My other interview at TIFF this year was with director Sebastian Cordero and Martina Garcia (pictured right) from the film Rabia. The film is set in Spain’s Basque country area where we meet Jose Maria (Gustavo Sanchez Parra) and his girlfriend Rosa (Martina Garcia). She is the housekeeper for a very well-to-do family while Jose Maria is a construction worker… typical roles for Latin American immigrants in Spain. Jose Maria gets into a fight with his foreman, which results in a serious accident and he is forced to go into hiding. Not knowing where to go, he decides to hide in the attic of the house where Rosa lives and works.
From there the film takes a different tone. It gives us a look at the inside of a house, which at first glance, appears full of great things and happy people. The audience becomes a voyeur, like Jose Maria, and we start to figure out that all is not what it seems. The family is as dysfunctional as any other. Rosa is treated with kindness yet gets taken advantage of, which upsets Jose Maria who’s unable to do anything for her… One senses his desperation, anger and frustration. As time passes, Jose Maria is able to call the house from a separate phone line and continues his relationship with Rosa…
I enjoyed the film not only because it depicts Latin Americans in a more realistic way. But mostly I like that Cordero chose to have Jose Maria as a quiet observer; he has little dialogue. As he lives in seclusion in the attic, his body and facial expressions convey his “rabia” (anger) and decay. The camera work also enhances the experience… It’s as if we’re there with Jose Maria; seeing what he’s seeing and hearing what he’s hearing. The other thing that stood out for me was the house… it has a character of its own.
As I met with Sebastian Cordero and Martina Garcia after the premiere of the film, I began our short meeting by asking how the film was received here in Toronto. Both told me that film was well received. Cordero mentioned that many people can identify with the story and the characters. Even if the film is about immigrants and their experience, many of us have experienced frustration, anger and even alienation, like Jose Maria in the film.
Cordero described how filming took about seven weeks. The film was produced by Guillermo Del Toro and the Production Designer was Eugenio Caballero, who also worked with Del Toro on Pan’s Labyrinth. Caballero was in charge of creating the atmosphere in the house and make it another character in the film. When I asked him about distribution, Cordero said it was yet to be decided. He knows there’s an audience for the film and that its themes are universal.
Garcia was also quite excited about the film. She was telling me how the premiere went very well and people asked some very thoughtful questions. This film was the first time she worked with Cordero but she mentioned that she hopes to work with him again. They met at a film festival in Ecuador… Cordero said Garcia has a type of luminescence that translate great on film. Some time after this meeting, he offered her the part for this film. Garcia has been quite busy working on both sides of the globe. Co-productions are quite common these days, she said. She’s been filming in Spain, Colombia and Mexico. She hopes to film a film in English someday.
Hopefully, you will get to see this film. I’ll keep my eyes and ears open to see if it obtains distribution.
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Hye! Note: Thanks again to Sebastian and Martina for meeting with me… a lovely chat; muchas gracias! As well, thanks to Corrine Leo and the GAT staff for setting up this interview.
Photo by: Heidy M.
