‘Bai, Bai’ Director Alba Esquinas on Capturing the Pain of Losing a First Friendship: ‘There Isn’t Much Room for Innocence’

With “Bai, Bai,” Murcia-born filmmaker Alba Esquinas turns a formative childhood memory into her debut feature, exploring the subtle but devastating rupture of a first friendship. It’s one of the ECAM Incubator titles, a prestigious Madrid Film School initiative that has become a key launchpad for emerging Spanish filmmakers, offering development backing, industry mentorship and access to international markets.

The story follows Ana, 12, who embarks on a long-awaited school trip to Madrid with her best friend Santi. But on the bus ride, Santi chooses to sit with someone else. That empty seat marks the beginning of a painful estrangement, as Ana confronts loneliness for the first time, far from the protection of her parents and her closest companion.

Esquinas traces the project’s origins to an image she encountered in 2021. “I was traveling from Murcia to Almería and saw graffiti on the highway that said ‘BAI, BAI,’ a misspelling of ‘bye, bye,’” she told Variety. “I imagined a girl painting it, knowing her best friend would see it. That way of saying goodbye led me back to my own experiences of losing a friendship.”

For Esquinas, the subject is rarely addressed on screen. “In a romantic breakup, you have rituals and guidance to help with grief. But in a friendship, especially as a child, you don’t have those tools. It can feel just as traumatic, but it’s often overlooked,” she said.

The €2 million project is produced by Alejandro González Clemente at Mubox Studio, with financing still to be secured. “It’s always more complicated to finance a debut feature,” González acknowledged. “But we believe one of the strengths of this project is Alba’s sensitivity in telling stories, and the universality of the theme.”

Visually, the director plans to balance realism with expressionism. “I’m looking for a realistic emotional portrait, but one that’s aesthetically expressionist. Ana’s emotions will define the images and sounds — as she accepts the end of her friendship, the settings will also accompany her, like a rite of passage,” Esquinas explained.

Rejecting nostalgia, she describes “Bai, Bai” as “a more adult coming-of-age.” “There isn’t much room for innocence. Almost from the beginning, there’s a disenchantment with reality that has more to do with an adult perspective,” she said. Among inspirations, she cites Céline Sciamma’s approach to screenwriting and Joanna Hogg’s emotionally precise filmmaking.

Mubox previously collaborated with Esquinas on her short “Olores” (“Smells”), which premiered at Visions du Réel and won the Grand Prize of Spanish Cinema at Zinebi. “We loved the way she works and tells stories, so we were excited to see her next script and be part of her step into feature filmmaking,” González said.

What resonated with the producers was the subtlety of the loss. “It isn’t about a dramatic, heartbreaking event like a death; it’s about two girls drifting apart as their world begins to grow,” González said. “It’s a moment that can feel very traumatic but one we’ve rarely seen portrayed on screen.”

Citing the success of debut Spanish features such as Carla Simón’s “Summer 1993” and Estibaliz Urresola’s “20,000 Species of Bees,” Mubox is aiming to position “Bai, Bai” for both the festival circuit and international markets. “Losing a friendship is universal — everyone can relate to it. That gives us confidence in the film’s ability to connect widely,” González said.

For Esquinas, the goal is to balance melancholy with hope. “I want the audience to embrace this disenchantment with hope, despite the shadows Ana must navigate. Accepting that nothing lasts forever is something we can apply to many aspects of our lives. The sooner we accept it, the more hope we have to navigate the losses we suffer,” she said.