{{short description|Argentine-Brazilian film director (1946–2016)}} {{redirect|Babenco|people with a similar name|Babenko}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Infobox person | name = Héctor Babenco | image = Hector Babenco.jpg | caption = Babenco in São Paulo, Brazil (2008) | birth_name = Héctor Eduardo Babenco | birth_date = {{birth date|1946|2|7}} | birth_place = Buenos Aires, Argentina | death_date = {{death date and age|2016|7|13|1946|2|7}} | death_place = São Paulo, Brazil | other_names = | occupation = Film director and producer, screenwriter | years_active = 1973–2015 | notable_works = {{plainlist| * ''Pixote'' * ''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' * ''Ironweed'' * ''At Play in the Fields of the Lord'' * ''Carandiru'' }} }}
'''Héctor Eduardo Babenco''' (February 7, 1946{{snd}}July 13, 2016)<ref>[https://g1.globo.com/pop-arte/cinema/noticia/2016/07/hector-babenco-morre-aos-70-anos-em-sao-paulo.html Globo: "Hector Babenco morre aos 70 anos"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819041544/http://g1.globo.com/pop-arte/cinema/noticia/2016/07/hector-babenco-morre-aos-70-anos-em-sao-paulo.html |date=2016-08-19 }} July 14, 2016</ref> was an Argentine-born Brazilian film director, screenwriter, producer and actor who worked in several countries including Brazil, Argentina, and the United States. He was one of the first Brazilian filmmakers to gain international critical acclaim, through his films which often dealt with social outcasts on the fringes of society.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Bergan|first=Ronald|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jul/18/hector-babenco-obituary|title=Héctor Babenco obituary|date=2016-07-18|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-02-13|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> His best-known works include ''Pixote'' (1980), ''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' (1985), ''Ironweed'' (1987), ''At Play in the Fields of the Lord'' (1990) and ''Carandiru'' (2003).
Babenco's films brought him several accolades. He was nominated three times for the Palme d'Or of the Cannes Film Festival, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for ''Kiss of the Spider Woman.'' He won the Grande Prêmio do Cinema Brasileiro twice, and the Prêmio ACIE de Cinema once.
==Early life== Babenco was born in Buenos Aires and raised in Mar del Plata. His mother, Janka Haberberg, was a Polish Jewish immigrant, and his father, Jaime Babenco, was an Argentine ''gaucho'' of Ukrainian Jewish origin.<ref>{{cite web |title=Alex Bellos talks to Brazilian director Hector Babenco |date=2003-11-02 |website=The Guardian |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220301070051/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2003/nov/02/londonfilmfestival2003.features1 |archive-date=2022-03-01 |url-status=live |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2003/nov/02/londonfilmfestival2003.features1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.colesmithey.com/reviews/2009/01/hector-babencos-carandiru-.html |title=Hector Babenco's Carandiru |access-date=2016-07-15 |archive-date=2014-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141029103327/http://www.colesmithey.com/reviews/2009/01/hector-babencos-carandiru-.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=H7u2PmlUDpwC&pg=PA229&lpg=PA229 The Lavender Screen: The Gay and Lesbian Films]</ref> Babenco lived in Europe from 1964 to 1968. In 1969, he decided to stay in São Paulo, Brazil, permanently.
== Career == His first solo feature film as a director was ''O Rei da Noite'' (''King of the Night'') (1975), starring Paulo José and Marília Pêra.<ref>{{Citation |last=Babenco |first=Hector |title=O Rei da Noite |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073246/ |type=Drama |publisher=HB Filmes, José Pinto Produçoes |access-date=2022-03-03 |archive-date=2022-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303162126/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073246/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
Babenco had an international success with ''Pixote – A lei do mais fraco'' (1981).<ref name="Rich">{{cite book|last=Rich|first=B. Ruby|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vown1iVaUG8C&pg=PA151|title=New Queer Cinema: The Director's Cut|location=Durham, N.C & London|publisher=Duke University Press|year=2013|page=151|isbn=978-0822354284}}</ref> It concerns Brazil's abandoned children. In the words of E. Ruby Rich while it concerns "a pair of boys who form a symbiotic sexual union", the film cannot "be held up as an example of how gay desire can be depicted, given its sensationalistic and sordid treatment of gay sex as accommodation, substitution, and punishment".<ref name="Rich"/> The film featured impressive work of young actor Fernando Ramos da Silva, 10 years old at the time, who was discovered in the suburbs of São Paulo. The film received numerous prizes, including nomination for Best Foreign Film at the 1982 Golden Globes Awards.<ref name=":0" />
For ''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' (1985), Babenco was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Memorable Films: Hectór Babenco and 'The Kiss of the Spider Woman' {{!}} Latinolife |url=https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/memorable-films-hector-babenco-and-kiss-spider-woman |access-date=2022-03-03 |website=www.latinolife.co.uk |archive-date=2022-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303163054/https://www.latinolife.co.uk/articles/memorable-films-hector-babenco-and-kiss-spider-woman |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Kiss of the Spider Woman {{!}} film by Babenco [1985] {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kiss-of-the-Spider-Woman-film-by-Babenco |access-date=2022-03-03 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en |archive-date=2022-03-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220315173727/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kiss-of-the-Spider-Woman-film-by-Babenco |url-status=live }}</ref> the first Latin American to be nominated in this category.
