Fernando Vallejo

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born

in Medellin, Colombia

October 24, 1942

gender

male

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Fernando Vallejo Rendón (born 1942 in Medellín, Colombia) is a novelist, filmmaker and essayist, born in Colombia. He obtained Mexican nationality in 2007.

Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life. He started studies in Philosophy at the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, but after one year he abandoned the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. Soon after he began new studies on biology at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, which he finished. Then he spent one year in Italy at the film academy Cinecittá, where he obtained basic notions on cinema.

Vallejo then returned to Colombia with the project of filmmaking. Yet after difficulties with the Colombian Government in producing and, after he prod...more Fernando Vallejo Rendón (born 1942 in Medellín, Colombia) is a novelist, filmmaker and essayist, born in Colombia. He obtained Mexican nationality in 2007.

Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life. He started studies in Philosophy at the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, but after one year he abandoned the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. Soon after he began new studies on biology at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, which he finished. Then he spent one year in Italy at the film academy Cinecittá, where he obtained basic notions on cinema.

Vallejo then returned to Colombia with the project of filmmaking. Yet after difficulties with the Colombian Government in producing and, after he produced it, in presenting his first film (it was censored), he decided to leave his country.[citation needed]

In Mexico he produced and distributed three films about the violence in Colombia. He also wrote an award-winning children's theater script, "El reino misterioso o Tomás y las abejas." He has been living in Mexico since 1971, where he not only produced his cinematographic pieces, but also the whole of his literary work. Despite time spent in other locales, mainly Europe and the United States, most of his novels take place in Colombia. Some of his themes are grammar, biology, philosophy, physics, violence, pederasty, adolescence, drugs, death and politics, mostly related to places such as Antioquia and Medellín; yet his main theme is his life. His books are written in first person, in an autobiographical style.

His best-known novel, La virgen de los sicarios, has been translated into English as Our Lady of the Assassins. It deals with his fictionalized return to Medellín, and his relationships with two teenagers caught in the local cycle of violence. The autobiographical/fiction La virgen de los sicarios was made into a full feature film in 2000 and released in the United States as Our Lady of the Assassins.

In 2003, Colombian filmmaker Luis Ospina made a feature-length documentary about him: "La desazón suprema: retrato incesante de Fernando Vallejo ("The Supreme Uneasiness: Incessant Portrait of Fernando Vallejo").

In April 2007, Vallejo obtained Mexican citizenship and published a letter in which he publicly renounced his Colombian nationality. The letter presents the reasons for his decision by mentioning several incidents during his career, among them the recent reelection of President Uribe, that eventually led him to this decision.[1](less)

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Fernando Vallejo's Books

Average rating: 3.66 · 1,111 ratings · 96 reviews · 22 distinct works · Similar authors

	La virgen de los sicarios 3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 avg rating — 544 ratings — published 1994 — 18 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	La Puta De Babilonia 3.74 of 5 stars 3.74 avg rating — 175 ratings — published 2007 — 3 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	El Desbarrancadero 3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 avg rating — 170 ratings — published 2002 — 9 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mi Hermano El Alcalde 3.47 of 5 stars 3.47 avg rating — 45 ratings — published 2007 — 5 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Los Dias Azules 3.83 of 5 stars 3.83 avg rating — 30 ratings — published 2006 — 4 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	La Rambla Paralela 3.67 of 5 stars 3.67 avg rating — 30 ratings — published 2002 — 4 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	El don de la vida 3.43 of 5 stars 3.43 avg rating — 28 ratings — published 2010 — 2 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Manualito de imposturología física 3.0 of 5 stars 3.00 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2005	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	El Fuego Secreto 3.54 of 5 stars 3.54 avg rating — 13 ratings — published 2000 — 2 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Los Caminos a Roma 3.4 of 5 stars 3.40 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 2005 — 2 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Quotes by Fernando Vallejo

“…con eso de que aquí, en este país de leyes y constituciones, democrático, no es culpable nadie hasta que no lo condenen, y no lo condenan si no lo juzgan, y no lo juzgan si no lo agarran, y si lo agarran lo sueltan…”
― Fernando Vallejo

tags: condena, culpable, democracia, justicia, ley

5 people liked it

“…yo no inventé esta realidad es ella la que me está inventando a mí…”
― Fernando Vallejo

tags: existencialismo, realidad

5 people liked it

“…el tiempo barre con todo y las costumbres. Así, de cambio en cambio, paso a paso, van perdiendo las sociedades la cohesión, la identidad, quedan hechas unas colchas deshilachadas de retazos…”
― Fernando Vallejo

tags: costumbres, identidad, sociedad, tiempo

4 people liked it

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