J. A. Bayona facts for kids

Quick facts for kids J. A. Bayona
Bayona at the 2018 Tokyo premiere of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
Born	Juan Antonio García Bayona (1975-05-09) 9 May 1975 (age 50) Barcelona, Spain
Occupation	Film director
Years active	1999–present

Juan Antonio García Bayona (born May 9, 1975) is a famous Spanish filmmaker. He is known for directing exciting movies and TV shows.

Bayona directed the scary film The Orphanage in 2007. He also made the drama The Impossible in 2012. Another one of his films is the fantasy drama A Monster Calls from 2016. In 2018, he directed Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. He also directed the first two episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power TV series.

His 2023 film Society of the Snow won many awards. It received 12 awards at the 38th Goya Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It also won 6 awards at the 11th Platino Awards. The film was nominated for 2 Academy Awards.

About J.A. Bayona

Juan Antonio García Bayona was born in Barcelona, Spain. When he was young, he saw the movie Superman (1978). This movie made him want to become a director. He studied filmmaking at the Escola Superior de Cinema i Audiovisuals de Catalunya (ESCAC).

When he was 19, he met director Guillermo del Toro at a film festival. Del Toro became a mentor to Bayona. He even promised to help Bayona with his future projects.

Bayona's Career Journey

Starting Out in the 1990s

After finishing film school, Bayona started his career. He directed commercials and music videos. At age 20, he worked with the Spanish band OBK. He won an award for their music video "Tú sigue así." He also directed videos for other artists like Camela and Pastora Soler.

In 1999, he directed his first short film, My Holidays. In 2002, he made another short film called The Spongeman.

Big Success in the 2000s

Bayona with actress Belén Rueda and director Guillermo del Toro at a screening of The Orphanage in Paris in 2008

In 2004, Bayona met writer Sergio G. Sánchez. Sánchez offered Bayona the script for The Orphanage. To make the film he wanted, Bayona needed more money and time. Guillermo del Toro helped him by becoming a co-producer.

The Orphanage was first shown on May 20, 2007, at the Cannes International Film Festival. The audience loved it and gave it a standing ovation for over ten minutes. When it opened in Spanish cinemas, it earned a lot of money.

Bayona won the Goya Award for Best New Director in 2008. The film was nominated for 14 Goya awards and won 7 of them.

Directing Major Films in the 2010s

In August 2010, Bayona began filming The Impossible. This movie is based on a true story of a Spanish family. They survived the terrible 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. The film was made in English and starred Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, and Tom Holland.

The Impossible was released on October 11, 2012. Critics praised the movie. It broke records for the best opening weekend in Spanish box office history. Naomi Watts was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award for her acting. The film also won five Goya Awards.

In 2012, Bayona directed the music video for "Disconnected" by the British band Keane. He also directed the music video for Keane's song "Tear Up This Town" in 2016. This song was made for his film A Monster Calls.

Bayona directed the first two episodes of the TV series Penny Dreadful. This show was filmed in Dublin. It tells the story of a group of people dealing with strange beings and famous characters from old stories.

In 2014, Bayona started making the film A Monster Calls. This movie is based on a book by Patrick Ness. It stars Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, and Liam Neeson. The film came out in 2016. It tells the story of a young boy who takes care of his sick mother. He also becomes friends with a monster. This film completed Bayona's group of movies about mother-child relationships.

In 2018, Bayona directed the science fiction movie Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. This film starred Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. Critics had mixed feelings about the movie, but they liked Bayona's directing. The film was a huge success. It was one of the highest-grossing films of 2018.

Recent Work in the 2020s

Bayona directed the first two episodes of the Amazon Prime Video series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. This series was filmed in New Zealand. It premiered on September 2, 2022.

In November 2021, it was announced that Bayona would direct Society of the Snow for Netflix. This film is based on the true story of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571. That plane crashed in the Andes mountains in October 1972. The movie was shown in cinemas for Spanish-speaking audiences in December 2023. It then came to Netflix on January 4, 2024. The film received many positive reviews and awards.

Bayona's Film and TV Work

Bayona attending the 31st Goya Awards in 2017

Short Films

Feature Films

Executive Producer

• Marrowbone (2017)
• I Hate New York (2018) (Documentary)

Television Series

Awards and Recognitions

Bayona holding his Goya Award for Best Director for Society of the Snow

Bayona's films have won many important awards.

Academy Awards (Oscars)

BAFTA Awards

Golden Globe Awards

Goya Awards

See also

In Spanish: Juan Antonio Bayona para niños