The actors,-supporting actor -Esteban Viaña

[We asked Esteban Viaña, who plays Javier, the former boss of our hero Luis, to provide us with a brief account of his acting career.  Here is what he wrote us (translated from Spanish):]

One can say that my varied experience as an actor began in grammar school, when I participated in an activity called "Speech and Verse."  From that time on, encouraged by my teacher, I started down the road of acting, something that still excites and inspires me, and which I intend to continue until I die or am no longer physically capable of continuing.

Antonio de la Malena (Luis) and Esteban Viaña (Javier) listening to the director.

I have acted for a number of different theater groups.  I've also acted in musicals, usually in the role of a comic tenor.  I have acted in religious productions [something Spain is noted for], both in plazas and in front of churches.  I have performed on many different stages, one of my favorite of which is the spectacular, old roman theater in Bolonia, Spain, in the ruins of the Roman city of Baelo Claudia.

My acting career has allowed me to visit many cities in Spain, a great pleasure for me.  Although I tend to be type-cast as a comic actor, I have also had dramatic roles of various types, but the truth is I feel most comfortable playing the comic roles.  One role for which I have particular affection and which I have played numerous times is the comic role of Payaso [a character in Spanish theater for children], partly because I enjoy children so much.

Esteban Viaña (blue sweater) in a street scene.

I would like to add that my experience as an actor has been very satisfying for me.  I especially enjoy the immediacy of live theater, and the ability to transmit to the public the different emotions that I feel as a person, at the moment that I feel them. 

NOTE:  Part of a scene with Esteban Viaña is in the trailer on the web site DominotheMovie.com.  And another note--we have improved the sound of this trailer, but for technical reasons, our web master is having trouble mounting this on the web site.  Our apologies.

The actors, part 2B-supporting actor Javier Padilla

This is the second and final part of our interview with actor Javier Padilla, who plays Manolo and also the drunk in "Domino."

Interviewer (Eve A. Ma-EM):  What is your experience acting in film and video?  And what are some of your favorite movies?

Javier Padilla:   I began my career in acting at a later age than is usual.  With that in mind, I've been in a handfull of shorts including one called "Curso d"Andalu" [that appeared on Canal Sur in Andalucia].  I was also in a commercial--an experience I'd rather forget.  Finally, I had a part in a film called La mano negra (The Black Hand).  At the end of the movie, my character along with several others were executed.  [This movie is about an anti-fascist organization, or possible organization, in which several of those that Franco's government identified as plotters were arrested, imprisoned, tortured and executed.  ED]  Then in "Domino,"  I don't end up on the executioner's block, but I do have to fire my employees.  Sad endings.

There are lots and lots of movies that I like.  Of the many, three that stand out in particular are "El Verdugo" of Luis Garcia Berlanga, "The Night of the Hunter" of Charles Laughton and "City Lights" of Charlie Chaplin.  Most contemporary movies I find to be a bit spineless, but every once in a while I am pleasantly surprised.

Javier Padilla as Manolo in "Domino."

EM:  What did you like most about portraying Manolo in "Domino?"  and the drunk?

Javier Padilla:  It was very interesting for me to play the part of a business owner that had to turn down a friend who desperately needed work.  I'm accustomed, in my theater company, to be on the other side, meaning, on the side of the person looking for work.  Playing this role helped me emphathize a little with "the bad guys."

As for the drunk, that was really a simpler role, or at any rate, it wasn't as complicated for me.  To empathize with an occasional drunk is not very hard--even though I'm not a drinker. 

EM:  What was hardest for you?

Javier Padilla:  Nothing in particular.  As I already mentioned, these are roles that I encounter in everyday life, and that didn't require any profound study.  I didn't have to go to any meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous to capture the essence of the drunk, and if I'm familiar with brushing someone off, it's kind of like saying goodbye when you leave for a trip.

Javier Padilla showing off his theater company´s van.

EM:  What did you think of the script and the concept of "Domino?"

Javier Padilla:  I thought it was an interesting focus.  To dissect reality and show the crisis from the point of view of a "normal" person who finds himself in a situation very compromizing (but not uncommon), in my view can help people understand what's going on.  It would be wonderful if the audience responds by feeling solidarity withe the central character, and critical of what's going on.

NOTE:  Due to the blogger´s injury (almost but not quite healed), I may only be able to write one blog per week for the next few weeks.


THE NEXT BLOG will

The actors, part 2A--supporting actor Javier Padilla

Another of the supporting actors in our short independent film is Javier Padilla.

