_FILMOTECA HAWKMENBLUES Alejandro Springall.mht

Alejandro Springall. Born in Mexico City in 1966, Alejandro Springall studied Drama for two semesters at the National University of Mexico. He moved to the UK in 1987, and was trained in filmmaking at the London Film School. There, he directed, wrote and edited more than 10 short films. While in London, he worked on 3 documentaries about the Cocaine War in Colombia for the BBC and Channel Four TV.

He returned to Mexico City in 1992, and together with Berth Navarro he produced CRONOS (Dir. Guillermo del Toro, 1993). CRONOS won the Critic´s Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993, and 9 awards from the Mexican Academy, including Best Picture. Springall then produced together with Navarro, DOLLAR MAMBO (Dir. Paul Leduc, 1993), premiered at the San Sebastian Film Festival.

In 1994, he line produced SOMEONE ELSE´S AMERICA (Dir. Goran Paskaljevic), a French-British-German production. That same year he produced the TV series EN GUADALAJARA FUE and directed the series JALISCO: TIEMPO DE DECISIONES, which won First Prize at the Latin American Biennale three times in a row.

In 1995, Springall produced DE TRIPAS, CORAZÓN (GUTS AND HEART) (Dir. Antonio Urrutia), which was nominated in the Best Short category of the Oscars.

In 1996, he collaborated with director John Sayles on the Spanish dialogue of his film MEN WITH GUNS. That same year he founded Springall Pictures, his production company.

SANTITOS (LITTLE SAINTS), completed in 1999, is his feature directorial debut. SANTITOS had major distribution in Latin America, North America, Europe and Asia, and received 17 major international awards, amongst them, we can mention: Best Latin American Picture at the Sundance Film Festival, Grand Prix Découverte 2000 by the Critique Française, Best Picture at Los Angeles Film Festival; and Dolores Heredia, has been awarded twice Best Actress for her performance in SANTITOS, at the Amiens and the Cartagena Film Festivals.

In 2001, Miramax Films commissioned Springall Pictures to executive produce FRIDA, directed by Julie Taymor, starring Salma Hayek, Antonio Banderas and Geoffrey Rush. He also produced the original score for Elliot Goldenthal, who was awarded the Golden Globe and the Oscar in 2003.

In 2002, Springall produced CASA DE LOS BABYS, directed by John Sayles, starring Oscar winners Marcia Gay Harden, Mary Steenburgen and Rita Moreno; and Daryl Hannah, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Lili Taylor. The film was premiered at the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals, and was release by IFC Films and MGM.

MORIRSE ESTA EN HEBREO (MY MEXICAN SHIVAH), co-written, directed and produced by Springall, was released in Mexico, the US and Europe in 2008. Film Quarterly magazine included My Mexican Shivah in it’s World’s 25 Best Films list of 2008.

NO ERES TU, SOY YO (IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S ME), directed and written by Springall, produced by Matthias Ehrenberg, starring Eugenio Derbez, was released in Mexico by Warner Bros. in August 2010, and at that time became the 4th highest-grossing film in the history of Mexican cinema.

In 2010, Springall also directed, produced and co-wrote together with Sabina Berman, 200 AÑOS DE MEXICANOS EN MOVIMIENTO (200 YEARS OF MEXICANS IN MOTION), about the Lacandon Maya of Chiapas, and was part of the film series for the Bicentennial celebrations of Mexico’s independence.

In 2011, he directed REFLEXIONES SOBRE LA BATALLA DE PUEBLA (REFLECTIONS ON THE BATTLE OF PUEBLA), written and narrated by Carlos Fuentes, Mexico’s top man of letters. This film was made to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Puebla.

In 2013, Springall produced GO FOR SISTERS (COMO HERMANAS), written and directed by John Sayles, starring Edward James Olmos, Lisa Gay Hamilton and Yolonda Ross. The film premiered at SXSW Film Festival.

In 2014, Springall, Bertha Navarro and Guillermo del Toro teamed up again to produce LA DELGADA LÍNEA AMARILLA (THE THIN YELLOW LINE), written and directed by Celso García, starring Damián Alcázar, Joaquín Cosío, Gustavo Sánchez Parra and Silverio Palacios. The film will premiere in 2015.

Springall is currently preparing to direct 2 new films: LA RUTA DE LOS CAÍDOS (THE DEVIL’S HIGHWAY), co-written with John Sayles based on the novel by Guillermo Munro, set in the Sonoran desert in 1931; and INSEPARABLES (INSEPARABLE), written by Marc Hyman, adapted by Springall, produced by Lemore Syvan and Keanu Reeves.

Apart from his film activities, Springall also produced and directed the CHAVELA VARGAS magno concert at the Carnegie Hall, N.Y. on Sept 2003, and the concerts at Luna Park Stadium in Buenos Aires on April 2004. He co-wrote, directed and produced the play LO QUE EL RANCHO SE LLEVÓ (GONE WITH THE RANCH), starring Raquel Pankowsky, about the misfortunes of Mexico’s former first lady, Martha Fox, in her intents to become the Mexican Evita Peron. Springall also produced BATRACIO, an evocative multimedia play about amphibians that combines actors and acrobats. (Fuente: lfs.org.uk)

Director (6 credits)
2012 Hace 150 años, Crónica de la Batalla de Puebla por Carlos Fuentes (TV Movie)
2010 200 años de mexicanos en movimiento (Short)
2010 No eres tú, soy yo
2007 Morirse está en Hebreo
1999 Santitos
1995 Jalisco, tiempo de decisiones (Documentary)
IMDB

Enlaces completados:
Morirse está en hebreo (Alejandro Springall, 2007)
Santitos (Alejandro Springall, 1999)