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Fina Torres (born October 7, 1951) is a Venezuelan film director. Born in Caracas, she became known by winning la Caméra d'Or award at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival with her directorial debut film, Oriana.[1] She studied design, photography, and journalism in Venezuela and later on film at the Institut des hautes études cinématographiques in Paris. She currently lives in Venezuela and works as a director and screen writer.[2]
Personal Life
[edit]Fina Torres was born Caracas, Venezuala as Josefini Torres Beneditti. She enrolled at the Neumann institute for Design in 1970 as a graphics design student and eventually also took social communication at Andrés Bello Catholic University. In 1974 she moved to Paris where she would spend the next 28 years of her life. In her time there she studied cinematography, worked as a photographer, and eventually became a director. After Paris she lived in the United States, Mexico, Singapore, and eventually returned to Venezuela, where she currently lives.[2]
Career
[edit]In 1985 Torres' first film, Oriana, was shown at the Cannes film festival. It was described by critic Vincent Camby in the New York Times as a "Gothic Romance"[3] and resulted in her winning la Caméra d'Or award for best new director at Cannes. In 1996 her second film Mécaniques célestes was released to moderate critical acclaim as Washington Post writer Hal Hinson called it, "an enchanting hybrid of film, music, and fantasy".[4]
In 2000 Torres directed Woman on Top, her first film to feature a major star, Penelope Cruz. It was panned by critics including Katy Wilkinson in Sight and Sound.[5] In 2010 Torres won the best feature film prize at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival with her film Habana Eva.[6] The film also won the Best Venezuelan Film prize at the Margarita Film Festival in Venezuela.[2]
Most recently in 2013 Torres directed an adaptation of the American play "Last Summer at Bluefish Cove", known as part of the first wave of American gay theater.[7]
Though Torres is primarily recognized as a director due to her award at Cannes, she is also a prolific screen-writer, having written the scripts for the majority of her own films, as well as a number of scripts for other directors. She has said that she considers screenwriting to be the most challenging aspect of film-making and is a member of the Writers Guild of America and the Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques (SACD) of France.[2]
Due to her success in international film festivals Torres is one of the most recognizable Venezuelan filmmakers despite living abroad for much of her career.[2] She has kept a focus on Latin America and Latin American themes throughout her career, and since moving back to Venezuela has taken part in a movement to aid in developing the Venezuelan national film industry.[2]
Social Advocacy
[edit]In 1995 Torres was identified as part of a new movement in Latin American cinema focusing less on films with political themes as had been the norm, and more on universal themes like relationships and conflicts between traditional culture and modernity.[8] Torres' films in particular focus on strong female characters who defy patriarchal norms.[2]
In an interview with GLAAD in 2015 she expressed a desire to help young gay and lesbian people through her film Liz in September. The film has a focus on Lesbian characters and issues and stars Venezuelan actress and model Patricia Velásquez, who identifies as lesbian.[9]
Filmography (as director)
[edit]- Oriana (1985)
- Mécaniques célestes (Celestial Clockwork) (1995)
- Woman on Top (2000)
- Habana Eva ("Havana Eva" (2008)
- Liz en septiembre (2013)
References
[edit]- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Oriana". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
- ^ a b c d e f g Nelmes, Jill, and Jule Selbo. Women Screenwriters: An International Guide. Print.
- ^ Canby, Vincent. "'Oriane,' A Gothic Romance." New York Times (New York), September 29, 1985. Accessed January 27, 2016. ProQuest.
- ^ Hinson, Hal. "`Clockwork': Fantasy Time." Washington Post (Washington), August 9, 1996. Accessed January 27, 2016. ProQuest.
- ^ Wilkinson, Katy. "Woman on Top." Sight and Sound 11, no. 2 (02, 2001): 57.
- ^ "Habana Eva -- Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
- ^ Harvey, Dennis. "Film Review: 'Liz in September'" Variety. January 20, 2016. Accessed January 27, 2016. http://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/liz-in-september-review-1201679719/.
- ^ Vincent, Isabel. "A 'new Irreverence' Sweeps Latin America." The Globe and Mail (Toronto), September 13, 1995. Accessed January 27, 2016. ProQuest.
- ^ Trasendes, Monica. "Actress Patricia Velásquez and Director Fina Torres on Their New Film 'Liz in September'" GLAAD. November 03, 2015. Accessed January 27, 2016. http://www.glaad.org/blog/actress-patricia-velásquez-and-director-fina-torres-their-new-film-liz-september.
External links
[edit]- Fina Torres at IMDb
- Interview for the Newspaper El Universal (Spanish)
Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:People from Caracas Category:Venezuelan women film directors Category:Venezuelan film producers Category:Venezuelan screenwriters Category:Women screenwriters