Artists of all stripes have openly grappled with the spectres of their own mortality, but few film directors have confronted their own looming deaths as bluntly, or with as much vitality, as did Hector Babenco by participating in this climactic work, the part-sober documentary/part-boisterous extravaganza Babenco: Tell Me When I Die. Eschewing sentimentality and regret altogether, the Argentinian-Brazilian director of such powerful dramas as Pixote and Kiss Of the Spider Woman enthusiastically embraced the idea of confronting his own appointment with oblivion in this rambunctious and stylish obituary, which was directed by his wife, Barbara Paz. This is Brazil’s candidate in the Academy’s Best International Feature Film category this year, after having debuted at the 2019 edition of the Venice Film Festival.
Babenco was first diagnosed with cancer when he was just 38, just as he began production of his one big Hollywood films, Ironweed, starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.
Babenco was first diagnosed with cancer when he was just 38, just as he began production of his one big Hollywood films, Ironweed, starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.
- 1/27/2021
- by Todd McCarthy
- Deadline Film + TV
While speaking at a masterclass at Mexico’s 2019 Morelia Film Festival, Willem Dafoe said about acting: “When you do the bidding of someone else, it’s like falling in love: You have a new energy, you don’t think about yourself, you’re on an adventure… and it’s always better when it’s through someone else; you become their creature.”
Indeed, Dafoe has portrayed a slew of characters in his storied career, but perhaps inhabiting Hector Babenco’s alter-ego Diego in the deeply personal “My Hindu Friend” was among his more challenging. While Babenco’s last film was not strictly auto-biographical, it was based on his epic battle with cancer combined with some imagined sequences. “Sometimes I’d ask him about the circumstances [surrounding a scene] and he’d say: ‘Don’t look at me! You’re Diego, you tell me!’ but at other times, he’d close his eyes and give testimony,...
Indeed, Dafoe has portrayed a slew of characters in his storied career, but perhaps inhabiting Hector Babenco’s alter-ego Diego in the deeply personal “My Hindu Friend” was among his more challenging. While Babenco’s last film was not strictly auto-biographical, it was based on his epic battle with cancer combined with some imagined sequences. “Sometimes I’d ask him about the circumstances [surrounding a scene] and he’d say: ‘Don’t look at me! You’re Diego, you tell me!’ but at other times, he’d close his eyes and give testimony,...
- 1/27/2021
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
“I have already lived my death — all that’s left is to make the movie.” So says celebrated Argentine-Brazilian filmmaker Héctor Babenco in a documentary that, sure enough, attempts to bring closure to a life already concluded. After three decades of living with cancer and related complications, Babenco passed away in 2016 aged 70; directed by his widow Bárbara Paz, “Babenco: Tell Me When I Die” movingly serves as both valedictory and valentine, channeling and preserving the spirit of an artist who vocally feared that his life’s work hadn’t been completed. “Tell Me When I Die” may technically be Paz’s first film rather than the eponymous director’s last, but an intimate air of collaboration colors the whole monochrome affair: As a portrait of a dying man trying to at least co-direct his own farewell, it’s so sorely tender as to be a little discomfiting.
The first documentary...
The first documentary...
- 12/28/2020
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
In late director Hector Babenco’s last film, “My Hindu Friend,” the doctor attending to Willem Dafoe’s character, a cancer-stricken Babenco alter-ego, observes: “Those who have a dream to fulfill have a better chance of survival.”
These sage words best encapsulate what kept Babenco alive for more than three decades after he was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer at the age of 38. He made just 11 feature films in his illustrious career but each film was a miracle that kept him going until he passed away at 70 in 2016.
“Cinema was his oxygen; the films were Hector, Hector was his films,” says filmmaker-actress Barbara Paz, who marks her directorial feature debut with “Babenco: Tell Me When I Die,” the Brazilian submission for the Best International Feature Oscar, Best Documentary Oscar, and the Spirit Awards for Documentary. While Brazil has sent many fact-based fiction films to the Oscars, this is the first documentary to represent the country.
These sage words best encapsulate what kept Babenco alive for more than three decades after he was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer at the age of 38. He made just 11 feature films in his illustrious career but each film was a miracle that kept him going until he passed away at 70 in 2016.
“Cinema was his oxygen; the films were Hector, Hector was his films,” says filmmaker-actress Barbara Paz, who marks her directorial feature debut with “Babenco: Tell Me When I Die,” the Brazilian submission for the Best International Feature Oscar, Best Documentary Oscar, and the Spirit Awards for Documentary. While Brazil has sent many fact-based fiction films to the Oscars, this is the first documentary to represent the country.