Javier Padilla is a composer and script writer as well as an actor and member of the theater company Tras el Trapo in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.  He has appeared in many video shorts, docudramas and commercials.  As an actor, he is self taught, turning to the theater and to acting in the late 1990s, adding his artistic interests to his degrees in psychology and his participation in different musical groups.  Currently (2011), among other productions he is working as director and actor in the theatrical presentation “Asignatura flamenco” (“Learning through flamenco”) of the group Soniquete. 

Javier Padilla playing the submarine captain in "Capitan Manovardas" (2004).

Some of the videos shorts in which he has appeared are part of the series "Curso DAndaluz" created by Juan del Castillo and much viewed on YouTube.  There are some six episodes in this series, and Javier Padilla appears in all of them, sometimes playing more than one role in the same episode.  In addition, he has been in ??? (docudrama), and has made commercials for companies as varied as ???.

Javier Padilla in the Associacion de Payasos Españoles in Madrid (2009).

His extremely prolific theater career includes writing, structured acting and improvisation.  He and fellow Tras el Trapo troupe members present comic theater,  serious dramas and works for children.  This author has seen several of his productions, of which the comedy "Y ese chico, Pupius" stands out as particularly delightful.  The version that I saw included only three actors (two men and one woman) playing a total of about 8 different roles.  (I say "about" because I lost count.)  Javier is the narrator, the father, the army sargent....  The comedy tells the story of the Roman child Pupius and his misadventures growing up.  It is very, very funny.  

NOTE:  Due to blogger´s injury (getting better but not yet totally healed) I will only be able to post blogs once a week for the next few weeks.

OUR NEXT BLOG will contain the interview portion of this look at Javier Padilla.

The actors, part 2B--supporting actor Nicolas Montoya

This is a continuation of the interview with supporting actor Nicolas Montoya, who plays Miguel the banker in "Domino."

Interviewer (Eve A. Ma):  What are your favorite films?


Nicolas Montoya:  I really like the director Fass Binder and "las Cerezas en Flor" of Doris Dorrie, plus I like the films of Pedro Almodovar and a north American film whose name in Spanish is "la Miel."  I´m very fond of surrealist and narrative film.   [NOTE:  I was unable to identify the movie "la Miel." ED]


Interviewer:  What did you like best about the part you played in "Domino?"  


Nicolas Montoya: That my character embodied all of the coldness and off-putting responses that today´s society presents to a person, an individual, who is living through a difficult time both emotionally and in his family and personal life.  

Nicolas Montoya (right) playing the banker;  with our cameraman.

Interviewer:  What was the hardest part for you in your portrayal of your character?


Nicolas Montoya:  The scenes were simple and straightforwards.  But since I´m a friend of Antonio de la Malena who plays the lead role, it was hard for me to create a situation in which the two of us saw each other not as friends, but on my part as an unscrupulous banker who is willing to do great damage to the character of Luis (played by Antonio).  In addition, it was a little difficult for me to create the character of a banker who is cold and dry in his overly professional manner, and full of the falsehoods of this type of business. 

Interviewer:  What do you think of the script and the concept of "Domino?"   

Nicolas Montoya (in the suit) as the banker, with Antonio de la Malena (in the coat) as Luis.

Nicolas Montoya: The script gives a very realistic portrayal of what is happening now in Spain, in Andalucia.  The script-writing is technically very professional and the concept is good but I didn´t get a vision of the whole from the part I was given, since I was only given the scenes in which I had a part and not the entire script. 

[NOTE that the script writer didn't remember she'd only given him part of the script, and has subsequently sent him the entire thing.]


OUR NEXT BLOG will be about shooting in southern Spain.

The actors, part 2A-supporting actor Nicolas Montoya

Another of the "Domino" actors we interviewed is Nicolas Montoya.  He is the "heavy" in our short film--THE BANKER.  This means he's one of the most important of the supporting actors.  We'll start here with a summary of his career as an actor and in the next blog, proceed to the actual interview.  (ED)

Nicolas Montoya, a native of Spain, combines a fully professional acting career with his work as a medical doctor.  As an actor, he is a graduate of theater academies as well as institutions dedicated to acting on film.  His acting career began well before this formal training, nourished by his experiences as a child growing up surrounded by the flamenco world he encountered as the son of a Gypsy (Gitano) in a city known as the “cradle of flamenco.” 

With an actual Roman theater behind him, Nicolas Montoya plays the captain of the Legionnaires.

A veteran of more than 40 opera and musical productions, he began in film in the 1993 and added live theater in the late 1990s.  He has played both leading parts and supporting roles.  

His work for film and television includes the movie directed by Josefina Molina, "La Lola se va a los Puertos" ("Lola goes to the Ports"),  the docudrama "La Mano Negra" ("The Black Hand") in which he played a leading role, and several episodes of the comic television mini series "Curso de Andaluz."  He has also acted in theater productions of "Moulin Rouge" and "Mama, quiero ser artista" ("Mama, I want to be a performer").

