What were the main challenges on making your charity film, Heaven?
Guto: We had a very precise vision of how we wanted to approach this project. Our main challenge was combining this high aspiration within the very restricted budget. In order to do that we had to bring multitasking to its limit, we produced, directed, art directed, did location scouting, cooked… and the list goes on. Always with our vision making sure we get what we want. At the end we did. The fact we were making it for a very noble cause helped us to get a lot of help from friends and volunteers.
A quick potted history to how you joined forces to direct together please…
Guto: Our friendship dates back to Advertising School in Rio. We studied together and from there our lives took different paths. I dived into the advertising world and worked for 10 years as a copywriter on global agencies around Europe, São Paulo and Rio. And Diego went to Brussels where he developed as a visual artist working with different platforms such as painting, photography, films and fashion.
Diego: We always talked about a collaboration together, but Salsa really took shape last year when Guto decided to quit the agency life and approached me with a project. We want to combine European aesthetics with the South American visceral fervor.
We believe good ideas don’t come with a zip code and Heaven is a perfect example of it, The conception was in Brazil, the pre-production was made between Rio and Brussels, where we are both based, the shoot and post took place in Brussels, the creatives were in LA and the sound design happened in Miami.
What’s the best film making lesson you’ve learnt?
Diego: I watched an interview of Paul Thomas Anderson long time ago and this bit stuck in my mind: “Just don’t give a fuck”. He says there should be no fear and he wishes he could’ve got rid of that fear earlier in his career. This is something I always get back to when my mind is trying to trick me.
Guto: It’s ok to not know everything. As a director you don’t have to know the full manual on how to transfer your vision from your head to the screen. Your job is explaining your vision and hiring talented people who can do that and guiding them through the process. Filmmaking is ultimately about teamwork.
What is the wisest quote about film making?
Diego: Quentin Tarantino: “There’s no they.”
Guto: Spike Jonze: “Don’t differentiate between ‘This is a job’ and ‘This is what I’m doing for fun’. It’s all simultaneous.”
What would be your dream directing job?
Guto: That’s a trick question… I don’t know… maybe to wake up with a call from Thom Yorke (Radiohead) saying something like: “Man, I just wrote the best song of my life, can you come up with ideas for the music video?”
List five inspirations that have connected with you recently:
Five is unfair, we get excited by so many things. We’ll try to keep it short. Recently, hum… let’s see.
Guto:
“The Salt of the Earth”, Win Wenders;
“The Artist is Present”, Marina Abramovic;
“Searching for Sugar Man”, Malik Bendjelloul;
“Relatos Salvages”, Damián Szifron;
“Leviathan”, Andrey Zvyagintsev;
Paolo Nutinni, “Iron Sky”, by Daniel Wolfe;
Tongues ft KOPPS, “Joywave”, by Daniels.
Diego:
The interview of Rick Rubin for the Tim Ferris Podcast;
“Magnolia”, Paul Thomas Anderson;
The Paintings of Peter Doig;
The Paintings and the thinking process of David Hockney;
Paolo Nutinni, “Iron Sky”, by Daniel Wolfe;
“Oscar Niemeyer – A Vida é um Sopro”, Fabiano Maciel
The sun passing through drapes or geometrically hitting a wall.