- 12/16/2020
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Munich-based sales agency Arri Media Intl.’s has signed a North American distribution deal with Rock Salt Releasing for “Curveball – A True Story. Unfortunately.,” which had its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival in the Berlinale Special Gala section this year.
The film, co-written and directed by Johannes Naber, is released in German cinemas on Nov. 26, and will be released in North America by Rock Salt in the first quarter of next year.
The film tells the true story of how the Iraq war, with the involvement of the German government and secret service, was started based on faulty intelligence.
Bioweapons expert Dr. Arndt Wolf of the German Federal Intelligence Service (Bnd) is obsessed with the idea that, despite Un inspections, anthrax is still being produced in Iraq. Back home in Germany, Wolf’s superior Schatz assigns him as case officer for the Iraqi asylum seeker Rafid Alwan because...
The film, co-written and directed by Johannes Naber, is released in German cinemas on Nov. 26, and will be released in North America by Rock Salt in the first quarter of next year.
The film tells the true story of how the Iraq war, with the involvement of the German government and secret service, was started based on faulty intelligence.
Bioweapons expert Dr. Arndt Wolf of the German Federal Intelligence Service (Bnd) is obsessed with the idea that, despite Un inspections, anthrax is still being produced in Iraq. Back home in Germany, Wolf’s superior Schatz assigns him as case officer for the Iraqi asylum seeker Rafid Alwan because...
- 10/21/2020
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
When the term character actor is used in film discourse, Willem Dafoe is one of the most common actors to come to the collective mind of cinephiles. However, he is, and always has been, a leading man who simply isn’t deterred by the size, or lack thereof, of a given role to which he connects. […]
The post Willem Dafoe on ‘My Hindu Friend’ and Working With Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson and Lars Von Trier [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
The post Willem Dafoe on ‘My Hindu Friend’ and Working With Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson and Lars Von Trier [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
- 1/17/2020
- by Alex Arabian
- Slash Film
Exclusive: Hector Babenco’s final film, My Hindu Friend was originally released in Brazil (where it is known as Meu Amigo Hindu) in 2015 and made its international premiere at the Montréal World Film Festival the following year where the film’s star Willem Dafoe was honored with a Best Actor award. After Babenco died in 2016, the film never made it stateside. Fast-forward to 2020 and Rock Salt Releasing acquired has title and set a limited weeklong run for the film starting January 17.
Oscar-nominated Babenco co-wrote the film with Guilherme Moraes Guintella. The film was inspired by Babenco’s life story with Dafoe playing Diego, a talented American filmmaker, whose life is quickly disrupted after being diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. Close to death, Diego marries the beautiful Livia (Maria Fernanda Cândido) before heading to Seattle for life-saving treatments, including receiving a bone marrow transplant.
Oscar-nominated Babenco co-wrote the film with Guilherme Moraes Guintella. The film was inspired by Babenco’s life story with Dafoe playing Diego, a talented American filmmaker, whose life is quickly disrupted after being diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. Close to death, Diego marries the beautiful Livia (Maria Fernanda Cândido) before heading to Seattle for life-saving treatments, including receiving a bone marrow transplant.
- 1/10/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
London-based sales and production company Taskovski Films has acquired world sales rights to Barbara Paz’s debut documentary, “Babenco — Tell Me When I Die,” which bows in Venice Classics on Sept. 2.
Brazilian helmer Héctor Babenco was a commanding presence on the international film scene, directing pics of the caliber of “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” which was Oscar nominated for best picture, director, adapted screenplay and actor, with William Hurt winning in his category. Other notable films by Babenco include “Ironweed” and “Pixote.”
Paz’s film represents a passing of the baton between a mentor and his student, who were also lovers. It is in a way Babenco’s last work. A film that functions as a loving portrait of the man and the filmmaker, but also as a love letter to the filmmaking process itself.
It is a deeply stylized, black-and-white documentary with intricate editing that shuttles between Babenco...
Brazilian helmer Héctor Babenco was a commanding presence on the international film scene, directing pics of the caliber of “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” which was Oscar nominated for best picture, director, adapted screenplay and actor, with William Hurt winning in his category. Other notable films by Babenco include “Ironweed” and “Pixote.”
