You might have seen Buildings and Vampires, Argentine filmmaker Nico Casavecchia’s charming tribute to Where the Wild Things Are. The Buenos Aires-born, New York-based creative is a master of mixed media: he specialises in combining foreign elements and bringing them together in harmony. Here's what hapened when we spoke to him at OFFF 2012...
Computer Arts: Who are you and what do you do?
Nico Casavecchia: I’m in a journey to understand what I do and who I really am. But I guess the protocol answer to that question would be: I'm Nico Casavecchia, an Argentine filmmaker who currently lives in New York, and I have fun drawing and creating films.
CA: Your portfolio is very varied – would you say you have a style?
NC: I try to avoid style and give every problem the solution that suits it better. But when I look back I guess I'm interested in the intersection of things; what you would call a mixed-media approach.
Nico Casavecchia co-directed Buildings and Vampires with Sebas & Clim founder Sebastian Baptista
CA: What inspires you?
NC: I love to be challenged by a project. I'm self-taught and other's people work has been always a huge motivation for me. And change – trying new things and exposing myself to the things that scare me.
CA: What is your 'I've made it' moment?
NC: When I wake up from a dream thinking that I have a great idea. I usually confirm later in the day that my uncle Luis riding an amphibious golf kart in a huge swimming pool doesn't stand for a good film concept. And the ‘I've made it’ moment is gone.
CA: What's your favourite project in your portfolio so far?
NC: My favourite project was writing and directing a promo piece for the Slamdance festival in the US. It was a great challenge and I enjoyed the whole process of it. I love the freedom to work and collaborating with other people. The Slamdance project had both.
CA: Given the choice of anyone in the world, who would you collaborate with – and why?
NC: I can think of about 2,000 people right now. I'll randomly pick from them: Andy Kaufman. I would love to direct one of his scripts for a feature film.
CA: What have you got coming up over the next few months?
NC: I’ve just move to New York and I'll be directing for 1st Avenue Machine. It's an amazing opportunity to be around such talented people. I hope in the following months I'll have stuff to show for it.
CA: What are the benefits for creatives of attending events like OFFF?
NC: You walk in idealising something; you walk out feeling that everybody faces the same problems. I think that's inspiring. We are all in hell together.
