The Light That Guides Us: A Film Portrait of Spain’s Female Lighthouse Keepers
The project led by Cristina Rodriguez Paz from Madrid is nearing completion. A recording titled The Light That Guides Us features reflections on the unusual lives of Spain’s lighthouse keepers.
The documentary unfolds the history of lighthouses through the perspectives of women who guard the light, the daughters of lighthouse keepers, and those who carry on a family tradition. The director describes the film as centered on light and shadow, both in visual style and in psychology.
Today, of the twenty-six lighthouse keepers who gained ownership after 1969, only five remain active in Spain. The five survivors oversee Estaca de Bares and Prioriño Chico in La Coruña, San Cibrao in Lugo, La Gomera in the Canary Islands, and Machichaco in Vizcaya.
Rodriguez Paz notes that the lights go dark when retirement comes. Filming began in July 2020 and, after a mandatory pause for the pandemic, aims to wrap later this year with two-week shoots planned in Girona, Galicia, Cantabria, and Cabo Peñas.
The director intends to spotlight women’s work that has often gone unseen in a male-dominated seafaring world. The sea and nature, with wind, lighthouse, and light as focal elements, drive the narrative.
In 1992 a decree aimed to end the profession, forcing a choice between continuing lighthouse duties and losing public officer status by becoming dependent on Harbor Masters, or remaining civil servants with administrative tasks. This marked the beginning of a shift away from the traditional lighthouse-lighthouse dynamic.
These are individuals deeply connected to nature, choosing a life of solitude to better understand the world and provide a public service through light. They share a love of nature and environmental stewardship, and they have witnessed significant technological changes over time, noted by the filmmaker.
The film positions the light not only as a beacon for ships but as a personal compass guiding each life’s path. It is an independent project funded by Cristina through multiple channels, including drone footage from lighthouses affiliated with the Barcelona Port Authority and contributions from various public and private organizations. The documentary is slated for festival participation at national and international events, with a hoped-for premiere at the upcoming Gijón Film Festival.
In Asturias, support comes from the Port of Avilés, and discussions are ongoing with several municipalities connected to lighthouse keepers and the Government of the Principality of Asturias. So far, filming has taken place at Cudillero, Candás, Llanes, and Peñas in Gozón, and in Galicia at Punta Frouxeira (Valdoviño), Prioriño Chico, and Cabo Prior (Ferrol) in La Coruña, Isla Pancha (Ribadeo), and Punta Atalaya (San Cibrao) in Lugo. Cabo Mayor in Santoña provided footage for Ajo and El Pescador in Cantabria. In Catalonia, the coast from Girona to Barcelona, including Cap de Creus, was explored, along with locations in Castellón such as the Columbretes Islands. The Canary Islands visits included La Gomera, La Palma, and Tenerife, and the Balearic Islands featured Formentor, Punta Avanzada, Cabrera, and Dragonera. All these sites are celebrated as historical and cultural heritage.
Cristina Rodriguez Paz began in cinema after studying camera and lighting at the School of Image and Sound in La Coruña. Her career started with an internship at Madrid Film in 1996, which led to her debut as a cinematographer on Pedro Almodóvar’s Carne Trémula in 1997. She later studied at Madrid Film and Audio-Visual School, where she earned a degree as a cinematographer. Her experience spans more than fifty national and international features directed by renowned filmmakers such as Alex de la Iglesia, Julio Medem, Icíar Bollaín, Maria Ripoll, and Reed Morano.
Now she faces directing and producing The Light That Guides Us, recalling memorable moments from production. One anecdote involves the lighthouse keeper from La Gomera who was stationed on a sea buoy; during training at the lighthouse, a colleague quipped about sending eggs for forty years, while another joked about the arrival of a new colleague who would soon be a woman in the role.
In the film, María Amelia González Gerpe, the lighthouse keeper at Cabo Peñas, is highlighted for her renovation work at Cudillero lighthouse. She lived in Candás lighthouse with her husband and remains in the fishing village today. The Candasín lighthouse continues to serve as a public facility and houses the Local Bagpipe School.
The filmmaker emphasizes that work connects these keepers to the world and invites them to express themselves through a shared commitment to excellence. Each keeper takes responsibility seriously, driven by a love for the craft and a belief that the lighthouse symbol represents safety for sailors. The light must stay on, and when it goes out it must be re-lit promptly.
A broader plan includes an exhibition curated by the director at Ces Voltes Maritime Museum in Majorca, focusing on lighthouse women who can travel through a network of Mediterranean museums. The project will feature artists and historians and is accompanied by plans for a companion book featuring photographs from both the film and the exhibition. This debut as a director marks a meaningful chapter for Cristina Rodríguez Paz as she brings the stories of Spanish lighthouse keepers to a wider audience, ensuring their experiences endure in public memory. [Citation: local production notes and festival announcements]