The playwright, brand new Princess of Asturias Award and member of the Royal Spanish Academy, submits to our questionnaire.
The relationship of Juan Mayorga, recent winner of the Princess of Asturias Award for Letters, with Spanish cinema, has come a long way. The playwright, author of works such as ‘Silencio’, Blanca Portillo’s latest theatrical success, and ‘El golem’, is this month the protagonist of our ‘My Spanish Cinema’ section, where he confesses to being a fervent admirer of Víctor Erice.
His first time with Spanish cinema
On TV, some Saturday afternoon. ‘El tigre de Chamberí’, ‘Mi uncle Jacinto’ and, of course, ‘La gran familia’ come to mind right now. On Monday, when I got to school, I discussed them with my friends.
Any director you admire?
Among those who can still give us more cinema, Víctor Erice –what a rage that he hasn’t made more films–, Pedro Almodóvar, Álvaro del Amo, Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón, Juan Cavestany and Paula Ortiz.
Which actor or actress would you go out with?
I hang out with everyone I do theater with: Blanca Portillo, Clara Sanchis, Daniel Albaladejo, José Luis García Pérez…
In which Spanish film would you have liked to make a cameo?
In ‘Dawn, which is not little’.
A mythomaniac teenage love?
As a child I fell in love with Marisol in ‘A Ray of Light’.
Which international star would you like to see working in Spanish cinema?
Amir Jadidi, the wonderful protagonist of ‘A hero’. He is not a star, but something better: a real actor.
A movie memory
Cinema has always been very important to me and my wife, Coté, since we were dating. I have many memories of our conversations outside the cinema.
In which Spanish film would you stay to live?
I have stayed to live in the eyes of Ana Torrent in ‘The spirit of the hive’. Film that I discovered in a film forum –but I left in the debate– at the Joaquín Turina Institute, where she was studying first at BUP.
What Spanish film has inspired you?
‘The spirit of the hive’.
What tape would you have liked to have been the screenwriter?
Again ‘The spirit of the hive’.
What work of yours would you like to see brought to the Spanish screen?
In the coming months, Paula Ortiz is going to direct ‘La lengua en pieces’ [con el título ‘Teresa’] and I’m sure he’s going to make a great movie. I would also like to see the ‘The Cartographer’ screen.
Source: Fotogramas
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
