a film by Adrián García Bogliano

SCHERZO DIABOLICO is a horror movie that was thought to be different from what horror films are about these days; impossible to classify within any sub genre and avoiding the similarities with mainstream films.

For many years I’ve seen good scripts ruined by the mandatory rule of starting out with a scene that defines clearly what the movie is about. This concept forces the main elements of the film so that the potential producer and, later, the buyer knows for sure in the first five minutes: “Oh this is a vampire movie”. The problem is that this concept doesn’t always works for the audience, who needs to be seduced and dragged in a smart way into the film.

With this idea in mind, I started to develop a film that unfolds it’s plot and themes in a way where you can’t really know what is going on until halfway. A movie that could get the audience interested but keeps them guessing all the time.

The biggest influence for this type of script is definitely the Korean thrillers of the last few years. In some of them you can clearly see an structure where you think you’ve understood the main conflict and then that conflict gets solved in the second act and you’re left wondering “Now what?”. And that “Now what?” is precisely what I love about old school horror movies. The sense of imprevisibility, that anything can happen next.

The idea of finding a completely different look to the film was why both me and photographer Dario Goldgel decided to shoot with old anamorphic adapters and using an uncommon aspect ratio that helps give both a more spectacular look to wider exterior shots and a more claustrophobic look to indoor scenes.

SCHERZO DIABOLICO was also a chance to work with complicated and mostly unsympathetic characters, to create a world of grey zones and questionable ethics. To pull off those characters you can only relay on having actors who can give them depth and humanity with the smallest details while the plot moves forward.

Working again with Francisco Barreiro was definitely one of the key elements to achieve that, both for the more introspective scenes filled with little details as for the interactions with the rest of the cast, particularly the female counterparts. Daniela Soto Vell as the young girl abducted, the prostitute played by Vita Vargas, Milena Pezzi as the wife and Pau Alva playing his coworker; they all represent a full range of the femininity as seen by the lead male character. It’s an homage to both Peter Medak’s Romeo is bleeding as to the seventies Swedish extravaganza Breaking point, as all three films are linked by a murky male fantasy of fulfillment and progress and how does that relate to the interaction with females.

About the Film

LoglineA bored and frustrated accountant decides to kidnap a teenage girl that will becone his worst nightmare.

Synopsis

Aram is inmersed in the dullness of his life, waiting for a promotion in his job that it isn't happening; his boss dismisses him and his wife doesn't care about their marriage anymore. He decides to turn things around and kidnaps a teenage girl. He doesn't know his plan has a flaw and the joke will be on him.

Adrián García Bogliano

(b. 1980, Madrid, Spain) was raised in the city of La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he grew up influenced by his parents’ cinephilia and his own passion for the violent and savage cinema of the 1970’s and 80’s.

A pioneer in Argentinian independent genre filmmaking for nearly a decade, Bogliano’s indie films include 2004’s Room for Tourists (Habitaciones para turistas), 2005’s Scream at Night (Grité una noche), 2006’s 36 Steps (36 Pasos), 2008’sI’ll Never Die Alone (No moriré sola), and 2009’s Watch ‘em Die (Masacre, esta noche), which was a Mexican co-production.

Bogliano’s wide variety of work won numerous awards and accolades at horror and fantasy film festivals around the world. Scoring rave reviews in The New York Times and Austin Chronicle, the director sold the US remake rights to his first film and brought the horror genre back to Central America with 2010’s The Accursed (Donde Duerme el horror), a thriller so popular in Cost Rica that, on its opening weekend, beat Sex in the City 2 at the box office.

Also in 2010, Bogliano shot two movies supported by the Argentinean Film Institute and produced by major production companies – Cold Sweat (Sudor Frío) and Penumbra.

Cold Sweat was released in February of 2011, breaking a fifty-year absence of horror movies produced and released theatrically in Argentina. It would go on to become the biggest Argentinian box office hit of First Quarter, 2011, and eventually be released to great acclaim in the United States by MPI Home Video. Penumbra, another worldwide festival favorite, was ultimately released in US theaters by IFC Films in April, 2012. 

2012 would also see the release of The ABCs of Death, an alphabet-themed 26-part horror anthology from Magnet Releasing and Drafthouse Films, which Bogliano directed a segment of. Following that, the writer/director shot his first American co-production, Here Comes the Devil, in Tijuana, Mexico with Chicago-based MPI Media Group/Dark Sky Films.

