Biografilm mourns the loss of Sebastián Lelio, the Chilean director and screenwriter whose films opened doors that once seemed impossible. His stories gave voice and dignity to people who had rarely been seen at the centre of the screen.
Lelio had a long and special bond with our festival. In 2014 he served on our International Jury and brought Gloria to Bologna. The film is an intense, luminous portrait of a woman who claims her right to live life to the full. He later joined the Biografilm Honorary Board.
In 2017 we were honoured to present his masterpiece, A Fantastic Woman (Una mujer fantástica), just a few months before it won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. This historic win carried a story of identity, courage and freedom around the world.
We will deeply miss his art. Yet we remain grateful for everything he left us: films that will keep speaking to us, challenging us and urging us to see the world with more open eyes.
Thank you, Sebastián.