He directed some of the most respected American actors of his time, including William Hurt, John Lithgow, Raul Julia, Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, Tom Berenger, Daryl Hannah, Aidan Quinn and Kathy Bates.
In 2012 Babenco was part of the jury in the 34th Moscow International Film Festival.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://rbth.com/articles/2012/06/25/moscow_international_film_festival_has_a_latin_focus_15976.html|title=Moscow International Film Festival has a Latin focus|last=Darmaros|first=Marina|date=2012-06-25|work=Russia Beyond The Headlines|access-date=2017-02-28|language=en-US|archive-date=2020-05-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200529141305/https://www.rbth.com/articles/2012/06/25/moscow_international_film_festival_has_a_latin_focus_15976.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
His last film was ''My Hindu Friend'' (2015), which stars Willem Dafoe. It recounts the story of a film director close to death.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/kiss-of-the-spider-woman-director-hector-babenco-dead-at-70/|title="Kiss of the Spider Woman" director Hector Babenco dead at 70|date=14 July 2016|publisher=CBS News|access-date=14 July 2016|archive-date=15 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160715144701/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/kiss-of-the-spider-woman-director-hector-babenco-dead-at-70/|url-status=live}}</ref>
== Personal life == In 2010, Babenco married actress Bárbara Paz.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=2021-01-24 |title='Babenco: Tell Me When I Die': How Bárbara Paz Made A Cinematic Ode To Her Late Filmmaker Husband |url=https://deadline.com/video/babenco-tell-me-when-i-die-how-barbara-paz-made-a-cinematic-ode-to-her-late-filmmaker-husband/ |access-date=2022-03-03 |website=Deadline |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303163051/https://deadline.com/video/babenco-tell-me-when-i-die-how-barbara-paz-made-a-cinematic-ode-to-her-late-filmmaker-husband/ |url-status=live }}</ref> He was previously married to Xuxa Lopes and Raquel Arnaud. He was the father of two daughters, Janka Babenco and Myra Arnaud Babenco, from his previous marriages, and also had two grandchildren.
Babenco is depicted in the 2019 Bárbara Paz's documentary film ''Babenco: Tell Me When I Die''.
== Health issues and death == In 1994, Babenco fell ill and had to undergo a bone marrow transplant to treat a lymphatic cancer,<ref>[http://www2.uol.com.br/hectorbabenco/e_diretor.htm Héctor Babenco] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041216135508/http://www2.uol.com.br/hectorbabenco/e_diretor.htm|date=2004-12-16}} official web site.</ref> a diagnosis which he had since he was 38 years old.<ref name=":0" />
On July 12, 2016, Babenco was admitted to Hospital Sírio-Libanês to treat sinusitis. The following night, he suffered a cardiac arrest, and died shortly thereafter.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cinema.uol.com.br/noticias/redacao/2016/07/14/morre-aos-70-anos-o-cineasta-hector-babenco.htm|title=Morre, aos 70 anos, o cineasta Hector Babenco|website=cinema.uol.com.br|language=pt-br|access-date=2020-02-13|archive-date=2020-02-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213011804/https://cinema.uol.com.br/noticias/redacao/2016/07/14/morre-aos-70-anos-o-cineasta-hector-babenco.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Filmography== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |+ |- ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Year ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Original title ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | English release title ! colspan="3" |Functioned as ! rowspan="2" |Country ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Notes |- !Director !Writer !Producer |- |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1975 ! scope="row" |''O Rei da Noite'' |''King of the Night'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} | rowspan="3" |{{BRA}} |Directorial Debut<br>Co-writer with Orlando Senna |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1977 ! scope="row" |''Lúcio Flávio: O Passageiro da Agonia'' |''Lúcio Flávio'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{no}} |Co-writer with José Louzeiro & Jorge Durán |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1980 ! scope="row" |''Pixote: A Lei do Mais Fraco'' |''Pixote'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |Co-writer with Jorge Durán |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1985 ! colspan="2" scope="row" |''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{no}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{USA}} | |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1987 ! colspan="2" scope="row" |''Ironweed'' |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{no}} |{{USA}} | |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1991 ! colspan="2" scope="row" |''At Play in the Fields of the Lord'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{USA}} |Co-writer with Jean-Claude Carrière & Vincent Patrick |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1998 ! scope="row" |''Corazón Iluminado'' |''Foolish