Paz’s film represents a passing of the baton between a mentor and his student, who were also lovers. It is in a way Babenco’s last work. A film that functions as a loving portrait of the man and the filmmaker, but also as a love letter to the filmmaking process itself.
It is a deeply stylized, black-and-white documentary with intricate editing that shuttles between Babenco...
- 9/1/2019
- by Emiliano Granada
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: U.S. label Rock Salt Releasing is re-launching acclaimed Argentine-Brazilian filmmaker Hector Babenco’s (Kiss Of The Spider Woman) final film My Last Friend in the international and U.S markets.
Willem Dafoe stars in the 2015 feature about a film director who learns he is on the brink of death. Rock Salt Releasing will launch international sales on the film, also known as My Hindu Friend, in Cannes.
Originally released in Brazil, the English-language movie internationally premiered at the Montréal World Film Festival in 2016 where Dafoe was awarded Best Actor. The film’s release was put on hold, however, due to Babenco’s untimely death in July 2016. Rock Salt’s parent company TriCoast Worldwide picked up the O2 Production feature on the advice of The Movie Agency.
Co-written by Guilherme Moraes Guintella (Principal Dancer), the project was inspired by Babenco’s own life story, starring his friends and family as characters.
Willem Dafoe stars in the 2015 feature about a film director who learns he is on the brink of death. Rock Salt Releasing will launch international sales on the film, also known as My Hindu Friend, in Cannes.
Originally released in Brazil, the English-language movie internationally premiered at the Montréal World Film Festival in 2016 where Dafoe was awarded Best Actor. The film’s release was put on hold, however, due to Babenco’s untimely death in July 2016. Rock Salt’s parent company TriCoast Worldwide picked up the O2 Production feature on the advice of The Movie Agency.
Co-written by Guilherme Moraes Guintella (Principal Dancer), the project was inspired by Babenco’s own life story, starring his friends and family as characters.
- 5/14/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Keep up with the always-hopping film festival world with our weekly Film Festival Roundup column. Check out last week’s Roundup right here.
Lineup Announcements
– Exclusive: The 12th Annual Sunscreen Film Festival announced its official selections for the 2017 event featuring films with Alec Baldwin, Dylan McDermott, John Cleese, Daphne Zuniga and more. Opening night will feature Michael Mailer’s newest film, “Blind,” a romantic-drama, starring Alec Baldwin, Demi Moore and Dylan McDermott. Closing night will wrap up the festival with “Albion: The Enchanted Stallion,” a family fantasy adventure, starring John Cleese, Debra Messing, Jennifer Morrison and Stephen Dorff.
Retrospective Screenings will include Daphne Zuniga appearance at the festival honoring the 30th anniversary of “Spaceballs.” Also in this category will be “The Greatest Show on Earth,” from 1952 directed by Cecile B. DeMille, which won the Oscar for Best Pictures and Best Writing in 1953. The screening will honor the closing of the Ringling Bros.
Lineup Announcements
– Exclusive: The 12th Annual Sunscreen Film Festival announced its official selections for the 2017 event featuring films with Alec Baldwin, Dylan McDermott, John Cleese, Daphne Zuniga and more. Opening night will feature Michael Mailer’s newest film, “Blind,” a romantic-drama, starring Alec Baldwin, Demi Moore and Dylan McDermott. Closing night will wrap up the festival with “Albion: The Enchanted Stallion,” a family fantasy adventure, starring John Cleese, Debra Messing, Jennifer Morrison and Stephen Dorff.
Retrospective Screenings will include Daphne Zuniga appearance at the festival honoring the 30th anniversary of “Spaceballs.” Also in this category will be “The Greatest Show on Earth,” from 1952 directed by Cecile B. DeMille, which won the Oscar for Best Pictures and Best Writing in 1953. The screening will honor the closing of the Ringling Bros.
- 3/30/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
We pay tribute to the film stars and directors from around the world who sadly passed away in 2016.Hector BabencoArgentine-born Brazilian director Hector Babenco died on July 13 at 70-years-old.He found international success with Brazilian slum drama Pixote (1981), going on to make Kiss Of
We pay tribute to the film stars and directors from around the world who sadly passed away in 2016.
Hector Babenco
Argentine-born Brazilian director Hector Babenco died on July 13 at 70-years-old.
He found international success with Brazilian slum drama Pixote (1981), going on to make Kiss Of The Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned a best director Oscar nominee and William Hurt earned an Oscar win for best actor.
Babenco went on to direct Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson in Ironweed (1987) and Tom Berenger and John Lithgow in At Play In The Fields Of The Lord (1991).
