FICG 2022: Guillermo del Toro interviewed at the festival and they announce the reactivation of the Jenkins del Toro Scholarship

This Friday, June 17, in the middle of the afternoon, in the framework of the 37th session of the International Festival of Cinemas in Guadalajara (FICG37) The long-awaited conversation took place between the director, writer and producer from Guadalajara William the Bull with ariza star, Director of FICG; A recorded interview in which they talked about The director’s creative process on his latest film “Pinocchio,” as well as the announcement of the “revitalization” of the Jenkins-del Toro animation grant starting next Monday. (Because due to the pandemic no invitation has been launched.)

The meeting took place in the FICG Cinematheque hall named after the Academy Award winner from Jalisco, where the interview was shown, where del Toro explained that “some figures in the history of literature” – such as Tarzan, Dracula or Sherlock Holmes– They recognize all kinds of versions because “people know their characteristics”, that’s why Pinocchio can have a “new version”.

Guadalajara Basic

Now a manager ‘Imitate sound and movement’ He noted that Guadalajara is important to him because it is where he is “I started doing plastic animation with a Super 8 camera”, working alongside Rigo Mora and developing a “powerful new generation” of action filmmakers who were “on the cutting edge”; And so, after winning “The Shape of Water” at the Academy Awards, “I thought we could promote a format animation workshop,” where “if it was created, we could attract international and local productions” to the city.

Del Toro noted that some of the “Pinocchio” scenes were filmed in Guadalajara and “beyond training people and modernizing artistic elements”, the important thing was that a selection process was made and that “the main puppets were played with hands from Guadalajara”; In this spirit, he noted that it was necessary for him to “restore the connection with the new animators” because, in his words, Guadalajara “has some of the best talent in Latin America” ​​and the sponsorship of his scholarship showed him that “animation is a focal point of ideas and can be To be a turning point, especially now that support is becoming scarcer and more difficult.”

Stop movement and hair

After recounting the development of stop motion (“one of the first technologies created for cinema”), del Toro asserted that it A technique that recreates movements of mechanical complexity ‘that also seek to sell the character; An animator is like a spy from another planet and stop motion is a difficult and time-consuming technique – in this age where other processes are becoming economically viable – which, to me, is the most complete form of animation, because it recreates a reality that never was, it’s Nice “.

On the other hand, after mentioning it in “Pinocchio” they used it More than 20 illustrators and over 60 different photography groupsthe director commented on the work of the next generation of animators from Jalisco who, in his opinion, are “poets, complete authors; in what they do there is always a poetic, tragic and plastic element” (a feature he also recognizes in Eastern European filmmakers, where animators” Very strong”, so close relations with Poland in this FICG are important).

change life

Similarly, del Toro referred to its beginnings as part of FICG, “more than three decades ago”, at a time when “the festival was anti-establishment, and making films in this country was considered anathema”; Although he also noticed that It was this event that gave him the opportunity to participate (and win) at the Cannes Film Festival with his film “Kronos”, an event that “changed my life”.

Towards the end of the interview, the director and screenwriter emphasized the link between El Taller del Chucho and studios in England and Portland (US) and the Netflix platform; “The main thing for me was to create it, make the first production and start it,” to mention later that “it was difficult to shoot in Guadalajara, but it was worth it.”

Finally, the manager emphasized how important this was to him “Defending the origin of what I believed in cinema,” which is why, about 15 years ago, “I thought about going back to animation.”a period he says took to finish Pinocchio, a unique feature film in the same creative streak as “El Espinazo del Diablo” and “El Laberinto del Fauno”.

encouragement and disobedience

“I want to keep making animation,” said del Toro, and “Pinocchio” is a project that “took us 15 years to do; what matters to me is that if it moves me, this movie won’t be more personal, My interest was to explore the connections between the doll and the human ”, above all, in difficult times.

Finally, the director said that it was very important to him that his character “was not in favor of good morals”, because Pinocchio reflects that, sometimes, “it is good to disobey and, moreover, to be what you are” you do not need to betray your nature , so it’s not a priority for his character to become a “real boy”.

“Pinocchio” (“Pinoccio”, 2022)

• Tabuk: Guillermo del Toro / Mark Gustafson
• script: Guillermo del Toro / Patrick McHale
• Produce: Guillermo del Toro, Lisa Henson, Alex Bolkeley, Cory Campodonico, Gary Ungar
• Executive production: Jason Lust
• spit: Gregory Mann / Ewan McGregor / David Bradley / Tilda Swinton / Christoph Waltz / Finn Wolfhard / Cate Blanchett / John Turturro / Ron Perlman / Tim Blake Nelson / Berne Gorman
• the first show: December 2022

Summary

Based on the classic Carlo Collodi story of a wooden doll magically brought to life to become the son of a carpenter named Geppetto; This movie is a stop-motion musical animated film that follows the adventures and ups and downs of Pinocchio in his quest to find his place in the world.

FM