Q&A with Director Everardo Gout

How did you become a director?

I had always wanted to make films. I come from quite a literary family, so when I was small, I dreamt of becoming a writer. But I realized quickly that I had images, rather than words, in my head. So from quite a young age, I attended summer courses at film schools during my summer holidays. That’s how I learned, by working on sets. I became an assistant who did everything. In my final year of high school, I was allowed to make a short fiction film at my school. This was the first time that an audience saw my work. This gave me confidence. I created a production company and made advertising and videos for several years. I thought that this would bring me closer to my dream of directing, but in fact it had the opposite effect.

What was the tipping point?

When my wife became pregnant that really forced me to question my life. I asked myself, “What will I tell my daughter? That her father makes video clips? I’ve always wanted to direct films. It’s time that I got on with it.” I started by writing the script. I fed my questions and my fears into it: fear of the violence that ravages the country I love; fear that my loved ones could be kidnapped. What is worse under those circumstances? To be the one kidnapped, the prisoner, or the one on the outside, lost, without knowing how to save the person kidnapped? I’ve always wondered about the bond that forms between the hostage and the abductor. I have a friend who managed to convince his captor to let him go. Often, the guards are just kids who are being exploited. Finally, I wanted to talk about corruption within the police. How does this work? Paradoxically, so many join the police force with high ideals. But in Mexico, salaries are so pathetic, cops are ill-equipped, so psychologically it’s very tough for them to resist people’s hatred and the pressures of money.

How did the idea of the three time periods, the three World Cups come to you?

I like a movie to be both entertaining and complex. I wanted the audience to be swept away but also to leave thinking about it after they left the theatre. Therefore, I needed an elaborate form in order to take the spectators off-track. The soccer World Cup is a universal event with momentum, it creates maximum stress and commotion. Since I had three story lines--the cop, the hostage, the wife of the hostage--I needed three events to set a rhythm for all this, what better than a World Cup? When you add fear and football to the mix it can really raise the adrenaline levels.

The first time period, in 2002: The police

The character, Lupe, is an idealist who has his convictions, but finds himself embroiled in corruption that is way beyond his control. Through him, we discover how the system works and how one can be swayed. Generally, in kidnapping cases, we realize that the police are always getting mixed up in corruption.

We filmed this sequence first. It was the most complicated because it required the most sets. We spent the first day filming in the Fortress, a labyrinth of little streets which can only be accessed by foot. In the center, there’s an old church and a football pitch.

Before filming, Tenoch Huerta (who plays Lupe) went undercover to police academy for four months. He didn’t tell his colleagues until graduation day. During their training, his patrol took part in an operation there, which was included in an earlier cut of the film. There, he wasn’t acting, he was really in the thick of it. I love this actor and I hope that this role opens up some doors for him.

2006: The hostage

I had noticed Carlos Bardem in La Zona. He was the first Spanish actor who was completely believable as a Mexican. He’s usually cast as the villain, but I thought that he had really beautiful facial expressions. It’s a tricky part. His face is hidden, he’s tied up, and he’s immobile. We shot his scenes in a two weeks; it’s the last segment we filmed last. Kristyan (who plays Iguana) is marvelous. He was only 14 years old but he made me understand that I had to choose a younger actor to play Iguana than I had originally intended, in order for it to be more realistic. This was his first movie role. I think he is incredible, tender and strong.

2010: The hostage’s wife

I wanted to show that family stories, whether you are rich or poor, are never simple. Susana (Dolores Heredia) is an intelligent and cultured woman who lives in an artistic and privileged world. Her husband’s kidnapping is a rude awakening. She discovers her life was smoke and mirrors that her husband had lied to her about almost everything. But she saves him in the end, and she’s the one who will come out stronger from the ordeal.

I have always respected Dolores Heredia as an actress. She was perfect for this part, both attractive and dangerous. She shows how women are the strength of a family. Dolores put her heart and soul into the character.

How long did the shoot last?

There were several interruptions, but in all, it took 9 ½ weeks in total. We shot with two cameras, one that I held because I wanted to be in the middle the action. I told the crew, “Follow the actors, whatever their moves, I want to film 360 ˚. So please leave no marks on the ground or projectors in their field of vision.” They’ve been heroic.

In each period, there’s a different visual style and music composer...

The idea was to cue the audience that they were wading through three distinct storylines, three distinct time periods, but on a subliminal level. It’s not filmed the same way. The format of the image changes. The music has a different style. They are all clues. They’re there if the spectator wants to notice them; if s/he doesn’t, it doesn’t matter. Everything becomes clear in the end.

In 2002 the style is more on edge, the music is more brutal, and the light is harsher expressing heat, tension and violence.

In 2006 the light is very dim, tension is in the air, not so much in the camera movement. It’s a war of nerves. The atmosphere is more raw, more realistic.

In 2010 Susana is filmed in a fragments, with reflections. It’s the most stylized. We only filmed her face, simply, towards the end, when she finally takes control of her life. The music is softer, wider, it expresses expectations.

At the end, in each segment, all the preconceived notions we could have had at the beginning--about who the good or the bad guys are—are dissolved. None of the characters belong in the pigeon holes we had projected upon them at the beginning.

Who are the three composers?

For the 2002 period, I worked with Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. I loved their work for The Proposition and The Assassination of Jesse James. They created music that superbly integrates sounds, noises, urban and animal backgrounds, that only they knew how to create.

For the 2006 segment, I was lucky enough to have met Atticus Ross before he won the Oscar® for the The Social Network score. He worked on the feeling of fear, something more primal and visceral.

For the 2010 segment, I was able to collaborate with the Japanese composer Shigeru Umebayashi, who worked on one of my favorite films, In the Mood for Love. He’s a marvelous man and his music was the quietest and most sophisticated of the three.

And in order to weave the three together, there are three versions of the same song, the universally known Gershwin tune, ‘Summertime’, sung by three different women: Nina Simone, Janis Joplin and Scarlett Johansson, singing vocals in a cover by Massive Attack.

Much of the post-production was done with a French team and your film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in competition. Where does your ties to France come from?

I have French roots on my father’s side which go back several generations. But it’s mostly my mother who adores French culture. She’s the one who decided that I should go to the French lycée (a high school for French expatriates originally) in Mexico. I’ve been speaking French ever since. It’s my second home.

For this film, I found my theme, the strength to go through it and the people who believe in me in Mexico. In France, I found the other half of the equation; an incredible family, a team that helped me bring my ideas to life: a French editor, a French sound mixer, French co-producer and a French colorist.