One-on-One with the Director of Spanish Thriller “Piggy”

If your October watchlist is looking frighteningly slim, look no further than the Spanish thriller that’s been buzzing in indie circles and has audiences feasting on every frame as if from a trough.

In Carlota Pereda’s delightfully demented “Cerdita” or “Piggy” we find overweight teenager Sara being bullied by a clique of popular girls at a community pool. However, roles are soon reversed when her tormentors are kidnapped by a stranger with whom Sara develops a unique relationship.

The writer-director, sat down with The Zoo’s Humberto Guida to talk about what went into the thriller centered on body shaming, a young woman’s coming-of-age, and obsessions with the proverbial bad guy.

This film is adapted from a short film of the same name (also directed by Pereda) back in 2018. Even though fashioning the short into a crowd-stirring feature was not her initial intention, Pereda felt that there was an opportunity to explore more thematic elements presented by the story.

“It was at the end of the shoot…that I realized that the conflict was too good to let go. And by then I already fell in love with the character of Sara. I wanted to know what happened to her and for Laura Galán, the lead actress, it was the same thing.” – Carolta Pereda

Despite the intense situations Galán’s character finds herself in on the silver screen, Pereda lauds her lead actress as being fearless.

“Of course Laura Galán is such a good actress. When you have the chance of having an actress that is willing to do whatever you want, you have to write something for them.” -CP

While Pereda’s Piggy is a cinematic firestorm on its own, it also belongs to a strong class of Spanish film met with international acclaim this year. Pereda agrees that country has had a string of global success with shows like Money Heist, but she adds that it is very difficult to get involved in Spain’s film industry without connections. This made it hard for her to find opportunities in a field that she describes as a life-long passion. Upon hearing that a film school was finally opening in Madrid, Pereda jumped at the chance and was accepted to the program. From there, she found work in television until the calling came for her to tell her own stories.

The story of Piggy is a personal one for Pereda. She too was bullied in school and the village where the film takes place is where the director would spend her Summers growing up. Having those emotional experiences to tap into may explain in part why the film’s narrative resonates with audiences. It’s Pereda’s hope that the film’s audience will be able to place themselves in its protagonist’s shoes, and learn to love her as much as Pereda.

Look out for Piggy when it hits streaming services later this October.