Carlos Saura

Carlos Saura (Huesca, 1932) was brought up in Madrid and at the age of 17 he began taking photographs. He devoted himself to studying engineering, which he quickly abandoned to enter the Institute of Cinematographic Research and Experimentation. However, he never left behind his photographic camera, which has travelled with him during his long and brilliant career as a film director. His film career began with La caza (1956), a tale about the society in Spain under Franco's regime. Unable to accept a film that symbolised, according to the creator,&#171Spain's three monsters: perverted religiousness, repressed sexuality and an authoritarian spirit&#187, the films El jardín de las delicias (1972), Ana y los lobos (1972) y La prima Angélica (1973) where mutilated by Franco's censorship. After Franco's death, Saura abandoned political themes. In his flamenco trilogy, Bodas de sangre (1981), Carmen (1983) and El amor bujo (1986), he again elaborated classic stories that lead to a prosperous friendship with the dancer Antonio Gades and his company. Other films like Ay Carmela!; El Sur; El dorado; Deprisa, deprisa; Tango; Pajarico and Goya en Burdeos have re-affirmed him as a genius in the Europe cinema circuit.