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Antonio Banderas, born in 1.960 in Malaga (Spain), got his big acting break when Pedro Almodovar gave him a supporting role in Labyrinth of Passion (Laberinto de Pasiones) in 1982. He went on to appear in ten different films all within the space of only three years. Among these were Carlos Saura’s The Stilts (Los zancos), Jose Luís Garcia Sanchez’s The Court of the Pharaoh (La Corte de Faraon) and most notably, Pedro Almodovar’s Matador. When referring to that period, Banderas highlights how lucky he was to have met such a wonderful group of people who helped him to open his eyes to other realities, in particular Pedro Almodovar, whom he still recognises as a big influence in his life as an actor, as a filmmaker and as a person.
Between 1986 and 1990 Banderas starred in fourteen films in Spain. He worked with directors such as Rafael Moleon in Baton Rouge; Fernando Colomo in Going Down in Morocco (Bajarse al moro); Vicente Aranda in If They Tell you I Fell (Si te dicen que cai). With Almodovar alone, he made three groundbreaking films during this period: Law of Desire (La Ley del Deseo) in 1986; Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (¡Atame!) in 1989 and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios) in 1988. It was during a promotional tour of this last film that Antonio Banderas made his first contact with North American cinema, almost by accident. The first film he shot in the US was The Mambo Kings, directed by Arnold Glimcher in 1991. Following his English-language debut, the actor alternated Spanish, European and US films. In 1993 alone, Banderas worked in Carlos Saura’s Outrage (Dispara), Billy August’s The House of the Spirits and Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia. From then onwards, Banderas shot an eclectic array of films in the US. These included Neil Jordan’s Interview with a Vampire; Of Love and Shadows by Betty Kaplan; Richard Donner’s Assassins or Four Rooms and Desperado, both of which were directed by his good friend Robert Rodriguez.
In 1995 he starred in Fernando Trueba’s Two Much alongside Melanie Griffith, who went on to become his second wife. Due to family commitments, the actor made Los Angeles his permanent home and as a result he began making US films almost exclusively. Two films in particular have defined Banderas as the new Latino star: Evita, which was directed by Alan Parker in 1996 and Martin Campbell’s The Mask of Zorro, 1998. At this point the actor felt that it was time to try something new and directed his first film Crazy in Alabama in 1999. The project, which was shot as an independent film, had been considered too risky by the studios due to the delicate issues it dealt with, but Banderas accepted the challenge. The cast was headed by Melanie Griffith.
Antonio Banderas returned to acting in another sixteen films, starring in new blockbusters such as Spy Kids in 2001 which was directed, once again, by Robert Rodriguez. In 2004 he provided the voice of Puss in Boots in Andrew Adamson and Nelly Asbury’s Shrek 2. He most recently appeared in Martin Campbell’s The Legend of Zorro and Liz Friedlander’s Take the Lead. However, Crazy in Alabama definitely gave him the love for telling his own stories, and it wasn’t long before he sat in the director’s chair once again. In the meantime, Banderas also took up the challenge of returning to his theatrical roots and recently starred in the Broadway musical Nine.
SUMMER RAIN represents a new stage in his career, one in which he would like to maintain close links with his roots and indeed Spanish filmmaking. In his own words: “I’m only just beginning my career as a director but I really believe that this is the direction that my life and career are taking. I must be patient and willing to take more risks. I believe that cinema must have its own, unique character and that it can be a way of understanding life from an artistic point of view.”
Antonio Banderas (Málaga, 1960). Actor de más de sesenta películas que debutó en 1982 en el filme Pestañas postizas. Ese mismo año trabajó para Pedro Almodóvar en Laberinto de pasiones, con quien colaboró en cuatro ocasiones más. Luego inició una fructífera carrera en Hollywood al actuar en cintas como Filadelfia (1993) y La marca del Zorro (1998); así se convierte en el intérprete español más internacional. En 1999, dirige Locos en Alabama, su primer largometraje. El camino de los ingleses marca su segunda experiencia como realizador y productor.
