NATAL, 20min., Brazil
Directed by Isabella Secchin
Natal, in his early fifties belongs to a generation that broke social barriers, worshiped cerebral movies, drugs and rock’n roll. However, he does not accept it well when Milene, his only daughter, takes her boyfriend to sleep at home with her. In the middle of the night, unable to put a stop to the sex in the next-door bedroom, he locks himself in his car parked in his building garage. That’s when Silvana, his wife, comes after him. In the quietness of the late night, only witnessed by the parked cars and the garage surveillance cams, Natal tries to unburden his difficulty to accept costumes for which he fought so much. He ends up telling his wife secrets about his past, he has an epiphany: he was never young. Now, being in his early fifties, he doesn’t need to like what everyone else liked, do what everyone else did, be as everyone else was. He is old, he has always been. However, Silvana’s memory says the opposite and he sees himself back to his past and younger than ever.

https://www.instagram.com/Natalocurta

Get to know Theresa Falcão (Producer/ lead actress) and Isabella Sechin (director):

1. What motivated you to make this film?
Firstly I was motivated by the idea of making a film as a producer and Actress. I chose this "tale", Natal, written in 2004, because I found it had a viable structure for me as an independent producer without any kind of sponsorship: a small cast and almost no set design requirements

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
One whole year.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
Fun and uurprising

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
Lack of time and money

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
We were very happy to see it has reached people from different generations as fun and entertaining, which has been our goal since the beginning.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
I guess I have always done so.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
Can we mention two? The Sound of Music and It's a Wonderful Life by Frank Capra

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
Increasing the interchange among Festivals the most possible.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?
Filmfreeway is very helpful for independent filmmakers as it allows easy and quick access to festivals from all corners of the world. Sometimes it seems, at least to not native English speakers, the texts on some of the festival sites should explain more detailedly what the screening and the awarding schemes will be. Anyways we are very happy with the achievements so far.

10. What is your favorite meal?
Maybe due to not being a native English language speaker, we are not sure if you mean which of the three regular daily meals or a dish. In the first case we'd say breakfast and in the latter, the simplest of all brazilian dishes: rice, black beans, eggs and salads

11. What is next for you? A new film?
We mean to lengthen Natal's career as much as possible by showing it to as many people as we manage to, and of course make a new film