Director, actress, scriptwriter and producer Iciar Bollain is one of the liveliest of contemporary young Spanish filmmakers and the first female director to have had a film (Tambien la lluvia, 2010) shortlisted by the American Film Academy. Through detailed analysis of film form, socio-cultural contexts and conditions of production and consumption, this book opens up key issues on gender, production, film authorship, the mediation of socio-historical realities and the whole question of 'women's cinema'. Covering all aspects of Bollain's career, it begins by taking in her work in front of the camera, starting with her emergence as a teenage star in Victor Erice's El Sur (1983) and following on with discussions of her mature roles. Discussion of her work as a producer and director focus on production and form, as well as on the socio-historical contexts to which they belong. -- .