Pedro Almodovar

Pedro Almodovar is perhaps the best and most well-known Spanish filmmakers of his generation. His films have come to be incredibly important and valuable in the world of art cinema and are marked by their complex narratives that are at times extremely witty and hilariously amusing. He is a fan of employing melodrama and elements of pop culture and glossy décor with his films being a feast for the eyes.

Growing up in an impoverished family in a small town in Spain, he was turned into a part-time teacher of literacy by his mother and when he was sent to a religious boarding school he was introduced to cinema and a world that seemed full of possibility to a young boy with dreams. His career began by making short hand-held films that he showed at a cinema theatre he bought with his first pay check. That was only the beginning and from showing his films at bars and parties, he gained not only the finances but the recognition as a filmmaker to pursue his career.

The key, Pedro says, to the success of his films is that he makes them to be entertaining as filmmakers often forget that that is the purpose of what a film should be – to entertain. Some of his greatest works include Volver, Broken Embraces, and All About My Mother.