Carlos Saura is dead: Iconic Spanish director turned 91

The Spanish director Carlos Saura died at the age of 91 at home in Spain.

The filmmaker was one of the most famous filmmakers in Spain, along with Luis Buñuel and Pedro Almodóvar.

The Spanish Film Academy said the director died at home surrounded by loved ones and described him as “one of the most important filmmakers in the history of Spanish cinema”.

Saura began his film career in the 1950s making short documentaries.

He broke through internationally The hunt which started at the Berlin Film Festival in 1996 and was awarded the Silver Bear.

The drama explored the legacy of the Spanish Civil War through the story of three middle-aged veterans who reminisce about their experiences on a rabbit hunt.

Sam Peckinpah has described it as a classic Spanish film and a major influence on his work.

Saura was born on January 4, 1932 in Huesca, northeastern Spain, and was only four years old when the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936.

His early childhood was badly affected by the ravages of the conflict and he also later gained a reputation as a courageous critic of the Franco regime, using symbolism and allegory in his films to evade censorship.

He became a regular in Berlin and won the Golden Bear for it Depressed, Depressed 1981, after he also won a second Silver Bear in 1967 Peppermint Frappe.

Saura was also a regular at Cannes, but never won the prestigious Palme d’Or.

He made his debut there in 1960 The criminals and went on to win the Jury Prizer La Prima Angelica 1974 Grand Jury Prize for Cria Cuervos 1976 and the now defunct Grand Prix technique for their Oscar nominee carmen 1983 his flamenco adaptation of the novel by Prosper Mérimée with music from Georges Bizet’s opera.

He also went down in the annals of Cannes history with the screening of Peppermint Frappe was disrupted in 1968 by a group of New Wave directors led by François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard, who stormed the venue and demanded its closure in solidarity with popular protests by workers and students.

A report of the event on the Cannes website states that Saura “graciously agreed to put his film aside to make way for the revolution”.

Saura has never retired and his film The walls can talk (Las paredes hablan) the premiere in San Sebastian last September.

However, the director had to cancel his plans to attend the screening after a slight fall.

The documentary explored the evolution and relationship of art to walls as a creative canvas, from prehistoric art on cave walls to contemporary urban art, from Saura’s unique perspective.