Interview with our star Antonio de la Malena, part 1

Now that we´ve finished shooting Domino, I decided to interview our lead actor, Antonio de la Malena, to see what he thought about the whole process and the movie itself.  I´d planned to put it all here but since it´s a bit too long, I´ll break it up into two posts.  Here´s the first half -- unedited, but translated from Spanish.

Eve Ma (EM);   Now that the filming is done, what did you like most about playing your part?  And what least? 

Antonio de la Malena (de la Malena):  What I liked most is that I´m trying to adjust myself to the task of being an actor and I think that with the help of the director, I am able to do it and will be able to do it again, should the opportunity arise.  It´s very difficult, it´s not easy, but I try to put myself into the mind-set of the protagonist so that in my interpretation, my emotions are real, and appropriate. 

De la Malena in the scene in the pawn shop.

EM:  Since this was the first time you acted in front of a camera, how does it differ from your normal role of performing on stage? 

de la Malena:   Usually, when I´m performing on stage,there aren´t cameras that are filming you first in a close-up and then in a long shot.  There aren´t any cameras close up, in front of your face, and you don´t have to repeat everything so many times.

EM:  Did you feel well prepared to act before you started out?  Do you feel well prepared now, if you´re asked to do it again? 

de la Malena:   The truth is that you´re never really prepared.  It´s a kind of work that makes you feel embarrassed and is nerve-wracking when there are a lot of people around and you need to play the part of someone else, but the more you do it, the less stage-fright you get.  It´s one of those things that you have to get used to, little by little.  

De la Malena in the scene where he talks on the phone to his wife.

EM:   Did you feel any personal affinity with the character you played in Domino?  Why, or why not? 

de la Malena:  Yes, I put myself in the position of my character and there were moments in which it seemed so natural that I thought the character was actually my real self.

EM:  How did you feel, working with the other actors?

de la Malena:  It was a very nice experience, and I saw that everyone was learning from it. 

OUR NEXT POST with be the second half of this interview.

Thanks to Flamenco Peña Chacón

We owe a big thank you to flamenco Peña Chacón.  We filmed there five times, three of those times for several hours.  The peña has been very nice to us, and we are very appreciative.  A lot of the great reception the peña gave us is due to Ali de la Tota, a palmero (flamenco percussionist) who is in charge of day-to-day operations.

Thanks, Ali.

Ali de la Tota.  He also plays a part in the film.

 In addition, we wouldn´t have been able to use the peña without the agreement of its president, Julian Azcutia.  Thanks to him, as well.

A flamenco peña is a flamenco club.  Peña Chacón is named after the flamenco cantaor (now deceased), Don Antonio Chacón.  There are about a dozen flamenco peñas in Jerez de la Frontera, including six or so in or near the city center.  Peña Chacón is one of those in the center, in the historic district.

The flamenco  peñas, as you might guess, are composed of people interested in preserving flamenco, and enjoying flamenco.  Normally, each peña selects a month, or a period of 4 weeks, in which to present flamenco performances.  These are free and open to the public.

Peña Chacón has a great collection on its walls of photos of flamencos.

Peña Chacón´s main period is May-June, and although it focuses on the cante (flamenco singing), it also presents some dance performances.   This year, however, due to the economic crisis, it was unable to present any performances.  The peña has only about 50 members, and there simply wasn´t enough money to pay for performers.

In the past, in addition to the May-June series, the peña used to present young artists it thought had promise.  These performances were scheduled for February, but again, the peña has been unable to hold these events for the past several years.

This is the stage, with a photo of Don Antonio Chacón on the wall.

It does, however, still present zambomba (flamenco Christmas celebrations, with people singing Christmas songs to a bulerias rhythm, and occasionally, dancing as well).  Hopefully, when the crisis ends, it will again be able to present its other performances.

I asked Ali de la Tota what characterizes the peña, and he said the respect that the members give to the cante (flamenco singing). They listen well.

Here we are, shooting a scene.

Three footnotes:  the peña is named after cantaor (flamenco singer) Don Antonio Chacon.  It has been in its present location (near calle Francos and the Fundación of flamenco) for about 20 years.  Formerly, it was in a building in calle Carmen.  And Ali has been working there for the past 15 years.

OUR NEXT POST will be about the banker as speculator and villain..