Jaime Humberto Hermosillo(1942-2020)

Hermosillo was one of the most successful Mexican directors. Born in Aguascalientes, a small city in central Mexico, Hermosillo's films dissected the hypocrisy of Mexican middle class and "torn the curtain" behind which many perversities are hidden. He became an important figure in Mexican contemporary cinema, and was known for treating themes of sexual diversity from a personal approach. One of the few openly gay Mexican directors, Hermosillo found great success with Doña Herlinda y su hijo (1985), a comedy about a mother of a gay doctor who manipulates her son, his male lover and his fiancée to fulfill her desire of becoming a grandmother. Homosexual themes in Hermosillo's films can be found in Matinee, El Cumpleaños del Perro, and Las apariencias engañan (1978). Hermosillo was also an explorer of film language. La Tarea is one of the most complex exercises in film style in recent years (the film consists of one long shot, from the POV of a camcorder). Hermosillo's films presented a fresh look at Mexican society. A strong advocate of digital cinema, he made ten feature films in this format.