Francisco Javier Gutiérrez

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Francisco Javier Gutiérrez (born July 5, 1973) is a fantasy genre director who has received several awards and is one of the most lauded filmmakers in the genre in Spain. His fans consider him a cult director for his works like the short film Brasil.

Javier Gutierrez

Javier Gutierrez shooting Before the fall in 2007
Born Francisco Javier Gutierrez
July 5, 1973 (1973-07-05) (age 34)
Córdoba, Andalusia, Esp

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[edit] Biography

Javier Gutiérrez was born in Córdoba, on July 5, 1973. Javier moved to Madrid in 1991 to study law. While attending Law School he also studied acting and produced his first short films. With El Cuerpo (1998) he entered the his first international festivals where he was quickly identified as a director with a distinct personal style.

[edit] Filmography

In 2001 Javier Gutiérrez created his own production company aiming to make films with an international reach. In 2002 he was invited by TVE program “Versión Española” to direct a piece for the series “Diminutos del Calvario II”. News of Javier’s La habitacion de Norman, a claustrophobic tribute to Psycho, was published by film industry magazines in the US. In the same year, he won the “Universal Studios” prize and moved to Los Angeles. In 2007 Javier received an offer from Antonio Banderas and Antonio Pérez to direct his first feature film, Before the fall (2008) which entered the official section “Special Panorama” at the Berlin Film Festival

[edit] Style

Javier Gutiérrez’s stories are rich and profound. The visual style of his sets brings to memory the 1970’s decade and his photography and sound are meticulous and exquisite. Apocalypse and violence are at the centerpiece of his works and it is his perception of these obscure and unsettling themes what divides his followers from his critics. However, most agree that as a filmmaker he has an unusual ability to stir emotions and that he is a compelling storyteller.

[edit] Before the fall

Before the fall is Javier Gutiérrez’s first feature film. During its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival the public booed and applauded equally. The controversy grew among the critics when Rebeca Davis from the Daily Telegraph praised the films as one of the best in the festival because it

“proves that films about armageddic meteorites crashing into the earth can be both intelligent and moving. Deep Impact it ain't[1]”

Whereas Jay Weissberg from Variety attacked the film, labeling it as unpleasant and inappropriate and predicted

"College-age males may get a kick, but survival chances outside Spain are slim.[2]"

However, before its Spanish premiere at the Malaga Film Festival, the film has already been sold for distribution in Japan and two offers have been received for a remake in English.

[edit] References

  1. ^ The best (and worst) of the Berlin Film Festival : February 2008 : Reel Life : Arts : Telegraph Blogs
  2. ^ Before the Fall Movie Review From The Berlin Film Festival

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