‘Ravalear’ (Max) by Pol Rodríguez and Isaki Lacuesta begins filming

This March the filming of 'Ravalear' ('Rabalejar'), a series Max six-episode original produced by Arcadia y Supernova; created by Pol Rodríguez, and directed by Pol Rodríguez and Isaki Lacuesta, co-directors of Second Prize, a film awarded at the Goya 2025 for best direction, best editing and best sound.

Ravalear was born with the objective of capturing the realism and verisimilitude of neighborhood life. To achieve this goal, beyond building a script created from real experiences and current problems, the neighborhood residents have been involved since the development of the series. In this way, for example, it has been facilitated that part of the figuration is with non-professional actors and residents of the Raval, thus representing the daily life of the neighborhood, contributing spontaneity and truthfulness to the story and to the portrait of the city itself. At the same time, the series is filmed in the main languages that come together in the neighborhood, reflecting the melting pot of cultures that coexist there: in Catalan, Spanish, Arabic, Urdu and English.

This search for realism, in addition to the plots and characters, is worked with the creation of a set outdoors, with the recreation of the Can Mosques restaurant and the entire building where much of the filming takes place, also involving real businesses, soup kitchens, recognizable streets and squares of the Raval neighborhood and the city of Barcelona, as well as in the modern leading neighborhood of Poblenou or the mountain of Montjuïc.

The philosophy is also evident with the choice of the top-notch technical team in Catalan and Spanish production in recent years. In addition to its already mentioned directors, they make up the screenwriting team Isa Campo (I'm Nevenka, Goya for best adapted screenplay 2023), Isaki Lacuesta (Second Prize, Goya for best direction 2025; one year one night, Goya for best adapted screenplay 2023), Edu Sola (House on fire, Goya for best original screenplay 2025, To want), Alfred Pérez-Fargas and Roger Danés (The Cuckoo, Malet), Daniel González (La mujer dormida, This is not Sweden) and Maialen Vélez. The prestigious documentary filmmaker Justin Webster (Death in León, The Pioneer) signs the plot together with the creator of the series, in charge of giving this fiction a realism typical of the documentary genre.

They are technical team It is made up of director of photography Takuro Takeuchi (Second prize); art director Laia Colet (One year, one night); the assembly managers Dani Arregui (I, addict, The teacher who promised the sea), Jaume Martí (The snow society) and Alba Cid (Wall with Wall); executive producer Sandra Tapia (As Bestas, Robot Dreams); production director Magda Gargallo (The last night in Tremor), or the assistant director Ana Hernando (Celeste), among many other professionals.

In addition, Ravalear has a department choral starring Enric Auquer (Gaudí award for best supporting actor for House on fire), María Rodríguez (House on fire), Sergi López (Pacifiction), Quim Ávila (Me, addict, The body on fire), Francesc Orella (Little pieces), Lluïsa Castell (Merlin. Sapere Aude), Alba Guilera (One year, one night), Noor Ul Huda (stree casting) and Mohamed Ben Moula (street casting), with the special collaboration of Marc Martínez.

The Original Max Series Ravalear is an Arcadia and Supernova production in co-production with 3Cat and UMEDIA (Belgium). It has the participation of Max, the support of ICEC and the Creative Europe program MEDIA. International sales are handled by Filmax, while executive production is carried out by Sandra Tapia (Arcadia). The series will premiere on the platform in 2026 and will later arrive on 3Cat.