Film-maker Santiago Tabernero will oversee the closing gala of the Malaga Festival, with La 2 broadcasting it live. These two announcements are not minor. Having Tabernero at the helm signals a contemporary audiovisual experience worthy of the moment, a performance that reflects his mastery of television. The live broadcast means viewers will see, in full, the events scheduled for March 9 on the Cervantes Theatre stage, avoiding the fate of the Valladolid Seminci closing gala, which was aired in pieces. The Valladolid finale, staged at the Calderón theatre, had to be edited to fit a time constraint, and the edits felt intrusive to many spectators.
Given that La 2’s programming slate currently feels unusually sparse, with Saturdays mainly filled by documentaries and reruns of World Heritage Cities, it seems imprudent to present festival galas—whether Madrid, Donostia, Valladolid, or Malaga—as delayed broadcasts. The public network has a duty to deliver these events live, honoring its role as a public broadcaster and keeping pace with the expectations of cinephiles and general audiences alike.
There is hopeful anticipation that Tabernero will find measures to satisfy his creative ambitions, push himself toward new challenges, and perhaps surprise the audience with something unexpected. People who watch television in Spain know him as one of the strongest talents in the industry, a creator of formats such as Carta Blanca and Alaska and Coronas, who has often felt underutilized. If he wanted, he could follow a path similar to that of veteran presenter Ana Blanco, exploring long-form projects, feature films, or series and perhaps stepping back from day-to-day television life. Yet the sense is that the joy of collaborating with seasoned professionals—like Félix Piñuela, Paz Sufrategui, or Gerardo Sánchez—remains a strong deterrent against stepping away entirely from the studio and the energy of a live production set.
In this moment, the decision to entrust Tabernero with the Malaga gala carries more than symbolic weight. It signals a commitment to high-quality live television that respects both the audience and the art of the festival itself. The expectation is that the director will deliver a cohesive, visually engaging program that showcases both the festival and the network in their best light. The collaboration between a director with a proven television sensibility and a public channel devoted to culture and public service has the potential to illuminate the festival’s standing and demonstrate how live events can still captivate viewers without compromising integrity or pacing.