With his black humor and his peculiar way of capturing reality, Felipe Aljure has positioned himself as one of the most important filmmakers in Colombia

Born in Girardot, Cundinamarca, this film director and screenwriter has closely accompanied the history of cinema in Colombia: he was the first director of the Cinematography Directorate of the Ministry of Culture and an indispensable piece in the process of formulating the first Law of Cinema of the country.

With only 37 years, Aljure has set a pattern in the realization of Colombian cinema with its black humor and caricatured reality. According to the magazine La Luciérnaga, with his films "La gente de la Universal" (1991) and "El colombian dream" (2006), Aljure made a difference in Colombian cinema, standing out as an auteur cinema.

Leer en español: Felipe Aljure: el cineasta de la gente

Both films have had very good reviews at the level of style and narration, and the ability of this film genius to propose alternative ways of making audiovisual products in Colombia stands out. In addition, thanks to his studies in advertising and business administration, Aljure managed to become a space within the small international film community.

"My mom played piano and my dad was a techie lover, she taught me how to play and passion and taste developed as time passed, although sometimes I went with my dad to watch the new ones. Things that I was buying, all because Mr. Aljure was gummy to the devices, so we had the first video cameras, projection equipment, Polaroid cameras and it was exciting to see how an image was appearing on paper," Aljure told the newspaper Universia "I practically decided on film because I was a bad musician," the director added.

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New artistic director of the FICCI

This weekend it was announced that Aljure will be the artistic director of the Cartagena de Indias International Film Festival (FICCI, by its acronym in Spanish), from its 59th edition.

"In the past, they had approached me to propose me as a candidate for the board, but in reality, it was not the time for me because of the projects that were in development and the times. On this occasion, we have been able to talk with the board and the people who run the festival and there has been time to identify topics of mutual interest and the support and freedom to develop them within the framework of the 59th edition," said Felipe.

The general director of the FICCI, Lina Rodríguez describes him as "a man of an exceptional human condition and great charisma, who from his office has interacted for decades with the festival and Cartagena."

For his part, the director has been in charge of showing his emotion for the opportunity and talking about the challenges that it represents. "I think we should analyze why today there is such a huge disagreement between the Colombian film brand and the public. Take advantage of the spaces in Cartagena for filmmakers, exhibitors and distributors to do an examination of conscience and rebuild that relationship," Aljure told El Tiempo.

LatinAmerican Post | Luisa Fernanda Báez

Translated from "Felipe Aljure: el cineasta de la gente"