Written by Anthony Watkins
It’s no secret that over the many years of cinema, US directors have dominated the screens with their films. Even today, the average US citizen could probably only name a few international directors—perhaps Werner Herzog (Grizzly Man, Encounters at the End of the World) or maybe Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth, Pacific Rim). One international director that has undoubtedly made a name for himself in the United States is Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron.
Early Life
Cuaron was born in Mexico City, Mexico on November 28, 1961. In his early years, Cuaron dreamed of becoming either an astronaut or a film director. Since his family encouraged education in the arts, Cuaron soon fell in love with film (Biography). Upon receiving a camera for his twelfth birthday, Cuaron began filming almost everything he saw. He loved the cinema so much, he would even trick his mother into thinking he was going to a friend’s house and instead go to the movie theater. After being rejected by the Centro de Capacitacion Cinematografica film school due to his young age, Cuaron attended the Centro Universitario de Estudios Cinematograficos. It was at this school he met future directors Luis Estrada, Carlos Marcovich and his future collaborator Emmanuel Lubezki. His time at the school was cut short, however, as he was expelled for producing a film that caused controversy among the teachers (IMDB).
After having his first son, Cuaron, thinking his chance of being a film director was over, started working in a museum to sustain his family. One day, a visitor to the museum named Jose Luis Garcia Agraz arrived and offered Cuaron a job as a cable person on La Vispera (1982). Cuaron accepted and soon found jobs as an assistant director for several films (IMDB).
After having his first son, Cuaron, thinking his chance of being a film director was over, started working in a museum to sustain his family. One day, a visitor to the museum named Jose Luis Garcia Agraz arrived and offered Cuaron a job as a cable person on La Vispera (1982). Cuaron accepted and soon found jobs as an assistant director for several films (IMDB).
First Feature Film
After working as assistant director for several years, Cuaron desired to move on and work on a feature film. With the help of his brother, Cuaron wrote and directed his first feature, Love in the Time of Hysteria (1991). The film became a box-office success and gave Cuaron some credibility in the film industry.
Eventually, Academy-Award winning director Sydney Pollack invited Cuaron to Hollywood to shoot a film. However, the project never got off the ground and was soon cancelled. Nevertheless, Cuaron stayed in Los Angeles. A short time later, Pollack called again and invited him to shoot an episode of the series Fallen Angels (1993). Cuaron accepted and thus landed his first job in the United States.
In 1995, Alfonso signed a contract with Warner Brothers and directed his first Hollywood film, A Little Princess. Although the film didn’t do well commercially, it received two Oscar nominations for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction/Set Decoration. Three years later, Cuaron would direct a remake of Charles Dickins’ classic novel Great Expectations. Unfortunately, the film became a nightmare for him and was not well received by audiences or critics.
Eventually, Academy-Award winning director Sydney Pollack invited Cuaron to Hollywood to shoot a film. However, the project never got off the ground and was soon cancelled. Nevertheless, Cuaron stayed in Los Angeles. A short time later, Pollack called again and invited him to shoot an episode of the series Fallen Angels (1993). Cuaron accepted and thus landed his first job in the United States.
In 1995, Alfonso signed a contract with Warner Brothers and directed his first Hollywood film, A Little Princess. Although the film didn’t do well commercially, it received two Oscar nominations for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction/Set Decoration. Three years later, Cuaron would direct a remake of Charles Dickins’ classic novel Great Expectations. Unfortunately, the film became a nightmare for him and was not well received by audiences or critics.
Y Tu Mama También (2001) was Alfonso Cuaron's first hit and breakthrough film.
After Great Expectations, Cuaron founded Anhelo Productions and Moonson Productions. Anhelo’s first film, Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001), became the breakthrough for Cuaron’s career. The film became the highest grossing movie in Mexican box-office history and became one of the top foreign-language films in the United States. It was for this film Cuaron was nominated for his first Oscar, for Best Original Screenplay (IMDB).
Judging from his recent success, Warner Brothers hired Cuaron to direct the third installment in the box-office smashing Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004). Like its predecessors, the film became a global hit and added to Cuaron’s growing resume. His next project was the Science-Fiction drama Children of Men (2006), a film whose story centers around a future world where all women have become barren. The film was another huge success for Cuaron and was nominated for three Oscars (Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Achievement in Film Editing).
Cuaron's Children of Men (2006) is set in the year 2027 and focuses on a man (Clive Owen) who agrees to help transport the only remaining fertile woman in the world.
After Children of Men, Cuaron spent four years working on his next project—the Science-Fiction masterpiece Gravity (2013). The highly suspenseful and riveting film tells the story of an astronaut named Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) on her first mission aboard the space shuttle Explorer. After a Russian missile hits a satellite, the ensuing debris destroys the shuttle, leaving Stone and fellow astronaut Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) adrift in outer space. The film was a box-office smash, grossing over $55 million in its opening weekend and over $274 million domestically. Warner Brothers even went as far as re-releasing the film in theaters a few months later due to its immense success. The film was also universally acclaimed by critics and drew an astounding 10 Oscar nominations, winning 7—including Best Director for Alfonso Cuaron, making him the first Mexican director to win an Oscar.
Cuaron's Gravity (2013) is regarded as a Science-Fiction masterpiece: combining breath-taking visual effects (that many critics call at least a decade ahead of their time), sharp direction, strong metaphors of rebirth, human trials and will to survive, and philosophical themes.
Current Work
Recently, Alfonso Cuaron directed several episodes of the TV series Believe (2014). He is also currently working on a screenplay for A Boy and His Shoe.
Trademarks
Cuaron is known for using an almost continuously moving camera in his films, and hardly ever resorts to using static shots. He typically uses hand-held cameras to give a jarring, documentary-like effect to the film, as he does in Children of Men. He is also highly known for using long shots (or long-takes). Children of Men and Gravity are prime examples of this. Gravity contains only a total of 156 shots (an astonishingly small number for most action films) with an average shot length of 45 seconds. The opening shot lasts for about 11 minutes—a length unheard of in Hollywood films. Finally, Cuaron loves to employ wide-angle lenses to produce wide shots (also called long shots). This is also highly and expertly utilized in the space environment in Gravity.
Works Cited
IMDB. 2014. 25 Sep. 2014. <http://www.imdb.com>.
“M. Night Shyamalan.” The Biography Channel. 2014. 25 Sep. 2014. <http://www.biography.com/people/alfonso-cuarón-21377605>.
“M. Night Shyamalan.” The Biography Channel. 2014. 25 Sep. 2014. <http://www.biography.com/people/alfonso-cuarón-21377605>.
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