Barcelona’s housing shortage and the challenges of single motherhood form the focus in “I Always Sometimes,” an bold new drama series that debuted on Movistar Plus+ on 23 April before making its international debut at Canneseries on 25 April. Created by writers Marta Bassols and Marta Loza, the six-episode half-hour series follows Laura, a woman navigating motherhood whilst working to obtain affordable 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 exploration of contemporary financial struggle and the emotional turbulence of young adulthood, grounding its narrative in the very real challenges facing lone parents across present-day Spain.
A Tale of Love That Starts At the Point Where Blissful Finales Diminish
The series opens with a whirlwind romance that feels destined for success. Laura, a events coordinator from Berlin, meets Rubén, a Barcelona bar owner, at the city’s renowned Sonar music festival. Their bond is immediate and intoxicating—they spend nights strolling through Barcelona, quoting Rilke to one another, going to raves on Montjuïc, and sharing intimate experiences in chic venues. When Rubén suggests that Laura relocate to live with him, the outlook seems bright and full of possibility, the kind of storybook start that audiences recognise from countless romantic narratives.
However, the narrative takes a sharp and sobering turn in the second episode. Laura learns that 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 battling alcohol dependency and unreliability. Forced to abandon her new life, Laura retreats to her parents’ home, where she finds herself caught between appreciation for their backing and stifled by their closeness. The dream has collapsed, leaving her to confront the difficult truths of single parenthood alone.
- Laura meets Rubén at Sonar festival in Barcelona
- She falls pregnant a week after their initial encounter
- Rubén turns out to be an unreliable and alcohol-dependent partner
- Laura returns to her parents’ home with baby boy Mario
Gentrified Barcelona as Character and Crucible
As Laura attempts to create a future for herself and Mario, Barcelona itself evolves into considerably more than a mere backdrop—it emerges as a character both alluring and unwelcoming, beautiful yet fundamentally hostile to those without substantial means. The city that previously enchanted her with its bohemian charm and artistic energy now exposes its reality: a metropolis transformed by aggressive gentrification, where decent housing has become a commodity out of reach for ordinary working people. Every episode name cites a distinct area where Laura and Mario occupy, a constant reminder that home stays perpetually beyond reach. The series portrays the bitter irony of a city flooded with riches and tourism, yet utterly indifferent to the situation of those unable to afford fundamental housing.
The economic realities Laura encounters are not overstated and entirely typical—they represent the lived experience of numerous lone parents across contemporary Spain and Europe. “Rent here is absolutely ridiculous,” she complains to an creative acquaintance. “It’s impossible to locate anything suitable.” His optimistic response—”Nothing’s impossible”—is greeted by her weary, vehement reply: “Flats in Barcelona are.” This conversation captures the series’ unflinching treatment to financial difficulty, refusing to soften the blow or provide quick reassurance. Barcelona transforms into not a destination of possibility but a gauntlet through which Laura must navigate, juggling her desperate need to earn money with her desire to stay involved for her small child.
The Urban Area’s Paradoxes
Barcelona’s metamorphosis serves as a reflection of larger-scale European urban crises, where historic neighbourhoods are progressively reshaped into havens for high-spending travellers and foreign investment firms. The city that once delivered creative vitality and genuine community life now displaces financially the residents who create its character and spirit. Laura’s situation is framed by this backdrop of contradiction—immersed in prosperity yet unable to access it, residing in one of Europe’s most desirable cities whilst confronting housing insecurity. The series resists sentimentalising this contradiction, instead depicting it as the grinding, exhausting reality it genuinely constitutes for people experiencing gentrification’s aftermath.
What makes “I Always Sometimes” especially compelling is its grounding in distinctive, familiar Barcelona settings that have themselves turned into emblems of the city’s evolving nature. Each episode’s setting—from artist squats to makeshift solutions with sympathetic friends—maps the terrain of struggle, demonstrating the city’s most at-risk residents are pushed to its margins and forgotten corners. The contrast between Barcelona’s sparkling exterior and Laura’s precarious existence highlights the series’ main message: that modern cities have grown progressively unwelcoming to everyday individuals, irrespective of their ability, commitment, or perseverance.
Writing Episodes Like Short Stories
The structural brilliance of “I Always Sometimes” resides in its method of handling serialised narrative, with each of the six instalments functioning as a self-contained narrative whilst advancing Laura’s broader arc. Spanning 22 and 35 minutes, the episodes reject conventional TV rhythm in preference for a literary approach, resembling short stories that explore different facets of the challenges of single parenthood and urban instability. This structure allows filmmakers Marta Bassols and Marta Loza to craft scenes between characters with subtlety and complexity, moving beyond the superficial resolutions that often plague modern TV drama. Rather than rushing towards plot mechanics, the series lingers on the emotional weight of Laura’s everyday life.
