In the landscape of emerging European cinema, few projects have captured the attention of the industry’s development circuit quite like The Woodworm (El Corquim). The feature debut of director Laura Obradors, the film is a poignant, piercing examination of the struggle for self-actualization. At its heart, the story follows a teenage girl’s search for identity as she navigates the imposing shadow of her father—a successful, established artist currently mired in a creative crisis.
Developed through the prestigious ECAM Incubator in Madrid, The Woodworm is more than just a coming-of-age drama. It is a calculated investigation into the nature of power within the domestic sphere and the ways in which artistic prestige can function as a shield, insulating the powerful from scrutiny. The project has moved steadily through the industry pipeline, recently gaining traction at Cannes’ Focus COPRO and the ECAM Forum’s "Films to Come," marking it as a significant title to watch as it moves toward production.
A Portrait of Adolescent Duality
Produced by Sergio Adrià’s Espurna Films, with industry veteran Sandra Hermida serving as a co-producer, the film centers on 17-year-old Clara. Her life is a study in contradictions; she is a young woman desperate to be seen, acknowledged, and adored by the world around her, yet simultaneously burdened by an internal, growing impulse to sever those very attachments.
"Clara always seems to crave something from the outside world: to be seen, accepted, acknowledged, adored," Obradors told Variety. "But at the same time, she has an internal and contradictory impulse that wants to push her to break free from these attachments and become more independent, mature, and free."
This central tension—the desire for validation versus the need for autonomy—is the engine of the narrative. Obradors, who previously directed the shorts Si amanece, nos vamos and Las chicas, drew inspiration for the project from the life of a close friend. The filmmaker became fascinated by the conflicting emotions that define a daughter’s relationship with her father, particularly when that father is a figure of cultural authority. For Obradors, this specific dynamic offers a window into how young women first encounter the rigid rules, expectations, and structures of a wider, often masculine, world.
Deconstructing the Myth of the Artist
The film’s emotional stakes are heightened by the profession of Clara’s father, Ricard. As an artist, Ricard possesses a unique form of power: he does not just influence the daily life of his daughter; he shapes her understanding of the world through the images he creates and the narratives he promotes. The film posits that the societal reverence for the "artist as genius" can be a dangerous, blinding force.
"For a long time, we’ve seen the artist as a kind of genius and almost a divine figure," Obradors observed. "That idea can sometimes make us forget that artists are also responsible for what they create and for the power they have."
This theme of responsibility—or the lack thereof—permeates the household. Clara grows up in a domestic structure defined by submission, power dynamics, and the pursuit of male pleasure, with very few alternative points of reference to guide her. As she begins to question the versions of femininity and intimacy she has been fed, she finds herself confronting the heavy, often suffocating, guilt that accompanies such introspection.
Sergio Adrià, whose production credits include the acclaimed Upon Entry and Gerard Oms’ Away, was immediately drawn to the project’s refusal to center the father’s plight. "It’s not a film about how he deals with his inner demons or impulses," Adrià emphasized. "It’s all about her, focusing on the construction of female identity in a hostile and male-dominated environment."
Visualizing the Internal Conflict
The production team, spearheaded by Espurna Films—which Adrià founded in 2023 with a focus on auteur-driven, Catalan-language cinema—is currently fine-tuning the visual language of the film. Adrià describes a cinematic world filtered through the lens of adolescence, where the boundary between reality and perception is porous. In this environment, people, places, and situations can appear simultaneously magical, idealized, and deeply unsettling. The visual approach is designed to juxtapose the inherent beauty of the landscape with the underlying cruelty and psychological tension unfolding between the characters.
The development process has been rigorous. Now on its fourth draft, the script has benefited from participation in Mexico’s Cine Qua Non Lab and the ECAM Incubator. The project has also secured development support from the Catalan Institute for Cultural Enterprises. For Obradors, this extended period of development has been vital, allowing her to gain the necessary perspective to refine the narrative.
"It has allowed me to put reality at the service of the film rather than the other way around," she noted, highlighting how the distance has helped her distill the personal nature of the story into a more universal, cinematic experience.
Guidance during the incubation process came from some of the most respected voices in Spanish cinema. Sandra Hermida, whose extensive portfolio includes Society of the Snow, A Monster Calls, and The Impossible, mentored the project alongside director and screenwriter Carlos Marqués-Marcet, the Goya-winning filmmaker behind 10,000 km.
The Significance of the Title
The title, The Woodworm, serves as a metaphor for the slow, silent erosion of the domestic structure that Clara inhabits. Much like the insect that weakens wood from within, the psychological toll of the family’s environment is difficult to detect until the damage is nearly irreversible.
"It’s a space of repression, silent and invisible, where suffering, fear, and guilt live," Obradors explained. "Clara feels like an intruder, especially when she comes into conflict with the different images of herself that have been constructed around her."
As the project moves forward, the team is actively seeking co-producers, distributors, and sales agents across Spain, France, Portugal, and Belgium. With the production currently represented at the San Sebastián International Film Festival and preparing for the Les Arcs Industry Village, the film is positioned to bridge the gap between regional storytelling and international arthouse appeal.
For Obradors and her team, The Woodworm represents a commitment to exploring the "polarities" of human relationships—the space where preservation and destruction coexist. By turning the lens on the quiet, often ignored processes of identity formation, the film promises to be a significant contribution to the conversation on domestic power dynamics, artistic accountability, and the resilience of a young woman trying to carve out a space for herself in a world that has already decided who she should be.
