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John Sayles and Edward James Olmos present Go For Sisters

After walking a crowded red carpet, director John Sayles, accompanied by actor Edward James Olmos and producer Alejandro Springall, presented Go For Sisters, within the program of FICM’s special guests. Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Batel, vice president of the festival, recalled that the first edition of FICM included a film by John Sayles, Casa de los Babys (2003). “It’s no coincidence that John is here,” he said. “He has been an example of independent cinema that is not governed by the laws of the markets, a person who is committed to good causes.”

About Edward James Olmos, Cárdenas commented, “This is a person who has meant so much to the Mexican-American community. He has been very present in the relationship that exists between Michoacán and the United States, with our migrants, with that community that is also part of Michoacán and is on the other side of the border.”

Sayles said that part of the importance of FICM lies in the fact that the public attends: “Not only filmmakers come, but also the people of the city, the people of Mexico.” Edward James Olmos said, “You don’t know how proud I am. It’s taken a long time to get here, but here I am. I’m in Morelia and I will return. It’s the people here who have given me so much love, have made me feel so proud. It’s wonderful. Thank you. I’d also like to thank you on the part of my family and friends. I hope you like the film. We’ll be here when it’s over.”

When the film ended, Sayles and Olmos kept their promise and talked with the audience who refused to leave Sala 4 of Cinépolis Centro.

Sayles shared some information regarding the shooting of the film. “ This film was made in 19 days, with a budget of less than a million dollars, but with very experienced actors. During those 19 days, we were in more than 60 locations. We moved two or three times a day. The heat in the San Fernando Valley, in Calexico and Mexicali was brutal. It is the only case in which, while I was writing, I thought of the three main actors. I like to prepare surprises for my actors, so that they wonder, ‘what’s going on here?’ I like to do just a few takes – only two or three. That way the surprise doesn’t end.”

Olmos ended the talk by saying, “It’s like a dream to be here. John is one of the best independent filmmakers. I read the film as a producer.  I loved it. When John asked me what I thought of Freddy Suárez, I said, ‘Wow, if you give it to me, I’ll give you a big juicy kiss. The story comes from John. I’ve learned from people like John - he knows where the story is. Good directors know how to put the camera where the story is. This guy took what he needed and that’s it. Sometimes he gave me the opportunity to do it [the take] three times, but almost never. It is one of the best films I’ve done. It was great. We should do a television series with the character of Freddy Suárez. It was amazing.”