Guillermo Arriaga Mexican writer, screenwriter. Date of Birth: 13.03.1958 Country: USA

Guillermo Arriaga: Mexican Writer and Screenwriter

Guillermo Arriaga is a Mexican writer and screenwriter, best known for his work in the film industry. Born and raised in one of the disadvantaged neighborhoods of Mexico City, Arriaga's childhood was marked by his surroundings. At the age of 13, he suffered a severe injury during a street fight, which resulted in the loss of his sense of smell.

Arriaga completed his education at the Ibero-American University in Mexico City, earning a master's degree in psychology. After obtaining his degree, he taught at the university, where he met director Alejandro González Iñárritu. Together, they conceived and executed a project for a film with multiple interconnected storylines set in Mexico. Arriaga wrote the screenplay, and Iñárritu directed the film. The resulting movie, "Amores Perros" (2000), gained international recognition and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It also won the BAFTA Award in the same category.

Following this success, Iñárritu and Arriaga received an invitation to work with Universal Studios in the United States. There, they collaborated on the film "21 Grams" (2003), starring Benicio Del Toro, Sean Penn, and Naomi Watts, based on Arriaga's screenplay. In 2005, the debut film directed by Tommy Lee Jones, "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada," was released, featuring a screenplay by Guillermo Arriaga. The film competed at the Cannes Film Festival, and Arriaga won the award for Best Screenplay.

The third film resulting from the creative partnership between Arriaga and Iñárritu was "Babel" (2006). Like their previous collaborations, the film consisted of multiple interconnected stories, but this time set in different countries and continents, including North America, Africa, and Asia. "Babel," which starred Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, competed at the Cannes Film Festival and received 25 awards worldwide, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and a BAFTA Award. However, Arriaga did not receive major accolades for his screenplay.

Shortly before the premiere of "Babel," significant disagreements arose between Iñárritu and Arriaga, leading to Arriaga's exclusion from the film's delegation at the Cannes Film Festival. Since then, the director and screenwriter have not collaborated. In 2007, the film "El Búfalo de la Noche," directed by Jorge Hernández Aldana, was released. Arriaga wrote the screenplay, which was an adaptation of his own novel of the same name.

On November 5, 2007, the filming of Arriaga's first full-length feature as a director, "The Burning Plain," began in New Mexico. The film starred Kim Basinger and Charlize Theron, and its screenplay, written by Arriaga himself, followed the same pattern as his previous works, exploring multiple intertwined storylines. The film was completed in time for the 2008 Venice Film Festival and was included in its program.