Departures of note

José Luis García Sánchez was a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer born in Salamanca in 1941, whose career spanned nearly six decades and produced one of the most singular filmographies in Spanish cinema, marked by satire, black humor and a critical view of Spanish society and politics. He studied law and sociology before devoting himself to cinema. His international breakthrough came in 1978 with Las truchas, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. He went on to direct La corte del Faraón, which earned him the Silver Shell for best direction at San Sebastián, as well as Divinas palabras, Tirano Banderas, Tranvía a la Malvarrosa and Los muertos no se tocan, nene, his final feature. As a screenwriter he won two Goya awards: best original screenplay for Belle Époque, shared with Rafael Azcona and Fernando Trueba, and best adapted screenplay for Tirano Banderas, with Azcona. A devotee of Valle-Inclán, he adapted Tirano Banderas and Divinas palabras for the screen alongside Azcona, and also contributed to scripts for Habla, mudita, Camada negra, El rey del río and Cómo ser infeliz y disfrutarlo. The Spanish Film Academy remembered him as a 'chronicler of his time' linked to the 'spirit of Salamanca', the first forum for reflection on Spanish cinema. He died in Madrid on 25 October 2026 at the age of 85 after a long illness.