Barcelona’s accommodation crisis and the struggles of single motherhood take centre stage in “I Always Sometimes,” an ambitious new drama series that debuted on Movistar Plus+ on 23 April before premiering internationally at Canneseries on 25 April. Created by writers Marta Bassols and Marta Loza, the six-part half-hour series follows Laura, a woman managing motherhood whilst working to obtain budget-friendly housing in a rapidly gentrifying city. Produced by renowned directors Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo—known for “Veneno” and “La Mesías”—the drama presents a tender yet honest examination of modern economic hardship and the emotional turbulence of early adult life, grounding its narrative in the genuine challenges facing single mothers and fathers across present-day Spain.
A Love Story That Begins Where Joyful Conclusions Wane
The series begins with a passionate affair that feels destined for success. Laura, a festival organiser from Berlin, encounters Rubén, a Barcelona bar proprietor, at the city’s prestigious Sonar music festival. Their connection is immediate and intoxicating—they pass evenings wandering Barcelona’s streets, quoting Rilke to one another, attending raves on Montjuïc, and enjoying intimate moments in chic venues. When Rubén proposes that Laura move in with him, the outlook seems promising and brimming with potential, the kind of storybook start that viewers recognise from countless romantic narratives.
However, the narrative undergoes a dramatic and troubling turn in the second episode. Laura discovers she is pregnant just one week after meeting Rubén, a development that drastically changes everything. What initially seemed like a romantic partnership quickly unravels when Rubén’s true nature emerges—a man contending with substance abuse and unreliability. Forced to abandon her new life, Laura retreats to her parents’ home, where she finds herself trapped between gratitude for their support and suffocation from their presence. The dream has crumbled, leaving her to grapple with the stark realities of single parenthood alone.
- Laura meets Rubén at Sonar festival in Barcelona
- She falls pregnant a week after their initial encounter
- Rubén proves to be an unreliable and alcohol-dependent partner
- Laura goes back to her parents’ home with infant son Mario
Barcelona’s Gentrification as Character and Crucible
As Laura attempts to create a existence for both herself and Mario, Barcelona itself transforms into far more than a basic backdrop—it functions as a character both alluring and unwelcoming, beautiful yet fundamentally hostile to those lacking significant financial resources. The city that once captivated her with its bohemian charm and artistic energy now reveals its true face: a urban centre altered by relentless gentrification, where decent housing has become a commodity out of reach for regular working people. Every episode name cites a separate neighbourhood where Laura and Mario occupy, a constant reminder that home remains forever out of reach. The series illustrates the harsh irony of a city flooded with affluence and tourist activity, yet utterly indifferent to the circumstances of those unable to pay for basic shelter.
The economic realities Laura faces are not overstated and entirely typical—they reflect the lived experience of countless single parents across contemporary Spain and Europe. “Rent here is absolutely ridiculous,” she laments to an creative acquaintance. “It’s impossible to locate anything suitable.” His optimistic response—”Nothing’s impossible”—is met with her exhausted, forceful reply: “Flats in Barcelona are.” This exchange encapsulates the series’ unflinching approach to financial difficulty, refusing to soften the blow or provide quick reassurance. Barcelona transforms into not a place of opportunity but a gauntlet through which Laura must contend, juggling her urgent requirement to generate income with her wish to stay involved for her young son.
The Urban Area’s Paradoxes
Barcelona’s evolution serves as a reflection of wider European urban crises, where traditional districts are progressively reshaped into havens for wealthy tourists and foreign investment firms. The city that once offered cultural vibrancy and genuine community life now prices out the individuals who shape its essence and spirit. Laura’s plight is framed by this backdrop of contradiction—surrounded by prosperity yet locked out of it, based in one of Europe’s most sought-after urban centres whilst experiencing homelessness. The series declines to idealise this contradiction, instead depicting it as the relentless, draining truth it truly is for individuals affected by gentrification’s aftermath.
What makes “I Always Sometimes” distinctly powerful is its foundation within particular, identifiable Barcelona settings that have themselves turned into emblems of the city’s shifting character. Each scene location—from artist squats to makeshift solutions with understanding acquaintances—maps the terrain of struggle, demonstrating the city’s most disadvantaged people are pushed to its edges and hidden areas. The distinction between Barcelona’s glittering facade and Laura’s unstable circumstances underscores the series’ main message: that modern cities have become increasingly inhospitable to ordinary people, regardless of their ability, commitment, or perseverance.
Writing Episodes Like Short Stories
The structural brilliance of “I Always Sometimes” resides in its approach to serialised narrative, with each of the six instalments serving as a self-contained narrative whilst advancing Laura’s broader arc. Running between 22 and 35 minutes, the episodes reject traditional television pacing in favour of a more literary sensibility, akin to short stories that examine different facets of single motherhood and urban precarity. This format allows filmmakers Marta Bassols and Marta Loza to develop character moments with nuance and depth, moving beyond the surface-level conclusions that often plague modern TV drama. Rather than hurrying along plot mechanics, the series dwells upon the emotional texture of Laura’s everyday life.
