The origins of Mexican cinema go way back to the 19th century, when people used the medium to document historical events, such as the Mexican Revolution. A bit later, between the 1930's and 1960's, Mexican cinema went through a "Golden Age", during which it dominated the Latin American film industry.
Over time, there have been many changes and a lot of challenges for the Mexican film industry. That's not entirely a thing of the past. However, some Mexican filmmakers have transcended the national landscape and made it big in Hollywood.
Today, we'll share the stories of five Mexican film directors that have helped change the way the world sees movies. Maybe watching their work can help you become fluent in Spanish!
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(Photo credit: SYFY WIRE)
The name of this director, producer, novelist and screenwriter might sound very familiar since his most recent film, "The Shape of Water", won the Academy Award for Best Picture this year.
Del Toro was born in Guadalajara, and he discovered his love for filmmaking when he was around 8 years old, creating short films about his different action figures and toys.
Guillermo studied at the Centro de Investigación y Estudios Cinematográficos (Center for Film Research and Studies) in his hometown. Growing up, he developed a special interest in makeup effects, an area in which he worked as a supervisor for almost a decade before becoming a director.
He made his feature debut in 1993 with "Cronos", a film both in Spanish and English in which he showed the viewers all of the themes and techniques that have become his trademarks. Even though the movie won the International Critics Week Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, it took him a few years to go back to the director's chair, from where he's watched over a wide variety of films, from comic-book adaptations to fantasy and horror.
"The Shape of Water", "Pan's Labyrinth", "Hellboy" and "Pacific Rim" are some of Del Toro's most well-known movies.
Born and raised in Mexico City, González Iñarritu left his hometown when he was a teenager and traveled around Europe for a couple of years. When he came back, he finished school and majored in Communications in one of Mexico's most prestigious private institutions. In 1984 he became a popular host at a top-rated radio station, where he worked for 5 years, interviewing singers and broadcasting during live concerts. Music has influenced Alejandro in many ways; in fact, he composed the score for six Mexican films during his years in the radio business.
Almost 10 years later, he directed his first film, Amores Perros, a harsh critique about Mexican society. The movie premiered at Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for "Best Foreign Film" at the Academy Awards.
Nowadays, González Iñárritu is known worldwide as a director, as well as a producer and screenwriter. In 2006, with "Babel", he became the first Mexican filmmaker to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director. Years later he would make history by winning the same award, two years in a row, for directing "Birdman" and "The Revenant".
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Just like González Iñarritu, this award-winning director was also born in Mexico City in 1961. Even though Cuarón always showed passion for filming and arts due to the creative environment he was raised in, he first studied Philosophy at UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico) and later he majored in filmmaking at the prestigious Centro Universitario de Estudios Cinematográficos.
Alfonso's first projects were on TV, first as a technician and then as an assistant director. He also co-wrote a few episodes of the show called "La Hora Marcada". After years of supporting someone else's vision, he started writing what would be his first film: "Solo Con Tu Pareja", an instant success and a winner at the Toronto Film Festival.
This catapulted Alfonso Cuarón into Hollywood at the beginning of the 90's. In 1995, he signed a contract with Warner Brothers and helmed "A Little Princess". Later, in 2001, he directed his next big success, "Y Tu Mamá También", starring Diego Luna and Gael Garcia.
From that film on, Cuarón's career started rising up, directing "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", "Children of Men" and "Gravity", which made him the first Mexican to win the Best Director Oscar, something Alejandro González Iñárritu and Guillermo del Toro would also achieve a couple of years later.
Did you know that these three award-winning directors have been friends for decades? In fact, they're known by many as "The Three Amigos" of cinema. They also founded a production company called Cha Cha Cha Films.
(Photo credit: Secretaria de Cultura, Morelos)
Born in Barcelona to a Mexican father and American mother, he is the youngest director in our list. Amat Escalante was raised in Guanajuato, Mexico, but moved back to Spain to study film and sound editing at the Center for Cinematographic Studies of Catalonia.
Although most of his work has been in short films and collaborations, his movie "Heli" was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival back in 2013. Even though he didn't win, he has received awards for his work in different Mexican festivals.
Writing and directing his most recent film, "La Región Salvaje" (The Untamed) in 2016 made him an award-winning director in many international festivals, including Venice.
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His name might not be as recognizable as the first three directors we talked about, but that doesn't mean that his work has not been remarkable.
Alfonso Arau not only directed films like "A Walk in the Clouds", he has also acted in Mexican and Hollywood movies like "Picking Up the Pieces" and "Coco". The website IMDb describes Arau's career as fruitful, since he has been participating for in movie and theater projects for more than 20 years, throughout which he's earned six Ariel Awards (the Mexican equivalent of the Academy Awards).
His most popular movie, "Como Agua Para Chocolate" (Like Water for Chocolate), is based on a novel written by Arau's ex-wife Laura Esquivel, one of the bestselling books in Mexico in the last 20 years. The adaptation picked up seven international awards in 1992 and 1993.
