Alicante will host a new true crime festival, a three‑day event that blends crime fiction and non‑fiction, scheduled for October 18 to 20. The program features a dozen experts in this growing field, a trend that resonates with criminologists, journalists, writers, and audiovisual creators.
The festival’s management contract was tendered this year by the Culture Department of the Alicante City Council with a budget of 15,000 euros. It replaces Alicante Noir and, in its inaugural edition, concentrates on examining reality through fiction, telling stories inspired by real events.
The festival, led by Santiago Alvarez, director of Alicante True Crime and a member of the Cultural Council, together with Nayma Beldjilali, was unveiled this Wednesday. They described it as the first festival devoted specifically to this niche, noting that more than fifty noir and crime literature festivals are held across Spain.
There is a growing presence of true crime sections at film festivals such as Málaga and Cinema Jove, as well as on platforms like Netflix. Experts agree this is the fastest‑growing niche, a sentiment voiced by Alvarez, who has experience organizing Valencia Negra and believes the festival could become a recognizable Alicante brand.
“True crime is a popular genre and a series about the Sala case would be a lot of fun.”
Both organizers have shared a large portion of the program, though many details remain in flux. The plan outlines about a dozen events and at least thirteen guest experts from the worlds of novels, podcasts, journalism and audiovisual media, all connected to crime storytelling.
Participants
Participants include Ramon Campos, series director and producer behind projects such as The Asunta case, the Alcasser case and recent How to Hunt a Beast; Father Pedro, producer of L’Hora Fosca whose fourth season premieres on À Punt; criminologists Vicente Garrido and Paz Velasco; journalists Teresa Dominguez from Levante‑EMV; Manu Marlasca and Luis Rendueles; podcast writers of Black Region; detective novelists Mariano Sánchez Soler, Jordi Llobregat, Enrique Botella, Blas Ruiz Grau; host of the Crime and Carrillo podcast; cinema academic Paul Gomez of the Royal Academy of Spanish Cinema. All participate in Alicante True Crime.
A still from The Case of Asunta, created and produced by Ramón Campos, Netflix.
The program includes two book clubs with writers in municipal libraries.
Nayma Beldjilali says this literary and audiovisual subgenre, which blends fictional devices with real events, is gaining strong momentum. She invites residents and visitors to Seneca Space to attend a conference that promises to be very interesting because of the guests and the topics on the agenda.
Santiago Alvarez notes that the festival offers an opportunity to bring the worlds of crime fiction and non‑fiction closer to readers and viewers, highlighting the realities that surround people and should be examined with care and depth. True crime helps illuminate both individual and collective identities.
The director stresses the importance of professionalism and responsible handling of the subject in its various manifestations.
Possible bubble
The question remains whether a festival focused solely on true crime is risky. It currently attracts strong public interest, but concerns exist that it could fade. A Cultural Council member suggested the noir genre could be redirected if interest wanes, while the festival organizer remains confident in a long road ahead, adapting to evolving circumstances.
Years ago some wondered if such a bubble would appear, Alvarez observes. Today the crime novel stands as one of Spain’s most read genres, and there will always topics worth telling because they touch on human experience.