The little pawn

Arturito Pomar, at the age of twelve, appeared on the covers of magazines in the 1940s as a chess prodigy. He became a popular figure in Spain during a time of hardship, and thanks to him, chess became so fashionable that thousands of Spaniards began to play it. The Francoist regime, eager to present a more favorable image of the dictatorship, did not hesitate to exploit the cultural and intellectual prestige brought by Pomar’s international fame. They took advantage of him by making him play matches and simultaneous exhibitions, using his childlike image for their own interests. In the collective memory, there is a belief that once he stopped being a child, he stopped playing and fell into obscurity. However, the reality is that Pomar continued to progress in chess long after he was no longer considered a prodigy.

As a young man, without government support, he traveled across the Americas for three years, winning tournaments and money as quickly as he spent it. Money meant nothing to him; he had become an eccentric man who only understood chess. Upon returning to Spain, he married and had seven children. To support his family, he worked as a civil servant at the postal service, but he never abandoned his one true passion: chess.

Despite his large family and his job, he continued to play around the world, reaching the peak of his career at the 1962 Stockholm Interzonal, the tournament preceding the World Championship. There, he competed alone against the best players in the world: the Soviet players and Bobby Fischer from the United States. He had reached the pinnacle of his career, but the superhuman effort of preparing his games with barely any sleep overwhelmed him and triggered schizophrenia.

Director: Joan Gamero
Screenwriter: Joan Gamero and Carmen Rodríguez
Producer: Albert Solé and Cesc Mulet
Executive Producers: Àngels Villar and Montse Rodríguez
Original Music: Marc Sastre

Year of Production: 2025
A production by: Minimal Films, La Perifèrica Produccions, La Xarxa de Comunicació Local and 3Cat.
With the participation of: RTVE and IB3
With the support of: ICEC and ICIB