Over time, there have been many changes and a lot of challenges for the Mexican film industry. That's not entirely a thing of the past. However, some Mexican filmmakers have transcended the national landscape and made it big in Hollywood.
Today, we'll share the stories of five Mexican film directors that have helped change the way the world sees movies. Maybe watching their work can help you become fluent in Spanish!
director" border="0">
(Photo credit: SYFY WIRE)
Guillermo del Toro
The name of this director, producer, novelist and screenwriter might sound very familiar since his most recent film, "The Shape of Water", won the Academy Award for Best Picture this year.
Del Toro was born in Guadalajara, and he discovered his love for filmmaking when he was around 8 years old, creating short films about his different action figures and toys.
Guillermo studied at the Centro de Investigación y Estudios Cinematográficos (Center for Film Research and Studies) in his hometown. Growing up, he developed a special interest in makeup effects, an area in which he worked as a supervisor for almost a decade before becoming a director.
He made his feature debut in 1993 with "Cronos", a film both in Spanish and English in which he showed the viewers all of the themes and techniques that have become his trademarks. Even though the movie won the International Critics Week Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, it took him a few years to go back to the director's chair, from where he's watched over a wide variety of films, from comic-book adaptations to fantasy and horror.
"The Shape of Water", "Pan's Labyrinth", "Hellboy" and "Pacific Rim" are some of Del Toro's most well-known movies.
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Born and raised in Mexico City, González Iñarritu left his hometown when he was a teenager and traveled around Europe for a couple of years. When he came back, he finished school and majored in Communications in one of Mexico's most prestigious private institutions. In 1984 he became a popular host at a top-rated radio station, where he worked for 5 years, interviewing singers and broadcasting during live concerts. Music has influenced Alejandro in many ways; in fact, he composed the score for six Mexican films during his years in the radio business.
Almost 10 years later, he directed his first film, Amores Perros, a harsh critique about Mexican society. The movie premiered at Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for "Best Foreign Film" at the Academy Awards.
Nowadays, González Iñárritu is known worldwide as a director, as well as a producer and screenwriter. In 2006, with "Babel", he became the first Mexican filmmaker to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director. Years later he would make history by winning the same award, two years in a row, for directing "Birdman" and "The Revenant".
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Alfonso Cuarón
Just like González Iñarritu, this award-winning director was also born in Mexico City in 1961. Even though Cuarón always showed passion for filming and arts due to the creative environment he was raised in, he first studied Philosophy at UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico) and later he majored in filmmaking at the prestigious Centro Universitario de Estudios Cinematográficos.
Alfonso's first projects were on TV, first as a technician and then as an assistant director. He also co-wrote a few episodes of the show called "La Hora Marcada". After years of supporting someone else's vision, he started writing what would be his first film: "Solo Con Tu Pareja", an instant success and a winner at the Toronto Film Festival.
This catapulted Alfonso Cuarón into Hollywood at the beginning of the 90's. In 1995, he signed a contract with Warner Brothers and helmed "A Little Princess". Later, in 2001, he directed his next big success, "Y Tu Mamá También", starring Diego Luna and Gael Garcia.
From that film on, Cuarón's career started rising up, directing "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", "Children of Men" and "Gravity", which made him the first Mexican to win the Best Director Oscar, something Alejandro González Iñárritu and Guillermo del Toro would also achieve a couple of years later.
Did you know that these three award-winning directors have been friends for decades? In fact, they're known by many as "The Three Amigos" of cinema. They also founded a production company called Cha Cha Cha Films.
(Photo credit: Secretaria de Cultura, Morelos)
Amat Escalante
Born in Barcelona to a Mexican father and American mother, he is the youngest director in our list. Amat Escalante was raised in Guanajuato, Mexico, but moved back to Spain to study film and sound editing at the Center for Cinematographic Studies of Catalonia.
Although most of his work has been in short films and collaborations, his movie "Heli" was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival back in 2013. Even though he didn't win, he has received awards for his work in different Mexican festivals.
Writing and directing his most recent film, "La Región Salvaje" (The Untamed) in 2016 made him an award-winning director in many international festivals, including Venice.
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Alfonso Arau
His name might not be as recognizable as the first three directors we talked about, but that doesn't mean that his work has not been remarkable.
Alfonso Arau not only directed films like "A Walk in the Clouds", he has also acted in Mexican and Hollywood movies like "Picking Up the Pieces" and "Coco". The website IMDb describes Arau's career as fruitful, since he has been participating for in movie and theater projects for more than 20 years, throughout which he's earned six Ariel Awards (the Mexican equivalent of the Academy Awards).
His most popular movie, "Como Agua Para Chocolate" (Like Water for Chocolate), is based on a novel written by Arau's ex-wife Laura Esquivel, one of the bestselling books in Mexico in the last 20 years. The adaptation picked up seven international awards in 1992 and 1993.
