Madrid has become an important capital of cinema. Proof of this is the great cast of stars, movies and Spanish festivals of international recognition such as Pedro Almodóvar, Penélope Cruz and the Goya Awards to name but a few. From 1st May to 10th May the eleventh edition of the International Documentary Festival of Madrid will take place which is organized by the Madrid Town hall.

`Documenta Madrid´ is a festival dedicated exclusively to documentary cinema that aims to disseminate and promote the genre. Michael Nyman will open the festival, which promises strong emotions because it is the festival with the largest spectators’ attendance in the city. The pianist will play some of his most famous works for the occasion. `Documenta Madrid´ will bring together the best professionals of an industry that seems to be living a golden era in recent years.

This year 1078 tapes from 86 different countries are presented (185 Spanish titles) –that supposes a record participation. In addition, and as the main innovation of the Festival, all the projected movies are unpublished in Spain up till now.

Documenta 09 has an overall budget of € 73,000 in prizes to be shared amongst the four competing categories: ‘Filmotech.com’, `Documentary Creation´, ` National Contest´ and `Documentary Competition´. In addition, there’s a new prize in the Festival: ‘The Documentary of the Month’, which the documentary that receives the Audience Award will win. Finally, AVID will give a special prize: the Best National Short Film Editing Award.

Documenta Madrid 09 seeks to become the most important international showcase of documentary film. The movies reflect the different social, economic and cultural realities of the present. Together with the projections, there will be conferences, workshops, exhibitions, and publications etc.

Documenta Madrid has become one of the most international Spanish festivals and the one with most public impact. Don’t miss it! Rent Apartments in Madrid and enjoy the best in documentary cinema.

The most important festival of Madrid begins on May 15th. It is the day of celebrations of the beloved patron San Isidro. This day the Madrileños (people from Madrid) have the ingrained habit of going to the San Isidro church near the Manzanares River and to drink the miraculous water of the San Isidro fountain.

There are many concerts, exhibitions and even pagan animal executions celebrated during these festivities. Many Madrileños wear the “castizo” (a typical dress of the city), and both women and men are appointed respectively “chulapas” and “chulapos”. They perform traditional dances in pairs called “chotis”, considered the most typical dance of the city since the 19th century and it is danced in all the traditional festivals.

According to the legend, San Isidro saved King Phillip III of a serious illness thanks to the miracle of a blessed fountain: from this moment San Isidro (who lived during the XI and XII century) became the symbol of the city, and today it is still revered and loved by all the Madrileños. The festival, which began at that time, has become over the years a very important event known throughout the world.

For a month there are events like the bullfights, which are famous throughout Spain and many other shows with fireworks and music concerts of all genres. The San Isidro bull-ring hosts the San Isidro bullfighting festival. It can house about 25,000 spectators. The bullfighting season begins in May and extends until late October. There is also a Bullfighting Museum that displays objects and photographs related to the famous matadors and bulls that have participated in Las Ventas.

This is an essential event for any Madrileño. Between bull fights, the orchestra plays to the public of Las Ventas. The tickets for the bullfights are expensive initially, but decrease with time. And it is possible to see them every weekend in October.

If you wish to combine a cultural holiday, Spanish traditions and fun, rent your Apartments in Madrid. Enjoy an unforgettable stay, the magic of the San Isidro festival ( fiesta San Isidro) and the beauty of this European capital.

The Museo Del Prado is one of the most interesting and attractive museums in the city of Madrid. It is one of the most important art galleries in the world, in which we can find the works of many famous artists: Italians, Spanish and Flemish such as: Botticelli, Caravaggio, Francisco Goya, Rembrant and Diego Velázquez etc. It’s a museum that preserves one of the most ancient collections of art in the world. The museum is opened to the public Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 20:00 except on: 24th December, 31st December and 6th January, when it is opened only from 9.00 to 14.00.

The building was designed on the order of Charles III who chose the best architects for the project such as; Juan de Villanueva. In the years it has seen many changes and reconstructions, such as those by – Narciso Pascual y Colomer who built the apse and the church in 1853. At the beginning it was named Real Museum, then Royal Museum of Painting and Sculpture and at the end Museum Nacional Del Prado, that opened for the first time to the public in November 1819.

From its beginnings, the museum reserved much of the space for the Spanish paintings, but today we can find very big collections that comprise of around 7,600 paintings, 1,000 sculptures, 2,400 prints and 6,300 drawings, in addition to a large number of works of art and historic documents. As we can see, visiting the museum, the works are of various nationalities including Italian, Spanish, French and English works.
If you love art you must visit this fantastic and spectacular museum of art which, in the coming months is offering some beautiful exhibitions. From the 24th February until the 1st May you can see the exhibition of “The Sleeping Beauty” from The Museo de Arte de Ponce which consists of 17 works of art. Then there is Francis Bacon, from 3rd February to19th April, which comprises of about 78 works. Another important exhibition “Among Gods and Men” will also be there to enjoy until 12th April 2009.
Don’t miss one of the greatest art exhibitions of all time, rent Apartments in Madrid. You will discover art in all its forms and at the same time enjoy one of the most beautiful capitals of Europe.

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Goya Awards Madrid 2009

The Goya Awards are the Spanish equivalent to the American Academy Awards and the main national film awards in Spain. The city of Madrid last night held the prize-giving ceremony where the best Spanish cinema stars, including Penelope Cruz, turned out.

Javier Fesser’s drama “Camino” became the big winner at the 23rd Goya Awards. It won six Goya awards out of seven nominations, including best picture and best director. The movie also took home nods for the best original script, for the best actress (Carme Elias), for the best supporting actor (Jordi Dauder) and for the best new actress (Nerea Camacho), which plays the major role in the film as a dying ultra-catholic girl, Camino. Penélope Cruz was the star of the show at this year’s Goya awards when she picked up her Goya for supporting actress in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona“, the Woody Allen film. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar for the same Anglo-Spanish production, in which she stars alongside Javier Bardem and Scarlett Johansson.

But Cruz was not the only international star who made shine the ceremony: Benicio Del Toro won the best actor award for his portrayal of Che Guevara in both “Che” films. Alex de la Iglesia English speaking movie, “Los crímenes de Oxford“, won three awards. Other success stories on the night were Christian Mungiu’s drama, “4 meses, 3 semanas y 2 días”, who picked up the best European film award. “Mortadelo Y Filemon, misión salvar la Tierra” won the special effects award. Santiago Zannou’s music drama “El Truco Del Manco” picked up three emotional awards.

“Los Girasoles Ciegos” suffered a disappointment when only picked up an award for the best adapted screenplay, having received 15 nominations. Agustin Díaz Yanes’ film, “Sólo Quiero Caminar” also won just one Goya for the best cinematography from 11 nominations.

Do you want to feel like a movie star? Go to Madrid and discover the Spanish capital! Rent Apartments in Madrid, well located, full equipped and at the best prices!