After undergoing cancer treatment in the 1990s, he returned to the director’s chair for films including Brazilian prison...
We pay tribute to the film stars and directors from around the world who sadly passed away in 2016.
Hector Babenco
Argentine-born Brazilian director Hector Babenco died on July 13 at 70-years-old.
He found international success with Brazilian slum drama Pixote (1981), going on to make Kiss Of The Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned a best director Oscar nominee and William Hurt earned an Oscar win for best actor.
Babenco went on to direct Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson in Ironweed (1987) and Tom Berenger and John Lithgow in At Play In The Fields Of The Lord (1991).
After undergoing cancer treatment in the 1990s, he returned to the director’s chair for films including Brazilian prison...
- 12/31/2016
- ScreenDaily
Update: The head of the festival has branded reports of eleventh-hour staff resignations “slanderous” and “garbage” as the 40th anniversary edition got underway this week.
“It has nothing to do with the staff of the festival,” Serge Losique, who founded the Montreal World Film Festival in 1976, told Screen International on Friday. “It’s slandering [sic] and they will answer to that.”
The festival president flatly denied that any member of his staff had left, despite an open letter in Le Journal de Montreal this week in which staff said their resignations were motivated by what they claimed was financial instability at the festival.
In an emotional call to Screen in which he sounded irate and frustrated, Losique appeared to concede that there has been turnover of some volunteers and agency workers hired on short-term contracts, but added this was not the same issue.
“These people [volunteers and agency workers] know nothing about or finances,” he said. “When you have...
“It has nothing to do with the staff of the festival,” Serge Losique, who founded the Montreal World Film Festival in 1976, told Screen International on Friday. “It’s slandering [sic] and they will answer to that.”
The festival president flatly denied that any member of his staff had left, despite an open letter in Le Journal de Montreal this week in which staff said their resignations were motivated by what they claimed was financial instability at the festival.
In an emotional call to Screen in which he sounded irate and frustrated, Losique appeared to concede that there has been turnover of some volunteers and agency workers hired on short-term contracts, but added this was not the same issue.
“These people [volunteers and agency workers] know nothing about or finances,” he said. “When you have...
- 8/26/2016
- ScreenDaily
Willem Dafoe, Isabelle Adjani among festival guests; international industry express uncertainty on eve of 40th edition.
Montreal World Film Festival (Aug 25 – Sept 5) is facing a rocky start to its 40th edition following last-minute staff resignations and a key venue cancellation.
According to local reports, a large group of the festival’s full-time employees announced their resignation in an open letter sent to Le Journal de Montreal this week, citing financial uncertainty over the event as their prime motivation.
In another blow to the festival, the Cineplex movie theatre chain is withdrawing from the 40th edition due to “financial, timing and operational concerns”.
“We’ve been working hard to support and co-ordinate the 2016 festival for some time now,” Daniel Seguin, VP of operations for eastern Canada at Cineplex Entertainment told local media outlet CBC.
“Because of financial, timing and operational concerns with the festival itself, we had to make the difficult decision to not partner with them this...
Montreal World Film Festival (Aug 25 – Sept 5) is facing a rocky start to its 40th edition following last-minute staff resignations and a key venue cancellation.
According to local reports, a large group of the festival’s full-time employees announced their resignation in an open letter sent to Le Journal de Montreal this week, citing financial uncertainty over the event as their prime motivation.
In another blow to the festival, the Cineplex movie theatre chain is withdrawing from the 40th edition due to “financial, timing and operational concerns”.
“We’ve been working hard to support and co-ordinate the 2016 festival for some time now,” Daniel Seguin, VP of operations for eastern Canada at Cineplex Entertainment told local media outlet CBC.
“Because of financial, timing and operational concerns with the festival itself, we had to make the difficult decision to not partner with them this...
- 8/26/2016
- ScreenDaily
The Argentine-born Brazilian director who directed William Hurt to an Oscar in Kiss Of The Spider Woman has died of a heart attack in Sao Paulo. He was 70.
Babenco was born in 1946 in the Argentinian coastal resort of Mar Del Plata before he left home to live in Europe in the early 1960s and finally settled in Sao Paulo in Brazil in 1969.
He broke out internationally in 1981 with the Brazilian slum drama Pixote and went on to make Kiss Of The Spider Woman, which challenged the establishment with its bold depiction of gay characters four years later.
