros, which they hope to use to upgrade their equipment for their upcoming projects – perhaps with a microphone or a camera. But the experience has also provided them with new contacts and opportunities to talk to people from the world of film. For now, Asier and Unax want to carry on learning, writing and submitting their work to festivals. They are clear that filmmaking is a hobby, but also a path they would like to explore. Among their dreams is to one day make it to the San Sebastián Film Festival.
Their influences — Tarantino, Stanley Kubrick and Guillermo del Toro — speak to their love of stories with a distinctive aesthetic that breaks away from convention. However, *Memoria de un fugitivo* stems from something much closer to home: a family memory that Unax wanted to share, which the pair then turned into a film. A story made with limited resources, a great deal of teamwork and a passion for storytelling.
Zorionak, Asier and Unax! It’s wonderful that your passion for cinema has found a story to tell and an award to celebrate.
