A man wakes up with a bag in his head and a rope around his neck. He is standing on a chair in a very dangerous position, where a big movement would leave him hanged. Left alone in a basement, what will he do to survive?
’Survivalismo’ is a mysterious thriller that explores the Five Stages of Grief defined by the Kübler-Ross Model and applies them to a kidnap situation and a mystery storyline. While the protagonist tries to discover why he was put in such a deadly trap, he goes through the various steps that will lead him to salvation: from Denial to Acceptance, he lives through Rage, Negotiation and Depression.
But atonement doesn’t always lead to an happy ending, and the film’s surprise finale reveals that things aren’t always what they seem.
This project began as a ’survival’ thriller that aimed to surprise the audiences through playing with their expectations. But soon its storyline evolved into a dissection on how we deal with difficult situations and with lost.
--Interview--
Who is José pedro Lopes?
I was writer and director for ’Survivalismo’, an experimental horror short film that takes the Five Stages of Grief defined by the Kluber Ross Model and applies them to a mysterious kidnap situation.
What is Survivalismo about?
A man wakes up in an impossible situation. He doesn’t know why or how he got there - he only knows he has no way of getting out this trap where he was put into. His only solution is to talk is way out, but he doesn’t even know if anyone is listening.
As time passes, he goes lives all the Five Stages of Grief has he has no hope of ever escaping.
How did you start with film? And do you have an educational background in art or film?
I studied film at the Septima Ars Film School in Madrid, Spain. But I’ve been making films ever since I was a kid.
Could you explain how you work, what themes or concepts you use and what is important to you?
Film is a team work from the very beginning.
I had the idea for ’Survivalismo’ watching a pitching session at a production forum. I had this idea of pitching about a short film that was very physical and intense: what If the person presenting his idea was pitching for his life?
So, in a way, the hanged man in ’Survivalismo’ is kind of "pitching" his way out of this trap. That was a start point.
’Survivalismo’ is also a twist-ending based project, and the shocking ending revelation was at the very beginning of the project and the film was built around this wrong perception of reality that this ending implies. I though that having two realities would help create a very atmosferic and visual horror film: one that would actually be an experimental piece in terms of feelings and perception.
How long do you usually work on one project?
’Survivalismo’ was a fast-project actually. I had the idea in February 2011 and the film was finished in June. But usually a short film takes about a year from conception to being done.
Do you carefully plan the production process or do you work more intuitive?
I prefer to have everything fully planned. ’Survivalismo’ was all planned when we shot it and it looks and sounds and feels exactly like what was planned.
I find that having everything plan actually helps everything else on the film to be more intuitive. As a director, I had little to worry about Photography or Production Design on set for it was all already done. It was just me and the actor, and we were able to experiment a lot in terms of acting for everything else was planned.
How does the title relate to the work, and how do you find a fitting title?
I hate coming up with titles to short films. Usually, if it has a line, this ’The Line’, if it has a bride, it’s ’The Bride’. These pre-production titles end up being the final title for people who work on the film end up liking them.
In the case of ’Survivalismo’ I made an effort not to be like this. I didn’t want the title of to neither too psychological nor horror-themed. And I actually wanted it to be a title that would kind of hide the surprise ending.
’Survivalism’ is about people who are paranoid about the end of the world, and who prepare everything to survive. My protagonist is also very eager to survive and he is about to say anything to walk out of this trap alive...
Where do you get your ideas or inspiration from?
They just come to me, like a lightning that strikes me in the head.
But I watch a lot of films, all kinds of films from all kinds of eras and countries. If you want to be a filmmaker, you have to love films and have a need to watch them.
How important is sound in film, and if you use sounds, do you create your own or use existing?
Good sound or bad sound can make or destroy a film. If you are making a lo-budget film, you can\’t fail on the sound for it\’s a first thing that turns your audience off - even more than photography. When you see a \"Found Footage\" film, they don\’t have much to look at, but the sound is always involving and you always ear everything.
As an experimental horror piece, ’Survivalismo’ is all about sound. Emanuel Gracio’s work is amazing - his soundtrack and the sounds he created are involving and evolve thought the film.
How does content relate to the form of your work?
It doesn’t. I think I should be the most professional and do my best in spite of being a better or worse content.
What possibilities of the web are yet to be explored?
In terms of film, I think the web is the most democratized place there is. Now more than ever, you can learn about alternative films and different cinematographies. There is loads of information that one could never get back in the 90s. This is amazing.
Unfortunately still, as with everything, this potential isn’t taken by users necessarily the most interesting way. Hollywood films dominate what most websites write and talk about. Silly youtube videos have billions of views versus the small crowd that actually sees full contents on other places.
Yet, this is all about the users. The internet is an amazing place, but I feel most users don’t actually take much advantage of it. That’s what we call democracy.
Did the web changed your view on art, or your career?
Yes.
My first short, ’A Noiva’, was seen by over thousands of people online and I was screened publicly over 50 times thanks to all the festival and clubs I find online. I’ve met people who didn’t know me but knew my film, and that\’s always rewarding.
Where would you place your work; cinema or art. And what is the difference between those according to you?
Cinema is art. If there\’s bad cinema and bad art I’m not the one to judge.
How influential is the reaction to your film by the audience?
It\’s all about the audience.
My previous short film, ’O Risco’, has amazing reactions from live audiences for it’s a splatter comedy, with a tight pace. People laugh their heads off and always clap at the end. This makes me very happy, to see people enjoy a work I was involved in like this.
I only saw ’Survivalismo’ with an audience once, and since this is actually a very negative downbeat film, I was not surprise of the absolute silence that it was received from start to finish from an audience that had been very participative. I look forward to see it again live, to see how it works.
What is your next project about?
I’m currently producing a 90s set romantic comedy by Ana Almeida about the end of the VHS-era and the arrival of DVDs. It will be a analogical film-buff comedy - and the script is to lovely to be true.
