Spaghetti Western
Director ~ Leon Klimovsky
León Klimovsky
Dulfán was an Argentine film director, screenwriter and producer notable for
his work during the classical era of Argentine cinema. He was known mainly for
his work in Spanish cinema during the 1960s and '70s.
Klimovsky was born
in Buenos Aires on October 15, 1906, to Jewish emigrant parents from the
Russian Empire. His brother, Gregorio Klimovsky, was a noted mathematician and
philosopher. Klimovsky originally trained to be a dentist, but his real passion
was always the cinema. He pioneered the Argentine cultural movement known as
cineclub and financed the first Argentine movie theater to show art movies. He
also founded Argentina's first film club in 1929.
After participating
as scriptwriter and assistant director of 1944's “Se abre el abismo”, he filmed
his first movie, an adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's “The Player”. He also
worked on adaptations of Alexandre Dumas' “The Count of Monte Cristo” and
Ernesto Sabato's “The Tunnel”.
During the 1950s,
Klimovsky settled in Spain, where he became a full-time
"professional" director. He directed many Spaghetti Westerns, Euro
War and exploitation films, filming in Mexico, Italy, Spain and Egypt. Horror
film fans best remember him for his contributions to Spain's horror film genre,
beginning with “La Noche de Walpurgis” ("Walpurgis Night"), the film
that is said to have started the Spanish horror film boom of the 1970s.
Klimovsky directed famed Spanish horror icon Paul Naschy in no less than 9
films in the 1970s, while also directing other classic horror films such as
"The Strange Love of the Vampires", "The Dracula Saga" and
"The Vampires' Night Orgy". Naschy complimented Klimovsky's
workmanlike attitude and abundant energy, but he always felt that Klimovsky
rushed through many of their projects together, never allowing for sufficient
retakes.
León Klimovsky
always dreamt of doing great mainstream movies but ended up doing commercial
exploitation films, but he had no remorse, as cinema was a vocational mandate
for him. He retired from directing in 1979, at age 73.
Klimovsky died in
Madrid, Spain on April 8, 1996.
[It must be noted
several of the films credited to Leon as the director have been questioned over
the years and actors and crew involved in several of his credited films state,
he was not the director and on some never appeared on set. It seems his name
was used for tax credit purposes while credited second unit directors actually
directed these films.]
Leon Klimovsky is
credited with directing ten Spaghetti westerns: “Torrejón City” in 1962, “Fuera
de la ley” (Billy the Kid) in 1963, “Dos mil dolares por Coyote” with José
Elorietta in 1965, “Pochi dollari per Django” (A Few Dollars for Django) with Enzo
G. Castellari in 1966, “Un hombre viene a matar” (Rattler Kid) in 1967, “Pagó
cara su muerte” (Tierra Brava) in 1968, “La sfida dei MacKenna” (Amen) and “El
valor de un cobarde” (Quinto: Fighting Proud) both in 1969, “Reverendo Colt”
(Reverend Colt) with Marino Girolami and “Un dólar para Sartana” (Raise Your
Hands, Dead Man, You're Under Arrest) with Sergio Bergonzelli in 1971.
KLIMOVSKY, Leon (aka León
Klimonsky, Klimovsky, L. Klimovsky, Leon Klimovsky, León Klimowsky, Henry
Mankiewicz) (Leon Klimovsky Dulfano) [10/16/1906, Buenos Aires, Argentina
– 4/8/1996, Madrid, Madrid, Spain (heart failure)] – producer, production
manager, director, assistant director, writer, film editor.
