The Spanish Film Library in Madrid has opened the personal archive of filmmaker José Luis Sáenz de Heredia to the public. The documentary collection spans from 1934 to 1992 and includes original scripts, photographs, and production documents from his most famous films. Researchers can access this material in person to study the legacy of the director of works such as Raza or Historias de la radio.
Scripts, photos and technical documents from half a century of cinema 🎬
The archive contains more than 30,000 documents that allow us to follow the filmmaker's creative process. It includes scripts with handwritten annotations, shooting plans, correspondence with actors and producers, and a collection of production photographs. The documents cover his most active period, where he applied narrative techniques of classic Spanish cinema. The Film Library has digitized part of the material to facilitate consultation, although access to the originals requires an appointment and takes place in the researchers' room.
The filmmaker's treasure that now needs to be organized at home 📦
If you have ever lost a script in the back of a drawer, imagine having to organize 30,000 documents from half a century of work. Good thing the archive is already classified, because otherwise, we would be watching the Film Library interns playing guessing games about whether a paper is from 1942 or 1972. The good news is that now anyone can feel like a film detective without having to rummage through the Sáenz de Heredia family's storage room.