LYDIA

Lydia's father was a "banderillero", but he dreamed of becoming a bullfighter. He reared his daughter as if she were a man so that she would achieve what he couldn't. The girl inherited his same yearnings. But the bullfighting world is very chauvinistic. After the death of her father, her great and only support, Lydia had to face the prejudice and scorn of the professional bullfighters on her own. Many refused to fight alongside her, for the mere fact of being a woman. That was when the matador called "El Niño de Valencia" offered not just to share billing with her but to accompany her wherever necessary afterwards. They fell in love. This newsworthy romance, rather than her skill, kept Lydia in the limelight and she was able to fight regularly.

The couple appeared weekly in all the gossip magazines. "El Niño" was delighted, but it sickened her. She didn't like becoming famous that way, nor was it the kind of life she wanted to live with the man she loved. They finally broke up. Lydia still loved him but at that time her indignation was greater, or at least so she thought.

In a suicidal fit and given the lack of opportunities to fight, Lydia decided to fight six bulls, on her own. Unaware of the danger, or running to meet it, she longed for "El Niño" to be in the bullring as a spectator, so that at least he'd feel guilty if one of the bulls should charge straight into her.

But that afternoon, covered with sand and blood (bull's blood), Lydia was a wonderful success. Marco was among the spectators...

ROSARIO

In Rosario I looked for strength of character and those sad, innocent eyes which go so well with a character defeated by abandonment. I also looked for and found a body which was both athletic and feminine. Dressed in the revealing bullfighter's breeches, Rosario looks like a bullfighter in the style of Manolete. And poured into a design by Dolce and Gabana, she is a stunning woman. Of all the female artists I know, Rosario is the only one who, when dressed as a bullfighter, looks like a bullfighter. Even the hat suits her.

But not everything in her is physical (although that's fundamental for her character). Rosario's eyes and her voice, childlike from the loss of her father, her only support in a world of chauvinists, are linked directly to her heart, and she has given Lydia's character authenticity, naturalness and a style which will undoubtedly be more appreciated by those who don't know her.

In the film Lydia is killed by the bull of bad conscience. When someone loves two people (in the end Lydia goes back to the bullfighter when she's still with Marco) that doesn't mean the pleasure is doubled, only the problems are. Lydia hates lying to Marco. When she finally decides to tell him everything she doesn't have the chance... And with that sense of unease she goes out into the ring.

A woman on her knees in front of the bull pen, ready to face the bull in that position, shouldn't be thinking about anything else, much less about two men. Because the bull can smell her thoughts and her weakness.