INTERVIEW with ROCÍO JUÁREZ
Rocío Juárez (Almería, 1980) con más de diez años como guionista y directora de cine, escritora y divulgadora social Miembro Asociación Andaluza de Mujeres de los Medios Audiovisuales (AAMMA)
How long have you been doing movies? How did you decide to start making movies?
I have more than a decade of experience in the audiovisual industry. My connection with cinema comes primarily from writing. I have always seen myself as a screenwriter first and a director second: I need to create stories, characters and worlds, and sometimes directing becomes a natural extension of that writing process — a need to bring to the screen what I first imagined on the page.
Why did you do this project?
El Método M.O. was born out of my fascination with the criminal mind and, more specifically, from one question: does everyone deserve a second chance?
I wanted to create a psychological thriller that did more than simply talk about criminals. I wanted to place the audience in an uncomfortable position and force them to take a side. For me, it was essential that the film ended on screen but continued in the viewer’s mind.
(If you can say). How much budget did you have to do this project?
I prefer not to give a specific figure, but it was an independent production made on a very tight budget, particularly considering the needs of the project and the team involved.
Was it self-funded or did you get budget/producers/investors?
The project was mainly produced and financed by me. Later, El Método M.O. received the 2nd Kiko Medina Award at the Almería International Film Festival (FICAL 2024)
How long did it take from the initial idea to being able to release?
A year and a half.
Are you happy with the result?
Very much so. Of course, whenever you finish a film, you can always find things that you would do differently today, because you also evolve as a filmmaker.
But El Método M.O. achieved something that was essential to me: it sparked debate. The conversations that take place after the screenings have shown me that the story continues to work even after the short film has ended.
What phase is this project in right now? Are you in the initial phase of sending it to festivals, middle phase or finishing the circuit?
It is currently midway through its film festival circuit while, at the same time, beginning a new stage connected to crime and noir literature festivals, both nationally and internationally.
That connection between cinema, criminology and the noir genre is opening up a path for the short film that I had not initially imagined.
How has your experience been with the festivals so far? Where do you think they should improve?
My experience has been very rewarding. Festivals allow a film to reach very different audiences and, in my case, some of the most interesting moments have come precisely from the discussions that take place after the screenings. So far, my experience has been extremely positive.
Could you tell us which platforms you use to submit your entries to festivals?
Festhome and Movibeta.
Normally, filmmakers use many references, favorite directors, favorite movies, etc. Were you inspired by any director or film? If so, tell us your references.
In this case, I did not start from a specific cinematic reference. When creating the world of El Método M.O., I was more interested in getting closer to the reality of the criminal mind than in reproducing the conventions of other films.
For that reason, I worked with the professional guidance of lawyer and criminologist Paz Velasco de la Fuente, and drew inspiration from the work of professionals specialising in criminology and crime journalism, such as Francisco Pérez Caballero, Clara Tiscar and Elena Merino.
Of course, there are films and television series that are part of my cinematic imagination, but I wanted El Método M.O. to find its own identity.
Your favorite movie?
The Silence of the Lambs, if we are talking specifically about the psychological thriller genre that El Método M.O. belongs to.
Favorite series?
Mindhunter, following the same criteria as the previous question.
In both cases, I am drawn to stories that are not satisfied with simply showing the crime, but dare to enter the mind of the person who commits it.
Do you see yourself making movies in 5 years? Where do you see yourself?
Yes, I definitely see myself making films. I do not know exactly where, and perhaps that is part of the beauty of it. But I do know how: telling stories that obsess me, moving towards feature films without losing that particular way of looking at the darkest side of human nature.
Five years from now, I hope I will still have something to say and still feel the need to put a camera in front of it.
Do you have any other project in mind?
I would like to adapt either my latest book, Palabra de asesino, or the short film El Método M.O. into a feature film.
What do you ask for the future? (cinematographically speaking)
I hope to continue growing, take on new challenges and tell increasingly ambitious stories. I would like to make the leap into feature films without losing the freedom to make short films whenever a story calls for that format.
Above all, I hope to keep finding stories — or perhaps to let them find me.
Your best experience in a movie theater?
There is something special about that moment when the lights go down and, for a couple of hours, everything outside the cinema disappears.
But if I had to choose one experience, it would be the premiere of El Método M.O. at the Almería International Film Festival. The screening was sold out, and I was able to experience the audience’s reactions and then share the discussion with them afterwards.
That was when I truly understood the essence of cinema: the moment when a film stops belonging only to you and starts belonging to the audience.