Each episode’s title draws from a different setting where Laura and Mario stay for a time, transforming geography into narrative structure. This spatial organisation becomes a powerful storytelling device, tracing Laura’s economic decline through Barcelona’s landscape whilst concurrently revealing the concealed systems of collective support and struggle that support those on society’s margins. The intimate scale of these episodes—neither expansive nor hurried—permits genuine exploration of how financial stress permeates every dimension of life, from romantic relationships to parental impulse. Bassols and Loza’s inaugural screenplay reveals a mature understanding of how form and content can merge together to create something genuinely affecting.
- Episodes titled after Laura’s transient residences document her unstable living circumstances
- Running times range from 22 and 35 minutes for adaptable storytelling rhythm
- Short story structure allows deeper character development and emotional impact
- Geographic locations become metaphors for economic displacement and social marginalisation
- Series combines personal scenes with wider commentary of contemporary urban life
Visual Storytelling Across Six Worlds
The aesthetic approach of “I Always Sometimes” grounds its narrative in the distinct character of Barcelona’s forgotten corners. Rather than showcasing the city’s iconic landmarks, cinematography captures cramped flats, artist squats, and the ordinary neighbourhoods where survival takes precedence over sightseeing. This deliberate aesthetic choice reimagines Barcelona from holiday hotspot into a character itself—one that is simultaneously beautiful and hostile, welcoming and exclusionary. The cinematography conveys the claustrophobia of shared living arrangements and the weariness visible in Laura’s face as she manages motherhood lacking proper assistance. Every frame reinforces the series’ central tension between the urban potential and its refusal to deliver.
Shot across multiple Barcelona venues, the series uses its visual palette to trace Laura’s emotional and material circumstances. Brighter, more open spaces periodically interrupt shadowy, restricted spaces, conveying moments of possibility amid persistent despair. The visual construction meticulously constructs each temporary home, rendering them lived-in and authentic rather than basic utilitarian designs. This commitment to visual specificity extends to costume and styling, where Laura’s appearance subtly shifts to reflect her changing circumstances—a modest yet significant creative choice that demonstrates how economic hardship reshapes identity. The series proves that personal narratives about everyday hardships can achieve cinematic richness without sacrificing emotional authenticity.
Redefining Motherhood on Screen
“I Always Sometimes” arrives at a point when television narratives about motherhood are increasingly sanitized and sentimentalized. The show discards such romantic notions, presenting single parenthood as a harsh financial struggle rather than a cause for uplifting inspiration. Laura’s story refuses the conventional arc of hardship-to-success, instead delivering a candid, unvarnished picture of what it entails to care for a child whilst barely able to afford housing or food. The show acknowledges that affection for one’s child exists alongside authentic anger towards the systems that render parenthood so unstable. By focusing on Laura’s exhaustion and frustration combined with her compassion, the show models a truer depiction of the maternal experience—one that audiences infrequently find in mainstream television.
The collaborative effort between Bassols and Loza brings particular authenticity to this portrayal. Both creators understand the specificity of Barcelona’s current challenges, having worked within the city’s cultural landscape. Their writing steers clear of the pitfalls of patronising depictions of poverty, instead allowing Laura agency and complexity within limited conditions. The series respects its protagonist’s intelligence and determination without demanding she display appreciation for fundamental necessities. This nuanced approach extends to secondary figures, who emerge as fully realised individuals rather than simple hindrances or helpers. By approaching single motherhood as deserving serious artistic focus, “I Always Sometimes” challenges the power structures that have long privileged certain stories over others in television across Europe.
Economics and Authenticity
The dialogue brims with specificity when Laura explores Barcelona’s lettings sector, converting economic frustration into compelling character moments. Her sharp remark—”Nothing’s impossible. Flats in Barcelona are”—encapsulates the series’ resistance to false hope or hollow encouragement. Rather than treating poverty abstractly, the writing roots it in concrete details: the precise amount of rent demanded, the landlords who exploit desperation, the precarious gig work that hardly pays for childcare costs. This commitment to economic realism distinguishes “I Always Sometimes” from accounts that frame hardship as figurative or transcendent. The series grasps that financial precarity influences every choice in Laura’s day.
Authenticity goes beyond dialogue into the series’ structural choices. By titling remaining episodes after the locations where Laura temporarily squats, the creators prioritise housing as the central preoccupation of her life. This structural choice transforms geography into narrative structure, making displacement visible and inescapable. The episode titles serve as a countdown of sorts—each new location representing another temporary solution, another close call, another indication of systemic failure. This approach distinguishes the series from traditional television drama, which typically subordinates economic concerns to emotional or romantic plotlines. “I Always Sometimes” insists that survival itself constitutes the narrative heart, that the hunt for affordable housing is as compelling as any traditional narrative conflict.
- Episode titles capture Laura’s temporary accommodation circumstances throughout Barcelona
- Rental costs and economic barriers constitute the dramatic backbone of character development
- Writing privileges tangible lived experience over emotional accounts about motherhood