Peruvian director Adrián Saba’s breakout first feature film ‘The Cleaner’ (‘El Limpiador’, 2012) has won multiple awards (including the prestigious the New Voices/New Visions award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival) and traveled to numerous film festivals around the globe since its world premier in the New Directors category of the San Sebastian International Film Festival.
This haunting and lyrical Peruvian gem is reminiscent of the post apocalypse film ‘The Road’ (2009) and virus films like ‘Outbreak’ (1995) and ‘Contagion’ (2011) yet simultaneously holds a feeling of the same genuine heart-felt issues of orphaned child and lonesome middle-aged childless adult as ‘Central Station’ (1998). Despite all the great films it reminds the viewer of, however, ‘The Cleaner’ proves a fingerprint in Latin American cinema with a personality all its own.
While an epidemic sweeps the nation, Eusebio (Victor Prada) cleans the city of the disease-ridden streets. Life seems little worth living under the circumstances, until young boy Joaquin (Adrian Du Bois) stumbles into his life. Amidst the inevitable Peruvian plague and the cardboard box Joaquin masks himself with, the pair forms a co-dependent bond that will save their lives in a dying world.
The film will screen this week at the 4th annual Aruba International Film Festival (2-6 July, 2013).
I recently interviewed Adrián in Paris. Here is what he had to say:
ME: Would you consider ‘The Cleaner’ an apocalyptic film like 'The Road' or 'Outbreak'? In a way, it resonates both, and yet feels also a bit like Peruvian 'Central Station' (‘Central do Brasil’, 1998). Were any of these films influential to you at all? If not, what films or stories inspired you to make this one?
ADRIAN: Yes, I consider ‘The Cleaner’ can fit in the group of apocalyptic films. I saw ‘Central Station’ many years ago when it came out and I loved it. I actually found the DVD in Ameeba in LA a few years ago and didn't hesitate to buy it even though it was super expensive! I had never seen or read ‘The Road’ when we shot it but I was given the book by a dear friend as a gift because she really loved it. My mom read it and she recommended it to me again, so finally just when nearing completion of the editing process I started reading it, and I also loved it.
ME: Of course every story has a piece of the artist's own life in it. What (if you want to tell) of your own childhood is in ‘The Cleaner’?
ADRIAN: I have no idea. I was never abandoned, I never lived during an epidemic crisis, both of my parents are still alive, I never wore a box over my head. I don't think there's an influence of my childhood in the film, or maybe there is and I don't know, but it's more about questions like what does it mean to live.
ME: What for you was the main reason you wanted to make this film and tell this story? Did you want to say something about a kind of isolation in Peru or is this more a personal story?
ADRIAN: There is no concrete reason for making a movie in my case. There is no agenda or message that I'm looking to get across. It's more about exploring and finding connections, about finding the meaning in things, which I hope I never do.
ME: How long did it take you to get this film off the ground? Isn't making films in Peru quite difficult?
ADRIAN: It's quite difficult but the digital era has helped a lot for the production of movies in general. I mean this film has been digitally shot and digitally distributed all the way. But to be honest, it's quite difficult to make films anywhere so I don't think it's a problem that happens by region but just by the fact that logically making a movie will always seem like a bad idea. And that's the fun part.
ME: What is it like to be one of only a handful of Peruvian filmmakers in a country that barely has a film industry?
ADRIAN: Lucky!
ME: Who are your biggest influences in film and when was it you decided to become a filmmaker?
ADRIAN: I grew up with two parents that do theater and a sister that does music, so through out my childhood I was pretty connected to the arts in general. I decided to become a filmmaker when I had to choose a career to study after high school and I realized that film could be it since it combined all the arts. But there's an overall sense in my heart that there is nothing else I could be doing right now.
ME: Your film has been traveling the film festival circuit around the world for the whole year. You have so far won a number of awards as well. How has your won country taken to the film and do they appreciate it as much as the international art film community?
ADRIAN: Yes, I think people in Peru really support the film. It's a small film that got a small release but it did very well for what it wanted to be.
ME: You have been doing a writing residency in Paris for the past 3-4 months. What has that been like? Are you at work on your next script?
ADRIAN: It's amazing. I am incredibly fortunate to have the time and space to write and simply focus on that, especially with the support of La Cinefondation. Paris is a wonderful city with inspiration to be found in every corner and a city that really loves and respects cinema.
ME: You have secured a sales agent and distribution for your film. That is a great accomplishment for art-house filmmakers today. How has this experience been so far?
ADRIAN: Excellent. I'm very happy with our sales agent, I trust him and he trusts us. It helps to get the film across more festivals and more platforms.
ME: What are your plans for your next film projects?
ADRIAN: To solidify them on the silver screen.
Visit ‘The Cleaner’ facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/ElLimpiadorFilm