In 1652, Spanish artist Diego Velázquez painted the portrait of Maria Theresa of Austria, Infanta of Spain. “Infanta” was a royal title given to the daughters of a monarch who were not the direct heir to the throne. A few weeks later, the painting reached the court of Louis XIV, who was still a child, sealing the union of the French and Spanish monarchies, as well as peace after the Thirty Years’ War. The episode is the inspiration behind The Indies (Les Indes), the fiction feature debut of writers-directors Pauline Julier and Nicolas Chapoulier, which will world-premiere in the Venice Film Festival’s Giornate Degli Autori, or Venice Days,…
