Status: 02/10/2023 7:18 p.m
Spanish film legend Carlos Saura – the “director of fantasy” has died at the age of 91. In Germany he became known to a wider audience with his film “Carmen”.
Spanish director Carlos Saura has died in Madrid at the age of 91. This was announced by the Spanish Film Academy on Twitter. Saura was considered one of the most important and successful Spanish directors of the past decades.
Especially with his film “Carmen” (1983) he became known to a wider audience in Germany. “Carmen” was awarded at the Cannes Festival and nominated for an Oscar.
Sanchez paid tribute to Saura
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez praised Saura as “one of the most important figures in Spanish culture”. We bid farewell “to the director of the fantasy, but his cinema will remain with us,” wrote the socialist on Twitter.
“With Carlos Saura, a very important part of the history of Spanish cinema is dying,” said Hollywood star Antonio Banderas on the social network.
A versatile creative
Saura, who also photographed, painted and wrote novels, was active to the end and was due to receive an honorary Goya award from the film academy in Seville on Saturday. He died on Friday surrounded by his relatives, as the film academy further announced. He only turned 91 on January 4th.
Since beginning in 1955, Saura has directed more than 50 feature films and numerous short films. Music and dance films were the great passions of the artist, who was born in Huesca not far from the Pyrenees.