Alejandro Calvo, director de “Sweet, sweet lonely girl”



Daniel Espinosa (entrevistador de “Cementerio de Noticias”)  El estreno de la propuesta acontecerá por todo lo grande, en el marco del Sitges Film Festival 2016; ¿qué supone para ti que un certamen tan prestigioso como éste haya decidido incluir tu trabajo para formar parte del programa, más concretamente, de la sección Panorama Fantàstic?

Alejandro Calvo (director de “Sweet, sweet lonely girl”)  It’s really an honor to premiere the film at the world’s preeminent genre film festival, SITGES, and to be in the Panorama Fantàstic category, alongside other independently-spirited, artistically-driven films; thank’s.



D.E.  Todas la producciones que has firmado hasta la fecha proceden del territorio americano; ¿el motivo es, ene esencia, la escasa apuesta, colaborativa y económica, brindada a nuevos talentos en el español?

A.A.  Well, as you know, I live in the United States, so it’s easier for me, given my low budgets, to develop local stories and shoot near my home; that said, I really hope to film in Spain (or perhaps Buenos Aires) one day, and I’m currently developing a bilingual and lyrical ghost story.



D.E.  Los trabajos que has dirigido, incluido el presente, guardan ciertas similitudes con el estilo típico de los años setenta y ochenta; ¿se trata de mera casualidad o forma parte de una confesable predilección por semejantes técnicas, en cualquier caso, preciosistas?

A.A.  I love 70s horror films, I grew up watching them and was influenced heavily by their visuals, style, and tone; there’s a strong connection to that period for me because my father died of cancer in 1978, so the period resonates deep emotions for me and is very sort.



D.E.  La propuesta cobra tintes góticos teñidos de horrores psicológicos, sin descuidar la sensualidad como punto de partida de un vertiginoso e insano viaje; ¿la combinación responde a una finalidad?

A.A.  Yes, you have it right those influences are there intentionally, and I tried to resonate those frequencies in the narrative; I set out to combine my love of artistic female-driven psychological thrillers with that of gothic horror and romance, so the film plays to both those ends.



D.E.  La trama narra las vivencias y desavenencias de una joven cuyas obligaciones impiden, en definitiva, que exista hasta que la tentación se torna corporeidad; ¿la inspiración proviene de experiencias propias?

A.A.  My first inspiration came from Bava’s “A drop of water” where his protagonist steals a ring from an old woman’s corpse (an episode in his “Black Sabbath” trilogy that scared me so much as a child), so there’s a bit of hagsploitation at work here; looking back, I wondered what leads one to such greed?, well, I think it’s economics, that’s why the Ronald Reagan theme plays out in the background of the story, as Beth says in the bar at one point, “sometimes we do the wrong thing, for the right reason”, it’s a slippery slope to evil, and greed is one of those roads.



D.E.  Una de las características más llamativas de la película es que, aparentemente, el simbolismo se emplea como método para insinuar sin mostrar; ¿el presupuesto resulta un impedimento para hacer lo propio directamente o es un recurso para mantener atento al público?

A.A.  Both reasons, first, to show less as a deliberate attempt to raise tension, to have things play out more in our imagination, and, second, it also aids in the production a low budget feature; budgetary constraints can help lead us to innovative narrative solutions and simplification.



D.E.  Al filmar un largometraje de este calibre e índole surgen, de buen seguro, multitud de anécdotas; ¿hay alguna que pudieras desvelar?

A.A.  Pre-production was very difficult and I thought about postponing the film at one point, it was difficult to find a production designer / art director who believed we could successfully capture the late 70s period, with such a low budget; many were interested in the film but ultimately didn’t think it could be done, so, we were very luckily found Robert Wise, who, apart from being a great designer, had a fearless attitude.



D.E.  No pocos compañeros han comentado, al referirse a tu labor detrás de las cámaras, que posees un talento natural; ¿hasta qué punto te resulta un halago y no una indeseable presión lo mencionado?

A.A.  That’s so nice of you to say, thank you, I do think I have a decent eye for photography and can recognize solid cinematography and I found it in Ryan Parker’s work, he was brought to my attention by my co-producer, Mike Ryan, along with a few other wonderful cinematographers, what struck me most about Ryan’s reel was his natural sense of lighting and he was very collaborative, willing to work with our existing crew here in Connecticut, and also to work from my shot list with no problems; you know, aside from the technical aspects of cinematography, I always joke around that I’d rather a great actor filmed on a bad camera than a bad actor filmed with a great camera, so, in the end, it’s all about the talent, the actors, and blessed both to both.



D.E.  En tu carrera constan piezas dispares pero con un hilo conductor común que obliga al público a extraer las conclusiones finales por sí mismo, una especie de modo deductivo que claramente has hecho tuyo y que se percibe desde “Al otro lado de las vías” hasta la presente, pasando por “The midnight game”, “House of dust” y “The missing girl”; ¿qué consejos darías a aquellos que se han iniciado en el séptimo arte y no terminan de perfilar su senda por más variaciones que asumen?

A.A.  If I’m understanding your question right (I apologize if I am not), I think you’re asking me what advice I’d give to new filmmakers given my experience across multiple films having ambiguous endings?, I like endings that leave an audience thinking and talking about the film they just saw, as opposed to spelling something out for them clearly; I suggest new filmmakers develop their own narrative style, borrowing from their own inspirations to create a new amalgam of style, I hope.



D.E.  Te agradezco enormemente, en nombre propio en particular y del equipo de esta humilde página en general, la amabilidad y paciencia brindadas; ¿deseas añadir algo más que pienses deban conocer nuestros lectores que, seguro, serán a partir de ahora tus seguidores?

A.A.  Muchas gracias a vos, this is my 6th feature and I feel like I’m just beginning to learn the craft, really, so I want to thank you and everyone else who takes the time to view our film, which is the collaboration of so many people; I’m thankful to my team and to you all, muchas gracias.