2 minutos
The third season of Escala Humana, the only architecture documentary broadcast on Spanish state TV, kicks off on La2 (RTVE’s second channel) on Wednesday 7 October at 20.00. Right from the start, that means we’re talking about an architecture programme aimed at a non-specialised audience. The programme’s core philosophy is very simple and hasn’t changed since its very first episode: at Escala Humana we consider that we’re born, we live our lives, and we die surrounded by architecture. So we look around us as if we were seeing things for the first time, we ask questions about what we see, we find people who can somehow provide, or have already provided, answers to those questions, and we make a programme out if it. Our fascination, our voracious curiosity, for all things architectural is nurtured by the fact that there are only two architects in the programme: Núria Moliner (the “voice” of the programme), and the author of these lines. This explains the wide diversity of perspectives, the freshness of approach, and the amenability which underlie our success. The programme is a choral undertaking by the Costa Est Audiovisuals team led by Jaume Clèries. I want to emphasise the word “team” because it is really very important. Without such multifaceted vision, such eagerness, fascination, and commitment, this would never have got off the ground.
It almost goes without saying that this new season has been marked by the COVID-19 pandemic. Working conditions were very tough. The team had to split up, with chosen members meeting only periodically, filming subject to draconian safety restrictions and always maintaining social distancing with guests. The only way the whole team could meet up face to face was by internet. Not surprisingly, then, the first two episodes, filmed during the lockdown period, focus specifically on what COVID-19 has meant in our lives. This is done as a kind of simple diptych, looking on the one hand at life inside our homes and on the other at life outside: that is to say, in our shared space, in the city.
The rest of the programmes explore new issues, always brought to life by the voices of Nuria and our guests. We’ll see residents fighting to improve their neighbourhoods, we’ll find out what can be done with prefab, and we’ll see how water shapes not only our buildings but also our landscape and our city. It’s taken us three years, but we’ve finally managed to include ephemeral architecture. Soap bubbles. Houses that can no longer be lived in because they’re full of noise. Projects vulnerable to flooding. Places we leave behind. Houses that are a staircase.
Welcome to the third season of Escala Humana. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it.
