RIP Julio Fernández

 

Julio Fernández the pioneering founder of Barcelona studio Filmax and co-architect of its Fantastic Factory which galvanized Spain’s auteur genre production, died November 17, in Miami. He was 78. Born Julio Fernández Rodríguez in Fonsagrada, Lugo, Spain on July 26, 1947. In 1987, Fernández bought Filmax, a Paramount library movie distributor in the 1960s, dedicated to video, but which Fernández and younger brother Carlos Fernández wanted to move into theatrical distribution. Buoyed by cinema theater results for “The Fourth Consul,” Filmax made another move, into production, and always with one eye on international markets, seeing vibrant international sales on young director Jaume Balagueró’s “Nameless” at 1999’s Mifed, bringing down the flag on a golden age of Spanish auteur genre. A year later, Fernández officially launched the Fantastic Factory with Brian Yuzna. A unique attempt to replicate the shlock but also meta arch awareness of 1985’s “Re-Animator” in movies made in English in Spain mixing international and Spanish actors, the Fantastic Factory saw early success, with Lionsgate Entertainment acquiring all North American rights to four of its horror titles: Jack Sholder’s “Arachnid”; “Dagon,” from Stuart Gordon; and two titles from Brian Yuzna: “Faust: Love of the Damned” and “Beyond Re-Animator.” In 2001, Fernández launched Filmax Animation in his native Galicia. From 2010, he increasingly turned to other enterprises. His brother Carlos Fernández took over the reins of the company as its president, consolidating TV production, Julio Fernández produced two Euro-westerns: 1998’s “One Man’s Hero” starring Tom Berenger and Joaquin de Almeida and 2004’s “The Daltons” with Eric & Ramzy