While I was working in Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam, it really shocked me that smokers had to leave the building every time they wanted to smoke. There wasn’t a place specifically for them inside, as was usual in Spain at that time. In this country, in fact, the “antitabaco” Law that prohibits smoking in all public spaces wasn’t approved until 2010.

 

This situation was the one that originated SMOKING ROOM, a feature film that I worte, co-directed and co-produced in 2003, and in which the story was the one of a bunch on employees of an american company in Spain who weren’t allowed to smoke inside the office anymore. This simple situation divided them among the ones who were against the prohibition and the ones who were pro it, provoking an internal war that eventually would have dramatic proportions.

 

SMOKING ROOM was released without any distribution or tv channel support. The film was a start up, and was possible thanks to the personal effort of the profesionals involved.

But it was worth it. SMOKING became an instant fenomenal, on a critical level and on an audience level. It won a GOYA for best direction, the National Critics Award and many International awards, among which was the mention for Best Scritp from the International Festival Karlovy Vary.