Patria

Serial is an adaptation of the novel Patria by Fernando Aramburu, which tells the story of the impact of ETA terrorism on two close-knit Basque families. The series was created and written by Aitor Gabilondo.

The production was realized by Alea Media studio for HBO Europe with the participation of HBO Latin America.

The premiere was originally scheduled for May 17, 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, postproduction could not be completed on time, forcing the creators to postpone the premiere by six months.

The series was supposed to be presented at the Séries Mania festival in France in March 2020, but its full screening ultimately took place at the San Sebastián Film Festival on September 18, 2020, just before the streaming premiere.

The series debuted simultaneously in 21 countries on September 27, 2020, and two days later, on September 29, the first episode was broadcast by the public Spanish channel Telecinco for promotional purposes.

A few days before the premiere, HBO published a poster juxtaposing a photograph of a Basque independence activist tortured by police with a crying main character, which caused controversy because many viewers interpreted it as equating ETA with victims of terrorism, inconsistent with the novel's message. Fernando Aramburu himself publicly commented on the matter, considering the poster to be ill-judged, although he noted that it does not reflect the tone of the series.

The series is accompanied by the documentary 'La noche de Patria', in which ETA victims, GAL victims and a former ETA member discuss how terrorism affected their lives.

The production received the Premio Liber 2021 for best audiovisual adaptation of a literary work.