10 · 07 · 07

Homage to Juan E. García and Simon Bross

Clara Sánchez/Translated by Vicente Castañar

Yesterday, Juan E. García and Simon Bross recieved homage for their contributions within short films and documentaries. Bross’ movie Malos Hábitos received El Ojo, a sculpture by Javier Marín.

“I feel honored and grateful for being here. I welcome you to these three stories you will surely enjoy.”

Before sitting down, the producer spotted Cecilia Suarez and he greeted her and he also mentioned to everyone: “make sure you don’t miss Cecilia’s best performance in Parpados Azules (Blue Eyelids).”

Later on, Armando Ciurana, Zapatitos’s maker; Alejandro Lubezki, who filmed Lección relámpago and Pipe Ybarra who filmed Por siempre introduced their films.

Zapatitos
Ciurana presented an extraordinary short film where he plays with common day life to render a dramatic and sui generis story told through some shoes.

-Why did you choose this topic?
Shoes have always attracted me, I believe they are like a fingerprint, if you look at them carefully you can know the owner’s personality.

-Was it complicated to direct the actors?
Yes it was, because we didn’t use their most expressive body parts, their faces. At the beginning they really overacted their movements, in order to emphasize on the feet, but then after a while they understood that what I needed was for them to walk normally.

-Which are your favorite shoes?
Converse, because they are universal. I always wear them because they are very comfortable, that is why I chose them for this movie, and it is that type of shoe which doesn’t define someone.
 
Lección Relámpago
Lubezki introduced this film where they show introspection and make a satire about conceptual art.

How did you choose this story?
It is a very strange story, very personal; it is a mix of admiration and mockery. I am a fan of conceptual art, Surrealists and Dadaists; of Marcel Duchamps works. This topic emerged from this one time I was at the hospital with my father, we were there because my niece was being born. My dad and I saw some pictures which were horrible, and we talked about that topic, and I thought it would be a good idea for a film. This is where this conceptual art comedy started.

How did you build the dialogs?
It was the hardest part, I studied this strange art. I even stole some phrases from invitations or art inaugurations. I tried to explain it without being boring and I tried to be very objective.

How many cups did you use for this art piece?
About 3 thousand, we filled up a house garden and then we built it and we had to hire a truck to transport it, because even though it isn’t heavy, just 10 kilos, it is very bulky. I worked together with my art designer Monica Chirinos. I wanted to create some weird art, like one can find at a gallery, and which is also absurd. We came up with various ideas but these cups were excellent, they look well through a camera.

Por Siempre
Ybarra presented his short film, his objective is to increase awareness about organ donors.

How did you choose this story?
It is Adriana’s story, she is the director of Fundación Ale, when I heard her story I knew I had to film it.

How were you able to sustain the drama without being over dramatic?
It was a thin line we had to cross, we didn’t want it to be just another story. We had to make it very elegant and real, everything from the camera to the actors. As a matter of fact we have received some criticism about the actors not crying or screaming enough, but my intention was for it to be all self-contained.