Granada- based Londoner, Amanda Grenville, freelance film set designer, prop buyer and artist discusses with Marķa Perez Fernandez her life in Spain...
Amanda made the move from photography, which she studied formally, into the world of film while she was working in a London photographic studio. "It's an extremely difficult area to get into - a bit like Spain really - it depends very much on who you know and it is a question of of continuing to keep knocking on doors, particularly as a freelancer!"
Two of Amanda's most memorable assignments were a film called Halcyon Days which was made in Britain in 1994 and also a BBC film made in Prague called Black Easter, made in the same year. "It was extremely difficult but interesting working there as we had a Czech crew and
so we needed a team of interpreters. It was also very difficult to get props there but it was a marvellous experience. The Czechs have a well developed film industry which was established by the Communists and while, weighty on people, the facilities and expertise were excellent."
How then did Amanda decide on a move to Spain. "1994 was a particularly memorable year for me. First of all I had these two spectacular films
and I also met my now-husband who is Granadino (from Granada). I was studying Spanish and Flamenco in London because I've had a love affair with Spain for years and years and years and, what better place to practise my Spanish and indulge my passion for flamenco than in a flamenco bar! Coincidentally my now-husband was there too and we got chatting. At the beginning I had no intention of uprooting myself from my beloved London nor indeed of getting married. We were both travelling and working in Europe and between his travels and mine I don't know how we managed to meet up, but we did.
After the film finished in Prague I came to Granada for a couple of weeks' holiday and it was then that we discussed the possibility of our living in Spain and when I got back to London I really began to think about it. I work with a German designer who works out of Germany and I realised that there was really no reason why I needed to base myself in London. I also talked about it with my daughter and she felt she'd quite like a change. So, we came over to Spain again for Christmas and I met the family, which was a terrifying experience as I couldn't understand a word they said and I felt that I'd never come to terms with the language. However, another surprise contributed to the decision. The night before I left for Spain, Christmas Eve, as a matter of fact, somebody walked into my house in London, said they loved it and offered to pay the asking price for it. It seemed like a Divine sign and so I decided to take it and to move and here I am!
I've been here for about a year and a half now and I think that every day I still learn something new. I also think that I'm very lucky to have a Spanish husband as I've had a lot more in-roads into Spanish society than perhaps someone without a Spanish member of the family.
The reason I say this is because they are so family oriented and so, while being very nice, it is really difficult to get to know them unless you're one of the family.
Also my daughter Charity is just amazing. She now has absolutely no problem with the language and I honestly don't know how she coped so quickly with the change. It is true that Granada is super for kids and young people. There is so much more for them to do here than back in Britain - it's a tremendous, vibrant city and there's always something happening - art, culture, sport etc. and now that there will be direct international flights from January 1997, it should eliminate that slightly cut-off feeling that one can experience here.
What does Amanda see for the future? "The future? Well, I hope to continue working in my profession and I've also started painting which is very exciting for me - I really love it. I do angels and saints which is rather popular here and there is considerable interest in my work by local galleries and also by one or two on the coast Costa del Sol), so I see the future as fulfilling and exciting a prospect as the last few years have been."
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