Barcelona’s accommodation crisis and the struggles of single motherhood form the focus in “I Always Sometimes,” an ambitious new drama series that launched 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 navigating motherhood whilst attempting to secure budget-friendly housing in a increasingly gentrified city. Produced by renowned directors Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo—known for “Veneno” and “La Mesías”—the drama presents a poignant yet candid study of modern economic hardship and the emotional turbulence of young adulthood, anchoring its story in the genuine challenges facing lone parents across present-day Spain.
A Tale of Love That Starts Where Joyful Conclusions Diminish
The series begins with a whirlwind romance that feels destined for success. Laura, a festival organiser from Berlin, encounters Rubén, a Barcelona bar proprietor, at the city’s renowned Sonar music festival. Their connection is immediate and intoxicating—they spend nights wandering Barcelona’s streets, quoting Rilke to one another, attending raves on Montjuïc, and enjoying intimate moments in stylish locations. When Rubén suggests that Laura move in with him, the future appears 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 fundamentally alters everything. What initially seemed like a romantic partnership quickly deteriorates when Rubén’s true nature emerges—a man battling alcohol dependency and unreliability. Forced to leave her fresh start, Laura retreats to her family home, where she finds herself trapped between gratitude for their support and suffocation from their presence. The dream has collapsed, leaving her to confront the difficult truths of single parenthood alone.
- Laura encounters Rubén at Sonar music festival in Barcelona
- She falls pregnant one week after their initial encounter
- Rubén proves to be an unreliable, alcohol-dependent partner
- Laura goes back to her parents’ home with baby boy Mario
Barcelona’s Gentrification as Backdrop and Catalyst
As Laura attempts to create a life for herself and Mario, Barcelona itself evolves into considerably more than a simple setting—it develops into a character both captivating and antagonistic, aesthetically stunning yet deeply hostile to those without considerable wealth. The city that once captivated her with its bohemian character and creative vitality now reveals its true face: a urban centre altered by aggressive gentrification, where affordable housing has become a commodity out of reach for ordinary working people. Every episode title references a distinct area where Laura and Mario squat, 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 wholly unconcerned with the situation of those unable to afford basic shelter.
The financial circumstances Laura faces are neither exaggerated nor exceptional—they represent the day-to-day reality of countless single parents across modern-day Spain and Europe. “Rent here is absolutely ridiculous,” she complains to an artist friend. “It’s virtually impossible to locate anything suitable.” His hopeful reply—”Nothing’s impossible”—is met with her exhausted, forceful reply: “Flats in Barcelona are.” This conversation encapsulates the series’ unflinching approach to economic hardship, declining to soften the blow or offer easy consolation. Barcelona becomes not a destination of possibility but a gauntlet through which Laura must navigate, balancing her urgent requirement to earn money with her desire to remain present for her young son.
The City’s Contradictions
Barcelona’s metamorphosis serves as a reflection of broader European metropolitan problems, where established communities are systematically transformed into destinations for wealthy tourists and foreign investment firms. The city that once offered artistic energy and genuine community life now excludes through cost the individuals who create its character and soul. Laura’s plight is set against this setting of conflict—living amid wealth yet locked out of it, based in one of Europe’s most sought-after urban centres whilst confronting housing insecurity. The series declines to idealise this conflict, instead depicting it as the harsh, demanding reality it truly is for those caught in gentrification’s aftermath.
What makes “I Always Sometimes” especially compelling is its grounding in particular, identifiable Barcelona settings that have themselves evolved as representations of the city’s shifting character. Each scene location—from artist squats to informal living situations with supportive companions—maps the terrain of struggle, showing how the city’s most disadvantaged people are driven to its margins and forgotten corners. The contrast between Barcelona’s glittering facade and Laura’s precarious existence emphasises the series’ core premise: that modern cities have turned more hostile to ordinary people, regardless of their capability, dedication, or resolve.
Developing Episodes Like Short Stories
The structural brilliance of “I Always Sometimes” lies in its approach to episodic storytelling, with each of the six episodes functioning as a self-contained narrative whilst developing Laura’s overarching journey. Spanning 22 and 35 minutes, the episodes eschew conventional TV rhythm in preference for a literary approach, resembling short stories that examine different facets of the challenges of single parenthood and urban instability. This structure allows filmmakers Marta Bassols and Marta Loza to develop character moments with nuance and depth, moving beyond the surface-level conclusions that often plague contemporary television dramas. Rather than rushing towards narrative devices, the series lingers on the emotional weight of Laura’s everyday life.
