___ In the past Sitges, I had the opportunity to interview Guillermo del Toro to , great filmmaker and a better person. Guillermo always shown friendly and willing to answer questions.
1 - When, where and why did the initial idea for " Pan's Labyrinth"?
The truth is that arose long ago. Indeed, the temptation was to make a completely different story last shot, because the original composition was a movie more than type Arthur Machen and Algernon Blackwood On "the force of the pagan." It was a completely different idea, the idea was that a pregnant woman with her cuckolded husband, traveling to an old mansion on the Cantabrian coast and the woman fell in love with a faun who lived in the labyrinth in ruins. We ended up sacrificing his son to that of living in the kingdom of the fairies. The woman was abandoned by her husband, had an unintended pregnancy and she was waking up in a loving passion and imagination to the point of saying, "I'd rather lose my son a few minutes and then find it in the world fairies. " Crazy. Suddenly ended in a wild madness that was also a fascist fable, I do not know how these things evolve, but it was in this case.
2 - Why fascism is a recurring theme in your films?
's will, rather than fascism. What interests me is precisely that fascism is a black hole of the will. This system is not necessarily unique, but acquitted of brutality, lack of moral acquitted and absolved the choice. When you say " You can kill these people because they are Jews, red or gay, whatever! "In this world can afford a brutal action based on a collective advice, that's what scares me.
3 - Is it true that you inspired in several Goya paintings ?
Well, Goya of Rackham, the Symbolist painters ... In fact there are specific events in the film to many works. For example, the painting "Saturn devouring his son" when I quote pale man eats a fairy. Appointments are very text on how to paint and draw of Arthur Rackham , there are also some very specific events Symbolist painters. Strangely, the film is more influenced by children's literature, literature on children's literature and painting that I have written.
4-The design for the faun is great and does not match the archetype of a faun from Greek mythology. How you gave the image to the character?
Unfortunately for me, I saw a faun when I was very little and slept at my grandmother. When twelve o'clock at night, sounded the bells of the church and I saw a faun coming out of my closet. Then began to scream. I saw always the same; left hand first, then the goat's face and then the left leg of goat, and when they came after me I screamed and took me to my grandmother's room. In the morning looking after the closet, trying to find a portal or something behind. And there is a recurring fear in my films: "Night at the visitation on children's bed." The girl in " Cronos "who wakes up at midnight and discovered his grandfather junkie, shooting up with the unit, all children visited by the ghost in" The Devil's Backbone "... All these scenes come from this primordial memory. " Pan's Labyrinth" is a film that is very much based on that, but the faun's legs were mainly inspired by the drawings of Arthur to have that kind of twisted trees and vaguely sexual.
5 - How did you find Ofelia (Ivana Baquero )?
For the casting of the girl we saw about 100 applicants, and there was none that could with the paper. Ivana finally came and I said: " is very old for the part ", because the script is written for an eight year old girl! vain was physically very different from Ofelia , if you see now has curly hair and eyebrows a little thicker. In the film we put the straight hair. Ivana read the paper, specifically the scene where he talks to his brother in the womb, and at the end everyone was crying in the testing room. That girl is a monster, I quoted a second time and gave some very specific instructions. It is very important for an actress who can listen and she always listens.
6 - Why did you decide to set the story in the English Civil War?
For me " The Devil's Backbone" was a metaphor for civil war specifically, but about war in general, and suddenly the world from 2001 to 2006 was a lot. " The Devil's Backbone" was released on September 9, 2001 in the U.S., 10 took a plane to Los Angeles and Sept. 11 was in the fourth edition of "Blade 2 " watching the news . The world has changed so much that I thought it was worth creating a parallel and see what happened to Spain in the year 39 to 44. I tried to follow, finding a historical alibi in which Spain to look like a maze. And at 44 it happens that there is still resistance, there is still hope that the Allies after the Normandy, look to Spain and help to overthrow Franco, which never happened. I thought it was an ideal time to make a fable about disobedience. Disobedience is the complete opposite of fascism, which is obedience to the group for the group.
7 - Why did you decide to shoot in Spain? What is the difference between rolling here in Mexico or the U.S.?
