Octavio Getino
A militant filmmaker and theorist who weaponized cinema against colonialism, co-creating the radical 'Third Cinema' manifesto.
1935–2012 (age 77)·Argentine film director and writer·Birthday: August 6·The Silent Generation
Biography
Octavio Getino was not just a filmmaker; he was a cinematic insurgent. Born in Spain but forging his identity in Argentina, he moved from writing and sociology into film, where he found his weapon of choice. In the politically charged 1960s, he teamed with Fernando Solanas to form the Grupo Cine Liberación. Their monumental film, 'La Hora de los Hornos' ('The Hour of the Furnaces'), was a fiery, four-hour essay-film that diagnosed Latin American oppression and called for revolutionary action. It was screened clandestinely in unions and universities, a direct challenge to both Hollywood escapism and auteurist 'First Cinema.' Getino co-authored the seminal 'Towards a Third Cinema' manifesto, arguing for a film practice that was decolonized, collective, and actively engaged in liberation struggles. After the fall of Argentina's dictatorship, he shifted into cultural policy, working to protect and promote Latin American film industries. His legacy is a body of work that insists film must do more than tell stories—it must change the world.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Octavio was born in 1935, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Octavio Was Born
The biggest hits of 1935
#1 Movie
Mutiny on the Bounty
Best Picture
Mutiny on the Bounty
Octavio's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1935Born
Social Security Act signed into law
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,450President: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Cheek to Cheek" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Mutiny on the Bounty
1940Started school
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1948Became a teenager
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1951Could drive
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1953Could vote
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1956Turned 21
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1965Turned 30
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1975Turned 40
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1985Turned 50
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 60
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 70
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2012Died at 77
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
Key Achievements
- Co-directed the landmark revolutionary film 'La Hora de los Hornos' (1968), a foundational work of militant cinema.
- Co-authored the 'Towards a Third Cinema' manifesto with Fernando Solanas, a hugely influential text on anti-colonial film theory.
- Served as Argentina's National Director of Cinematography after the return to democracy, helping shape film policy.
- Was a founder of the Escuela del Tercer Cine (School of Third Cinema) in Argentina.
Did You Know?
Before film, he worked in advertising and wrote for various magazines in Peru and Argentina.
He was forced into exile in Peru during Argentina's military dictatorship in the 1970s.
He also served as a cultural advisor to UNESCO.
““The camera is the inexhaustible expropriator of image-weapons; the projector, a gun that can shoot 24 frames per second.””
