Mexican Movies - Film Production in Mexico

Mexico has an important history in film production. The industry began to take hold during the era of Silent Films when the Mexican Revolution took place (1910-1917), and Mexican director Salvador Toscano Barragan shot scenes of many of the battles during that era, but it wasn't until Mexico entered it's "Golden Age" of cinema, which lasted throughout the 1940's, that Mexican filmmakers really began to shine.

During the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, there was a upwelling of notable Mexican actors, actresses and directors, and Mexican films were distributed throughout all of Latin America. Film production studios (Estudios Churubusco, inaugurated 1945) were erected in Mexico City and other necessary infrastructure was put into place to deal with the industry. Important icons of this period were Cantinflas (Mario Moreno), a comic actor who has won the hearts of Mexican and international audiences from that time forward and came to be known as the "Mexican Charlie Chaplin"; the dramatic countenances and acting abilities of Dolores del Rio and Pedro Armendariz, both of whom were directed by Emilio "el Indio" Fernandez, who brought them to the screen in notable movies such as Flor silvestre (1943) and María Candelaria (1944) , actress Maria Felix who starred in a total of nearly 50 productions, and cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa, who worked his magic on well over 200 films during his long cinematic career.

Other names of note in Mexico's film industry since the Golden Age

Alfonso Arau - Actor, director, writer, producer. See films: A Walk in the Clouds (1995), Como Agua para Chocolate (1992)

Pedro Armendariz Jr. - Well-known actor and son of Pedro Armendariz, who has appeared in quantities of Mexican and foreign productions as well as made-for-TV movies. See films Matando Cabos (2004), Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003), Old Gringo (1989) Licence to Kill (1989)

Alfonso Cuaron - Writer, producer and director; See films: Y tu mamá también (2001) - Oscar nominee for Best Writing and Original Screenplay

Guillermo del Toro - Mexican-born director, writer. See films: Blade II (2002), El Espinazo del diablo (2001), Mimic (1997), Cronos (1993)

Salma Hayek - Award winning actress who has starred in Frida (2002) as well as a number of other well-known productions. Also see: Desperado (1995), Time of the Butterflies (2001), El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba (1999)

Alejandro González Iñárritu - Director; See films Amores Perros (2000), Babel (2006) - Academy Award nominee for Best Director

Arturo Ripstein - Director, writer, producer, actor. See films: El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba (1999)

Click here for Movies filmed in Mexico - whether it looks like they were or not!