The truth is that as the story was set in Spain, I grew naturally shoot concern here. The truth is very comfortable being filmed in Spain. Technically there is no disadvantage, humanly, the truth is that we live much better in Spain than almost anywhere else in the world. I believe that Mexico and Spain are more vivid, very different, but places where life is good, people eat well, good fun, it's all very vital. Shoot the film in Spain, the only thing that was supposed to push themselves all the departments to the fullest. Ramon Moya had to in sets, suffering, but because I was thoroughly enjoying building something enormous. The entire film takes place on sets built set. DDT have had a stroke every two weeks, because we were asking for a giant toad, a faun, a pale man, a mandrake, several amputations ... they were happy, but pushed to its limit vital. Actually, David had a pretty rough couple of moments in the film. The important thing is that by pushing all, the film has an unusual bill in terms of English cinema is concerned. That is, the technical bill pushes everything a bit more than normal.
8-often speak of producing talented young newcomers. Tell us more about it.
Some people are very interested for me to debut in the film world, talented people. Mayor David is , Eugenio Mira, Luis Bermejo , Elio Quiroga , people with short films, after seeing them, you want help for something to happen. But at the same time I am trying to bring these people to draft a screenplay and I can identify myself. For Bayonne , I read "The Orphanage ." He knew the Bayonne short perfectly, and although none showed me the proclivity to terror, I knew the guy was a talent that eventually will become a future force of English cinema. It's nice to be part of the first steps of someone, because you can protect you from others and from himself, which is also very important. I seek people we trust, but also good listeners. Projects that not only likes them, but I like me too. If no such conditions, it would be pointless for me to produce. There may be a brilliant director and a script that I do not understand, but for me that is not enough to get involved, not enough to rely solely on the director. I have to rely on the script, the director and much more, to handle better. For example, Alfonso Cuarón and I co-produced a film called " Chronicles" with John Leguizamo and Leonor Watling . Fully trusted the director, fully trusted in the script, but post was a pretty tough time in which they had to change the ending because, obviously, did not work. We had that talk with the director and agreed without a problem, change the final, was shot again. The film was so good that was selected for Cannes, and we are happy to have taken her out, but had there been no such dialogue would have been difficult produce.
9 - What happened to "Halo ?
I was in "Halo " about 3 or 4 months, we developed a new script, I was with Peter Jackson in New Zealand, and we talked to Richard Taylor and all that stuff. But there was always the sword of Damocles "Hellboy 2 ." I did not want to leave " Hellboy 2" and finally we decided to in agreement is that while "Hellboy 2 " I could not be involved in anything. Indeed a few weeks of leave " Halo," "Hellboy 2 " received the green light, and now I'm at it.
10-So Will 'Hellboy 2 ?
offices opened last week, we are already working with Mike Mignola , Gwen Barlow, Francisco Ruiz Velasco , a Mexican who does a sensational comics ... we are with the art director, costume director and designing everything, and have generated very fine material visually. So ... yes, there will be " Hellboy 2."
11 - What are your upcoming projects? Are we still on " In the Mountains of Madness ?
still standing, which The problem is that it is very difficult to realize. It is a script that on two or three occasions I have had very close to the studios to give the green light. We even traveled to Romania to see the studies to see if we could film there what we want. But something always happens, something that prevents the project a reality. Even I generated models and drawings without asking anything funded the study, we have models and designs for all beautiful, but the film cost about $ 80 million and unfortunately I have not.
12-Q surprise ... What want to ask you?
much I like Lovecraft , and when we speak of " At the Mountains of Madness " always ask me why I want to make a film. To me, Lovecraft text has a context that does not seem very relevant today, and he writes about Antarctic exploration, the mixture is a bit of adventure to Shackleton and horror tale to Poe , with elements of cosmic horror of Lovecraft . What I try to show in the script, not just the insignificance human scale in relation to the cosmos, that is what was the novel, but to show the folly, not only of mysticism Lovecraftian, but the folly of man for knowledge. The as faith is supplanted by knowledge. A Jesuit deep horror if you will, where man should be sustained by faith and not by scientific rigor. I am very interested because it is a time when I believe that everything that is spiritual is being corroded by the material, and the film tends to talk about it.
13-About the end of "Pan's Labyrinth . " Fantasy or reality?