Torrejón City – 1962
Billy the Kid – 1963
Ballad of a Bounty
Hunter – 1965 (co)
A Few Dollars for
Django – 1966 (co)
Rattler Kid – 1967
Tierra Brava - 1968
Amen – 1969
Quinto: Fighting
Proud - 1969
Reverend Colt – 1970
(co)
Raise Your Hands,
Dead Man, You're Under Arrest – 1971 (co)
Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~
Guillermo de Oliveira
Guillermo de Oliveira was born on December 6, 1986 in Vigo, Pontevedra,
Galicia, Spain. He is a Spanish filmmaker, director, and screenwriter known for
his documentary “Sad Hill Unearthed” and his short films adapting video games
into live-action narratives. He trained in New York and at Cuba's International
Film and Television School in San Antonio de los Baños, establishing himself
initially through advertising work while developing a distinctive voice in
independent cinema. His early career featured shorts such as “Max Payne:
Valhalla” (2012), “Modern Warfare: Sunrise” (2013), and “Red Dead Redemption:
Seth's Gold” (2015), which blended gaming culture with cinematic storytelling.
His feature directorial debut, the documentary “Sad Hill Unearthed”
(2017), follows a group of enthusiasts restoring the legendary cemetery set
from Sergio Leone's “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” in Spain, incorporating
interviews with figures including Metallica's James Hetfield. The film received
the Best Picture Award in the New Visions section at the Sitges Film Festival
and a nomination for Best Documentary at the Goya Awards. De Oliveira later
directed shorts including “Sauerdogs” (2022), starring August Diehl, and “Tegoyo”
(2022), created under Werner Herzog's supervision, while serving as director of
the Almería Western Film Festival from 2021 to 2023.
As of 2025, he is in production on his first fiction feature, the
Galician-language true-crime thriller” A morte nos teus ollos”, inspired by a
notorious 1994 murder case near his hometown, marking his transition to
narrative filmmaking with support from Atresmedia Cine, Sideral, Sétima, and
Buena Vista International.
Guillermo de Oliveira wrote screenplays for three Euro-westerns which he
also directed: “Seth’s Gold” in 2015, “Sauerdogs” in 2021. He also wrote and
directed the 2016 Spanish documentary “Sad Hill Unearthed”.
de OLIVEIRA,
Guillermo (Guillermo Fernández de Oliveira) [12/6/1986, Vigo, Pontevedra,
Galicia, Spain - ] – director,
writer, cinematographer.
Red Dead Redemption:
Seth's Gold – 2015
Sad Hill Unearthed -
2016
Sauerdogs – 2021
Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Alfonso Nieva
Alfonso Nieva Travanco was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador on
January 2, 1913. He emigrated to Spain and became one of the countries most
noted cameramen and cinematographers beginning in 1937. He was a cameraman on twenty-two
films and television show and a cinematographer on ninety-four. Alfonso he
tried his hand at directing with “Primavera en Sevilla” in 1944 and again fifty
years later in 1994 with “Un dia en Lisboa: both shorts.
Nieva is listed in Diccionario del cinema Español
but no biographical information is given.
After leaving the film industry in 1980 he disappeared
from the scene. His whereabouts are unknown and at this date it is presumed he
has passed away.
Alfonso Nieva was a cinematographer onseven Spaghetti
westerns: “El hombre de la diligencia” (Apache Fury) in 1963, “El secreto del
captain O’Hara” (The Secret of Captain O’Hara) in 1964, “Ringo e Gringo contro
tutti” (Rebels on the Loose) with Sandro D’Eva and “Uno straniero a Paso Bravo”
(A Stranger in Paso Bravo) both in 1966, “Voltati… ti uccido” (Turn I’ll Kill
You) and “Los siete de Pancho Villa” (Vengeance of Pancho Villa) both in 1967
and “I senza Dio” (Thunder Over El Paso) in 1971.
NIEVA, Alfonso (aka Alastair
Nichols, A. Nieva, Alphonse Nieve, Alfonso de Nieva) Alfonso Nieva Travanco)
[1/2/1913, Guayaquil, Ecuador - deceased] - writer, cinematographer,
camaeraman.
Apache Fury – 1963
[as Alastair Nichols]
The Secret of
Captain O’Hara - 1964
Rebels on the Loose
– 1966 (co)
A Stranger in Paso
Bravo – 1966 (co)
Turn… I’ll Kill You
- 1967
Vengeance of Pancho
Villa – 1967 [as Al Nieva]
Thunder Over El Paso
– 1971
