Guillermo del Toro pledges a third of his personal archive to the BFI

Guillermo del Toro has pledged to donate a third of his personal collection to the BFI National Archive, revealing the commitment at the BFI Chair’s annual dinner where he was presented with the Fellowship award.

In accepting the BFI Fellowship, which was given to him by Cate Blanchett, star of his 2021 film Nightmare Alley, the Mexican filmmaker praised the BFI’s role in preserving film culture.

“The British Film Institute is guarding not just British film, it’s guarding film as an art form, it’s keeping that faith alive, and that is why this honour is so immense,” said del Toro, whose other filmmaking credits include Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy, The Shape Of Water and Frankenstein. “I believe in the Institute as a beacon of culture, in a time when we are told culture is not important.”

Del Toro, who will present two artworks from his films to the Archive this weekend, suggested he would also record a video message for every item donated so that “whichever young filmmaker comes there, I can guide them through each object so we can have a dialogue across time”.

“The UK has given me so much,” added the director, citing his love of British culture from the Romantic poets, gothic novels and the Bronte sisters to the films of Hammer, Ken Russell, and Powell and Pressburger.

Del Toro was feted at the Rosewood London hotel, where those in attendance included JJ Abrams, Edgar Wright, Rian Johnson, JA Bayona, Simon Pegg, Joanna Scanlan and John Waters.

Alongside introductions by Blanchett (who received the Fellowship in 2011) and BFI chair Jay Hunt, video tributes were played from Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, Steven Spielberg, Jason Reitman, Kasuo Ishiguro, Oscar Isaac and Alejandro G. Inarritu, among others.

Del Toro has won three Oscars and three Baftas: best director for The Shape Of Water and best animated feature for Pinocchio from both academies, as well as the best picture Oscar for The Shape Of Water and a Bafta for best film not in the English language for Pan’s Labyrinth.

This year, Frankenstein was nominated for nine Oscars and eight Baftas, winning the equivalent three categories at both ceremonies, for costume design, production design and makeup and hair.

The Fellowship award kicks off a wider BFI celebration of del Toro this month including a BFI Southbank season curated by the director, a masterclass for young filmmakers from the BFI Film Academy, and a BFI Distribution re-release of his 1992 debut feature Cronos.

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