Hollywood in Spain, 2021
Once upon a time, the largest open-air set in Europe.
The Tabernas Desert in the Spanish province of Almeria in Andalusia was the setting in the 1960s for the film The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and many other spaghetti westerns directed by Italian director Sergio Leone.
Since then, it has become a coveted place for filming in Europe, and nearly 500 films and series have been made there, from Season 6 of Game of Thrones to Audiard’s film The Brothers Sisters, as well as Lawrence of Arabia and Mad Max. In 2020, the European Film Academy recognized it as a “treasure of European film culture”.
A place of pilgrimage for lovers of the Wild West and its arid landscapes, three studios have been built, which have also become theme parks for tourists, and a festival dedicated to the Western world attracts crowds every year.
Paolo Verzone went in this mythical desert, whereas the pandemic had banished the visitors. All that remains is the magic of the scenery and the beauty of the canyons eroded by time under the dust of this European desert where the sun shines 300 days a year.
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