Barcelona filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona was shown this Tuesday”very happy“for the two Oscar nominations his film received”‘Snow Society’He is aware that “it is very difficult to attract the attention of Hollywood with a film made in Spanish.”
In an interview with EFE, Bayona said: “It’s hard to really get Hollywood’s attention. with an international film made in a language that is not their own.
Drawing on his experiences in Hollywood with major productions such as ‘Jurassic World’ or the ‘Lord of the Rings’ series, he is aware of this: “When you go to a movie in Spanish, it’s a very different story, because “You have to work twice as hard to get the movie noticed.”
“A movie that has been dreamed of for ten years”
He reminded that these two nominations were a reward for the effort put into “a long-loved film that we’ve been dreaming of for a decade” and that it coincided with the public now being able to see the film and that “being recognized by the Hollywood Academy is also very special.” .”
When asked about the chances of receiving two statuettes, the producer believes: “It was not easy to win these two nominations”because you never know, and actually when you look at the pools there are a lot of movies that were favorites but ended up not being there.”
For this reason, they are very happy It was deemed worthy of the “best international film nomination, where the best films of the year compete, as well as recognition in the make-up and hairstyling category”.
Bayona confesses his experiences “A beautiful moment with the movie.The series that is at the center of discussions around the world, breaks records on the platform (Netflix) and continues to be watched by people in the cinema.
As for the chances of winning the Oscar for best foreign language film, Bayona assures that it will be difficult as it is competing with the best films of the year from around the world, but he does not think ‘The Snow Society’ will succeed in this regard. “He defended himself very well”“And the public loves it, as evidenced by its audience award at the San Sebastián Festival, where it already competes with some of the best films of the year.”
“It tells a lot about the times we live in.”
For him, the big appeal of ‘Snow Society’ is that it’s “a story that really resonates in the world we live in, especially among young people who see this group of abandoned boys.” Over the course of a lifetime and together they achieve the impossible; “They’re leaving a place where no one gave them a dime.”
In this sense, he adds, the film’s story “tells a lot about the moment we live in”; feeling abandoned with the message of looking around us and giving our best for ourselves and others.
Being part of the exclusive list of Spanish creators nominated for the Oscars leads Bayona to thank his colleagues in the Spanish industry who got them to this point, which “was a huge responsibility.” .
And he adds: “We did everything we could to get there and we did it and now we must share this value With all his teammates and also with all the people, not only from the majority Spanish team, but also with all his teammates from Uruguay, from Argentina, from Chile.
One of the things that was praised about the film was that the “talent of all departments” involved in the film “shined and was appreciated by the public and critics”.
The director of ‘The Orphanage’ particularly values being nominated in a category as competitive as makeup and hairdressing, “fighting movies that are absolute mastodons in the Hollywood industry.”
Regarding Pablo Berger’s other Spanish candidate, ‘Robot Dreams’, Bayona admitted that he was very happy to share a special night with Pablo where they would join hands and keep each other company.
Three Gaudí awards and a Goya statuette sit on a shelf at La Trini, the Bayonne production company where the director spent a media-busy afternoon, perhaps awaiting new recognition from Los Angeles.