Víctor Erice

30.06.1940, Carrantza, Spain

 

Director

Erice studied political science before he enrolled in the Instituto de Investigaciones y Experiencias Cinematográficas in 1960. Three years later he graduated from it and afterward worked as a film critic and co-screenwriter of films El proximo otońo (1967) by Antonio Eceize and Oscuros sueńos eróticos de agosto (1967) by Miguel Picaza. He directed several short films and got his first serious chance to work in film thanks to the producer Elías Querejeta who invited him to direct one segment in the omnibus The Challenges (Los desafios, 1969). With Querejeta as producer, Erice directed his two most famous and acclaimed films, The Spirit of the Beehive (El espíritu de la colmena, 1973) and The South (El sur, 1983). His next film, documentary Quince Tree of the Sun (El sol del membrillo, 1992) won the critics and jury’s award in Cannes in 1992. In 2002, he directed the segment Lifeline of the omnibus Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet. His latest film is a short film La morte rouge (2006) made for the exhibition Erice - Kiarostami: Correspondences.

More about the director: Victor Erice

Filmography


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Dreams and memories

Films by this director

The Spirit of the Beehive

(El espíritu de la colmena, Spain, 1973)

Directed by: Víctor Erice
PHOTOGRAPHY: Luis Cuadrado
Synopsis:

In a small Spanish town in 1940, two sisters watch James Whale’s film Frankenstein from 1931. Isabel explains to her younger sister Ana that Frankenstein is actually a ghost who cannot die and afterwards takes her to an abandoned stable claiming that the ghost is in the well. While their father spends time researching bees and their mother writes long letters, naďve Ana decides to find the ghost.

color, 98'

The South

(El sur, Spain, France, 1983)

Directed by: Víctor Erice
PHOTOGRAPHY: José Luis Alcaine
Synopsis:

Estrella is a teenager who lives in the north of Spain where she moved from the South with her parents as an eight-year-old. Even though she adores her father, unexpected events make her question his mysterious past, emotional distance and constant nostalgia for the South. Estrella gets a chance to learn more about him when her aunt Milagros visits from the South.

color, 95'

Quince Tree of the Sun

(El sol del membrillo, Spain, 1992)

Directed by: Víctor Erice
PHOTOGRAPHY: Javier Aguirresarobe, Ángel Luis Fernández, José Luis López-Linares
Synopsis:

This is a documentary about the Spanish painter Antonio López. We follow the creative process of painting a quince tree that the painter planted in his yard. This is a constant motif that the painter returns to every fall. López tries to capture rays of light that pass through the leaves before the tree loses all fruits and leaves. However, his work is often interrupted by unannounced visitors. This film won the critics’ award in Cannes in o 1992.

color, 133'
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