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Alejo Restrepo is 26 years-old. He is a Colombian Director and Photographer who has managed to stand out thanks to his visual style and impeccable aesthetic criteria. “I am very careful about art, for me it is super important. I am very geometrical, the images I make are carefully designed and composed” he expressed. “I would say my style is retro-modern, with lots of influence from the 70’s and 80’s, because we grew up with parents from that generation. I am also very influenced by music, I love it. I love to mix and play disco, funk, happy house, always for fun.”

Restrepo comes from a world that is distant from art. “In my house they all have to do with the finance world. They had a hard time understanding my passion, but supported me 100%. I have also had very important mentors, such as Noor Al-Yawar, she is Director of New Business in Independent and since I began, she has guided me. When I filmed Firewalker it was nominated in Cannes, she saw it and encouraged me to work with other production companies and since then, always offers me advice” he revealed.

He loves photography since he was a child. He began at the age of 12 and then in Europe realized that he wanted to dedicate his life to image. “In London I began as a still photographer. I was was looking for a way to be an artist and not be poor, which is why I started studying graphic design and when I took the course in image in movement, I fell in love.”

The Firewalker project came up when the filmmaker was working in The Mill in London. “They came and I heard their music –Afro-Latin-funk, a genre I love– and I decided I wanted to make a video for them. I racked my brain thinking about a short film inspired in their music and I opted for the typical American clichés from the 70’s that talk about black power. So we created this short film to present their new LP Tropicoso. The music was the most important thing, therefore we decided to include little dialogue” explained the young man.

Thanks to his style, the commercials he’s gotten have mostly had narrative and history. “I think it is necessary to choose carefully the advertising you want to do” he added. Lately, he has worked a lot in France and Mexico. In December he made a campaign for Mercedes Benz and just filmed with McDonald’s and TBWA.

“My goal is to do a short film every year. The next one will be in Colombia about gold fever, a very disturbing problem that exists in my country, but I want to cover it in a youthful and fun manner, with a bit of humor” he expressed. “My inspiration comes from music and photography. I always try to do my visual exercises. That is why I take pictures, so I can train the eye. I attempt to create cinema-like scenes”.

If Restrepo could direct a film from history, he would choose one by Jacques Tati. “I love that period and the way he set up his frames and how he developed his characters.”

Production Company: HERO Films, México
Contact: Amaya Ducru
T +52-55-6725-5060
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