They have done it again. One more year, the residents of Sierra, a district of the Albacete town of Tobarra that does not reach 100 inhabitants in winter have presented their particular ‘vision’ of the Christmas Lottery. It is a parody of the popular television spot.
The idea was born in 2014. The objective of the Sierra Neighborhood Association was to give visibility to the district. “In those days it was more forgotten than now, although sadly we still have deficiencies,” says Rosario Paterna, protagonist of the parody.
They say that the most important thing is the days spent together during filming. This year around 20 people have collaborated, although “more and more people want to participate because the video has a lot of expectations,” adds the president of the Sierra Neighborhood Association, Paco Arteaga. The desire and passion for this parody of all the participants make it possible for them to take a moment of their time to record.
Most of the scenes are recorded in the Social Center of the municipality and depending on the announcement, attractive scenarios are sought to give visibility to Sierra’s heritage. Rosario Paterna highlights that the costumes are homemade and that there are many anecdotes that arise, which will later be used to make a video of false takes that will be released at the end of the year.
This year the announcement of the Christmas Lottery is divided into three parts. “It is intended to link to offer a story that makes sense based on what the official announcement launches. It is difficult to make parts of the original, so we try to give it continuity and at the same time something of our own with that touch of humor that characterizes us”, he explains.
Arteaga adds that for those who are in charge of recording the video and make it possible “the best are the laughter and shared moments. We do not want to lose the essence of why this video began to be recorded. In short, it is to teach our town and give visibility to the lottery number (63,250) of the association to sell it because it is what finances a large part of the activities that we carry out throughout the year”.
Rosario Paterna, the tobacconist, and Víctor Esparcia, the ambulance driver, get into the role of these two co-workers and friends who share a lottery ticket in the official announcement of this year 2022.
They also parody the story of the pastor and his friend admitted to the hospital. As something striking in this year’s video, Rosario explains that the pastor is also in real life. “It took us a bit to convince him and explain why we wanted to take him out in particular. In this way, we wanted to relate the emptied Spain and give voice to the figure of the shepherd”. In an affectionate way, she adds that it was very endearing that a man who is dedicated to this job turned him into an actor, “he did it relatively well, it is to be admired.”
Another of the characters that could not be missing from this year’s parody is ‘El Chato’, a well-known resident of the town who appears in all the videos since the association has been recreating the Christmas ad. In addition, they say that “he is a well-known man in Sierra with a great humor that causes laughter in each of his appearances, this year we can see him at the end of the video. Enjoy doing this parody so it can’t be missing.
And if the Gordo plays in Sierra? From the association they assure that the most important thing is the illusion. And if it touches “there is much to do for the district itself.” The money will go to repairing roads, improving services, lighting, opening a bar, among many other actions. In addition, they highlight that they have a great heritage in the Cerro de la Raja that “is forgotten and we would like to give it visibility and value.” Finally, as ‘El Chato’ says, make that beach in Sierra so you don’t have to go to Benidorm.
It is a very small association, but at the same time a very large one that has made other districts mobilize. This is how the efforts of the neighbors are valued for the fight against depopulation and so that “these places are not forgotten”. For this reason, they hope that this December 22 “the Fat Man will finally touch them.”