At the end of 1954, Eduardo Ducay, Juan Julio Baena, and Carlos Saura traveled to the Sanabria region (province of Zamora) to produce a commissioned documentary on the construction of a reservoir system. Much of the filmed material was rendered unusable due to a technical problem, but Ducay salvaged part of it and combined it with voice-over to create a work reflecting absence.

At that time, Carlos Saura—who passed away this past Friday at the age of 91, one day before receiving the Honorary Goya—was a young assistant director. Over time, Saura carved out his place in the film industry, becoming one of the greatest filmmakers of our era. He helped shape the essence of Spanish cinema during the most challenging periods of recent history, from the dictatorship and the transition to the present day.