Each episode’s title references a different location where Laura and Mario temporarily reside, turning geography into narrative form. This locational structure becomes a powerful storytelling device, mapping Laura’s downward mobility through Barcelona’s urban terrain whilst concurrently revealing the hidden networks of collective support and struggle that maintain those on society’s periphery. The personal scope of these episodes—neither sprawling nor hurried—enables genuine exploration of how financial stress seeps into every aspect of existence, from romantic relationships to maternal instinct. Bassols and Loza’s writing debut demonstrates a developed comprehension of how structure and substance can interconnect to generate something truly moving.
- Episodes titled after Laura’s temporary homes chart her precarious housing situation
- Running times vary between 22 and 35 minutes for flexible narrative pacing
- Short story structure enables deeper character development and emotional resonance
- Geographic locations function as metaphors for economic displacement and social invisibility
- Series combines intimate moments with wider commentary of modern city living
Visual Storytelling Across Six Different Worlds
The aesthetic approach of “I Always Sometimes” grounds its narrative in the distinct character of Barcelona’s forgotten corners. Rather than highlighting the city’s postcard vistas, the camera work captures tight apartments, artist squats, and the unglamorous streets where necessity prevails over sightseeing. This intentional visual strategy reimagines Barcelona from tourist destination into a character itself—one that is at once alluring yet unwelcoming, inviting yet rejecting. The camera work captures the claustrophobia of communal spaces and the exhaustion etched into Laura’s face as she manages motherhood without adequate support systems. Every frame reinforces the series’ central tension between the urban potential and its refusal to deliver.
Shot across various Barcelona settings, the series employs its visual language to trace Laura’s psychological and material conditions. Brighter, more open spaces intermittently break up darker, confined interiors, conveying moments of possibility amid persistent despair. The set design meticulously constructs each transient living space, making them feel lived-in and authentic rather than merely functional sets. This attention to visual detail extends to costume and styling, where Laura’s appearance subtly shifts to reflect her changing circumstances—a modest yet significant narrative decision that speaks to how financial struggle reshapes identity. The series demonstrates that personal narratives about ordinary struggles can achieve cinematic richness without sacrificing emotional authenticity.
Transforming Motherhood on Screen
“I Sometimes Always” comes at a moment when television narratives about motherhood have grown cleaned up and romanticised. The show strips away such idealistic portrayals, depicting single parenthood as a grinding economic reality rather than a source of inspirational uplift. Laura’s story rejects the traditional narrative of adversity-to-victory, instead providing a raw, unflinching portrait of what it means to bring up a child whilst struggling to pay for housing or food. The series recognises that parental love exists alongside real frustration towards the systems that make parenting so uncertain. By focusing on Laura’s weariness and exasperation alongside her compassion, the series offers a more honest representation of motherhood—one that viewers seldom see in mainstream television.
The collaborative effort between Bassols and Loza lends particular authenticity to this depiction. Both creators understand the particular nuances of Barcelona’s current challenges, having operated within the city’s cultural landscape. Their writing avoids the pitfalls of condescending portrayals of poverty, instead allowing Laura depth and autonomy within constrained circumstances. The series honours its protagonist’s intelligence and determination without demanding she perform gratitude for fundamental necessities. This layered treatment extends to supporting characters, who emerge as fully realised individuals rather than mere obstacles 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 European television.
Cost and Legitimacy
The dialogue brims with specificity when Laura explores Barcelona’s housing market, turning economic frustration into compelling character moments. Her bitter observation—”Nothing’s impossible. Flats in Barcelona are”—captures the series’ rejection of false hope or empty reassurance. Rather than generalising hardship, the writing anchors it to concrete details: the specific sum of rent demanded, the landlords who prey on vulnerability, the precarious gig work that hardly pays for childcare costs. This commitment to economic realism sets apart “I Always Sometimes” from accounts that frame hardship as figurative or transcendent. The series grasps that financial precarity determines every moment in Laura’s day.
Authenticity goes beyond dialogue into the series’ narrative framework. By titling remaining episodes after the places where Laura temporarily squats, the creators foreground housing as the central preoccupation of her life. This structural choice 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 indication of systemic failure. This approach distinguishes the series from conventional drama, which typically subordinates 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 reflect Laura’s temporary accommodation circumstances throughout Barcelona
- Housing expenses and financial obstacles form the central dramatic tension of character progression
- Writing privileges material reality over sentimental narratives about motherhood