Biography for
Álex de la Iglesia

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Mini Biography

A cult director, his work is reminiscent in tone and style to that of Guillermo del Toro. At one point, scheduled to shoot the Doom (based on the video game) movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger, but it fell through. His films have a kind of comic edge to them that is very similar to the early films of Peter Jackson. Unlike Jackson or Del Toro, though, his work has not yet reached a large enough audience here in the US. Day of the Beast (Día de la bestia, El (1995)) and Acción mutante (1993) have their own very strong but small followings, and Dance With the Devil (Perdita Durango (1997)) will go down in history as probably the weirdest Javier Bardem film ever made (it was released in the US only a few years before Before Night Falls (2000)).

Belongs to the "unofficial" new generation of Hispanic filmmakers which includes Guillermo del Toro (Mexican), Alejandro González Iñárritu (Mexican), Alfonso Cuarón (Mexican) and Robert Rodriguez (American).

Mini Biography

He was born in Bilbao in 1965. At ten he was drawing comics and he acknowledges Alex Raymond, Stan Lee and Vazquez as his spiritual fathers.

Wishing to further widen his horizons, he studied at Deusto University where, according to him, he spent most of the time at the bar and in the film society.

Determined to join the world of show business, he worked as a decorator for TV and was Art Director in Enrique Urbizu's film "Todo por la Pasta". From then on, things happened very quickly. The call of film direction knocked on his door.

His first and only short film as co-writer and director, 'Mirindas asesinas' (1991), won prizes at many festivals plus it served to convince Pedro Almodovar, through his producing company, El Deseo, to sponsor his first feature film, 'Acción Mutante' (1993) (Mutant Action).

This malicious science fiction comedy with a revolutionary message was awarded two prices at the Montreal Fantasia Film Festival and it also achieved three Spanish Academy Awards (Goya awards), turning the director into the most promising film maker of the year.

His second film, 'El Día de la Bestia' (1995) (The day of the Beast), won six Spanish Academy Awards (amongst them, Best Director). It also received prices at the Géradmar and Brussels festivals, and it obtained the unanimous praise of both the critics and the public at the Venice, Toronto and Sitges Festivals. And, it went on to become one of the season's top box office hits.

'Perdita Durango' (1997) (Dance with the devil) was his third feature film, the second to be produced by Andrés Vicente Gómez after the overwhelming success of 'El Día de la Bestia'.

'Muertos de Risa' (1999) (Dying of Laughter) and the accumulator of Goya prices 'La Comunidad' (2000) (Common Wealth) were a turning point in his meteoric career. From then on he became his own producer, beginning with '800 balas' (2002) (800 Bullets) through the Pánico Films company. He embarked upon this unprecedented basque-style western, shot in Almeria, starring an iconic Sancho Gracia.

'Crimen perfecto' (2004) (Ferpect Crime) is his last film to date. It is a return to the black humour that, for many critics, captures the essence of the best Álex de la Iglesia, a film maker who, at this point in his own story, is respected and admired worldwide and has the most committed fans in the film universe.

Trivia

He was a guest of Belgrade Film Festival - FEST 2005.

Personal Quotes

"I wouldn't want the kind of movies I do to become trendy. I've always hated trends and I would feel quite uncomfortable creating one."

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