The film La tregua (The Truce)—a Kazakh–Spanish historical drama about two Spaniards who end up in a Soviet Gulag—will be released in Spain on October 10 and in Kazakhstan on October 30. The story is based on true events: during World War II, Spanish soldiers were held in the Spassk-99 labor camp near Karaganda after being sent to the USSR following the Spanish Civil War.
According to Espania.Me, the plot follows Captain Reyes (played by Aarón Piper) and Lieutenant Salgado (Miguel Herrán), two men who fought on opposite sides during the Spanish Civil War and find themselves imprisoned in the same Soviet camp in the Kazakh steppe. To survive the brutal conditions, the former enemies must put aside their ideological differences and work together.
The film was directed by Miguel Ángel Vivas, known for his work on episodes of the Netflix series La casa de papel (Money Heist). Shooting took place in Álava Province in Spain’s Basque Country, where the crew built a large-scale set recreating the conditions of a Soviet labor camp, complete with barracks and barbed wire. To capture the harshness of winter in the steppe, tons of artificial snow were used on set.
At the San Sebastián International Film Festival, the first Kazakh–Spanish feature was screened in a special presentation and received a strong emotional response from audiences and critics—standing ovations, tears, and animated discussion. The Kazakh producers also praised the project’s success.
“We believe this is truly a breakthrough—not only for our production team but for Kazakhstan as a whole,” said executive producer Dair Karakeev.
The 150-minute film, shot in Spanish and Russian, is a co-production between Spain’s Plano a Plano and Kazakhstan’s Spassks99 and Amanat Capital, with support from Netflix and RTVE. After its theatrical release, La tregua will be available on Netflix.
