Mexican filmmaker Busi Cortés passed away yesterday, June 20, 2024, in Mexico City, just days before her 74th birthday. She was a pioneering figure in the Mexican film industry, known for her ability to create films by women to tell women's stories through her unique cinematic lens. She became the first female director to receive the Ariel Award for Best First Feature for her 1988 film Romelia’s Secret / El secreto de Romelia and was recently announced as a recipient of this year’s Golden Ariel for lifetime achievement, set to be awarded at the ceremony on September 7, alongside production designer Brigitte Broch and singer-actress Angélica María.
Born Luz Eugenia Cortés Rocha on June 28, 1950, in Mexico City, with family roots in the state of Guanajuato, she built a long and fruitful career as a filmmaker, screenwriter, documentarian, and professor. She studied Communication at the Universidad Iberoamericana, Film Directing at the Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (CCC), and earned a Master’s in Film Studies from the Cineteca Nacional-University of Guadalajara.
Cortés was part of a group of women in Mexican cultural circles who began to emerge in the late eighties, a time when filmmaking in the country was predominantly male and state-centralized, with limited focus on women's themes. Cortés began writing scripts and directing films with the actresses and female characters in mind.
Her debut feature film, Romelia’s Secret, an adaptation of the story 'El viudo Román' by Mexican writer Rosario Castellanos, explores themes such as love, sexuality, and women's perspectives across three generations. It garnered critical acclaim and set the tone for a career marked by a deep commitment to exploring themes of identity, gender, and social justice. Starring Pedro Armendáriz, Diana Bracho, Dolores Beristain, and Arcelia Ramírez, the film's nuanced portrayal of female experiences and its innovative narrative style earned it numerous awards and established Busi as a significant voice in Mexican cinema.
In 1992, she released her second film, Serpents and Ladders / Serpientes y escaleras, based on a character by Mexican writer Ángeles Mastretta. This project was perhaps her most complex, facing censorship during the scriptwriting and filming phases, and she later revealed it was difficult to recover from an accident that occurred during production. Her third feature film, A Good Death Beats a Dull Life / Hijas de su madre: Las Buenrostro (2005), told the story of a small matriarchy within a family of women, the Buenrostros, who hide romantic secrets while defrauding older men to secure their fortunes.
Cortés always connected her professional work with academics. She directed three more short films and three medium-length films, along with various documentaries and a dozen television series. Her work was celebrated at international film festivals, and she received numerous accolades for her contributions to the art of filmmaking.
She served as president of the organization Mujeres en el Cine y la Televisión, A.C., and was a member of the National System of Art Creators. With over four decades of work, she taught at various educational institutions, sharing her knowledge and experience with young talents. Her influence extended beyond the screen, promoting the development of a more inclusive and diverse cinematography.
