Hugo Medina

Hugo Daniel Medina Medina (Santiago, October 18, 1943) is a Chilean actor and theater director.

Biography

Trained at the University of Chile's School of Theatre and the River Side Institute in London, he acknowledges the influence of Pedro Orthous and Agustín Siré, both key figures in shaping the university theatre scene in Chile, and of Nobel laureate Dario Fo. His work on stage, since 1964, has developed along three lines: the universal classical repertoire, primarily with university companies; Chilean classical plays; and, finally, a militant theatre, with an avant-garde aesthetic and strong political content, developed during the Popular Unity government (1970–1973) in Chile and later in exile in England, Sweden, and Germany, among other European countries.

Medina has said that for him, acting "is more than work; it's the pleasure of having this vital expression of creating, inventing characters, and putting them at the service of a whole, with its social, psychological, and aesthetic mechanisms, but above all, essential for the creators involved."

He highlights his participation in the productions: A Midsummer Night's Dream with the University of Chile Theater (1965), Viet Rock (1969), Chile 11.9.73, and The End of the World Called Us, presented for two years (1975–1977) in various European theaters. First in Sweden with the Sandino Company (1982) and later at the Catholic University of Chile, Lomas del Paraíso (1997), El Vestidor (1998), La Viuda de Apablaza (1999), Rompiendo Códigos (2000), Le Bourgeois gentilhomme (2001), and other works such as "Hechos Consumados" (1988), Accidental Death of an Anarchist (1986), and Ariel Dorfman's well-known play Death and the Maiden (1991), with the Teatro Imagen, Luciérnaga, and Chilean National Theater companies.

From 1972 to the present, Medina has maintained a significant and continuous body of work in film. Between 1972 and 1987, he acted in several politically charged films, first in Chile and then in Bulgaria, Sweden, and Germany, during the years he spent in exile following the coup d'état of September 1973. Among his notable works are Metamorphosis of the Chief of the Political Police (1972), The Promised Land (1973), and Disappeared Prisoners (1979). With the restoration of democracy in Chile, Medina participated in several films, including Sussi (1987), Johnny 100 Pesos (1993), and Historias de Fútbol (1997). This period is characterized by his involvement in productions with less overtly political content, more commercially oriented, and extensive work in television (telenovelas, educational programs, and miniseries). Since 1988, he has taught acting and basic emotional processes, both in Chile and Europe. In the last decade he has worked on award-winning films such as Jailbreak Pact (2020), Chile '76 (2022), and Prison in the Andes (2023), continuing the theme related to dictatorship and human rights violations.

In 2007 and 2011, he won the Altazor Award for Best Theater Actor. In 2018, he received a tribute from the Chilean Actors' Union for his career achievements. In 2024 he received the Caleuche Award as best male actor film performance for Prison in the Andes where he characterized Manuel Contreras.

Kidnapping and Exile

On November 20, 1973, Medina was kidnapped, detained, and tortured at the Buin Infantry Regiment No. 1 in Recoleta. He was subsequently sent to the Santiago Public Prison. After a military trial and an eight-month civilian trial, insufficient evidence was found to convict him, and he was released on November 22, 1975. Medina was forced into exile in England, with a 10-year ban on returning to Chile. In London, he reunited with Coca Rudolphy and Marcelo Romo, who were in exile after suffering the same fate as Medina. He returned to Chile in 1985.

On December 14, 2022, the Santiago Court of Appeals ordered the Chilean government to pay Medina 120 million pesos in damages for emotional distress due to the torture and coercion he suffered during Augusto Pinochet's civic-military dictatorship. It was established that Medina was a victim of illegal detention, imprisonment, and torture between November 20, 1973, and November 22, 1975, with the resulting serious physical and psychological consequences.

Filmography

Films

Television