timeout-student-8-juliol

The hot
seat
Claudia Llosa
film director,
38 years old
Com es
diu ‘WTF’?
How did you end up in
Barcelona?
It was fate. My father had
talked to me about the city
when I was small – ‘It’s the city
of youth’. I came here to do a
master’s degree in
screenwriting. Then I tried to
make films in Peru, but it was
like trying to be an astronaut.
You must have had a romantic
image of the city. Did the
reality match up to your
expectations?
Yes, for me, since I was so
young, it offered an explosive
sense of freedom. It’s a city
that has never told me ‘go
away’.
Your uncle, Mario Vargas
Llosa, lived here too. Do you
share the strong opinions he
has expressed about
Catalonia?
Well, everyone has their own
opinions, and I respect them.
But if you live in Catalonia, you
see things differently. I have
the greatest respect for what’s
happening here, the demand
for the right to decide.
You’re an urbanite, but you’ve
made films in the Andes and
in close contact with nature.
Nostalgia for your roots?
I have had a strong
relationship with the Andes
since I was small. In my family,
we thought it was important to
know your own country before
going on to discover the rest of
the world.
You’ve just released Aloft,
with Jennifer Connolly. How
was your first foray into the
world of Hollywood?
It’s an independent film, with
US actors and producers, but
with Spanish money, made as
a co-production with Canada
and France. And it’s been
wonderful. Working on a
project with such generous
actors is a life-changing
experience.
What was the biggest
challenge?
At first, funding, and once we’d
got that, nature: filming in
extreme situations, on ice….
But all in all, it was an absolute
pleasure.
Interview: Jordi Bianciotto
Photo: Iván Moreno
Jan Fleischer
English web editor
Starting out,
getting by
Packing to move to Barcelona, I
burst into tears when my bag
wouldn’t zip. My own mother
laughed at me as she unpacked
half my stuff, promising they had
toothpaste and sunscreen over
there. But what if they didn’t have
Crest or Coppertone? They
didn’t. What if there was no
peanut butter (there wasn’t) or ...
ranch dressing?! These are the
fears of every American leaving
star-spangled shores. My British
and Irish friends have similar
tales of woe. No Marmite, no
Boots two-for-one, no driving on
the left.
‘Culture shock,’ they’ll all say.
Yeah, yeah, the money’s
different, as is the language
(wait, TWO languages?), and you
don’t know what a mailbox looks
like (Big Bird) or where to buy
stamps (in the tobacco shops,
where else?). But shopping for,
say, eggs, socks and AAAs can’t
be so bad. Just go to Barcelona’s
version of Target. Or Tesco. That
even sounds Spanish.
But you’ll find no such beast. Be
patient, young readers. You’ll
soon learn big words like
ferreteria, farmàcia and fruiteria.
The key is not to panic. It’s all
part of becoming your own
person, away from home
comforts. Sure, when you go
back you’ll be so happy to cross
the threshold at Target, you might
shed a tear. Perhaps you’ll drop
to your knees before the Marmite
products in Tesco. But the place
will look a little different. The
people will sound a bit strange.
And you’ll find yourself spreading
tomato and oil on your toast
instead of butter and jam.
4 www.timeout.com/barcelona Time Out Barcelona Student Guide 2014/2015