The Films of Bigas Luna

Fouz-Hernandez, Santiago

Abstract

The films of Bigas Luna is the first volume in English to examine the entire filmography of one of Spain’s most renowned contemporary filmmakers, from his debut film Tatuaje/Tattoo (1976) to his last DiDi Hollywood (2010). It is also the first in any language to offer in-depth analyses of each of Bigas Luna’s sixteen feature films.

Informed by theories of haptic cinema, erotic cinema, auteur, star, gender, sexuality and national identity studies, the book contextualises a close analysis of each film with a detailed discussion of production and marketing, establishing an insightful conversation with previous Bigas Luna studies in multiple languages that approached his oeuvre from a wide range of perspectives. Fouz Hernández examines an impressively wide range of materials, including original screenplays, press cuttings, marketing materials, and interviews with cast members and prominent professionals in the Spanish film industry who worked in these films.

Organised into five chapters that focus on issues such as genre, gender, Iberian and Mediterranean identities or meta-filmic narratives, the book is the most comprehensive study of Bigas Luna’s filmography.

The culmination of over a decade of work, including other publications, a touring Bigas Luna retrospective in thirty world cities and a sixty-episode podcast series, this book is destined to become the ultimate reference volume for studying the works of one of Europe’s most prominent and provocative filmmakers in recent decades.

Citation

Fouz-Hernandez, S. (in press). The Films of Bigas Luna. Manchester University Press

• Book Type: Authored Book
• Deposit Date: Nov 27, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 17, 2025
• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Series Title: Spanish and Latin American Filmmakers
• ISBN: 9780719090431
• Keywords: Bigas Luna; Spanish cinema; Catalan cinema; Haptic cinema; Mediterranean identities; Iberia; European cinema; Penélope Cruz; Javier Bardem; Erotic cinema.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3107738
• Additional Information: File attached: Book and Chapter abstracts and keywords
• Contract Date: Nov 8, 2023