MADRID -- For Spanish film director Paula Cons, the Shanghai International Film Festival, which opens this week, is the perfect place to exhibit her new film La Isla de las Mentiras (The Island of Lies).

The director told Xinhua that it was very important for this film to participate in Shanghai. "We thought it a perfect event, not only because of its importance, but also due to the fact that they make it their World Premier."

"We are delighted to be there," she said.

The film, which is Cons' third work after Dirty Wolves and La Batalla Desconocida (The Unknown Battle), is based on true events surrounding a shipwreck off the coast of Galicia in northwest Spain in 1921.

"It is a thriller with suspense and mystery, which is roughly inspired by true events and tells what happens after a terrible shipwreck. Three women from the Island of Salvora (off the coast of Galicia) rescue some of the victims but pay for their courage on an island as 'special' as Salvora, which is very beautiful, but with a population that hides a lot of secrets," she said.

"The Chinese public is very important for us, because it opens the door for our films to unexpected perspectives," explained Cons, who believes "there is a lot of interest in Spain to collaborate with China, and the Chinese representatives at the San Sebastian International Film Festival (2019) in Spain were the most sought after for interviews."

Cons said that this was "an excellent moment" for Spanish cinema in general and cinema from her region of Galicia. "All of the work that we have done in recent years is given its reward thanks to the excellent professionals we have and the incredible scenery we have to film in," she commented, adding that female directors were having an ever-stronger voice.

The 23rd Shanghai International Film Festival was originally scheduled to take place in June, but the COVID-19 crisis has forced it to be postponed and will run from July 25 to Aug 2. The festival has registered 3,693 films from 108 countries and regions around the world. La Isla de las Mentiras is one of the candidates vying for the festival's Gold Cup award.