Filmografía / Filmography:
DIRECTOR
• Camino de los ingleses, El (2006) Summer Rain
• Crazy in Alabama (1999)
ACTOR
• Puss in Boots (2010) (announced) (voice Puss in Boots)
• Shrek the Third (2007) (post-production) (voice Puss in Boots)
• Homeland Security (2007, George Gallo) (post-production)
• Bordertown (2006, Gregory Nava)
• Take the Lead (2006, Liz Friedlander)
• The legend of Zorro (2005, Martin Campbell)
• Shrek 2 (2004, Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury & Conrad Vernon) (voice Puss In Boots)
• Imagining Argentina (2003, Christopher Hampton)
• Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003, Robert Rodríguez)
• Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003, Robert Rodríguez)
• Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever (2002, Wych Kaosaynanda)
• Frida (2002, Julie Taymor)
• Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002, Robert Rodriguez)
• Femme Fatale (2002, Brian de Palma)
• Original Sin (2001, Michael Cristofer)
• Spy Kids (2001, Robert Rodríguez)
• The Body (2001, Jonas McCord)
• Play It to the Bone (1999, Ron Shelton)
• The White River Kid (1999, Arne Glimcher)
• The 13th Warrior (1999, John McTiernan)
• The Mask of Zorro (1998, Martin Campbell)
• Evita (1996, Alan Parker)
• Two Much (1995, Fernando Trueba)
• Never Talk to Strangers (1995, Peter Hall)
• Assassins (1995, Richard Donner)
• Four Rooms (1995, Allison Anders/Alexander Rockwell/Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino)
• Desperado (1995, Robert Rodríguez)
• Miami Rhapsody (1995, David Frankel)
• Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994, Neil Jordan)
• Of Love and Shadows (1994, Betty Kaplan)
• Philadelphia (1993, Jonathan Demme)
• The House of the Spirits (1993, Bille August)
• ¡Dispara! (1993, Carlos Saura)
• The Mambo Kings (1992, Arne Glimcher)
• Mujer bajo la lluvia, Una (1992, Gerardo Vera) A Woman in the Rain
• Terra Nova (1991, Calogero Salvo) New Land
• Contra el viento (1990, Francisco Periñán) Against the Wind
• ¡Átame! (1990, Pedro Almodóvar) Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
• Blanca Paloma, La (1989, Juan Miñón) The White Dove
• Si te dicen que caí (1989, Vicente Aranda) If They Tell You I Fell
• Bajarse al moro (1989, Fernando Colomo) Going Down in Morocco
• Bâton rouge (1988, Rafael Monleón)
• Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988, Pedro Almodóvar) Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
• Placer de matar, El (1988, Félix Rotaeta) The Pleasure of Killing
• Acto, El (1987, Héctor Faver)
• Ley del deseo, La (1987, Pedro Almodóvar) Law of Desire
• Así como habían sido (1986, Andrés Linares) The Way They Were
• Delirios de amor (1986, Cristina Andreu | Luis Eduardo Aute | Antonio González Vigil | Félix Rotaeta)
• 27 horas (1986, Montxo Armendáriz) 27 Hours
• Puzzle (1986, Lluis Josep Comeron)
• Matador (1986, Pedro Almodóvar)
• Corte de Faraón, La (1985, José Luis García Sánchez) The Court of the Pharaoh
• Réquiem por un campesino español (1985, Francisco Betriú)
• Zancos, Los (1984, Carlos Saura) The Stilts
• Señor Galíndez, El (1984, Rodolfo Khun)
• Caso Almería, El (1984, Pedro Costa)
• Y del seguro... líbranos Señor! (1983, Antonio del Real)
• Laberinto de pasiones (1982, Pedro Almodóvar) Labyrinth of Passion
• Pestañas postizas (1982, Enrique Belloch)
Festivals and awards:
Official Selection Sundance 2007
Label Europa Cinema Award. Berlinale 2007.
Official Selection Panorama. Berlinale 2007
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