Vicente Aranda is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer. Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the big screen. Aranda is famous for exploring difficult social issues and variations on the theme of desire that employs the codes of melodrama. Love as uncontrollable passion, eroticism and cruelty are constant themes in his filmography. The frank examination of sexuality is one of the trademarks of his work, as can be seen in his most internationally successful film: Amantes (1990) (Lovers).