After experiencing the exciting new indie film RED COCKROACHES, I wanted to learn more about the man behind the whole idea, Miguel Coyula. What better why then catching up with Miguel and getting him to share his background and thoughts via this exclusive interview.
(CN) Where did it all start, your interest in film making? What drove you to get to where you are now?
(MC) First I started drawing comic books, then writing short stories, and finally 10 years ago when I was 17 my aunt gave me her VHS camcorder and that was it: I did a couple of featurettes editing on camera, and thanks to that I got accepted into the International Film School of San Antonio de los Banos in Havana.
(CN) Please can you share with us some of your influences in both film and in day to day life. How did these influences effect the outcome of your direction in filmmaking?
(MC) I always say I make films because I don’t want to live a life. I cannot deal with realism, if I wanted realism I’d go and see a documentary. So I feel compelled to build the reality the way I want to see it. So making films in my chance to build the reality I want to see. That alternative world is not a nice place, I don’t know if I would want to live there, but I definitely find some kind of beauty in that darkness. This is since I was a kid, and I realized that film since it mixes visual arts, literature, theater and music is the best way to express that atmosphere. I’m interested in a science fiction without "science" in the sense that I don’t like to explain things, so you are left with some kind of post apocalyptic surrealism instead. People ask me if I’m depressed or think I’m really fucked up. But is just the way I see live, not the way I live it. Fortunately I’m not alone, me and my wife Suzana (executive producer of Red Cockroaches) share the same tastes when it comes to our imagination..
(CN) You made several short films while living in Cuba, can you share some of those experiences and have any of those short films had any direct impact on the production of RED COCKROACHES?
(MC) While in film school I experimented with different formats from VHS to 35mm, and also tried different genres and styles yet all the shorts were very dark and less linear than Red Cockroaches, but some had a similar atmosphere. Since then I was obsessed with storyboarding, transitions, and the alienated characters. The shorts got me a lot of awards in Cuba until I was invited to a film festival in the US, and it was then that Anna Strasberg, during Al Pacino’s birthday party gave me a scholarship to study acting at the Lee Strasberg Theather Institute, which was the setup to shoot Red Cockroaches.
(CN) Do you find more creative freedoms while in the US as oppose to being in Cuba?
(MC) Not really. I always worked as an independent in Cuba so I didn’t have to answer anybody and my film school was very liberal. In Cuba nowadays you can make the most weird ass films as long as you don’t openly criticize the regime and most of all the figure of Fidel Castro; you can say things are bad with the revolution, but you cannot say it’s his fault, at least not in an open way. But since I’m not interested in any kind of politics, my films have being shown not only in theaters but also on TV. I never made a cent out of it, aside from some symbolic cash prizes in Festivals, but is nice to be able to share your work with an audience in a major theater or TV. And I used to do commercials for a living, mostly for film festivals and visual artists. Then I discovered that here in US if your film doesn’t make money or has some kind of commercial appeal you just don’t exist as an artist, or you end up showing your film at "Joe’s Basement International Film Festival" Although I cannot really complain because Red Cockroaches is winning awards in Festivals here and all over the world, but I see a lot of people doing interesting stuff that goes nowhere, it is depressing. The times have changed, there was an era where that kind of work would be encouraged and supported, unfortunately the 60's and 70's are over. Many Film Festivals don’t think what they can do for your film, but what your film can do for them in terms of the $$$ they can attract, which is very sad. So in the US you have the freedom to do any film you want, but to exhibit it properly, that’s something else.
(CN) Can you go into details on the origins of RED COCKROACHES?
(MC) It was an old idea I had. There is this urban legend in Cuba about a truck driver that travelled all over the country and had girlfriends and kids in different towns. At some point two of the kids met and fell for each other. When they found out they were brother and sister, they still kept living together. Of course I twisted the story all around, added New York, science fiction and surreal elements and that’s Red Cockroaches.
(CN) Now, I know the budget was around $2,000 dollars and the lack of anymore certainly shows that you really know where to apply it in the right areas. If you had more money to work with what would you have done differently if anything?
(MC) I would have definitely move the camera more rather than just pans and tilts. I always have this ideas for complicated shots that would require a steady and/or a crane or dolly. I did what I could in RED COCKROACHES to create traveling shots outdoors from a car, or indoors lowering the height of the tripod to simulate a crane effect. They came out pretty well because I knew the limitations from the beginning. And for this movie they do the job, but I’m aiming for more in the future. With more budget I would have designed many things in the film from scratch, cars, phone booths, buildings, costumes, sets, etc...
(CN)As you have explained before, you never used the same shot twice, using different camera shots per scene. How difficult was this to pull off and especially having to endure several weeks of shooting?