Each episode’s title draws from a different location where Laura and Mario stay for a time, transforming geography into storytelling framework. This locational structure becomes a compelling narrative tool, tracing Laura’s social descent through Barcelona’s landscape whilst simultaneously revealing the unseen connections of collective support and struggle that maintain those on the margins of society. The close focus of these episodes—neither wide-ranging nor rushed—enables genuine exploration of how financial stress infiltrates every aspect of existence, from intimate partnerships to parental impulse. Bassols and Loza’s first written work demonstrates a developed comprehension of how structure and substance can intertwine to create something deeply resonant.
- Episodes named for Laura’s transient residences chart her unstable living circumstances
- Running times vary between 22 and 35 minutes for adaptable storytelling rhythm
- Episodic format enables more profound character exploration and emotional impact
- Geographic locations function as metaphors for economic displacement and social invisibility
- Series balances personal scenes with wider commentary of modern city living
Visual Storytelling Across Six Different Worlds
The aesthetic approach of “I Always Sometimes” anchors its narrative in the specific textures of Barcelona’s overlooked spaces. Rather than highlighting the city’s iconic landmarks, the camera work captures cramped flats, creative communes, and the unglamorous streets where survival takes precedence over sightseeing. This deliberate aesthetic choice transforms Barcelona from tourist destination into a protagonist—one that is at once alluring yet unwelcoming, inviting yet rejecting. The cinematography captures the sense of confinement of communal spaces and the exhaustion etched into Laura’s face as she manages motherhood lacking proper assistance. Every frame reinforces the series’ central tension between the urban potential and its failure to fulfil.
Shot across diverse Barcelona locations, the series leverages its visual style to chronicle Laura’s emotional and material circumstances. Brighter, more open spaces occasionally punctuate shadowy, restricted spaces, conveying moments of possibility amid persistent despair. The set design meticulously constructs each makeshift residence, rendering them realistic and worn rather than merely functional sets. This commitment to visual specificity applies to costume and styling, where Laura’s visual presentation evolves to reflect her changing circumstances—a small but profound storytelling choice that illuminates how material hardship transforms identity. The series establishes that intimate dramas about common difficulties can reach cinematic depth without sacrificing emotional authenticity.
Redefining Motherhood on Screen
“I Always Sometimes” emerges at a point when television narratives about motherhood have become sanitised and sentimentalised. The show removes such idealistic portrayals, depicting single parenthood as a relentless economic hardship rather than a wellspring of motivational triumph. Laura’s journey refuses the standard trajectory of adversity-to-victory, instead offering a honest, unsparing depiction of what it means to raise a child whilst struggling to pay for housing or food. The drama acknowledges that affection for one’s child sits beside real frustration towards the structures that leave parenting so precarious. By focusing on Laura’s weariness and exasperation combined with her warmth, the drama offers a truer depiction of maternal experience—one that viewers infrequently find in conventional TV.
The collaborative effort between Bassols and Loza lends distinctive authenticity to this depiction. Both creators grasp the particular nuances of Barcelona’s current challenges, having operated within the city’s creative environment. Their writing avoids the pitfalls of condescending portrayals of poverty, rather granting Laura agency and complexity within limited conditions. The series respects its protagonist’s intelligence and determination without demanding she perform gratitude for basic survival. This nuanced approach extends to secondary figures, who stand as complete, developed people rather than simple hindrances or helpers. By treating single motherhood as worthy of serious dramatic attention, “I Always Sometimes” challenges the hierarchies that have historically favoured certain stories over others in television across Europe.
Cost and Legitimacy
The dialogue brims with specificity when Laura discusses Barcelona’s rental market, transforming economic frustration into compelling character moments. Her cutting comment—”Nothing’s impossible. Flats in Barcelona are”—captures the series’ resistance to false hope or empty reassurance. Rather than abstracting poverty, the writing anchors it to concrete details: the precise amount of rent demanded, the landlords who take advantage of need, the precarious gig work that barely covers childcare costs. This focus on economic realism sets apart “I Always Sometimes” from narratives that treat hardship as symbolic or morally uplifting. The series grasps that financial precarity influences every choice in Laura’s day.
Authenticity extends 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 formal decision transforms geography into narrative structure, making displacement apparent and inescapable. The episode titles function as a countdown of sorts—each new location representing another provisional arrangement, another near-miss, another reminder of systemic failure. This approach distinguishes the series from traditional television drama, which typically relegates economic concerns to emotional or romantic plotlines. “I Always Sometimes” insists that survival itself constitutes the dramatic core, that the hunt for affordable housing is as compelling as any traditional narrative conflict.
- Episode titles illustrate Laura’s temporary accommodation circumstances throughout Barcelona
- Housing expenses and financial obstacles create the dramatic backbone of character progression
- Writing prioritises tangible lived experience over sentimental narratives about motherhood