Babenco also directed Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson in Ironweed in 1987 and Tom Berenger, John Lithgow and Aidan Quinn in At Play In The Fields of The Lord in 1991.
After undergoing treatment for cancer in the 1990s he returned to direct the Brazilian prison drama Carandiru in 2003 and most recently made My Hindu Friend with Willem Dafoe, which remains...
Babenco was born in 1946 in the Argentinian coastal resort of Mar Del Plata before he left home to live in Europe in the early 1960s and finally settled in Sao Paulo in Brazil in 1969.
He broke out internationally in 1981 with the Brazilian slum drama Pixote and went on to make Kiss Of The Spider Woman, which challenged the establishment with its bold depiction of gay characters four years later.
Babenco also directed Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson in Ironweed in 1987 and Tom Berenger, John Lithgow and Aidan Quinn in At Play In The Fields of The Lord in 1991.
After undergoing treatment for cancer in the 1990s he returned to direct the Brazilian prison drama Carandiru in 2003 and most recently made My Hindu Friend with Willem Dafoe, which remains...
- 7/18/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Héctor Babenco Photo: Caiodovalle
Héctor Babenco, the Argentine-born Brazilian director who became the first Latin American to be nominated for a Best Director Oscar in 1986, with Kiss Of The Spider Woman, has died at the age of 70. He reportedly suffered a heart attack in Sao Paolo on Wednesday night.
Babenco, who survived a bone marrow transplant to treat lymphatic cancer in 1994, made 13 films over the course of his career and also appeared as an actor in two, The Venice Project and Before Night Falls.
He was known for taking on the establishment, using his films to speak out about poverty, the treatment of gay people, and the brutality of the military dictatorship and once said: ""My strongest impulse has always been to flee from definitions, flags, and ideologies."
His last film, My Hindu Friend, starred Willem Dafoe in the role of a terminally ill film director. He is survived by.
Héctor Babenco, the Argentine-born Brazilian director who became the first Latin American to be nominated for a Best Director Oscar in 1986, with Kiss Of The Spider Woman, has died at the age of 70. He reportedly suffered a heart attack in Sao Paolo on Wednesday night.
Babenco, who survived a bone marrow transplant to treat lymphatic cancer in 1994, made 13 films over the course of his career and also appeared as an actor in two, The Venice Project and Before Night Falls.
He was known for taking on the establishment, using his films to speak out about poverty, the treatment of gay people, and the brutality of the military dictatorship and once said: ""My strongest impulse has always been to flee from definitions, flags, and ideologies."
His last film, My Hindu Friend, starred Willem Dafoe in the role of a terminally ill film director. He is survived by.
- 7/15/2016
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
It’s suntory time folks. Park-Chan Wook, Abbas Kiarostami and Fatih Akin will be giving master classes while two members of the Team Zissou faction in Willem Dafoe and Bill Murray will be honored with career tributes at the upcoming 2015 Marrakech Int. Film Fest (December 4th to the 12th). The star-studded attendees already include a who’s who jury. Dafoe has Zhang Yimou’s The Great Wall, Hector Babenco’s My Hindu Friend and Tommy Wirkola’s What Happened to Monday? coming up while Murray has recently added a brand pair to his filmography with Barry Levinson’s Rock the Kasbah (a subpar effort from the director) and Sofia Coppola’s star-studded side project between features in A Very Murray Christmas.
- 11/20/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Between The Grand Budapest Hotel, A Most Wanted Man and cult action favorite John Wick, last year proved to be an excellent twelve months for veteran actor Willem Dafoe, and going off of the star’s recent streak, 2015 looks set to be no different. With parts in My Hindu Friend not to mention voicework on Pixar sequel Finding Dory already in the pipeline, Dafoe has boarded Zhang Yimou’s upcoming mercenary thriller The Great Wall in an unspecified role.
That’s according to the Hollywood Reporter, who brought news of the casting late last night. As things stand, Dafoe will now star opposite Matt Damon, who joined the project last year to fill the boots of a soldier tasked with bringing gunpowder back to Europe. However, all is now what it seems when the character and his squadron are ambushed by a group of foul, mythical beasts, leaving only Damon...
That’s according to the Hollywood Reporter, who brought news of the casting late last night. As things stand, Dafoe will now star opposite Matt Damon, who joined the project last year to fill the boots of a soldier tasked with bringing gunpowder back to Europe. However, all is now what it seems when the character and his squadron are ambushed by a group of foul, mythical beasts, leaving only Damon...
- 2/13/2015
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.