(MC) We were shooting mostly on weekends so the lead actors had no life for a whole year rather than shooting this film. It was not just the fact that there had to a new camera setup per shot, but also sometimes 20 takes per shot. At first it was difficult for them. For Talia it was the first experience in front of a camera. And specially the sex scene was really tough for her. Fortunately they sort of got used to the style of shooting it and stayed with me to the end.
(CN) I notice while watching RED COCKROACHES and as time goes I noticed that Adam’s hair becomes longer. Was this a continuity issue or was this done on purpose to show passage of time?
(MC) That’s a choice based on the fact that I didn’t have a make-up person, and I knew it would eventually become a problem. So I shot the movie chronologically. More than the pass of time, It’s more of a reflection of his mental state. He is very clean cut in the first scene, the way he is dressed, shaved, and as the film progresses his mental deterioration also shows physically, until he looks like an animal towards the end.
(CN) Now, given the nature of the relationship between the two leads of Adam and Lily, was it hard for either of the actors (Adam or Talia) to get into character especially for the film’s final embracing scene between the two of them?
(MC) By the point we did the final scene they were really close to each other so it wasn’t much of a problem. But sex scene referred by many people as "the ketchup scene" was really though more for Talia than for Adam of course. We shot it at Adams apartment, steaming in the middle of the summer, Adam’s parents were sent for a walk. It is the first time in the film that I switch to hand-held camera, an effect planned from the storyboard. The scene was full of shots from different angles, and it involved a broken bottle of milk, ketchup spread all over and orange juice to simulate body fluids, plus everybody’s sweat under the steaming summer, so you can imagine what it was like to shoot. It took three days and at one point Adam’s parents came back from a play and walked into the scene. Adam and Talia didn’t get along so well at the begging which was great for the tension between them. The ketchup scene brought them closer I think. So the final embrace was easier, although it was also messy.
(CN) Now that you have RED COCKROACHES behind you in the sense of it being the first feature, where do you as an artist go from here? I know you briefly mentioned a trilogy, but can you go more into details one this?
(MC) About 4 years ago I wrote a novel in Cuba for which Red Cockroaches serves a prequel. OCEAN is a much more ambitious film from every point of view. There is a character about to be born at the end of Red Cockroaches that will be the protagonist of OCEAN. It is a complex story of alienation against a society out of control in its technological advances, it is also a love triangle, a revenge story and a descent to madness. The third part of the Trilogy is called BLUE ROAD and it takes place in a world where moral rules have been eliminated. A world filled with incest as the most normal thing, little kids watching pornography, couple having sex in the middle of the streets. It’s like the stone age in the future. The challenge, you might ask is how do you have a story with conflict in a world that everything is allowed? Just wait and see. I can say that DNA21, the genetics company from Red Cockroaches is present and has a bigger role in the two sequels as well as the acid rain.
(CN) Has RED COCKROACHES made any head waves with maybe sparking an interest in funding any of your future projects? Or do you think it will give you a boost in the near future in terms of finding funding a little easier?
(MC) Well I got an amazing project now. A sequel to the 1968 classic Cuban film: "MEMORIES OF UNDERDEVELOPMENT", a bold, powerful, experimental film considered the best in Cuban Film History. Edmundo Desnoes, author of the novel it was based on has just finished the follow up after 20 years: "MEMORIES OF OVERDEVELOPMENT", and I have adapted the screenplay. So we found a producer, David Leitner and are in preproduction now. It will be shot in New York, Havana, Venice and Paris. It’s less linear than Red Cockroaches, it’s a film with an open structure, exploring unusual but relevant themes, like the first movie. I’m very exited.
(CN) Miguel, can I ask, which are some of your favorite films at this point in time? Something I tend to ask when I interview. It’s always interesting to hear.
(MC) Solaris. Since I saw it when I was 17 it had a big impact on me. I don’t think is perfect but it is my favorite, I still watch it over an over. They just don’t make movies like that anymore.
(CN) In conclusion, is there something else you would like to add or say?
(MC) Well I think that even I if I don’t get a big budget again I will keep making movies. I have learned the Digital to medium to an extent, that I now feel I can do whatever I want. And what I cannot invest with money do it with time and the new tools always remembering that can’t buy talent with technology. In a world where market dictates almost 100%, it might be the ultimate way to stay close to your vision..
On behalf of us all here at Cinema Nocturna, I would like to thank Miguel for taking the time to share his thoughts. We would also like to extent our sincere good luck in his bright future as a film maker.
***This interview was conducted by Steve Genier for Cinema Nocturna October 30th 2004***