Nicolas Montoya in one of the several movies he´s acted in.

 

Currently (2011) he is associated with the theater group Tras el Trapo in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain while continuing his roles in the opera of that city.  In addition, he is theater critic for the daily newspaper, Diario de Jerez, of Jerez de la Frontera.  He also has experience in stage direction, lighting, and other aspects of theater production.

OUR NEXT BLOG will continue and finish this interview with Nicolas Montoya.

The actors, part 1B--lead actor, Antonio de la Malena

[Antonio de la Malena, is the actor who plays our lead character, Luis, in our short independent film, "Domino:  caught in the crisis."  Here, he answers our last four interview questions.  For the first part of this interview, SEE previous blog.]

Eve A. Ma:  What is your career as an actor for film?  What are some of your favorite movies?

Antonio de la Malena:  Although this is the first time I've acted for film, I relished the opportunity to expand my experience performing for a public audience.  Since I spend most of my life acting on stage as a cantaor, it seemed to me a very natural step to go from there to portraying a character in a movie.

In the "Domino" scene where his character, Luis, talks with his wife on a cell phone.

My favorite movies are "Life is Good," "the Pianist," Casablanca" and "Amelie."   All of these deal with serious themes, as does "Domino."  One of the things I like best about "the Pianist" and "Amelie," is the musical score, and the importance of music.  In addition, all four films show that life can be very unjust but also is sometimes very good and passionate.*

Eve A. Ma:  What did you enjoy most about playing this part?

Antonio de al Malena:  Portraying his real character and entering into his emotional life.

Eve A. Ma:  What was hardest for you to do in acting out this role?

Antonio de la Malena:  Making my portrayal completely natural and real, so that it will move the audience.  For example, I don't like the idea of using onions to make me cry.  If I cry, it has to be real tears.  For this to happen, I have to enter completely into the character. I am only interested in acting where the story seems believable to me and the character is someone I can truly identify with.  [NOTE:  When Antonio de la Malena sings, he often cries if the song is serious and sad.]

Relaxing on the set between shots.  photo:  Ana Alcaraz Studios

Eve A. Ma:  What did you think of the script, and the theme of "Domino?"

Antonio de la Malena:  "Domino" is a way of seeing the reality of what is happening right now.  It's a way of showing how a man who could be the happiest person in the world is instead controlled and manipulated by a social system that only understands what most benefits the people in power.

*[NOTE:  "Life is Beautiful" is an Italian film starring Roberto Begnini, Nicoletta Braschi and Georgio Cantarini and directed by Roberto Begnini.   "The Pianist" is a French-German film starring Adrien Brody and directed by Roman Polansnki.  "Casablanca" is an American film starring Humphrey Bogart and In grid Bergman and directed by Michael Curtiz,  while "Amelie" is a French film starring Audrey Tautou and directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet.]

The NEXT blog will be about shooting two street scenes.

The actors, part 1A--our hero, lead actor Antonio de la Malena

I recently interviewed Antonio de la Malena in  his home town of Jerez de la Frontera (Spain).  He's the actor who plays the lead character, Luis, in our short independent film, "Domino:  caught in the crisis."  Here, translated from Spanish, is his answer to the first of five questions.  The other four will be in the next blog.  NOTE:  I've put some additional information inside of brackets [  ].

Eve Ma:  Give us a brief outline of your professional career.

Antonio de la Malena:  I'm a cantaor.  [Usually cantaor is translated as "flamenco singer," but Antonio de la Malena doesn't like the word "flamenco:"  it's a long story to explain why.]  I don't sing what is called "flamenco."  Instead, I sing the traditional songs of Andalucia, which is in southern Spain.  I've sung for many ["flamenco"] dancers and now I have the luxury of being able to sing for a dancer who allows me to feel the true art and essence of this dance form.  Her name is Maria del Mar Moreno.

I've also sung many solo recitals.  I've taken my singing to many different countries throughout the world where people are interested in listening to and feeling the pure and essential form of my art, of my native land.

Antonio de la Malena.  photo:  Martin Guerrero-Casa Patas

My career began when I was 10 years old and sang for a famous television production, made by TVE [Televisión Española].  It was recorded in one of the "patio de vecinos," [These were the old-style buildings in which many families lived, each in their tiny apartment, and shared a common patio].  The production is called "Rito y Geografía del Cante."  I am in the part called "Niños Cantaores" ["Child Professionals"].

Currently, I am continuing my artistic career in the performance company, Jerez Puro.

Singing in an event in Jerez de la Frontera in 2010.

Our NEXT BLOG will present the remainder of this interview.  (The actors, part 1B).