Pablo Berger

Last updated
Pablo Berger
Premios Goya 2018 - Pablo Berger.jpg
Berger at the 32nd Goya Awards in 2018
Born
Pablo Berger Uranga

1963 (age 6061)
Bilbao, Spain

Pablo Berger Uranga (born 1963) is a Spanish film director and screenwriter. He is known for directing and writing the silent drama film Blancanieves (2012), the black comedy films Torremolinos 73 (2003) and Abracadabra (2017), and the animated tragicomedy film Robot Dreams (2023).

Contents

Life and work

Berger attended primary and secondary school in Artxanda Trueba, located on the outskirts of Bilbao, Spain. In 1988 he directed his first short film, Mamá (Mum), with artistic director Álex de la Iglesia and Ramon Barea. With the financial winnings from a grant from the Provincial Council of Biscay, he went to study for a master’s in film at New York University. There he directed his short film Truth and Beauty, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award.

After getting his Ph.D., Berger worked as a professor of management at the New York Film Academy. Thereafter, he began a parallel career as a publicist and producer of music, culminating in 2003 with his first film Torremolinos 73 , [1] with Javier Cámara, Fernando Tejero and Candela Peña. Torremolinos 73 received four Goya nominations and won Berger the Golden Biznaga at the Málaga Film Festival, as well as multiple national and international prizes. The movie became one of the box office successes of the year in Spain.

In 2012, Berger premiered his second film Blancanieves (Snow White), which was the Spanish representative at the 85th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. Blancanieves won ten Goya Awards, including Best Film and Best Original Screenplay. It also earned Berger the Special Jury Prize at the San Sebastián International Film Festival. It was also nominated for the César Award for Best Foreign Film, as well as two European Film Awards for Best Film and Best Director.

In 2017, Berger premiered Abracadabra , a comedy starring again Maribel Verdú. This was his second film produced by Arcadia Motion Pictures. It became a critical success and received 8 nominations at the 32nd Goya Awards.

Pablo Berger is a Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France. In 2018, Berger was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. [2]

In May 2023, Berger premiered Robot Dreams , his first animated film, at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. The film was based on the graphic novel by American author Sara Varon, and was produced by Arcadia Motion Pictures. The film was sold internationally by Elle Driver and screened at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, where it won the Contrechamp Grand Prix. It won the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature Film and the Annie Award for Best Independent Animated Feature, as well as two Goya Awards for Best Animated Film and Best Adapted Screenplay. In 2024, Berger was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Robot Dreams, but lost to Hayao Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron .

Filmography

YearTitleDirectorWriterProducerNotes
1988MamáYesYesNoShort film
2003 Torremolinos 73 YesYesAssociate Directorial debut
2012 Blancanieves YesYesYes
2017 Abracadabra YesYesYes
2023 Robot Dreams YesYesYes

Awards and nominations

AwardYearCategoryWorkResultRef.
Academy Awards 2024 Best Animated Feature Robot Dreams Nominated [3]
Alliance of Women Film Journalists 2023 Best Animated FilmNominated [4]
Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2023Contrechamp Grand PrixWon [5]
Annie Awards 2024 Best Animated Feature – Independent Won [6]
Best Direction – Feature Nominated
Best Writing – Feature Nominated
Argentine Film Critics Association 2015 Best Ibero-American Film Blancanieves Nominated [7]
Ariel Award 2013 Best Ibero-American Film Nominated [8]
Boston Society of Film Critics 2023 Best Animated Film Robot Dreams Runner-up [lower-alpha 1] [9]
Carmen Awards 2024Best Non-Andalusian Produced FilmNominated [10]
[11]
CEC Awards 2013Best Film Blancanieves Won [12]
Best DirectorWon
Best ScreenplayWon
2018Best Original Screenplay Abracadabra Nominated [13]
2024Best Film Robot Dreams Nominated [14]
[15]
Best DirectorNominated
Best Adapted ScreenplayNominated
Best Animated FilmWon
César Awards 2014 Best Foreign Film Blancanieves Nominated [16]
Chicago Film Critics Association 2023 Best Animated Film Robot Dreams Nominated [17]
Cinekid Festival 2023Cinekid Lion for Best Children’s FilmNominated [18]
[19]
European Film Awards 2013 European Film Blancanieves Nominated [20]
[21]
European Director Nominated
2023 European Animated Feature Film Robot Dreams Won [22]
Feroz Awards 2018 Best Comedy Film Abracadabra Nominated [23]
2024 Best Comedy Film Robot Dreams Won [24]
Florida Film Critics Circle 2023 Best Animated Film Nominated [25]
Forqué Awards 2018 Best Picture Abracadabra Nominated [26]
2023 Best Animation Film Robot Dreams Won [27]
Gaudí Awards 2013Best Film Blancanieves Won [28]
Best DirectorNominated
Best ScreenplayNominated
2024 Best Adapted Screenplay Robot Dreams Nominated [29]
Best Animated FilmWon
Georgia Film Critics Association 2024Best Animated FilmNominated [30]
Goya Awards 2004 Best Original Screenplay Torremolinos 73 Nominated [31]
Best New Director Nominated
2013 Best Film Blancanieves Won [32]
Best Director Nominated
Best Original Screenplay Won
Best Original Song for “No te puedo encontrar”Won
2018 Best Original Screenplay Abracadabra Nominated [33]
2024 Best Adapted Screenplay Robot Dreams Won [34]
Best Animated Film Won
Houston Film Critics Society 2024 Best Animated FeatureNominated [35]
Indiana Film Journalists Association2023Best FilmNominated [36]
[37]
Best Animated FilmRunner-up
Original VisionNominated
International Cinephile Society 2024Best Animated FilmRunner-up [38]
London Film Critics' Circle 2024 Animated Film of the YearNominated [39]
Los Angeles Film Critics Association 2023 Best Animated Film Runner-up [40]
Málaga Film Festival 2003 Golden Biznaga for Best Spanish Film Torremolinos 73 Won [41]
Best Director Won
Nevada Film Critics Society2024Best Animated Feature Robot Dreams Won [42]
New York Latin ACE Awards2013Best Film Blancanieves Won [43]
Online Film Critics Society 2024 Best Animated Film Robot Dreams Nominated [44]
Palm Springs International Film Festival 2004New Voices/New Visions Award Torremolinos 73 Won [45]
2013Cine Latino Award Blancanieves Won [46]
San Sebastián International Film Festival 2012Special Jury Prize Blancanieves Won [47]
San Diego Film Critics Society 2023 Best Animated Film Robot Dreams Nominated [48]
San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle 2024 Best Animated Film Nominated [49]
Sant Jordi Awards 2013Best Spanish Film Blancanieves Won [50]
Satellite Awards 2024 Best Animated or Mixed Media Feature Robot Dreams Nominated [51]
Saturn Awards 2014 Best International Film Blancanieves Nominated [52]
Sitges Film Festival 2023 Best Film Robot Dreams Nominated [53]
Grand People's Choice Award for Best Feature Film in the SOFCWon
St. Louis Film Critics Association 2023 Best Animated Film Nominated [54]
Toronto Film Critics Association 2023 Best Animated Film Won [55]
Vancouver Film Critics Circle 2014 Best Foreign Language Film Blancanieves Nominated [56]

Notes

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