António Aleixo

I’m mostly excited about watching new films. New approaches e techniques. I often feel that films are like a drug. You get addicted to them but, just like drugs, there’s no kick like the first one, yet you keep on pursuing that feeling of wow, over and over again. I want to be at wow again, as I was with those films that made my childhood like E.T., Indiana Jones, The Neverending Story, The Goonies, etc.

The awards are always nice but they also come with a dark side. I always feel the added pressure. The same way I’m constantly waiting for a moment when someone will finally unveil me as a fraud. Filmmaking is not math. It’s about emotions and whether you’re able to touch other’s hearts and move them, or you’re not. It’s an exercise of empathy, I believe. So the Sophia Awards represent exactly that. That I was able to touch others with those two films yet came the added pressure of doing it again, and even better.

Mostly narrative. It’s always about the story and delivering something engaging, though provoking or entertaining. I want to forget I’m watching a film and be taken by the hand to the universe of the narrative suggested by the movie. And apart from that all the technical qualities of the film, of course. But first and foremost, narrative.

Nothing and everything… I never got any funding yet I’m often accused of making non independent / mainstream films. And I’m accused by those who actually get funding for art-house films and are so called “independent”. And in the end, who’s the most independent?… Independent means only that you’re doing a film of yours, independently of any distribution deals or production funding.

I’ve learned to listen and watch. I’ve learned to like others who think and act differently from me. And most importantly, I’ve learned that I’m not special. I’m but a speaker to give voice people’s dreams, fears or desires.

It’s not often that filmmakers get the chance of having the time, talent, gear and crew, to make their scripts come true. Maybe because of that, filmmakers tend to take themselves and their films too seriously. As if they want to show how amazingly deep and poetic they are. It’s crap… we’re not that special. Neither are films. I love movies, I watch films daily, I’m constantly writing new scripts and ideas but in the end, it’s just movies everyone. Chill… Once you learn that you’re not special. You’re not different and your film is just… a film, your filmmaking starts getting a lot better.

None in particular, recently.

Learn to be rejected and take it lightly. Being rejected at festivals is the day-to-day norm. Being accepted is the exception. Don’t take it personally, you’re not crap and your film may not be as bad as you think. Just try to find your film’s audience out there. They’re somewhere, you just need to look for them.

The next one. Always the next one. I believe the best part of making any film is the eureka moment. When the pen starts writing on its own. You can sitting on a cool idea for months or years, but somehow the writing doesn’t flow. Then one day you wake up, you put down your pen and it all flushes out of you in a matter of hours. That’s always the most beautiful part of the process. When you “see” it for the first time. From then on it’s all about bringing your baby to life.

You can expect my honest review. With an absolute open heart, absolutely detached from any bias or trending politics. Indulge me. Amuse me. Entertain me. Frighten me. And whoever unrests me the most with powerful emotions, wins.