Interview
Manu Sobral

1. Can you share about your background and how your multicultural upbringing has influenced your approach to filmmaking?

 

So.. my background is quite diverse. I studied cinema in France, where I was born. During university times, I was particularly interested in Experimental Cinema and Documentary. My University had a very political approach to filmmaking, so I was fascinated by using the camera and editing to discuss on a personal way political and social events. My graduation project was about the German Expressionism and the Weimar Republic. That is when I studied some horror movies from that period. I was and still am fascinated by their language full of darkness and monsters.

After that, I directed some experimental documentaries, also with experimental approach, my shorts were well received by internacional festival with that double approach: experimental and documentary.

For making money, at my first steps, I was working as assistant executive producer for films and advertising. I also worked as assistant for visual artists.

In 2007, with a group of people working for the Human Rights Commission of São Paulo, I co-founded the Entretodos film Festival, dedicated to shorts on Human Rights. Until now, Entretodos exists and we discusses thousands of shorts from around the world. Entretodos is part of the SPCINE agenda and the Human Rights International Film Network, lead by Movies That Matter foundation.

I directed documentaries in parallel and work for other people film project as well. Later in my life, I got my Master in Directing Film in Germany and Dark Leaves is my graduation project. Now, I am directing another dark anti- fairy tale, this time, it is my first feature!

 

2. Your film "Dark Leaves" blends suspense, surrealism, and horror elements to create a contemporary anti-fairytale. What inspired you to explore these themes, and how did you approach incorporating them into your storytelling?

 

Oh, thanks for your perception. Yes, It mixes all my deepest influences both in literature and cinema. I believe the surrealistic element comes from the experimental cinema and from visual arts (in that case, directly influenced by Cuban artist Ana Mandieta). Suspense has a major influence of Easter Europe Fiction (that is also why my casting is 90% from Poland by the way), and the horror climax is influenced by reality itself, specially violence against women. My approach was first getting a primal image (a dead body, from a dead teenager, floating in a lake). I got that image from a dream and have tried to find out the story behind that image.

 

3. As someone with experience in both documentary and fiction filmmaking, how do you navigate the differences in storytelling between the two genres?

 

That is my research since 2018. Nowadays, for me, Documentary is a matter of observation of media and reality. But I do not use anymore the documentary tools and systems to direct. I am into drama and visual impact now.

 

4. Can you discuss the significance of using real-life siblings and a real romantic couple as your protagonists in "Dark Leaves," and how this choice enhances the authenticity of the film?

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I believe that choice was a kind of magic combination between facts. I had already worked with Pola when she was younger. When I wrote the project, I already knew she would be the main actress. When I called her mother for the cast and told her the plot, the mother said to me that Nina, her younger daughter, was into acting and modeling. So, Nina came to the audience too. They were perfect working together. Their mother, Patricja, made the costumes and their father, Priort, made some incredible stills for the making of. Pola asked me to test Lorenzo, a guy that she just worked on another project, and I tested him. In the end of the day, it was such a family set! Also my ex was the director of Photography! I felt a safe set to work such a violent topic and very rich in many psychological aspects. But as I told, It was a very organic process, nothing was pre-determined at the start point of writing the short.

 

5. How do you balance the portrayal of realism and fantasy in your storytelling, particularly when addressing themes that resonate with teenagers?

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I believe realism is the fact that, at some point, you grow up and you fall in love. Then, as many fairy tales already said: maybe this first love is a huge trap that kills you in the end. The short literally explores this idea.

 

6. What strategies do you employ to connect with your audience emotionally and intellectually through your filmmaking?

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I just hope that people will be connected. I try to show the work in process to people I trust and admire, hoping that their feelings and feedbacks will help me and the film to be communicative.

 

7. As a filmmaker, how do you approach the creative collaboration process with your cast and crew to bring your vision to life?

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Each short has its won kind of blending. In the Dark Leaves, we did many shamanic session together, using meditation and shamanic drums, so we connected our fears, monsters and dreams. That shamanic working preparation was great to create confidence between the girls and the adults.

 

8. What role do you believe storytelling plays in addressing societal issues and promoting social change through cinema?

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I believe that, since the invention of cinema and the second Industrial Revolution, Cinema and Society are growing or at least, living together.

 

9. Can you share any memorable experiences or moments from your filmmaking journey that have had a significant impact on your growth as a director?

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Oh, many memorables experiences. The ones I like the most are quite Spiritual. For exemple: crossing snakes before getting to the location, that always happens to me when the scene will be a good one. Another one: discovering real facts that reflects directly the purpose of the story (in Dark Leaves, I found out while shooting, that this lake in Potsdam has a secret memorial for rapped girls bodies that were hidden in that lake).

 

10. How do you stay inspired and motivated as a filmmaker, especially when faced with challenges or setbacks during production?

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Haha. I believe is just love and courage. Because challenges are not the smallest.

 

11. Looking ahead, what are your aspirations for the future of your filmmaking career, and what legacy do you hope to leave with your body of work?

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I am shooting and editing a feature, I wrote it during Pandemia, and I am completely in love with the story. I have already shoot a part of it, and I am really proud of what we already have as a film material.

Legacy is hard to say, because I am a really out of commercial circuits. But I hope to be there somewhere, when some nice and a bit freak guy in the future will be doing some research on independent filmmaking from the shadows.