May 13, 2013

Caveirão trailer by Guilherme Marcondes

New York-based Brazilian filmmaker Guilherme Marcondes ("Tyger," "Into Pieces") is preparing his 10-minute mixed-media short "Caveirão" for release this fall:

Shot in Sao Paulo evokes the secret nocturnal activities of the spirits of São Paulo. Inspired by the dark side of Brazilian pop culture, the film crosses genres and techniques. Fantasy, horror, and cartoon meet through live action, 2D animation, and 3D VFX. This is the first film in "The Master's Voice" project, a ghost story based on an urban legend.

"Caveirão" literally means "big skull." Besides obviously referring to the characteristics of the protagonist, the name has several connotations in Brazil. It is a nickname for an armored car that climbs up the favela hill to terrorize drug traffickers (and the entire population living there). The word "caveira" (skull) is also routinely used as an adjective to describe something evil or sinister. At the same time, despite its dark image, "Big Skull" sounds dumb, like the monster in the Scooby-Doo cartoon. This irony was certainly not lost on me when I chose "Caveirão" as the name of the film.

Follow Guillerme's new Facebook page for behind-the-scenes footage, animation tests, and updates on the film.