For me, of course ... REALITY.
The truth is that arose long ago. Indeed, the temptation was to make a completely different story last shot, because the original composition was a movie more than type Arthur Machen and Algernon Blackwood On "the force of the pagan." It was a completely different idea, the idea was that a pregnant woman with her cuckolded husband, traveling to an old mansion on the Cantabrian coast and the woman fell in love with a faun who lived in the labyrinth in ruins. We ended up sacrificing his son to that of living in the kingdom of the fairies. The woman was abandoned by her husband, had an unintended pregnancy and she was waking up in a loving passion and imagination to the point of saying, "I'd rather lose my son a few minutes and then find it in the world fairies. " Crazy. Suddenly ended in a wild madness that was also a fascist fable, I do not know how these things evolve, but it was in this case.
2 - Why fascism is a recurring theme in your films?
's will, rather than fascism. What interests me is precisely that fascism is a black hole of the will. This system is not necessarily unique, but acquitted of brutality, lack of moral acquitted and absolved the choice. When you say " You can kill these people because they are Jews, red or gay, whatever! "In this world can afford a brutal action based on a collective advice, that's what scares me.
3 - Is it true that you inspired in several Goya paintings ?
Well, Goya of Rackham, the Symbolist painters ... In fact there are specific events in the film to many works. For example, the painting "Saturn devouring his son" when I quote pale man eats a fairy. Appointments are very text on how to paint and draw of Arthur Rackham , there are also some very specific events Symbolist painters. Strangely, the film is more influenced by children's literature, literature on children's literature and painting that I have written.
4-The design for the faun is great and does not match the archetype of a faun from Greek mythology. How you gave the image to the character?
Unfortunately for me, I saw a faun when I was very little and slept at my grandmother. When twelve o'clock at night, sounded the bells of the church and I saw a faun coming out of my closet. Then began to scream. I saw always the same; left hand first, then the goat's face and then the left leg of goat, and when they came after me I screamed and took me to my grandmother's room. In the morning looking after the closet, trying to find a portal or something behind. And there is a recurring fear in my films: "Night at the visitation on children's bed." The girl in " Cronos "who wakes up at midnight and discovered his grandfather junkie, shooting up with the unit, all children visited by the ghost in" The Devil's Backbone "... All these scenes come from this primordial memory. " Pan's Labyrinth" is a film that is very much based on that, but the faun's legs were mainly inspired by the drawings of Arthur to have that kind of twisted trees and vaguely sexual.
5 - How did you find Ofelia (Ivana Baquero )?
For the casting of the girl we saw about 100 applicants, and there was none that could with the paper. Ivana finally came and I said: " is very old for the part ", because the script is written for an eight year old girl! vain was physically very different from Ofelia , if you see now has curly hair and eyebrows a little thicker. In the film we put the straight hair. Ivana read the paper, specifically the scene where he talks to his brother in the womb, and at the end everyone was crying in the testing room. That girl is a monster, I quoted a second time and gave some very specific instructions. It is very important for an actress who can listen and she always listens.
6 - Why did you decide to set the story in the English Civil War?
For me " The Devil's Backbone" was a metaphor for civil war specifically, but about war in general, and suddenly the world from 2001 to 2006 was a lot. " The Devil's Backbone" was released on September 9, 2001 in the U.S., 10 took a plane to Los Angeles and Sept. 11 was in the fourth edition of "Blade 2 " watching the news . The world has changed so much that I thought it was worth creating a parallel and see what happened to Spain in the year 39 to 44. I tried to follow, finding a historical alibi in which Spain to look like a maze. And at 44 it happens that there is still resistance, there is still hope that the Allies after the Normandy, look to Spain and help to overthrow Franco, which never happened. I thought it was an ideal time to make a fable about disobedience. Disobedience is the complete opposite of fascism, which is obedience to the group for the group.
7 - Why did you decide to shoot in Spain? What is the difference between rolling here in Mexico or the U.S.?
