The Spanish horror film Upiro has been shown at several festivals in 2026 and weaves a story recorded in the 18th century from Calasparra at the Region Murcia into a contemporary narrative. Festival programmes and film databases list it as a production explicitly drawing on local traditions in which church accounts of unusual deaths circulated. On 13 October 2026, industry notices confirmed its festival screenings and production year of 2026.
The film’s existence and its connection to Calasparra are evidenced by public programme notices from the Murcia City Council, entries in established film databases and the catalogue of the ICAA, which records the production for 2026. Programme notes describe Upiro as a psychological horror film that heightens the tension between faith, superstition and the emerging Enlightenment in a religious setting.
Announcements outline the historical background as a legend from a monastery in Calasparra. The accounts mention symptoms, deaths and church records; they refer to a Franciscan friar as well as nuns. The frequently cited description of it as the “first documented case of vampirism” on the Iberian Peninsula comes from secondary sources and festival texts. It does not reflect a verified scholarly edition of the relevant church records.
It is important to distinguish established facts from dramatisation: Upiro is an artistic adaptation, not a historical edition. References to “vampirism” are part of interpretations of early modern sources and the film’s artistic treatment, not the result of current medical diagnosis. Reliable reconstruction of the original sources would require published editions, church archives or peer-reviewed studies of the region’s church history; the available festival and catalogue information does not provide a full set of such primary-source or edition references.
For Murcia and Calasparra, the immediate relevance lies in the cultural and festival calendar: visibility in the Sombra Festival programme and regional series can boost interest in local history and cultural tourism. In addition, its presence in national catalogues and databases provides information about the production and its content without prejudging the historical truth of the underlying tradition. Forecasts of economic effects remain speculative and are not currently supported by reliable documentation.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).