Álvaro Brechner (born April 9, 1976 in

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

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) is a

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an film

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screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

and producer that lives in

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. He is best known for writing and directing the feature films, ''

Bad Day to Go Fishing ''Bad Day to Go Fishing'' (original title, ''Mal día para pescar'') is a Spanish-Uruguayan film directed by Álvaro Brechner and released in 2009. The film stars Gary Piquer, Jouko Ahola, Antonella Costa and Cesar Troncoso. It was screened as pa ...

'' (''Mal Día Para Pescar''), '' Mr. Kaplan'' and '' A Twelve-Year Night'' (''La Noche de 12 Años''). He won a

Goya Award The Goya Awards () are Spain's main national annual film awards. They are presented by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain. The first ceremony was held in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Ar ...

from the

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s of

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, and his films have invited to the most prestigious film festival as

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

and

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

. All his three films have been chosen as Uruguay's official selection for the

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

. Recently

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considers Brechner as one of the leading

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n screen talents to emerge in the last decade, With only 46, received the "Faro de honor" award for his career at the Santander Festival.

Biography

He attended the Catholic University of

where he obtained a degree in

Media Studies Media studies is a discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history, and effects of various media; in particular, the mass media. Media studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but it mos ...

. In 1999 he earned a master's degree in creative documentary at the Universidad Autonoma de

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, Spain. He directed and produced several documentaries and the 35mm short films: "The Nine Mile Walk" (based on a short story by the American writer

Harry Kemelman Harry Kemelman (November 24, 1908 – December 15, 1996) was an American mystery writer and a professor of English studies, English. He was the creator of the fictitious religious sleuth Rabbi David Small. Early life Harry Kemelman was born ...

), "Sofia" and "Second Anniversary". In 2009, his feature film debut ''

'' premiered at the

International Critics' Week Critics' Week (), until 2008 called International Critics' Week ('), is a parallel section to the Cannes Film Festival organized by the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics. History Critics' week was created in 1962, after the French Syndicate of ...

of the Cannes Film Festival. It was the Uruguayan candidate for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. The film went on to win several international awards and has been screened in many film festivals such as the 26th

Warsaw International Film Festival Warsaw Film Festival (; WFF), also known as Warsaw International Film Festival, is an annual international film festival held every October in Warsaw, Poland. The 40th edition of the festival will take place from 11 to 20 October 2024. Histor ...

(Best Film Free Spirit Comp.),

Montreal World Film Festival The Montreal World Film Festival (), commonly abbreviated MWFF in English or FFM in French, was an annual film festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada from 1977 to 2019.Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) includes feature films, documentaries, and short films from the Spanish and Portuguese diaspora. The six-day festival was established in 1997. The festival was founded by Marlene Dermer (a ...

(''Best Film Opera Prima''),

Mar del Plata Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival () is an List of film festivals, international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is the only competitive feature festival recognized by the FIAPF ...

(Best Actor),

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (, Transliteration, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is a film festival first held in Moscow in 1935 and became regular since 1959. From its inception to ...

Shanghai International Film Festival The Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF, , French: ''Festival international du film de Shanghai'') is the largest film festival in Asia and China's longest-running international cinema event. The first festival was established in Octobe ...

, Austin (Best Film & Audience Award), Brooklyn (Best Director),

Sofia International Film Festival Sofia International Film Festival (SIFF) (Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: ''Международен София Филм Фест, София Филм Фест''), also known as Sofia Film Fest, is an annual film festival in Sofia, capital city of ...

(Best Film Fipresci), São Paulo,

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and

Palm Springs International Film Festival Palm Springs International Film Festival (sometimes stylized shortly as PSIFF) is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. Originally promoted by Mayor Sonny Bono and then sponsored by Nortel,here for Table of Contents it started in 19 ...

. The film won 10 Uruguay

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Critics Awards, including Best Film, Best International Film Debut, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actor and was nominated for Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor by the Spanish Critics (CEC). He directed '' Mr. Kaplan'' in 2014. The project was developed through

TorinoFilmLab TorinoFilmLab (TFL) is a Turin-based laboratory that primarily supports persons working on their first and second fiction feature films. Its four main fields of involvement are training, development, funding and distribution. TorinoFilmLab runs se ...

' Script&Pitch programme in 2010 and Framework in 2011. He won a €100.000 Production Award and a €30.000 Audience Award. The film was selected by dozens of Ffstivals including

BFI London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the BFI estimated that around 240 fe ...

Havana Film Festival The Havana Film Festival is a Cuban festival that focuses on the promotion of Latin American filmmakers. It is also known in Spanish as ''Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana,'' and in English as International Festiv ...

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and Huelva Film Festival. It was the Uruguayan candidate for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and was nominated for Best Iberoamerican Film for the

Goya Awards The Goya Awards () are Spain's main national annual film awards. They are presented by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain. The first ceremony was held in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Ar ...

of the Spanish Film Academy, the

Ariel Award The Ariel Award () is an award that recognizes the best of Mexican cinema. Given annually, since 1946, by the Academia Mexicana de Artes y Ciencias Cinematográficas, Mexican Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences (AMACC), the award reco ...

of the Mexican Academy of Film, and received 7 nominations at the 2nd Platino Awards, including Best Film of the year, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Photography, Best Editing, Best Sound and Best Art Direction. In 2014 Brechner was highlighted by ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' as one of the Up Next 10, a list of the most interesting directors and producers emerging from

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. In 2017 he was one of several Latin American directors interviewed in ''A Companion to Latin American Cinema'', which also included

Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro González Iñárritu (born 15 August 1963) is a Mexican filmmaker primarily known for making modern psychological drama (film genre), psychological drama films about the human condition. His most notable films include ''Amores perros ...

Pablo Larraín Pablo Larraín Matte (; born 19 August 1976) is a Chilean filmmaker. He is known for directing films such as ''Neruda (film), Neruda'' (2016), ''Jackie (2016 film), Jackie'' (2016), ''Spencer (film), Spencer'' (2021), ''El Conde (film), El Cond ...

Diego Luna Diego Dionisio Luna Alexander (; born 29 December 1979) is a Mexican actor, director, and producer, best known for his portrayal of Cassian Andor in ''Rogue One, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'' (2016) and the Disney+ series ''Andor (TV series), ...

and

Martín Rejtman Martín Rejtman (born January 3, 1961, in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine writer and film director. He is considered to be a key figure in the New Argentine Cinema, making films such as '' Silvia Prieto'' and '' The Magic Gloves''. His documentary ...

. Brechner's third film ''A Twelve-Year Night'' premiered as an Official Selection at the

75th Venice International Film Festival The 75th Venice International Film Festival was held from 29 August to 8 September 2018, at Venice Lido in Italy. Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro was the jury president for the main competition. Italian actor Michele Riondino hosted the o ...

and San Sebastian Film Festival. It was the Uruguayan candidate for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2019 and for Best Adapted Screenplay at Spain's

. ''A Twelve-Year Night'' was awarded at the co-production markets of

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

and

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; , ) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spain, Spanish city of Donostia, Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Countr ...

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (2009) * '' Mr. Kaplan'' (2014) * '' A Twelve-Year Night'' (2018)

References

External links

*
Bad Day to go Fishing Official WebsiteÁlvaro Brechner – Cineuropa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brechner, Alvaro Living people 1976 births Uruguayan people of Polish-Jewish descent Catholic University of Uruguay alumni Uruguayan film directors Uruguayan film producers Mass media people from Montevideo Silver Condor Award for Best Ibero-American Film winners Uruguayan Ashkenazi Jews