U.S. HISPANIC
Filmmaker Luis Estrada: Platforms are not the best screen for a film to position in the collective imaginary
Miryana Márquez| 28 de julio de 2023
Luis Estrada Cineasta
Luis Estrada, who is considered one of the most controversial Mexican filmmakers for his way of portraying social reality in Mexico, was honored and recognized by the Guanajuato International Film Festival with the Silver Cross. During his speech, he assured that his most recent film ¡Que Viva México!, was a personal success that was positioned as one of the favorites internationally thanks to its projection on Netflix; However, he said that the best way to impact the public is through movie theaters.
The creator of films such as Un Mundo Maravilloso, La ley de Herodes, El Infierno y La Dictadura Perfecta, spoke about the work behind his most recent film ¡Que Viva México!, which reflects the weakness he has for this country and which was made from the leftist point of view. “This film was initially produced by Netflix, to whom I requested two conditions: one, that the title should be in Spanish wherever it was distributed, and not be dubbed in another language, so it could be listened to in the Mexican language. Of my films, this is the one that people liked the least, but we knew this would happen before we made it; However, it makes me proud to know that I did what I wanted, even getting the financing at an indulgence of those dimensions. This was a triumph for me.”
During his master class, Estrada explained that although it did not go as well as expected in movie theaters, it has been seen by more than 25 million people on Netflix. “It was the top one in the United States, in Latin America, and some countries in Europe, and is the film in Spanish that has had the most views. That shows that people were interested.”
Regarding how he feels about the relationship between cinema and platforms, and the new habits of film consumption after the pandemic, he said that Mexican and world cinema got into a big problem. “People got used to the fact that films will arrive sooner or later on these new screens, and if they are not products like Barbie, the public would not go to the theaters to see mindful cinema. In forums like this, we must talk not only about issues such as AI but also about the future of cinema as we knew it, where platforms are producing films that previously could only be made with public money.”
He added that one of the main problems of cinema on platforms is the large number of simultaneous premieres. “Movies go unnoticed and become what we called TV movies, which scares me.”
He said that what’s appealing about streaming is the access it gives you to consume content wherever you are and at any time; however, he referred to the case of ¡Que Viva México! “It was made clear that platforms are not the best place for a film to position in the imaginary collective, it deserves to have a space in movie theaters, because it is the best way to impact the viewer. It is a huge risk to think that people should enjoy only what the platforms offer because if there is content that somehow does not follow the interests and commercial strategies of streaming, it’s condemned to non-existence. It’s a combination of positive, but also very dangerous things.”
