Juan Carlos Tabío is a Cuban film director and screenwriter. He is a prominent figure in the Cuban film industry and has been involved in the production of numerous critically acclaimed films.
Tabío was born in Havana, Cuba in 1943. He studied at the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) in the early 1960s and graduated with a degree in film directing. After graduation, he started his career as a film critic and researcher at the Cuban National Film Institute.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Tabío collaborated with director Tomás Gutiérrez Alea. Together, they created a series of iconic Cuban films such as ‘Memorias del Subdesarrollo’ (1968) and ‘Strawberry and Chocolate’ (1994). These films were hugely successful, both critically and commercially.
Tabío also directed several feature films of his own. His first feature was ‘Fresa y Chocolate’ (1993), which won the Goya Award for Best Spanish Language Foreign Film. This was followed by ‘Cecilia’ (1995), ‘Plaff!’ (2000) and ‘La Vida es Silbar’ (1998).
In addition to his work in cinema, Tabío has also written several books and collaborated on stage productions. He is currently working on a new film, ‘La Escuela de la Vida’, which is due for release in 2021.
Tabío has won numerous awards for his work, including the Premio Nacional de la Cinematografía in Cuba, the Goya Award and the Silver Bear in Berlin. He has also been nominated for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Juan Carlos Tabío is one of the most influential figures in Cuban cinema. His work has been praised for its boldness, originality and the way it reflects the cultural identity of his homeland. He continues to be a major creative force in the Cuban film industry.
