Hedy Crilla, the actors' mentor

The Nazi threat expelled actress Hedy Crilla from Europe. In 1940 she arrived in Argentina where she made a revolution by introducing the Stanislavski Method, making the acting style go from declamation to a live actor on stage. She formed lots of actors, directors, and teachers who spread her legacy, changing the History of Ibero-American theater. Nevertheless, this fundamental task has been forgotten. This film proposes to enlighten it.

  • Luciana Murujosa
    Director
  • Mónica Salerno
    Writer
  • Luciana Murujosa
    Writer
  • Luciana Murujosa
    Producer
  • Claudia Wohlgenannt
    Producer
  • Agustín Alezzo
    Key Cast
  • Augusto Fernandes
    Key Cast
  • Pochi Ducasse
    Key Cast
  • Eugenio Zanetti
    Key Cast
  • Pepe Novoa
    Key Cast
  • Pigu Gómez
    Director of Photography
  • Lucas Larriera
    Sound Design
  • Lucio Bruno-Videla
    Music
  • Cristina Carrasco Hernández
    Editor
  • Luciana Murujosa
    Editor
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Hedy Crilla, maestra de actores
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    Biopic, Theatre, Art, History, Acting
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 17 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    March 15, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    Armenia
  • Country of Filming:
    Argentina, Austria
  • Language:
    German, Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    HD
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Luciana Murujosa

I’ve dreamed of becoming a filmmaker since I was a child. Therefore I followed my instinct, despite men’s bullying, and started studying at the Universidad del Cine in 2004. While there, I filmed several shorts including fictional, doc and animation. I developed a passion for editing while working as an editor in TV shows and films such as “The ways of wine” and the documentaries “Apartheid: voices in black and white”, “Lost among the ice” and “Mekong-Parana”. I continued my studies in a script workshop with Juan José Campanella, Aída Bortnik and Fernando Castets and I have studied theater acting and direction since 2012. In 2014 I made the short “Four blade scalpel” which was acknowledged in several film festivals while I developed the feature film “Lucia”, which was selected in the development labs Raymundo Gleyzer 2015, BioBioLab 2017 and preselected in Tres Puertos Cine 2016.
My passion and dedication to cinema and arts allowed me to participate in Talents Buenos Aires 2022 and in the Editing Atelier with my documentary “Hedy Crilla, the actors’ mentor”. This is my first feature film, supported by Argentinian and Austrian fonds, which is currently doing its festival path.

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Director Statement

In the first year of primary school, I had my first theater lesson: it was awful, I didn’t go back. For some strange reason, 11 years later, in the last year of secondary school, I felt I had to give it a second chance. Something magical happened inside me: the theater bug had caught me. I haven't stopped taking classes since then. But it wasn’t until 14 years later that I ran into someone crucial for me. By chance (as every crucial thing in life), I arrived at the studio of one of the most important theater mentors in Buenos Aires: Agustin Alezzo. In his first class, he started talking lovingly about his mentor: Hedy Crilla. Suddenly I realized that this woman had been fundamental for the development of his profession and his life but also for lots of us, actors, and I had never heard her name! I also got to know her life story and noticed I had to do something with it. The story of a Jewish actress that could manage to escape Europe leaving her life and burgeoning career behind. The story of an immigrant that had to adapt to a new culture and nevertheless became the most important teacher in the History of Ibero-American theater. The story of a resilient and strong woman that changed the life of plenty but has been forgotten. For some reason, this worth-telling story arrived to me 33 years after her death, no one having done anything with it meanwhile. I was summoned to the game of theater and cinema. And I’d like to invite you to join me on this moving trip.