Biography

Born in Burgos, Castilla, Spain and raised in Barcelona, Diego Quemada-Díez began his film career in 1995 on Ken Loach's film "Land and Freedom." He soon migrated to the United States to attend the American Film Institute (AFI) where his graduation film, "A Table is a Table," won the Best Cinematography Award from the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC). He went on to collaborate as a camera operator with directors Alejandro Gonzalez-Iñarritu (21 Grams), Tony Scott (Man on Fire), Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener), and Spike Lee, while continuing to write and direct his own short films and documentaries.

In 2006, he premiered his second short film "I Want to Be A Pilot" at the Sundance Film Festival. The film played at over 200 festivals and won over 50 awards, including Audience Award at La Mostra Sao Paulo Film Festival and Special Mention at the Amiens Film Festival. That same year, he emigrated to Mexico where he directed his short documentary "La Morena," which premiered at the 2007 Morelia Film Festival.

In 2010 he participated in the Cannes Film Festival Atelier workshop with his first long-feature film, "La Jaula de Oro" (The Golden Dream). The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was selected as Un Certain Regard, winning Un Certain Talent Award, Gillo Pontecorvo Award and François Chalais Special Mention Award. He won Best Director at Vladivostock Film Festival, Best New Director Hugo Award at the Chicago Film Festival, Best Director at Tesalonica Film Festival, Best Director at Havana New York Film Festival, Best Director at Luis Buñuel Calanda Film Festival in Spain, Best Director from Satjavit Ray Foundation at the London Film Festival and Jean Renoir Award in France. The film would go on to win Best First Film at Havana Film Festival and Best Film at Mumbai, Mar de Plata, Tesalónica and Zurich film festivals.

In its Mexican premiere at the Morelia Film Festival, "La Jaula de Oro" won three awards: Audience Award, Best First Film and Press Guerrero Award. It also won 9 Arieles from the Mexican Film Academy, including Best Film, Best First Film, Best Original Screenplay.

The film was nominated at the 2014 Goya Awards and was eligible for the 88th Academy Awards.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Chris Rusch