Javier Fuentes-León is a

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

vian film director based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

and best known for his directorial long-feature debut '' Undertow'' (Spanish title ''Contracorriente'') that starred Cristian Mercado as Miguel, a fisherman who is torn between his love for his pregnant wife Mariela played by

Tatiana Astengo Tatiana (or Tatianna, also romanized as Tatyana, Tatjana, Tatijana, etc.) is a female name of Sabine-Roman origin that became widespread in Eastern Europe. Variations * be, Тацця́на, Tatsiana * bg, Татяна, Tatyana * germa ...

and a painter artist Santiago played by

Manolo Cardona Manuel "Manolo" Julián Cardona Molano (born April 25, 1977) is a Colombian actor. Personal life Cardona was born in Popayán, Cauca, Colombia on April 25, 1977. At the age of seven, Cardona's family nicknamed him "Manolo," which later beca ...

. The film, a co-production between Peru, Colombia, France and Germany, was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize in the Dramatic category at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and actually won the World Cinema Audience Award . It also won the Sebastiane Award at the

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in ...

. Fuentes-León was born in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and graduated from Medical School in Peru, but made a radical change by moving to Los Angeles in 1994 to pursue a career in film directing by studying for a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) at the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...

(CalArts). His thesis film, ''Espacios'' won the National Award for Short Films from the Peruvian government in 1997. He also wrote a theatrical piece ''Mr. Clouds'' in 2000, which the National Theater of Peru considered among the best of the year and published it in the compilation ''Dramaturgia Nacional 2000''. In the following years, Fuentes-León worked as the lead writer for reality TV shows at the

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is owned by Comcast. It provides content nationally with pr ...

in the U.S., subtitled films from major Hollywood studios into Spanish, and worked as an editor of commercials and TV shows, including ''

Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels ''Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels'' is a television show based on cook Rachael Ray and her travels around the world. The show is similar to her 2002 Food Network show, ''$40 a Day ''$40 a Day'' was a Food Network show hosted by Rachael Ray. In eac ...

'' for the

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, while focusing on his own writing and directing projects. His second short ''Géminis'' premiered at

Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

in 2004 and screened at various international film festivals. Currently, Fuentes-León is developing various projects including ''The Woman Who Feared the Sun'' (based on his play ''Mr. Clouds'') and ''Sinister'', a

rock musical A rock musical is a musical theatre work with rock music. The genre of rock musical may overlap somewhat with album musicals, concept albums and song cycles, as they sometimes tell a story through the rock music, and some album musicals and conc ...

set in a restrictive society of the near future, for which Fuentes-León is writing the music as well.

Filmography

;Director *1997: ''Espacios'' (short) *2004: '' Géminis'' (short) *2009: '' Undertow'' (Spanish title ''Contracorriente'') *2014: '' The Vanished Elephant'' *2020: '' The Best Families'' ;Producer *2004: ''Géminis'' (short) *2009: ''Undertow'' ;Screenwriter *1997: ''Espacios'' (short) *2004: ''Géminis'' (short) *2009: ''Undertow'' *2017: '' Av. Larco'' *2020: ''The Best Families'' ;Editor *1997: ''Espacios'' (short) *2004: ''Géminis'' (short) *2005: ''Un dia en la vida'' (short) *2008: ''Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels'' (TV series documentary) (episode: "Martha's Vineyard") ;Actor *2004: ''Géminis'' as Géminis (short) *2006: ''I Heart'' as Karoke Buddy (short) ;Others *2007: ''Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story'' (documentary) (special thanks) *2008: '' Wrangler: Anatomy of an Icon'' (documentary) (special thanks) *2011: Vito (documentary) (special thanks)

Awards and nominations

;For ''Undertow'' *2009: Won Sebastiane Award at the

*2010: Won Audience Awards for "World Cinema - Dramatic" category at the Sundance Film Festival *2010: Nominated for Grand Jury Prize for "World Cinema - Dramatic" category at the Sundance Film Festival *2010: Won Audience Award at the Lima Latin American Film Festival *2010: Won Audience Award for Ibero-American competition at Miami Film Festival *2010: Nominated for Golden India Catalina for "Best Film (Mejor Película)" at

Cartagena Film Festival The Cartagena Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias), or FICCI, is a film festival held in Cartagena, Colombia, which focuses mainly on the promotion of Colombian television series, Latin American films and short ...

*2011: Nominated for Goya for "Best Spanish Language Foreign Film" at

Goya Awards The Goya Awards ( es, Premios Goya) are Spain's main national annual film awards, commonly referred to as the Academy Awards of Spain. The awards were established in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sci ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuentes-Leon, Javier Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Peruvian film directors Peruvian LGBT writers LGBT film directors Peruvian LGBT screenwriters Peruvian screenwriters Male screenwriters