On Friday, June 23, 2012, actor and producer Juan Luis Galiardo passed away and, with him, his overwhelming cordiality is gone forever. Reactions from every corner of the cultural realm came quickly and the testimonials taken by the news media show how this performer from Cádiz, with his passionate personality, won over everyone he came into contact with.
Galiardo?s vitality was contagious and he found that strength which came bursting out of him throughout his life in his prime motivation for living, his family. The drive his loved ones inspired in him carried over to his profession as well, being exceedingly generous with his colleagues. As actor and director
Jesús Bonilla observed,
Galiardo worried more about his ?workmates? while filming than he did about himself.
?He?s one of those actors who have made Spanish cinema so much better than those who don?t go to see Spanish cinema say of it,? stated
José Luis Cuerda of
Juan Luis Galiardo after saying his last farewell. The ecstatic passion with which he worked and defended Spanish cinema led him to take on responsibilities of production as well as acting.
Galiardo?s zeal to preserve the profession and craft which gave his life meaning for him and those of his colleagues in the trade encouraged him to become a member of the Board of Directors of
EGEDA, the Spanish Audiovisual Producers? Rights Management Association. Not settling for this role in this organization, Galiardo was on numerous occasions a presenter at
EGEDA?s José María Forqué Awards ceremony.
Moreover,
Galiardo was particularly concerned about changes occurring at a dizzying pace in the audiovisual industry due to the new means of distribution via the Internet and contributed to his creating and participating very actively in the
Seminario Permanente Ortega y Gasset sobre la Industria Audiovisual en España (Ortega y Gasset Ongoing Seminar on the Audiovisual Industry in Spain).
What would have become of
Juan Luis Galiardo without
Turno de Oficio? This exciting TV series marked a great leap in the artistic career for the actor from Cádiz. Following early years dominated by light comedies and dashing character roles, this was the turning point which made clear that the best of
Galiardo was yet to come. Maturity in his career development brought many roles of greater complexity and dramatic weight, which although difficult to attain, also brought Galiardo the best of rewards: the approval of the viewing audiences, the critics, and, naturally, his comrades in the profession.
Directed by
Antonio Mercero,
Turno de oficio gave
Galiardo one of his most memorable characters, the court-appointed attorney nicknamed ?El Chepa?, and was the start of his activities in production, perhaps the least known aspect of his career. Nonetheless, from then on, his name appeared on numerous occasions in the film credits as producer or associate producer. Such feature films included
Espérame en el cielo (1988),
Enciende mi pasión (1994),
That Damned Rib (Esa maldita Costilla) (1999), or the TV production
Mi teniente (2001), among other projects.
Back to the most prolific part of his career, acting, and focusing of the period starting with the role of ?El Chepa?,
Juan Luis Galiardo performed a wide range of registers and leaves his mark on diverse films, of which stand out
Señor Cayo?s Disputed Vote (El disputado voto del señor Cayo) (1986),
El vuelo de la paloma (1989) and
Los mares del sur (1992), in which he played literary character Pepe Carvalho, created by
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán.
At this point, Galiardo began to work with leading directors of Spanish filmmaking. He participated in
Luis García Berlanga?s Todos a la cárcel (1993),
José Luis Cuerda?s Así en el cielo como en la Tierra (1995),
José Luis García Sánchez?s Suspiros de España y Portugal (1995), and
Carlos Saura?s Tango (1998).
The new generation of filmmakers following
Berlanga and
Saura, like
Fernando Trueba and
Fernando León de Aranoa also used
Galiardo?s talents in their films ? for
Trueba?s La niña de tus ojos (1998) or
León de Aranoa?s Familia (1996), for example.
Then came what was perhaps the high point of
Juan Luis Galiardo?s professional career, winning the
Goya Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performance in
Goodbye from the Heart (Adiós con el corazón) (2000). In this film, he plays the character of Juan, an attractive man in his 50s whose latest girlfriend leaves him and, to top it off, has a young Cuban woman claiming to be his daughter.
Other satisfying moments would be in store for
Galiardo ? playing the most legendary character of classical Spanish literature in
Don Quixote: Knight Errant (El caballero Don Quijote) (2002) and Don Quixote?s creator
Miguel de Cervantes in
Miguel y William (2007).
Confirmation of Galiardo?s exalted status came with works for the theatrical stage, participating in Spanish-language productions of
Sophocles? Antigone and
Oedepus the King,
Valle-Inclán?s Las Comedias Bárbaras and most recently, playing the character of Harpagon in
Molière?s L?Avare (The Miser).
Juan Luis Galiardo was one of the most wholesome and exuberantly cordial personalities of Spanish cinema. At
EGEDA, the Spanish Producers? Rights Management Association, we all considered Juan Luis Galiardo a friend and we deeply feel his absence. At the same time, we are grateful to have had the privilege of having him in our lives.
Enrique Cerezo Torres
Chairman of EGEDA
