HI MATEO, WHO ARE YOU? AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

My main job is to be a film maker. I direct feature films. This was my main activity for 10 years. Originally I’m from France, Paris, and moved to Canada 8 years ago. Now I’m exercising my job in a larger skill in North America. I wouldn’t say I’m a Steven Spielberg but at the same time in last few years I was able to get a little bit of recognition that helped me to become more established and to do more films.

HOW DID YOU DISCOVER THE MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHER IN YOU?

Film is like photography: It’s very difficult, isn’t it? There are so many film makers, so many photographers. But at the same time there is a very small room for people to have a chance to be on the spotlight and to reach people. It’s overcomplicated and difficult. You have to work very hard, learn tenacity and hang on it whatever happens. You need to have the chance, be lucky and meet the right people at the right place at the right moment. It’s a mix of a lot of stuff.

But in my case, 4 years ago, I was invited to participate in a work shop at the Toronto International Film Festival with one of my short films. Motorola asked all participants to do a little movie with a cell phone. I did a piece called “Labour day”. After that I was getting more and more attention and the Motorola people asked me if I would like to keep working with a cell phone and do something with them. I thought that the concept was very interesting.

The funny thing is that I didn’t use the cell phone before. As an artist I can be confident and at the same time very unconfident, in this case I thought: ‘No, I cannot be a photographer’. People who are photographers start to do photos when they are 12 years old. Me, I never took in particular any pictures but I was making films. But I didn’t realize that it is the same thing because I was using my eyes and my emotions to capture life and reality.

Because as film maker I was like a painter and basically I recognized, that I was very precise and articulative, very into framing and putting elements in a frame. I focused on the light. Etc. So I realized that my work as a film maker was very close to what photographers do. And funny enough the same reason why people were enjoying my work as a film maker was the reason why people were enjoying my work as a photographer.

WHY IS MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHY INTERESTING FOR YOU?

If you look at cellphones today and try to find a definition of what the use of a cell phone is, you find many things: It’s a way to communicate so you can talk through the cell phone. Or you can have a video conference, so you can talk and see each other. But at the same time you can do pictures or you can film. It’s such a very small tool that can stay in your pocket. I just heard there are more than five billion cell phone which where built in the last few years. Just for you to realize how cell phones become day by day a routine. Everybody has cell phone today. It’s just as normal as to have underwear or a fork to eat. It’s almost weird to not have a cell phone today.

I use to say it’s an extension of your body. So in a way it’s very interesting because it’s so small, and it becomes something so vulgar that you can be everywhere with your cell phone and you’re not going to catch any attention. For a photographer it’s amazing because in any kind of environment, location or situation you can still be discrete and play with your cell phone. The people of the situation that you try to capture stay very normal.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOUR WORK WITH A CAMERA AND A MOBILE PHONE?

First of all I need to describe myself when I was child: I always wanted to be a war reporter, who you know from the movies in the 70th’s, as Salvatore. Just where you see a binge of war reporters in the middle of chaos, taking pictures and trying to send them to the other side of the world to be witnessed what’s happening. I always had a huge admiration for these people but I don’t think I’m brave enough to do this kind of stuff. This is why I became a film maker on the set. But I imagine the way I take pictures with my cell phone is almost like a war reporter. This is why I like the cell phones. It’s so small, quick and discrete that I can take pictures anytime anywhere without thinking but with being very instinctive.

When you make a movie it’s much more complicated: Before you shoot a scene you have to find a location, bring a crew together, find actors, to select some lights, etc. It’s a huge organization. But with a cell phone it’s very instinctive, fast and furious, you just catch the moment, if it’s ugly or beautiful. I like the idea that because of the pixel there’s something not perfect.

I would say that my work as a film maker is much more organized, complicated and needs much more preparation. My work as a photographer with my little iPhone is like I’m a citizen of the war, I’m a war reporter. Everywhere I am I just end up with my cell phone, boom, capturing something.

