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Filmmaker Arthur Penn received a medal

Doris Morales/Translated by Vicente Castañar

[imagen]Within the activities held at the 5th Festival Internacional de Cine de Morelia, there was a ceremony to homage the great film maker Arthur Penn. After his movie Litte Big Man, Penn received -from Daniela Michel, FICM director and Iván Trujillo, Filmoteca de la UNAM’s director- a silver medal made from silver nitrate, the silver nitrate gathered from restoring films at the university’s labs.

Arthur Penn was given the Filmoteca de la UNAM medal for his outstanding contribution to cinema culture, the filmmaker was thoroughly applauded by the audience. He commented that this award was very meaningful because it comes straight from the cinema and even though he doesn’t go to many festivals he mentioned that this was a special occasion.

Who is Mr. Penn?
He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He is a filmmaker and he also produces theater and television. He started his career as a very young man at the theater, and he continued working in the theater within the US Army during World War II.

In the 50s he made some TV dramas and in 1958 he directed his first film called The Left Handed Gun, which is about a gang of young criminals. In 1962 he directed The miracle worker, this film was a great success and he was awarded two Oscars and he was also nominated for best director.

[imagen] Penn has also directed Mickey One, 1965, with Warren Beatty; also The Chase, 1966, with Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda and Robert Redford, whose script was written by Lillian Hellmann.

In 1967 he directed Bonnie and Clyde, a box office hit, where Mr. Beatty acts with Faye Dunaway.

He also filmed Alice`s restaurant, 1969; Little big man, 1970, with Dustin Hofffman and Faye Dunaway; Night Moves, 1975; and The Missouri breaks, 1976. During the 80’s he directed his last films: Georgia (1981), Target, 1985 with Gene Hackman and Sean Penn and also Dead of winter, 1987.

During the last years of the 80s Arthur Penn moved to TV, where he made El retrato (1993), with Gregory Peck and Lauren Bacall and the TV series La ley y el orden.