Pedro Almodóvar pays tribute to Spanish actress Marisa Paredes in “C à vous”

Spanish cinema and one of its giants, Pedro Almodóvar, are in mourning. The Academy of Cinema in Spain announced yesterday in a press release that Marisa Paredes, one of its “most emblematic” actresses, had died at the age of 78. A hard blow for the director of The skin I live inwho had made this star his muse since their first collaboration in 1983 for the film Into the darkness. Five more would follow.

Visiting France to promote his film The Room Next Doorwith Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore, Pedro Almodóvar confessed on the set of C to you that mourning had almost prevented him from respecting this commitment. “Today is a very sad day,” he began. “And truth be told, I didn’t know if I would have been able to do this show with you after hearing this news. But life goes on, it must go on.”

“Eternal”

The director remembered the almost surreal moment when he learned of the departure of Marisa Paredes. “This morning, I was woken up with the news of his death, and for me, it was a bit like a bad dream,” he explained. “So I’m in a bit of a nightmare because I opened my eyes and the first thing that struck me was this absence of Marisa.”

The news, however, is still difficult to take for the man whose last contact with the late actress was only on the eve of her death. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve been trying to get used to the idea that Marisa is gone,” he assured on the set of Anne-Élisabeth Lemoine. “For me Marisa is eternal because she is in all the films she has acted in, mine and all the others, where she has been wonderful. But for me it is a huge effort to become aware of this fact because just yesterday she sent me a message and from today and tomorrow I will not receive any more.”

The causes of Marisa Paredes’ death have not yet been revealed. The actress, originally from Madrid, began her career at the age of 14 and appeared in more than 75 films. She also chaired the Spanish Cinema Academy from 2000 and 2003. She leaves behind her partner José María Prado and her 49-year-old daughter, also an actress, María Isasi.