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU FORGET YOUR MOBILE PHONE?

I can’t! Because my phone is always in my pockets. And because it’s almost a drug addiction, for example I take pictures, I film, check my emails, pass phone calls or use the internet. It became part of me. It’s like how can you forget your head?! Or how can you forget to wear clothes before you go out?! You don’t go out naked …

HOW CAN WE IMAGE YOU WORKING ON YOUR FEATURE FILM “OFF WORLD”?

I was shooting my feature film “Off World” for 14 weeks in a slum called Smokey Mountain, where thousands of people are living next to garbage. It’s a very rich and heavy place in terms of visual. Of course I knew that even I was making a film with a big crew and hundreds of people there will be moments to escape and to photograph something. So it was very easy for me, but a nightmare to my crew because sometimes I disappeared for 4-5 minutes because something caught my attention. I was running with my cell phone, boom, taking pictures and coming back to the set.

WHEN YOU WERE A LITTLE BOY YOU PREFERRED STAYING HOME, WATCHING MOVIES AND GETTING INSPIRED BY THEM INSTEAD OF GOING TO SCHOOL. SO WHICH MOVIES DID INSPIRE YOU THOSE DAYS AND NOWADAYS?

I spent years watching every kind of movie, from a big block buster to small indie films, coming from Asia, East Europe or Italy. And of course the French movies from 50th’S, 60th’s and 70th’s. Also I was always very attracted by new emerging film makers from countries which are not able to make movies because they are under caesura. So for example if you look at China: the way Chinese provide movies is incredible. They have access to freedom. Or look at South America or East Europe. There you have some film makers who are longing to be so because they needed to express themselves and it was something vital and organic. So they have that strong desire like “we have to make a movie or  we’re going to  die. I was always very attracted by those people for whom making a movie is the last step before they die. It becomes something so important and essential. There are so many people all over the world who are living in difficult countries where they are oppressed because of their sexual orientation, political statement or  choice how to live their lives. At the end they go against the law and create beautiful movies.

But also I like blockbusters. Just last weekend I saw “inception”. Honestly I’m a big fan of Christopher Nolan. His best movie ever was “Memento” But “inception” is just a pale copy of “Memento”. I love the new movie but it will not stay in my mind as “Memento” did. For my new projects I’m watching right now more movies about dogma.

ON YOUR BLOG YOU SAY YOU ARE “THE KIND OF HUMAN BEING WHO HAS TO BE IN A RISKY SITUATION TO FEEL ALIVE – TO FEEL THAT THERE IS A PURPOSE FOR LIVING – AND TO PRODUCE ART.” YOU’VE BEEN TO SMOKEY MOUNTAIN, ISRAEL AND OTHER PLACES. WHAT ARE YOUR DREAMS TO GO NEXT TO?

This is exactly the essence of I am a human being and an artist. Before I was speaking about the war reporter, I believe they always need to be in risky and heavy situations to feel alive and to capture life. This is why I feel like them because I have the same emotions. And so, once again, the cell phone is an amazing tool for someone like me. In an interview someone said it’s the prolongation of my heart, so the cell phone is like the end of my body. And I think it truly became part of me.

So for the future I’m brainstorming and collecting a few ideas. I’m always more excited and attracted by extreme or crazy adventures and journeys. I don’t like to go  where things are too settled, too busy or too soft.

One of my future projects follows the dogma concept. The idea is to do a workshop with a few actors for a few weeks, creating a story and to develop some web-episodes, to film them but also to ask them to film themselves with cell phones. Just trying something around that. It’s going to be very experimental and risky but at the same time it allows me to be a film maker, but also to use my cell phone and work with actors to capture something with different devices. It’s going to be interesting.

DO YOURSELF A BIG FAVOR AND CHECK OUT MATEO’S WORK!

Mateo on EYE’EM!

His Blog

Off World