Marco, la verdad inventada (Marco, the Invented Truth)

Based on true events. Marco explores the story of a concentration camp deportee who never existed. For years, Enric Marco, a charismatic man, was able to maintain, both in public opinion and in the view of his own family, a deeply complex lie: that he had been a prisoner in a nazi concentration camp. A man who rose to the presidency of the Spanish Association of Holocaust victims, Marco became a prominent figure for his supposed bravery and suffering until one day a journalist discovered that his survival story was, in fact, a fabrication. Regular passes not accepted. The community is invited to stay after the screening and join in a public conversation around some of the issues that the film raises: What moves someone to impersonate a victim of an historical crime such as the Holocaust? What challenges do keepers of collective memory (victims, historians) face when confronted with the kind of fraud that the film exposes? More generally, how shall we deal in an age of information overload and celebrity culture with the phenomena of fake news, fraudsters, “catfishing” and other forms of lies? What ethical and intellectual mechanisms can be put in place to defend against the erosion of trust in others? Dr. Kristin Semmens, Associate Professor in the Department of History and the Holocaust Studies Graduate Program in the School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures at UVic, will introduce the discussion with a brief presentation entitled “Holocaust Memory in Spain”. Members of the Hispanic Film Society of Victoria will moderate. The conversation will follow the standard protocols of public debates. We acknowledge the sponsorship of the Critical Humanities Commons in the Faculty of Humanities, UVic, for sponsoring this film and activity.