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It Was A Goal Of Mine To Employ Dominican-American Actors. If I Don’t, Who Will? Filmmaker Carlos Renaso On ¡CALAMBRE!

In the fall of 2015, out of frustration and desperation, Carlos Renaso decided to write a small feature.  “I had gotten an agent from a script I wrote while I was in college called UPTOWN ROAMERS, which I aimed to get made as my debut, but it didn’t work out.”  That small feature was ¡CALAMBRE! and he wrote it for his brother, Amaury Renaso, to play the lead and his best friend, Danny Borbon, to also star and produce.


“I had gotten an agent from a script I wrote while I was in college called UPTOWN ROAMERS, which I aimed to get made as my debut, but it didn’t work out.”


“We, as a trio, had already worked on a short film called ALL-AMERICA CITY so we were ready to make something again and fast.”  It was a twelve day shoot, but it took a year and eight months to finish shooting.   “I had lost my job as an ESL instructor, so it took time to bounce back and raise funds again.  Not to mention actors have their own lives and busy schedules.”  All in all, they got it done.

¡CALAMBRE! is a 53 minute episodic black and white film about a poet who returns to his hometown of New York City to rekindle an old flame, only to complicate his return with new women in his life.   Renaso’s main goal was to keep it small; no big expensive set pieces, but lots of conversation. “I think conversations are a psychedelic and can be interesting.”


“It was always a goal of mine to employ Dominican-American actors.  If I don’t, then who will?  I’m really proud of their work in it.”


Inspired by Noah Baumbach and Hong Sangsoo,  ¡CALAMBRE! is impressive in that you get to see a lot of up and coming Dominican-American talent; something that was not lost on Renaso.  “It was always a goal of mine to employ Dominican-American actors.  If I don’t, then who will?  I’m really proud of their work in it.”

¡CALAMBRE! was shot on the Canon 5D mk ii.  Some scenes were shot on the Canon T3i Rebel.

Watch the video interview on Youtube here

 

 


Watch it on Amazon here

¡CALAMBRE! is a 53 minute episodic black and white film about a poet who returns to his hometown of New York City to rekindle an old flame, only to complicate his return with new women in his life. A film by Carlos Renaso.


¡CALAMBRE! TRAILER from Carlos Renaso on Vimeo.

 

About Carlos Renaso:

Born and raised in Harlem, New York City, Carlos Renaso always saw himself as a creative. “I’m a writer first and am very particular about getting it right on the page before directing.” He began writing poetry at age ten, eventually turning to screenwriting nine years later to tell stories about him and his neighborhood and friends. “It really started with Raging Bull. I saw it and it changed me. Instantly, I had to find out how it was made.” He transferred from Binghamton University as a liberal arts major to Hunter College and studied filmmaking under Mick Hurbis-Cherrier. While there, he’d written a crime feature, entitled Uptown Roamers, about the Dominican-American experience but first decided to make a short film showcasing the feature. “Essentially, that’s how All-America City was born, but most importantly I wanted to show young Dominican men living onscreen.” Carlos is currently developing his feature Uptown Roamers.

 

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Watch it on Amazon here

¡CALAMBRE! is a 53 minute episodic black and white film about a poet who returns to his hometown of New York City to rekindle an old flame, only to complicate his return with new women in his life. A film by Carlos Renaso.

 

 

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