Álvaro J. Covacevich

Birthday: 11/3/1933
Place of birth: Santiago, Chile
Fame for: Directing

Biography

Álvaro Covacevich is a Chilean filmmaker and landscape artist who has long been a constant promoter of the national culture. In 1966 he made his first feature film with a script and music of his own, Morir un poco, an investigation into the life of a man who, in his words, "goes out into the streets to die a little, instead of going out to live. Two years later he makes New Love or the Flower Revolution, also with a script and his own music, which shows "a group of teenagers who want to conquer peace and happiness through love". Then in 1972, during the government of Salvador Allende, he films Dialogue of America and The Great Challenge, a record of conversations between President Allende and Fidel Castro. For a long time his tapes were incomplete due to the repression and political persecution following the 1973 coup in Chile. And it was precisely at that time that he decided to leave the country and settle in Mexico, where he still lives, although he always remains connected to Chilean life. In fact, he is one of the inspirers of the project to create the Centro Cultural Palacio La Moneda, inaugurated by President Ricardo Lagos at the end of his mandate.