Antonio Giménez-Rico
Born
Antonio Giménez-Rico Sáenz de Cabezón

(1938-11-20)20 November 1938
Burgos, Spain
Died12 February 2021(2021-02-12) (aged 82)[1]
Madrid, Spain
Occupation(s)Filmmaker, screenwriter

Antonio Giménez-Rico Sáenz de Cabezón (20 November 1938 – 12 February 2021) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter.

Early life and background

Antonio Giménez-Rico was born in Burgos, Spain. Son to a forestry engineer, he lived in various rural areas throughout his childhood.[2] The bucolic settings of his upbringing were a foundational piece of inspiration for his career in the movie industry.[3] However, for a time he thought that due to his rural childhood, a career in the film industry was not feasible. Even so, he had a self-described passion for film from a young age.[4] Prior to his start in the industry, he obtained a law degree from the University of Valladolid.[5] He also studied journalism and piano and worked on radio. Reflecting his affinity for cinema, he directed the film club at the university of Burgos and went to write movie criticism for the magazine, Cinestudio.[6]

Career

1963–1976: Early career and work on state television

Antonio Giménez-Rico began his career with an apprenticeship in film productions in 1963, working as an assistant director in films directed by Vittorio Cottafavi and Eugenio Martín, among others. In 1966 he made his debut as a director with the children's film, Mañana de Domingo, (Sunday Morning),[5] which was followed by a number of comedies like El Hueso (1968) and El Cronicón (1969). The failure of ¿Es usted mi padre? (Are you my father ?) (1970), led him to find employment on television.[6]

In 1970, Giménez-Rico began working extensively in state television for a period of years during which he directed the crime TV series Plinio (1972), about a character created by the writer Francisco García Pavón.[5] He also directed episodes for Crónicas de un pueblo (1974-1975), Cuentos y leyendas (1974-1975), and Los libros (1974-1976) during his time with state television.[2]

1976–2008: Film breakthrough and established career

He returned to feature films in 1976 with Retrato de Familia (Family Portrait), an adaptation of Miguel Delibes novel, Mi idolatrado hijo Sisi (My Beloved Son Sisi), dealing with members of a provincial family during the civil war; the film is widely considered as Giménez-Rico's best work. It enabled him to make Al fin solos pero... (At last alone, but...) (1977), which critics and audiences found disappointing. The little success he achieved with his next film Del Amor y de la muerte (1977) made him come back to work on television. He later made the highly acclaimed documentary film Vestida de Azul (Dressed in Blue) (1983), which combines a series of interviews with transsexuals with dramatized fictional scenes.

Returning to television, Giménez-Rico directed the series Página de Sucesos (1985). This was followed two years later by El disputado voto del señor Cayo (The disputed Vote for Mr Cayo) (1986), which dealt with life in a Castillian village during the post Franco election of 1977, and another film adapted from a novel by Miguel Delibes. His following films failed to achieve critical or commercial success like his 1987 film Jarrapellejos,[6] which was entered into the 38th Berlin International Film Festival.[7]

Giménez-Rico briefly served as the President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Cinematográficas) between 1988 and 1992. He also regularly appeared on the Spanish talk show ¡Que grande es el cine!.[8] During this time, he continued to work on films. He made the anti militaristic comedy Soldadito Español (Spanish Soldier boy) (1988), which he co-scripted with Rafael Azcona,[5] Cuatro Estaciones; (Four Seasons) (1991) and Tres Palabras (Three Words) (1993). These films failed to impress critics or audiences.[5][6] In 1999 he was a member of the jury at the 21st Moscow International Film Festival.[9]

His last project was a historical drama set in the city of Burgos during the Spanish Civil War. It's based on Óscar Esquivias' novel Inquietud en el Paraíso (2005) (Restlessness in Paradise).[10]

Dressed in Blue (Vestida de azul)

Vestida de azul (1983) is a docu-fiction piece that was written and directed by Antonio Giménez-Rico. The film presents audiences with unprecedentedly candid access to six transsexual women who worked in the illicit sex industry during Spain's transition to democracy (some of the women also worked as strip tease performers). Importantly, this piece is distinct from Giménez-Rico's other works, which were generally drama/comedies.[11] The piece was also one of the first films to give voice to the transgender community in Spain.[12] Its documentary style takes particular focus on the day-to-day lives of its subjects, while also tying in commentary surrounding class dynamics, gender roles, religion and sexuality.[13]

Death

Giménez-Rico died from COVID-19 on 12 February 2021, at the age of 82.[14]

Filmography

Year Film Credited as Notes Ref.
Director Producer Writer
1966 Mañana de Domingo Yes No No [15]
1967 El hueso Yes No Yes [16]
1970 El cronicón Yes No Yes [17]
1971 ¿Es usted mi padre? Yes No Yes [18]
1972 Plinio Yes Spanish television, 13 episodes [19]
1974-1975 Crónicas de un pueblo Yes Spanish television, 33 episodes [20]
1974-1975 Cuentos y leyendas Yes Spanish television, 2 episodes [21]
1974-1976 Los libros Yes Spanish television, 2 episodes [22]
1976 Retrato de familia Yes No Yes Based on the novel Mi idolatrado hijo Sisí by Miguel Delibes [23]
1977 Al fin solos, pero... Yes No No [24]
1977 Del amor y de la muerte Yes No No [25]
1980 La balada del pequeño soñador Yes No No Short film [26]
1982 Rasgos Yes Spanish television, talk show [27]
1982 La máscara negra Yes Spanish television, 4 episodes [28]
1983 Dressed in Blue (Vestida de azul) Yes No Yes [29]
1985-1986 Página de sucesos Yes TV series, 13 episodes [30]
1986 El disputado voto del Sr. Cayo Yes No Yes [31]
1988 Jarrapellejos Yes No Yes Based on a novel by Felipe Trigo [32]
1988 Soldadito español Yes No No [33]
1990 Pájaro en una tormenta Yes No Yes TV series, credited for 1 episode [34]
1991 Catorce estaciones Yes No Yes [35]
1993 Tres palabras Yes No Yes [36]
1996 Sombres y luces: Cien años de cine español Yes No Yes Documentary [37]
1997 Las ratas Yes No Yes Based on a novel by Miguel Delibes [38]
2002 Primer y último amor Yes No Yes Based on a novel by Torcuato Luca de Tena [39]
2003 Hotel Danubio Yes No Yes Remake of Los peces rojos, by José Antonio Nieves Conde, 1955 [40]
2005 Castilla y León, Patrimonio de la Humanidad Yes No No Documentary [41]
2008 El libro de las aguas Yes No Yes Based on a novel by Alejandro López Andrada [42]

