Benicio del Toro was exultant one day after collecting his PLATINO Award of Honor, which he will receive during the gala of the X Edition of the PLATINO Awards held this Saturday, April 22 at the Municipal Palace of IFEMA Madrid.
A recognition of which the Puerto Rican actor has congratulated: “It is an honor to celebrate our Hispanidad and I feel really very honored to receive this award and follow in the footsteps of Antonio Banderas, Edward James Olmos, Ricardo Darín or Carmen Maura to name just a few. It’s a tablet that I’m very happy to be on, to be part of this group.”
In a press conference held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Madrid presented by Juan Carlos Arciniegas, the interpreter did not hesitate to highlight the good work of the Ibero-American audiovisual.
“Latin American cinema, not only now, is impressive, it has been growing and becoming fantastic for a long time.” A statement that contrasts with the Hispanic experience in the United States, which improves over time, but is still a pending task.
“There are some stereotypes that are created, and they exist because they do not delve into those characters that represent minorities. Maybe it is not deepened because there have not been fermented writers who make the history of the Hispanic within the United States. ”
Regarding his experience as a Latino in Hollywood, Del Toro reflected on the shift of his career from the stereotype to delve into great figures of Ibero-American history.
“In Hollywood, most tales, stories, are not designed for minorities. I have Latino friends who asked me if I wasn’t bothered to be typecast as a Latino, because there aren’t usually good roles for Latinos. But, after studying acting, I had the opportunity to work with directors, writers and producers who listened to my crying to give a dimension to the character, u-and, somehow I convinced them.”
“Those creators understood that I wanted to find the angle to the characters. There you take responsibility because you get wet. And I, without being a writer or director, looked for a space there,” he said.
Del Toro, who said that “before making a film was almost like going to the Moon and now you can do it with a phone”, which has facilitated the arrival of new creators to the audiovisual, also stressed that “Hollywood cinema is spectacular” and the Ibero-American industry can and should use it: “Ibero-American cinema must take advantage of the great potential of Hollywood to continue growing”.
A reference
The honoree also remembered the filming of “Golden Eggs”, by the late Spanish filmmaker Bigas Luna, in which he shared the screen with another great Ibero-American talent: “I remember having a great time with one of my favorite actors, Javier Bardem”.
With the anecdote, the Puerto Rican interpreter revealed a curious family fact about the film: “My old man loved the movie. When you start as an actor, the family doesn’t usually agree, and mine wasn’t very happy, but when that movie came out, my old man was relaxed, maybe because I made it in Spanish.”
The Platinum of Honor looked back on his career and personal life: “As the years go by, one realizes that life is moving and one reflects. I’m a father, and that has changed me a lot. I think also as an actor I’ve had the opportunity to work with excellent directors, some of the best in the world, with fantastic actors, producers and writers. You absorb, and I think you learn. I’m interested now in exploring other things maybe like producing or directing, maybe, but acting keeps pulling me.”
Asked what he would like to leave as a legacy and memory, the actor joked: “I don’t give much head to that, but… Surprise me.”
The award, which Enrique Cerezo will present to the Puerto Rican actor as president of the PLATINO Awards at the gala to be held tomorrow, April 22, highlighted Del Toro as “one of the biggest stars of Ibero-American and world cinema” and a “reference in Ibero-America and international productions.” “You only needed the PLATINUM,” said Cerezo after listing some of the many recognitions that the interpreter has received during his long career.
Thus, the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking audiovisual awards will honor one of the most popular Ibero-American faces in the world. A Latina figure in Hollywood, Del Toro won the Oscar for his performance in “Traffic,” one of the many accolades he has during his career.Xcelsa Carrera. Not surprisingly, he treasures a BAFTA award, also for his role in “Traffic”, a film that also earned him an award from the Screen Actors Guild and the Silver Bear at the Berlin Festival; two Independent Spirit Awards for “Usual Suspects” and “Basquiat”, or the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in “Ché”, in addition to numerous nominations and recognitions at festivals and awards around the world.
Award to Argentina
During the same press conference, the first statuettes of the PLATINO Awards were presented. The winners, who were voted for by the public, received their awards from Gemma Juncá Rodríguez, Marketing and Brand Director of IBERIA, one of the main sponsors of the PLATINO Awards and collaborator with the Audience Awards initiative.
It was “Argentina, 1985” that won the PLATINO Audience Award for Best Ibero-American Fiction Film. For its part, the series “News of a kidnapping” was the one that received the PLATINO Audience Award for Best Ibero-American Miniseries or Cinematographic Teleseries.
In the cinematographic interpretive section, the award for Best Female Performance awarded by the audience went to Laia Costa for her role in “Cinco lobitos”, while the popular verdict awarded the statuette for Best Male Performance to Ricardo Darín for his role in “Argentina, 1985”.
Finally, the winners of the PLATINO Audience Awards for Best Male and Female Performance in Miniseries or Ibero-American Cinematographic Teleseries were, respectively, Guillermo Francella for “El encargado” and Natalia Oreiro for “Santa Evita”.
To learn more about what is happening in the world of science and culture, join our community Cultívate, the Newsletter of El Mostrador on these topics. Sign up for free HERE
Follow us on
