La Bolsa de Bielsa presents the testimonies of five local residents whose parents fled the Pyrenean village of Bielsa, in Aragon, during the Spanish Civil War, when it was one of the last strongholds of Republican resistance. Méndiz also has a personal connection to the story, as his mother was one of the children who crossed the mountains into France.

“I thought it was a compelling story that raises questions about the purpose of waging wars when it is clear they have already been lost. “To what extent did it make sense to continue resisting in those villages, knowing that such heroic resistance would lead to the annihilation and physical destruction of all the communities in the area?” asks the producer and director.

The silence that prevailed in Bielsa

In an article published in Diario del Alto Aragón, Arturo Méndiz explained that, during interviews with the documentary’s five protagonists, he realised that the episode had long been silenced in the village: “For those who lived through it, it was not the past but the present, which is why it was so painful to speak about; they did not tell their children about it, and it remained a secret,” explained the UIC lecturer.

The historical episode known as the Bielsa Pocket was a military confrontation that took place in Huesca between April and June 1938 during the Spanish Civil War. The Republican resistance in Bielsa became a symbol of heroism despite suffering severe defeats at the hands of the Nationalist forces. Méndiz’s feature-length documentary reconstructs a struggle marked by isolation, harsh conditions and the constant threat of the advancing Francoist forces.

The film was screened on 26 April at the Museum of the Theatre of Caesaraugusta in Zaragoza and on 13 October at the Centre Cívic Fort Pienc in Barcelona.