References

  1. ↑ Fallece el director burgalés Antonio Giménez Rico, premio Castilla y León de las Artes en 1996 (in Spanish)
  2. 1 2 "Antonio Giménez-Rico y Sáenz de Cabezón | Real Academia de la Historia". dbe.rah.es. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  3. ↑ Belinchón, Gregorio (2021-02-12). "Muere a los 82 años el director de cine Antonio Giménez-Rico, responsable de 'El disputado voto del señor Cayo' y 'Jarrapellejos'". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  4. ↑ Galán, Diego (2015-11-23). "Antonio Giménez Rico, contador de historias". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Torres, Diccionario del cine Español, p. 231
  6. 1 2 3 4 D'Lugo, Guide to the Cinema of Spain, p. 164
  7. ↑ "Berlinale: 1988 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2011-03-05.
  8. ↑ Belinchón, Gregorio (2021-02-12). "Muere a los 82 años el director de cine Antonio Giménez-Rico, responsable de 'El disputado voto del señor Cayo' y 'Jarrapellejos'". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  9. ↑ "21st Moscow International Film Festival (1999)". MIFF. Archived from the original on 2013-03-22. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
  10. ↑ "Galiardo considera que el proyecto de 'Inquietud en el Paraíso' se reactivará con la entrada de Garci como productor". 20 minutos. Retrieved 2010-11-13.
  11. ↑ "Muere a los 82 años Antonio Giménez-Rico, constructor de historias". ELMUNDO (in Spanish). 2021-02-12. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  12. ↑ Aragón, Heraldo de. "Muere Antonio Giménez-Rico, cineasta enamorado de Delibes, a los 82 años". heraldo.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  13. ↑ Garland, David (January 1991). "A Ms‐take in the making?: Transsexualism post‐franco, post‐modern, post‐haste". Quarterly Review of Film and Video. 13 (4): 95–102. doi:10.1080/10509209109361387. ISSN 1050-9208.
  14. ↑ "Muere a los 82 años el director de cine Antonio Giménez-Rico, responsable de 'El disputado voto del señor Cayo' y 'Jarrapellejos'". El País. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  15. ↑ "Mañana de Domingo". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  16. ↑ "El Hueso". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  17. ↑ "El Cronicón". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  18. ↑ "Es usted mi padre".
  19. ↑ Plinio, Antonio Casal, Alfonso del Real, María Isbert, Televisión Española (TVE), X Films, 1972-03-13, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  20. ↑ Crónicas de un pueblo (Comedy), Emilio Rodríguez, Emilio García, Fernando Cebrián, Televisión Española (TVE), 1971-07-18, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  21. ↑ Cuentos y leyendas (Drama), Luis Ciges, Fernando Baeza, José Riesgo, Televisión Española (TVE), retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  22. ↑ Los libros (Drama), José Riesgo, Guillermo Díaz-Plaja, Carmen Maura, Televisión Española (TVE), 1974-02-04, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  23. ↑ "Retrato de familia". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  24. ↑ "Al fin solos, pero..." The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  25. ↑ "Del amor y de la muerte". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  26. ↑ "La balada del pequeño soñador". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  27. ↑ Rasgos (Talk-Show), Mónica Randall, Yves Montand, Willy Brandt, Televisión Española (TVE), 1982-03-14, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  28. ↑ La máscara negra (Adventure), Sancho Gracia, Nuria Gallardo, Antonio Casas, Televisión Española (TVE), 1982-03-19, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  29. ↑ "Vestida de azul". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  30. ↑ Página de sucesos (Crime, Drama), Patxi Andión, Iñaki Miramón, María Asquerino, Televisión Española (TVE), 1985-10-18, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  31. ↑ "El disputado voto del Sr. Cayo". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  32. ↑ "Jarrapellejos". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  33. ↑ "Soldadito español". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  34. ↑ Pájaro en una tormenta (Drama), Juan Luis Galiardo, Santiago Ramos, Jesús Puente, 1990-09-21, retrieved 2023-12-05{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  35. ↑ "Catorce estaciones". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  36. ↑ "Tres palabras". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  37. ↑ "Sombres y luces: Cien años de cine español". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  38. ↑ Rico, Antonio Giménez (1997-10-24), Las ratas (Drama), José Caride, Álvaro Monje, Francisco Algora, retrieved 2023-12-05
  39. ↑ "Primer y último amor". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  40. ↑ "Hotel Danubio". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  41. ↑ "Castilla y León, Patrimonio de la Humanidad". The Spanish Film Catalogue.
  42. ↑ "El libro de las aguas". The Spanish Film Catalogue.

Bibliography

  • D'Lugo, Marvin: Guide to the Cinema of Spain, Greenwood Press, 1997. ISBN 0-313-29474-7
  • Torres, Augusto, Diccionario del cine Espanol, Espasa Calpe, 1996, ISBN 84-239-9241-1
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