Cultural contexts that influenced the life of Pedro Almodovar

Cultural contexts that influenced the life of Pedro Almodovar

Cultural contexts are the factors brought about by the societal conditions in which a character resides. The book A Spanish Labyrinth is a biography of a famous Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar. In the book, the theme of emigration and job opportunities is an emerging cultural context. Understanding cultural contexts helps us understand how characters formed their beliefs. This paper reflects on the aforementioned theme as cultural contexts that influenced the life of Pedro Almodovar.

When he moves to Madrid from his childhood home, Pedro’s emigration set in place a series of cultural contexts. The village he grew up in did not have any cinema. However, after turning eight he schools in a different town that is rich I theatre. This emigration deeply defined his career choice of becoming a filmmaker. As an adult living in Madrid at a time where the press and the entertainment industry had found their freedom after the death of the Spanish dictator Franco, Pedro found himself affecting the Spanish cultural scene. Most of his movies were inspired by Madrid and reflected how society was at that time. His story Pepi and the policeman is based on his flatmate who had a marijuana plant.

The lack of job opportunities in the movie industry made Pedro move from his village home. In the book, Pedro is seen to travel so as to play the roles of extras in American movies. Interacting with different cultures of people from travelling boosted his character making him more confident in making films. Additionally, the death of Franco ended a dictatorial reign that presented the opportunity to make movies more provocative. Pedro’s beliefs about his character were largely based on the job opportunity around him. Emigration and job opportunities in A Spanish Labyrinth are cultural contexts themes that emerge to shape Pedro Almodovar.