Chilean Dominga Sotomayor took Berlin by storm last February with her Micro Budget second feature "Mar." The film follows a couple on vacation as they deal with looming issues and where they want to take their relationship.

The film was improvised and featured a real life couple and an eight page script.

A year after its world premiere the movie is heading over to New York where it will play in the first annual Neighboring Scenes Film Series at Lincoln Center. Latin Post had a chance to speak Sotomayor about the challenges of working with no script and how much she learned from the experience.

Latin Post: Where did the idea for the film come from?

Dominga Sotomayor: The film was very spontaneous because I met an actor whose name was Lisandro Rodriguez at a festival where I was showing "Thursday Till Sunday." He was showing "La Paz" and he told me that he liked my movie very much and wanted to work with me. We got along very well and time passed and he said, "Why don't we do a movie together?" He then went on to tell me about a vacation he had with his girlfriend and that his girlfriend was an actress. So we came up with a concept in which the two acted together and I would direct. So that was where it started.

It was not a personal story because it was their story and it was based on their experience.

LP: How long did the process take between script and shooting?

DS: The time between the idea and the filming was two months. It was fast. I had a camera and I have a production company with some friends. I spoke to Lisandro and he said he would talk to his girlfriend and a couple of actors in Argentina. The idea was to make a short or something. We were not really sure what we wanted so I said "I'm going to take the idea and tell the story from a distance. It would give more liberties." So the week before we shot we created an outline with Manuela Martell, a colleague of mine. It was a very flexible script and we ended up shooting for eight days. It was a total of 10 days with a mix of Argentines and Chileans and we all stayed in a hotel. I feel like it was a movie that we found while shooting and being on location. We incorporated a lot of real experiences. For example, the scene with the lightning that kills a couple of people, that actually happened while we were there. We thought we would have to stop filming but we decided to incorporate it into the film and it added something universal to the film.

LP: So it was basically improvised?

DS: Well the film was about a couple that goes to the beach and who are stuck with their emotions and then there is the mother who is an explosion of emotions. There is Martin, the protagonist who is in between being an adult, being a father and being a son. All those elements were there but the rest was improvised.

LP: While watching the film I saw myself observing many times because very little is said. Can you tell me about the style of the film and the observational style?

DS: I think the point is to observe everyday life and see how those moments show some emotions. The point is not to tella story as much as observe these relationships and the connections. In that sense "Mar" never has the climactic scene. It's almost like life. We're waiting for the climax but that never happens. It's a movie of fragments and almost irrelevant moments. That is a little like my last film, "Thursday till Sunday." That movie was a bit different and more by the books, I feel like the focus is on the same thing. These moments may feel trivial but they ultimately show the emotions of a character.

LP: Many times in the film the characters are facing away from the screen and audiences don't know what the character are feeling. Why was this an important aesthetic choice?

DS: I wanted to create an uncomfortable feel. I think little by little we start to see these characters. Seeing them in with their backs facing the audience creates a distance. As the characters developed in the film we start to see more of them. I also wanted to incorporate the world that these characters interact in.

LP: Can you tell me a little a little about the relationship that Martin and his Mother have in this film? What did you base this relationship on?

DS: I wanted to explore this relationship. I think it has to do with the idea of being a mother and being a son. I liked the idea of a mother that emasculated her son but at the same time is loveable. I like to see movies that see characters change. In this movie Martin is a young adult who is slowly maturing into an adult. There are mixed feeling in him about not being able to be a son and at the same time being a father. At the end when he finally does something shows his maturity.

In the end it was based on things that I observed and in past relationships that I had.

LP: Andrea Strenitz, who plays the mother, is such a great addition to the cast. She brings so much energy to the film. Where did you come across her?

DS: Well she is incredible. She is a stage actress. She had only done one other film and it was amazing to work with her. She got on set and was super generous. She worked half the shoot and I think what she brought to the shoot was exactly what she brought to the film. She is a tragicomic character and brings a completely new tone to the film.

LP: How many days did you shoot?

DS: We shot for eight days and it was really the only days that we had to produce and scout the locations. We were really rehearsing on set.

LP: What were the biggest challenges while shooting the film?

DS: I think it was challenging to figure out what the scene was about, direct the actors and at the same time find the location. However, I was lucky enough to have a collaborative group of people. This was honestly a collaborative effort because we all did something. It was like a traveling theater company.

We were making a film that we didn't know where it was going. It was not clear what the objective was. It was a challenge to decide on the spot. But there were liberties because we owned the camera and we had a small budget and we didn't have to respond to anyone.

I learned however, that there is no real way of making a movie. Some movies can be made for little like "Mar" and in reality you don't need much to make a movie.

LP: The movie made its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. What was the experience of being there?

DS: It was incredible. It was interesting because my first film, I took forever to produce and this one came out of nowhere. We got confirmed really quickly that it would be at Berlin and it was a big surprise. We were in the forum selection and it was wonderful to be among these films. The audience responded with great enthusiasm and we had some wonderful Q&As.

LP: What do you hope audiences take away from the film when they see the film?

DS; I'm interested to see the conversation that will happen. I hope that people will connect with the small emotions. It's the first time the film is in New York and I am so happy that is among some of the great Latin American films of this year. It's the smallest film and I am honored that I am among the two Chilean films selected at the festival.

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