SALAZAR Productions – A motion picture collective

This is the story of SALAZAR Productions. It is one of those stories you will love to hear, a tale that makes you believe that anything and everything is possible when your heart is in it. In 2009 SALAZAR’s whimsical skate video, Wizard Smoke hit the Internet, and created a wave of interest in this otherwise little known film collective. Formed in 2008 the four man production group, have produced stunning music videos for the likes of Fan Death, Metronomy, Circlesquare and Brassonaut. When we first saw them we were so impressed that we got in touch and arranged to meet founding member Jesse Savath in Berlin. At the lovely Weinerei we chatted about SALAZAR’s rags to riches genesis, discussed their motivation and found out a little about what it is to be a filmmaker.

Let’s begin with some basic facts: where are you from? When did you get into the filming industry and why?

We’re from Canada’s East coast and West coast and all entered the industry in different capacities. Our diversity is what drew us to work together. Honestly - this is our life. We like the locations, we like the people we get to meet, we like telling stories. It’s as simple as that. We like making pretty pictures.

Do you have a daily routine at your job?

We try to have a daily routine in order to have some sanity in our lives. We come to our office (we're part of a large art studio called Cartelera in Vancouver) almost every morning and start answering emails and looking at upcoming projects. Trying to have a schedule and staying on top of things is the only way to be able to work as hard as we do.

So the video it all started with was ‘Veronica’s Veil’ by Fan Death, which was shot in Puerta Vallarta Mexico. Who chose the setting?

We had been talking to Fan Death about wanting to do a video ever since we met them. Dandilion (the lead singer) and Nathan both really love Mexico; we don't really know which one of us finally convinced everyone that we should go to Puerto V. We were very lucky because the band had a close friend who offered his house to us and drove us to all the locations in the video. The video was made on a budget of less than $100 US. We seriously had no money. We ended up having to hike to many of the locations, sometimes cutting through small paths in the jungle. We had to wade across a small river at one point with all of our camera gear! It was extremely physically intense. Our crew was just 6 people, including the band, there wasn't anyone else to rely on, and basically we just had each other. Which in a way was freeing because we didn't have to answer to a record label, or a manager, or any of the people normally standing around the edges of a music video shoot.

We knew that if we went to Mexico and sought out beautiful and unique locations, it would look interesting. We wanted to make the most epic and beautiful video we could with no money!

We basically see the video as a homage to European fantasy/horror films of the 60's and 70's. So many of those films are flawed, they suffer from being overly ambitious. Take for example Jean Rolin; Nathan absolutely loves many of his films! He never had any money yet he always tried to film in elaborate locations, with large casts, and complex costuming. Because he lacked the money to do such things his films have certain tackiness to them. Most people would call them "B" movies. We find them endearing because he refused to let financial handicaps prevent him from bringing to life the fantasies he imagined. We would much rather watch an overly ambitious film, full of creativity and spirit, that falls sort of realizing everything it tries for, than to watch a film that refuses to take risks because the film maker is afraid to fail.

Have you got a favorite place you’ve been to when shooting a video or are there any places you would like to shoot a video at?

Filming in China for a month was incredible. Shooting on top of the great wall was an exhilarating experience. Mexico has a cultural richness that simply doesn't exist in Canada or America - the colors and textures are always so varied and the light has a golden glow to it. We just helicoptered into the alpine here in British Columbia, which was again a really cool experience. We base a lot of our ideas on locations, and try and stick ourselves in crazy places and to see what happens.

You shot music videos for Circlesquare and Metronomy, how did that happen?

With music videos it’s usually a combination of knowing the bands or the labels personally. Now that our profile is growing we’re being approached more and more on the basis of people seeing our work.

Can you tell us a bit about the music videos? How much is the band involved in such a process?

We all come up with ideas, it’s very communal. That’s part of the experiment that is Salazar. The locations are all over the world. China, Mexico, Canada, on the open ocean, in the desert, in the air…

Band involvement has always varied project to project. In the case of Fan Death they were very involved from concept to shoot, but with projects like Brasstronaut we preferred to surprise them with final result.

Do you have a favorite film maker?

We’re all over the board. It’s a combination of many different points of reference. Our varying taste and interests combine to create work that is more powerful than a single frame of mind or influence. Here are some film makers that we are fond of: Wong Kar Wai, Julian Schnabel, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Chan-wook Park, Jean Rollin, Spike Jonze, Godard, Gondry, Dusan Makavejev

How do you think you are different from other film productions?

The communal nature of our collective separates us from more single-minded filmmakers. Most productions revolve around a certain political structure, where as we’re trying a different process. There is power in the hive but in this case we’re all doing everything.

You are working as a “motion picture collective” is there one thing you like to do – let’s say music videos, rather than the other – maybe promotional stuff?

We love music videos and attempting more creative approaches to promos but we’re actively growing towards narratives and documentaries.

With four creative people working together there must be frictions about “how to do things”. How do you work that out?

We argue a lot, it’s like a family. The important thing is we’re working for the same goal: To create the best content possible. It is just as much an experiment in process and a shedding of ego as it is an attempt at always taking new approaches and scaring ourselves a little. At the end of the day we’re still all close friends.

What inspires you?

We’re inspired by the world around us. Art comes from learning to look at life and notice the magic that happens in the most mundane of moments. What we find personally inspirational in the work of others is dedication and a striving to push forward into unknown territory.

I love the “central core” of Salazar Film, the Motto and dedication to your projects - what is coming next for the collective?

There is a great comfort and motivation in meeting up with your friends at the studio in the morning and mapping out ideas.

What would be a project you would really like to be doing?

Everything we do, we see as steps towards creating larger and more developed projects, with the eventual goal in thoughtful and personal feature films.