In 2014, Bogliano premiered Late Phases, his English language directorial debut, produced by Site B, Dark Sky Films and Glass Eye Pix. A werewolf film starring Nick Damici, Lance Guest, Ethan Embry, Tom Noonan and Erin Cummings.

(written by Ted Geoghegan)

Writer, director & editor

Francisco Barreiro as AramIn his second colaboration with director Adrián García Bogliano, Francisco plays the role of Aram, a frustrated accountant that decides to kidnap a young woman just to change a few things in his life. Francisco, known for his work in Somos lo que hay, Loves her Gun and Potosí, brings another solid performance with a wide range of emotions that his character experiences through the film.

Jorge Molina as Licenciado GranovskyJorge Molina, a Cuban actor-director, is a well known figure in the Latin American indie filmmaking. His film features are often censored due to the load of brutality and honesty that he depicts. Considered as his mentor by director Adrián García Bogliano, this is the first time they get to work together outside of Cuba. He starred as Lázaro, Juan’s sidekick in Cuban zombie sensation Juan of the Dead.

Daniela Soto Vell as AnabelaRecently graduated from National Theater School in México City, this is Daniela’s first starring role in a feature film. Daniela plays Anabela, the kidnapped girl that will do anything she can to get her revenge from the man who abducted her. She has worked in many TV shows, s h o r t f i l m s a n d t h e a t h e r productions.

Milena Pezzi as MacarenaFrom Argentinian heritage, Milena has been acting since a very young age. While living in Dominican Republic, she debuted in her first feature film as Teté in Dreaming of Julia, starring Harvey Keitel and Iben Hjejle. She has participated in several TV shows as an actress and a host, and has been very active in theater productions. In Scherzo Diabolico, she plays Macarena, a woman who’s had enough of her marriage with Aram and expects nothing from him.

Vita Vargas as YazmínVita has a very active career as an actress, model and producer. She has appeared in TV series such as El Señor de los cielos and is an associate producer of Gloria, the blockbuster film about Mexican singer Gloria Trevi.She plays the role of Yazmín, Aram’s call girl, with an exquisite sensuality.

Filmmaker Adrian Garcia Bogliano’s Salto de Fe Films, based in Mexico City, is devoted to producing and promoting horror cinema. This creative partnership is co-directed by Andrea Quiroz, producer of Garcia Bogliano’s films Cold Sweat and Penumbra. The company’s first feature production is Here Comes the Devil and their latest production is Jirón, a documentary about Mexican filmmaker Carlos Enrique Taboada.

F was founded by Theo Brooks and Joshua Sobel in 2013 as a multimedia production company that produces high concept films for wide release. Brooks and Sobel founded F after executive producing Ron Morales’ Graceland that was distributed by Drafthouse Films in 2012.

CreditsWritten, directed and edited by Adrián García Bogliano

Produced by Andrea Quiroz Hernández & Carlos Meléndez

Executive Producer: Joshua Sobel

Co-Executive Producers: Alex Bergman, Theo Brooks, Vince Cupone, Brandy Fons & Mario Kenyon

Associate Producers: Abigail Bonilla, José García, Pablo Guisa Koestinger, Danny Liberman, Julio César Sánchez, Erica Sobel & Elizabeth Sussman

Production Companies: Salto de Fe Films, Mr. Blue & F

Director of Photography: Dario Goldgel

Sound Design: LSD, Lex Ortega & Luis Flores

Music Composer: Sealtiel Alatriste

Makeup and Special Effects: Reality Fx, Alfredo Olguín & Jaime Nieto

Visual Effects: Paco Limón

Post Production: Filma Red Post

Color Correction: Marius Henry Hoyo

Cast

Francisco Barreiro as AramDaniela Soto Vell as Anabela

Jorge Molina as Licenciado GranovskyMilena Pezzi as Macarena

Vita Vargas as YazminPau Alva as Perla

Evan Alducín as LeónAleyda Gallardo as Diana

Carlos Valencia as MéndezJosé Carriedo Tellez as Samuel

Germán Gabarrot as DiegoLeonardo Villa as El Ruedas

Paty Hernández as JadeTito Guillén as Carlos

Technical specificationsCamera: Canon 5D

Lenses: Anamorphic adapterAspect ratio: 2:35:1

Format: 2KEdited in Adobe Premiere Pro CS6

contact: Andrea Quiroz andrea@saltodefefilms.com