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Alfredo Matas was known for boldly producing offbeat movies for such noted filmmakers as Luis Bunuel (Cet Obscur Objet Du Désire [That Obscure Object of Desire]), Luis Berlinga (the controversial Placido), and The Heifer. The former film met with problems when Matas sent a copy of Placido to dictator Francisco Franco. The tyrant leader found the film offensive and banned it from the Venice Film Festival. But such tactics, plus the threat of prison time, did not prevent the honest Matas from expressing his radical views in his film. All told, Matas was behind 37 films. In addition to producing, he was also known for his razor-sharp business acumen and for popularizing multiplexes in Spain. In 1988, Matas and his partner Jose Sainz de Vicuna founded Cinepaq, a film rights brokerage business. By 1992, their business merged with another major Spanish distributor to become Sogepaq. With Matas as the company vice president, it quickly became one of the country's key sources of independent films. In 1994, Spain's Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences honored Matas with a special gold medal for his lifetime achievements. Matas died at 76 from lung cancer on June 22, 1996.