Three Friends — Mexican Oscar-winning director Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón trio — a rare sit down — chatted for a few minutes at the Academy Museum on Friday night, where old friends bantered and got to know each other’s latest Movie.
Iñárritu (with Bardo, false chronicle of a handful of truths) and del Toro (with Pinocchio) Yes they are all in the competition for this year’s Netflix project; after Ted Sarandos’ presentation, card Cuarón served as the moderator for the conversation.
“For the three of us, the one thing we have in common is that we don’t differentiate between movies and biographies,” del Toro noted in the dead of night. “We made a movie that reflected our original lives, and I think it’s really nice to talk about where we went back to 16 years ago. It was a very Funny time, we sort of broke through.” It was in 2007 that del Toro made his debut with Pan Labyrinth was nominated for an Oscar, the same year Iñárritu was nominated for Babel and Charon Sons of Men was nominated.
“I was in my first marriage and my New Year’s resolution was to lose 16 pounds – I gained 200 Pounds, I’m in my second marriage,” del Toro joked. “So a very important point is, what happened in those 16 years?” Iñárritu revealed in Babel During the awards ceremony, “I knew it was a good time to end something, and in a way, I explored the endings I could explore…in a way, it’s an oxymoron moment, the film got attention and nominations, but deep down inside of me, I knew this was the end of the story.”
In a video showing highlights from Inarritu’s film After the clip, Cuarón commented on his frequent explorations of figurative and literal death, with Inarritu saying, “It comes from a very, very primal fear and awareness that we all share and that no matter what race, nationality or political belief, We’re all going to die,” his films imagine his own death in a deeper way.
He also admitted to having difficulty watching scenes from his past films, saying “they have an intensity emotionally that I sometimes don’t recognize,” del Toro quickly chimed in, “I Recognize the intensity. Everything he said was intense.” This made Inarritu jokingly scream, “Shut up!”
“When he talked about making guacamole, he said, ‘Then you take the avocado, and you slice it! Then the lemon gives you its life! Then you chop the onion, and the avocado is born!'” del Toro teased, Ina Ritu shot back, “He eats the avocado before I finish it—that’s why I’m so crazy about it.”
The Shape of Water and Pan’s Labyrinth , which he thinks will be the last of his productions A movie because he put so much energy into it.
“You always say: ‘I’m just going to do one more, that’s it,’ and then all of a sudden, oh, you’re preparing another one,” Cuarón said, as Iñárritu added , “Guillermo keeps saying it’s the last time, and today he’s told me three projects. I told you something that made me laugh because it’s like the Mexicans, we say ‘well, last drink, last drink.’ When When your friend sits down, you know he’s going to have two bottles of wine next.”
After his career highlights, del Toro explained that throughout his production he Saw two themes: “One of them is the virtue of disobedience, which I think is crucial. To be disobedient is to be a thinking person. The other, I think, is the absolutely inalienable right to be screwed , become imperfect, and I defend that.” He explained that, like Inarritu, he had been concerned with death his whole life, going so far as to call himself a “death groupie.”
“It’s like everyone is waiting for David Bowie to come to town and I’m waiting for death,” del Toro added, “It makes life count , I really do believe” He remembers Cuarón once telling him that he was very Catholic because every character in his films died a happy death, and commenting on his fascination with monsters: “I totally identify with them… I see Frankenstein, I say that’s my Jesus; that’s what I believe in, that’s my saint.”
Lead the conversation to Bardo — following a well-known Mexican journalist and documentary filmmaker as he returns home — Iñárritu says it’s a very introspective personal project, one he wasn’t ready to do five years ago .
“The movie was snorkeling — other movies, I always put people in the dark, diving stuff like that, I was stressed out,” he explained. “I think in this movie, I wanted to snorkel, you can snorkel and see the depth, but from the light and the safety net, and from the water you see the sun, and then the grace, and then the dark, but from that Opinion, that’s how I think life is. We can work through pain, but I think there’s always light.” Del Toro pointed to Bardo and Pinocchio, both of which reflect on being father and son, added that this was his main priority in retelling the classic story .
“This is the only Pinocchio movie I know of, and one study is Geppetto,” He said. “It’s not Pinocchio learning to be a real boy, it’s Geppetto learning to be a real father. That’s very important to me.”
On trial and error – but Both fail — after redirecting the chat, Cuarón will devote himself to his own career (“Didn’t I get the memo, ‘three friends,’ the jerk hasn’t said anything yet”), and del Toro Talking about the current state of animation, he said, “It’s unbelievable that many people in the film industry think of animation as a genre suitable for children, rather than, as a medium, for creating beauty, film and art. I Think it’s a battle that will take years but when you see something as perfect as a Hayao Miyazaki movie or The Red Turtle , an absolute masterpiece, or I Lost My Body , you know this medium is underused.”
filmmaker reflects on how his Pinocchio idea was rejected by all studios for years, Jokes that he’s a bad salesman: “I’m not making a movie for kids, but kids can watch it.”
Iñárritu says he’s trying to make Bardo went through the same level of rejection for two years, explaining that he “went to the usual suspects, you think because you have some awards and some Oscars, you’re going to get the green light — the bad news is that doesn’t exist.” Del Toro chimed in: “To please you, one of my films was rejected this morning. It never stops.”
To end the event – del Toro renamed it “Two Amigos” after Cuarón insisted on focusing on his friend – Pinocchio The director told his filmmakers, “I admire you both. When they say, ‘Well, what is this about? I think it’s about love, because I love you, it’s about admiration , because I admire you. You have inspired me every year of my life. We have been together professionally since the beginning of our careers, you have always inspired me, you have been my partner, teacher And brother.”
Iñárritu is especially grateful to Cuarón for his help and advice early in his career, “Since then he has been basically a generous patron and, for me, the Blessings in my life We have such a privileged job as a filmmaker, but it’s such a difficult and sometimes lonely path to walk.” He continued, “Never be alone in your life, always Have Two friends can support you in your failures and celebrate with you in your successes. These two guys – I wouldn’t exist without them. ”
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