Óliver Laxe has been on a whirlwind promotional tour for his fourth feature ever since it premiered to thunderous critical acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival this past May. After briefly speaking with him the week prior (see our virtual interview), and again following the announcement of an impressive slate of European Film Award nominations—recognizing casting, editing, production design, sound design, and cinematography—I had the opportunity to sit down with him (with the Atlas Mountains in the backdrop) once more for a short conversation at the Marrakech International Film Festival. Morocco, a longtime second home for the filmmaker, has served as a recurring backdrop in his work, including Sirāt.
With recent retrospectives of his films at New York’s Metrograph, as well as in Madrid and Toronto’s TIFF Bell Lightbox, Laxe’s singular cinematic voice continues to resonate well beyond the festival circuit. Here is our brief talk where we discuss sound design, working with cinematographer Mauro Herce, how he finds himself when not actively promoting or making a film, and finally I revealed what my favorite sequence was in his filmography.