Heart'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{ARG}}<br>{{FRA}} |Co-writer with Ricardo Piglia |- | style="text-align:center;" | 2003 ! colspan="2" scope="row" |''Carandiru'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{ARG}}<br>{{ITA}} |Co-writer with Fernando Bonassi & Victor Navas |- | style="text-align:center;" | 2007 ! scope="row" |''El Pasado'' |''The Past'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{ARG}} |Co-writer with Marta Goes |- |style="text-align:center;"|2014 ! scope="row" colspan="2" |''Words with Gods'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{MEX}}<br>{{USA}} |Segment: "The Man That Stole a Duck" |- | style="text-align:center;" | 2015 ! scope="row" |''Meu Amigo Hindu'' |''My Hindu Friend'' |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}} | |- |}
=== Documentaries === {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |+ |- ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Year ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Original title ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | English release title ! colspan="3" |Functioned as ! rowspan="2" |Country ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Notes |- !Director !Writer !Producer |- |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1973 ! scope="row" style="background-color:#CEE8F0;" |''O Fabuloso Fittipaldi'' | - |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}} | Co-directed with Roberto Farias |- | style="text-align:center;" | 1984 ! scope="row" style="background-color:#CEE8F0;" |''A Terra É Redonda como Uma Laranja'' |<nowiki>-</nowiki> |{{yes}} |{{no}} |{{no}} |{{BRA}}<br>{{ARG}} | |- |}
=== Television === {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |+ |- ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Year ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Original title ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | English release title ! colspan="3" |Functioned as ! rowspan="2" |Country ! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Notes |- !Director !Writer !Producer |- |- | style="text-align:center;" | 2005 ! scope="row" |''Carandiru: Outras Histórias'' | - |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{yes}} |{{BRA}} | Episodes: "Love Story I" & "Love Story II" |- |}
=== Acting roles === {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |+ |- ! scope="col" | Year ! scope="col" | Original title ! scope="col" | English release title !Role !Director !Country ! scope="col" | Notes |- |- |1999 ! scope="row" colspan="2" |''The Venice Project'' |Danilo Danuzzi |Robert Dornhelm | rowspan="2" |{{USA}} | |- |2000 ! scope="row" colspan="2" |''Before Night Falls'' |Virgilio Piñera |Julian Schnabel | |- |2007 !scope="row" | ''El Pasado'' |''The Past'' |Projectionist |Himself |{{BRA}}<br>{{ARG}} |Cameo |- |}
==Awards and nominations== {{Main|List of awards and nominations received by Héctor Babenco}}
{|class="wikitable" |+Awards and nominations earned for Babenco's films |- !rowspan="2"|Year !rowspan="2"|Film !colspan="2"|Academy Awards !colspan="2"|BAFTA Awards !colspan="2"|Golden Globe Awards |- !Nominations !Wins !Nominations !Wins !Nominations !Wins |- |1980 |''Pixote'' | | | | |align=center|1 | |- |1985 |''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' |align=center|4 |align=center|1 |align=center|1 |align=center|1 |align=center|4 | |- |1987 |''Ironweed'' |align=center|2 | | | |align=center|1 | |- |1991 |''At Play in the Fields of the Lord'' | | | | |align=center|1 | |- !colspan="2"|Total !6 !1 !1 !1 !7 ! |- |}
'''Directed Academy Award performances'''<br />Under Babenco's direction, these actors have received Academy Award nominations and wins for their performances in these respective roles. {|class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Performer ! Film ! Result |- ! colspan="4"| Academy Award for Best Actor |- |1986 |William Hurt |''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' |{{won}} |- |1988 |Jack Nicholson |''Ironweed'' |{{nom}} |- !colspan="4"| Academy Award for Best Actress |- |1988 |Meryl Streep |''Ironweed'' |{{nom}} |- |}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} * {{IMDb name|0002199}} * {{Cinenacional name|id=hector-babenco|old_id=111206|name=Héctor Babenco}}
{{Héctor Babenco}} {{Order of Cultural Merit}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Babenco, Hector}} Category:1946 births Category:2016 deaths Category:Film people from Buenos Aires Category:Argentine emigrants to Brazil Category:Argentine male screenwriters Category:Brazilian film directors Category:Brazilian film producers Category:Brazilian screenwriters Category:Brazilian male screenwriters Category:Brazilian people of Polish-Jewish descent Category:Brazilian people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Category:Argentine film directors Category:Argentine film producers Category:Argentine screenwriters Category:Argentine people of Polish-Jewish descent Category:Argentine people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Category:Jewish Brazilian male actors Category:20th-century Brazilian male actors Category:Jewish Argentine male actors Category:People from Mar del Plata Category:Naturalized citizens of Brazil