Nacho Vigalondo interview first published by Little White Lies
So intricately constructed and joyously executed was Spanish director Nacho Vigalondo’s first film, a black-and-white tragic musical romance entitled 7:35 In The Morning, that it earned itself an Academy nomination for Best Short in 2005, only to be criminally robbed of the Oscar on the night. Now, with his debut feature Timecrimes (Los Cronocrímenes), the director strikes back, unleashing upon the unsuspecting public a time-travel narrative whose escalating narrative convolutions and ethical challenges belie the film’s minuscule budget and tiny cast. It is a memorable must-see, and like any classic, is in fact best seen more than once. I caught up with the director to find out how exactly he committed this perfect crime.
Interview by Anton Bitel
AB: In Timecrimes, the protagonist Héctor (played by Karra Elejalde) has a difficult, sometimes violent power relationship with the moonlighting Scientist (played by yourself), in which it is not always clear who is directing whom. Was this in any way reflected in your relationship with Elejalde on set?
Vigalondo: I started my relationship with Karra as a fan, and ended as a friend. He’s not only a strange and astounding actor (and filmmaker), he’s one of the cleverest persons I’ve ever seen. And yes, I took a lot from him, not only in the development of his own character, but in the whole film. It’s funny for me watching him as a weak person in the film, when he’s a Tasmanian Devil in real life.
AB: I believe that there is a US version of the DVD that includes an alternate cut of the film with events shown in strictly chronological order, rather than from the perspective of Héctor as he experiences them. Are you responsible for this cut, and does its existence please or annoy you?
Vigalondo: I personally insisted on making this cut with my editor. It’s a funny gift for the fans. It’s like giving the opportunity to enjoy the film from a new perspective, more logical, and at the same time, much more bizarre. I love when DVD extras offer a whole new interest, beyond the movie itself. For example, the Twelve Monkeys documentary [The Hamster Factor And Other Tales of Twelve Monkeys (1997)] is a whole new film!
AB: Given the convoluted nature of your film’s chronology, maintaining continuity in Timecrimes must have been a nightmare, at both the conceptual and shooting stages. What methods did you establish on-set to ensure that all the pieces were in the right place at the right time? And did you yourself ever get confused during filming?
Vigalondo: To be honest, all the time. From writing till editing, fixing this film was like solving a puzzle like Héctor. But my trick to solve this is, sadly, nothing but working a lot: making draft after draft, setting the shoots weeks before the shooting, editing again and again. If there’s a Time Travel Filmmaking for Dummies book, I haven’t found it!
AB: In the end, Héctor may have found his way home, but it seems that morally he will be forever lost. Did you conceive of Timecrimes from the start as a sort of noirish morality tale, or did these moral concerns just naturally evolve out of the film’s science fiction, thriller and horror elements?
Vigalondo: When I started writing this, It was like an exercise for myself. “Let’s make a twisted time travel film more edgy than anything you’ve seen before.” Shane Carruth’s Primer hasn’t won in Sundance yet. It was funny to write, but at the end of the day, It was kind of creative masturbation. It was about filling the blanks and putting all the pieces together. Then the girl came, and the striptease, and I felt this was a real story, with the core you’ve noticed. This turned into a movie about morals, about guilt and self-punishment.
AB: Viewed in the order that is shown in the film, Timecrimes traces the way in which a curious, desire-filled (male) gaze can lead to ethically unsettling consequences – and its final image is of a couple reclining alongside one another in seats turned away from what is really important. Do you relate any of this to the voyeurism and escapism that are an inherent part of cinematic spectatorship?
Vigalondo: I’m so glad you touch the heart of the film! I don’t think that, when you write or shoot, you should be so self-aware about the big themes you’re “touching” – but I have to assume that each time your are talking about voyeurism in movies, you’re dealing with meta-language. Movies are a window. We, the directors, are free to point the window everywhere, but we choose one choice, and there’s a reason why. And there’s a reason someone is watching our window. I love to work at that level of consciousness, just like in Body Double or Blow Up/Blow Out.
AB: What are your feelings about the planned US remake of Timecrimes? Are you at all involved in the production?
Vigalondo: No, I’m just going to enjoy how this is going to help in my further projects. I feel so fortunate. For a debut filmmaker, this is awesome. And the names involved are people I’m a fan of!! [so far, both George A. Romero and David Cronenberg had been associated with the project – in fact it never got off the ground]
AB: What are you planning for your next feature?
Vigalondo: I’m working on several projects at the same time, and I don’t know what will come next. But I promise voyeurism will come back soon!!!
© Anton Bitel
