Winner of several awards including the Sutherland Award at this year鈥檚 London Film Festival, Director Pablo Giorgelli discusses his latest film and how subtle direction creates powerful beauty.
a film-director.鈥
Since his first project 脷ltimo Sue帽o (Last Dream), which he directed while still at film school, Giorgelli has focused on short films. He describes 脷ltimo Sue帽o as 鈥渁n incomprehensible, delusional piece, which focuses more on form than on content鈥 and dismisses his early pretensions: 鈥淚 gloated mainly over technical matters. I believe that I did not have much to say at the time.鈥 In Las Acacias, Giorgelli has instead achieved a fine focus on the craft of character acting, and a balance between the roles of director and editor, allowing his actors to grapple with the complexities of their characters while maintaining a tight grip on the script, and certainly disposing of any superfluous dialogue. The result has been an overwhelming response at the festivals, with Las Acacias scooping the ACID, Camera D鈥橭r and Young Critics Awards at Cannes, the Films from the South Award at Oslo and the Sutherland Trophy at the BFI London Film Festival. On this international success Giorgelli will only say it is 鈥渁 very big surprise. The film is being very well received in several different countries, but mostly the reactions are the same 鈥 my film talks about something that is universal.鈥
With such a sparse script, the film owes a significant amount to the stellar abilities of its lead actors: 鈥淚t is one of the key points of the film, and I couldn鈥檛 get it wrong here because the film is essentially them.鈥 Germ谩n de Silva plays Rub茅n, and continues his long tradition of character acting and lends a gravitas and empathy to what could have become an awkward character to love, while Hebe Duarte is an exceptional newcomer as Jacinta, her ordinary beauty and quiet dignity contrasting with Rub茅n鈥檚 rough exterior and gruff mannerisms. Giorgelli鈥檚 initial plan for Rub茅n was to find a real-life truck driver: 鈥淲e began auditioning, for almost a year. I saw many, but none that I really thought fitted the role. I realised I had to look for someone who would have to improvise but who could also respect the script and could fit the role of my imagined Rub茅n.鈥 Ironically, on casting de Silva, he achieved an added layer of authenticity: 鈥渢he best praise for the film was when someone asked after a screening: is he an actor or a real truck driver?鈥
Las Acacias鈥 success relies on a deep understanding of its intention between director and actors: 鈥淕erm谩n was very quick to understand the spirit of Rub茅n and above all the tone I wanted for the film; this idea about not pushing and not exaggerating anything. And like Germ谩n, Hebe understood straight away who Jacinta was and she brought aspects of her Paraguayan nationality that really enriched the role. And well 鈥 when we introduced her to the baby it was magic. They really seemed like mother and daughter and still today, watching the film, I can鈥檛 believe that they aren鈥檛 actually related.鈥 In her acting debut, Duarte was chosen in spite of her lack of experience: 鈥淗ebe is not a professional actress but she is a tremendous natural actress 鈥 intuitive, with a great emotional intelligence [and] what can I say about Nayra, the baby 鈥 it was a miracle. She appeared only a month before the shoot and I noticed in the audition that she had something special, she looked at me directly in the eyes and held her gaze, until I started to feel a little intimidated.鈥
Rub茅n鈥檚 solitude is an important aspect of the film and it鈥檚 unclear how enforced and unwelcome it actually is. At the beginning of the film he is very much his own man who fiercely guards his independence and privacy, but the fact that Jacinta and Anah铆 are forced into his world causes him to re-evaluate his loneliness in a way he hadn鈥檛 before imagined. At times Rub茅n鈥檚 demeanour is genuinely heart-breaking 鈥 revealing his estranged son to Jacinta, his ensuing silence speaks volumes, and his face on witnessing the affectionate welcome that she receives at her cousin鈥檚 house reveals his deepest regrets at his own solitary existence.
While this scene seems to be a turning point in his attitude, Giorgelli is keen not to be too prescriptive on Rub茅n鈥檚 path from here: 鈥淟ike you, I don鈥檛 know much more about his future 鈥 I just know that I can see in the 85 minute running time of the film that he is not the same person at the end of the film, his protective shield was broken and he could open, just a little bit, his heart.鈥 It鈥檚 a refreshingly simplistic way of viewing a character鈥檚 arc, and similarly, the mystery surrounding Jacinta鈥檚 circumstances (who is Anah铆鈥檚 father? Why are they not in touch? What is she leaving in Paraguay and what is she hoping to find in Buenos Aires?) is similarly left unexplained.
The importance of the film for Giorgelli is not in prescribing a narrative, but in the universal themes it carries. 鈥淢y film is a story about love. And I see it as a popular film; a film that connects well with the audience. It is not a difficult film, hermetic or incomprehensible. And I would say that it has something to do with the universality of the story being told, with its profoundly human essence.鈥 We witness isolation, regret and unspoken sadness in both Rub茅n and Jacinta, but the character of the five-month-old baby also represents new beginnings and new hope, and she proves to be a common bond between her fellow travellers.
The use of intense, very close up and isolated shots on each character gradually gives way through the film to encompass both protagonists, but the truck鈥檚 cabin remains the main set throughout. This cinematography stems from the minimal dialogue: 鈥淭he principal idea is simple but powerful. What is important is the interior conflict this man felt about fatherhood. From here came the idea to shoot the film up close, to see the journey through their eyes, to see what the characters see.鈥 Somewhat controversially for something that was conceived as a road movie, this entailed a major rejection of landscape shots and sweeping views of the roadside, something that was difficult to resist given the stunning backdrop of South America.
However, Giorgelli maintained his idea saying: 鈥淚 should admit that at the start I was a little terrified about shooting the film in this way, but I never stopped feeling that this was a road movie.鈥 Argentina is a country of vast and dramatic landscapes, and they are dramatically toned down and only hinted at in homage to the film鈥檚 close-cropped, simplistic style. Giorgelli describes it as seeing the landscape 鈥渆xactly as they see it, through the windshield but also via the truck鈥檚 enormous wing mirrors. The landscape that we see advancing is the slow transformation, towards the future, just like what is happening to the characters. I think that the landscape plays an important role in the film, precisely because it is not in the foreground, instead we discover the landscape with them.鈥
In cropping the camera鈥檚 view Giorgelli emphasises the intimacy between the characters: 鈥淚t was like creating a box with precious boundaries, inside everything matters, nothing matters outside,鈥 and because of this, Las Acacias becomes a phenomenally personal project. It stems from the director鈥檚 own preoccupations with fatherhood, but offers a beautiful and rewarding portrayal of the loneliness we have all felt, and the promise of companionship to come.
Las Acacias was showing in selected cinemas from 2 December 2011.
Ruby Beesley
