Netflix has released Sigo siendo la misma (I’m Still the Same), a feature-length documentary offering the first unfiltered testimony from María del Mar Cuena Seisdedos, the artist known as Yurena. Directed by Marc Pujolar and produced by Suma Content’s Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, the film serves as the factual companion to Superestar, the stylized six-part series from creator Nacho Vigalondo that dramatizes the same events. While the series presents a “magical” interpretation of a chaotic era, the documentary provides the unvarnished truth, allowing Yurena to reclaim a narrative that was violently wrested from her two decades ago.
The ‘Tamarismo’ Spectacle
The documentary dissects the early 2000s cultural explosion known as “Tamarismo,” a phenomenon that was viral before the term existed. It revisits the troupe of personalities who orbited Yurena (then known as Tamara), including songwriter Leonardo Dantés, vidente Paco Porras, entertainer Tony Genil, and media figures Loly Álvarez and Arlequín. Through archival footage, the film recalls the surreal moments that defined late-night television, from Porras throwing vegetables at the singer on set to the bizarre inauguration of a fruit stand in Vallecas. The film examines the central paradox of Yurena’s career: while the media relentlessly branded her and her circle as “frikis,” she achieved unprecedented commercial success. Her single “No cambié” dominated the Spanish charts for nine consecutive weeks, earning a Gold record and outselling international superstars like Madonna and the Backstreet Boys. Her debut album, Superestar, was a sophisticated synth-pop work featuring contributions from respected musicians such as Carlos Berlanga and Nacho Canut, revealing an artistic depth that was deliberately ignored by the media spectacle.
The Price of Fame: A Media Lynching
The documentary’s core is a stark examination of the dark side of this fame, an experience Yurena describes as a years-long “media lynching”. The film presents a raw chronicle of the public hostility she endured, including being physically assaulted and pelted with eggs in her hometown of Santurce and facing public verbal abuse from other celebrities. The narrative does not shy away from the profound psychological toll of this sustained campaign of ridicule and slander, which included false accusations of being a prostitute or a man. Yurena speaks candidly about being so psychologically destroyed that she attempted suicide on two separate occasions, stating she “just wanted to rest” from the relentless abuse. The documentary frames these events as the product of a media environment whose cruelty would be viewed very differently today, forcing a cultural reckoning with the human cost of public spectacle.
A Mother’s Unbreakable Defense
Central to Yurena’s story is her mother, Margarita Seisdedos, who passed away in 2019 after a long illness. The film portrays her not as a side character but as the co-protagonist of Yurena’s life—a “madre coraje” (courageous mother) who left her life behind to move to Madrid and defend her daughter against all comers. Margarita became a media icon in her own right, famous for her combative television appearances and her handbag, which legend claimed contained a brick for protection. The film explores how this public image, though often mocked, was the external armor for a fierce and unconditional maternal love. Yurena reveals that the pain she felt over the public attacks on her mother was even greater than that from the attacks on herself. The documentary stands as a posthumous tribute, a project Yurena believes is a “gift from heaven” sent by her mother as a form of cosmic justice.
The Survivor’s Reinvention
The film chronicles the aftermath of Yurena’s initial fame, including the lawsuit from bolero singer Tamara Macarena Valcárcel Serrano that forced her to abandon her stage name. After a brief, unsuccessful switch to “Ámbar,” she adopted Yurena and made a conscious decision to disappear. For nearly five years, she ran her own nightclub in Madrid, turning down numerous offers for interviews and reality shows. Her return in 2012 marked a complete reinvention. Taking full control of her career, she self-funded and self-produced a new musical direction focused on dance and EDM, releasing English-language singles like “Go” and the viral hit “Around the World”. This new phase brought unexpected international success, including tours in China, and cemented her status as a permanent fixture in Spanish pop culture through appearances on reality shows like Hotel Glam, Supervivientes, and GH Dúo.
Vindication and Legacy
Sigo siendo la misma is a moving and essential portrait that functions as a definitive act of reclamation. It humanizes the people behind the television caricatures and tells a powerful story of personal resilience in the face of overwhelming public cruelty. The film reframes Yurena not as a media spectacle or a “broken toy,” but as a survivor who endured an ordeal that would have destroyed most, only to re-emerge stronger and, finally, in control of her own story. By giving her the last word, the documentary solidifies her legacy as a superstar who, against all odds, is still standing.
The documentary Sigo siendo la misma, along with the series Superestar, premiered on Netflix worldwide on July 18, 2025.
