At the same time, Pedro joins the prestige drama club Los Goliardos, where he plays his first professional roles and meets Carmen Maura. Together with McNamara he starts a parody punk-glam-rock band. He keeps writing stories that are eventually published in compilation volumes ("El sueño de la razón"). This atmosphere sets the background for his first commercial feature film: "Pepi, Luci, Bom y otras chicas del montón" (1980), a project originally created by Pedro for a photo-novel entrusted by "El Vibora" magazine. Its name was "General Erections".

"Having worked so with my Super-8, Carmen Maura and some other friends from Los Goliardos decided I should take one step forward and make my first film in 16mm".

Felix Rotateta, another actor from Los Goliardos and future director, became allies with Carmen Maura to raise financing for "Pepi..." Half a million pesetas, a team of volunteers and shooting on weekends are the conditions in which the film is made in… one year! Such lack of means produces a creative freedom unusual to Spain for the time.
"When a film has faults it's considered a faulty film, but when it has so many, faulty becomes stylish ".

"Pepi..." became immediately a cult movie. It toured the independent circuits and then spent four years on the late night showing of the Alphaville Theater in Madrid.

It would be the Alphaville theater itself who produced his next film: "Laberinto de Pasiones" (1982). This film introduces the topics Pedro shall develop later. It also carries a special significance representing the Madrid of the late 70's and early 80's with its particular movida. The film was well accepted by the public -Pedro Almodovar is already a reference for Spanish filmmaking.

One year later he shoots "Entre Tinieblas" (1983), produced by Tesauro (businessman Herve Hachuel's company). This is the first time he approaches the topic of religion, which is to be found in most of his later work. "Entre Tinieblas" also means the first collaboration with Chus Lampreave, one of his most emblematic actresses.

In 1984 he shoots, again with Tesauro producing it, his career's most naturist and social film: "¿Que he hecho yo para merecer esto?" The film enjoyed international spreading and great acceptance. "An absolutely marvelous black comedy. Simply a small master piece", wrote "The New York Times".