The truth is that as the story was set in Spain, I grew naturally shoot concern here. The truth is very comfortable being filmed in Spain. Technically there is no disadvantage, humanly, the truth is that we live much better in Spain than almost anywhere else in the world. I believe that Mexico and Spain are more vivid, very different, but places where life is good, people eat well, good fun, it's all very vital. Shoot the film in Spain, the only thing that was supposed to push themselves all the departments to the fullest. Ramon Moya had to in sets, suffering, but because I was thoroughly enjoying building something enormous. The entire film takes place on sets built set. DDT have had a stroke every two weeks, because we were asking for a giant toad, a faun, a pale man, a mandrake, several amputations ... they were happy, but pushed to its limit vital. Actually, David had a pretty rough couple of moments in the film. The important thing is that by pushing all, the film has an unusual bill in terms of English cinema is concerned. That is, the technical bill pushes everything a bit more than normal.
8-often speak of producing talented young newcomers. Tell us more about it.
Some people are very interested for me to debut in the film world, talented people. Mayor David is , Eugenio Mira, Luis Bermejo , Elio Quiroga , people with short films, after seeing them, you want help for something to happen. But at the same time I am trying to bring these people to draft a screenplay and I can identify myself. For Bayonne , I read "The Orphanage ." He knew the Bayonne short perfectly, and although none showed me the proclivity to terror, I knew the guy was a talent that eventually will become a future force of English cinema. It's nice to be part of the first steps of someone, because you can protect you from others and from himself, which is also very important. I seek people we trust, but also good listeners. Projects that not only likes them, but I like me too. If no such conditions, it would be pointless for me to produce. There may be a brilliant director and a script that I do not understand, but for me that is not enough to get involved, not enough to rely solely on the director. I have to rely on the script, the director and much more, to handle better. For example, Alfonso Cuarón and I co-produced a film called " Chronicles" with John Leguizamo and Leonor Watling . Fully trusted the director, fully trusted in the script, but post was a pretty tough time in which they had to change the ending because, obviously, did not work. We had that talk with the director and agreed without a problem, change the final, was shot again. The film was so good that was selected for Cannes, and we are happy to have taken her out, but had there been no such dialogue would have been difficult produce.
9 - What happened to "Halo ?
I was in "Halo " about 3 or 4 months, we developed a new script, I was with Peter Jackson in New Zealand, and we talked to Richard Taylor and all that stuff. But there was always the sword of Damocles "Hellboy 2 ." I did not want to leave " Hellboy 2" and finally we decided to in agreement is that while "Hellboy 2 " I could not be involved in anything. Indeed a few weeks of leave " Halo," "Hellboy 2 " received the green light, and now I'm at it.
10-So Will 'Hellboy 2 ?
offices opened last week, we are already working with Mike Mignola , Gwen Barlow, Francisco Ruiz Velasco , a Mexican who does a sensational comics ... we are with the art director, costume director and designing everything, and have generated very fine material visually. So ... yes, there will be " Hellboy 2."
11 - What are your upcoming projects? Are we still on " In the Mountains of Madness ?
still standing, which The problem is that it is very difficult to realize. It is a script that on two or three occasions I have had very close to the studios to give the green light. We even traveled to Romania to see the studies to see if we could film there what we want. But something always happens, something that prevents the project a reality. Even I generated models and drawings without asking anything funded the study, we have models and designs for all beautiful, but the film cost about $ 80 million and unfortunately I have not.
12-Q surprise ... What want to ask you?
much I like Lovecraft , and when we speak of " At the Mountains of Madness " always ask me why I want to make a film. To me, Lovecraft text has a context that does not seem very relevant today, and he writes about Antarctic exploration, the mixture is a bit of adventure to Shackleton and horror tale to Poe , with elements of cosmic horror of Lovecraft . What I try to show in the script, not just the insignificance human scale in relation to the cosmos, that is what was the novel, but to show the folly, not only of mysticism Lovecraftian, but the folly of man for knowledge. The as faith is supplanted by knowledge. A Jesuit deep horror if you will, where man should be sustained by faith and not by scientific rigor. I am very interested because it is a time when I believe that everything that is spiritual is being corroded by the material, and the film tends to talk about it.
13-About the end of "Pan's Labyrinth . " Fantasy or reality?
For me, of course ... REALITY.
Links of interest:
-Interview with Guillermo del Toro posted on: CineActual , Fantasymundo , Ociojoven .
