Shame of dying in Winter: An Interview with Gonçalo Viana

Please tell us about the projects you worked on before making ‘Shame of dying in Winter’. How did you start, and how did you learn to make films?

I’ve always liked to hear stories and eventually to create them. I was never a LEGO guy, but rather a PLAYMOBIL. My interest was not in building the doll house, but rather the story that happened inside of it. And using my mum’s old camcorder and friends’ time and will, I’ve started to create these very simple home-movies about an escape or a choreographed fight with sticks and plastic box lids as shields. And allied to this, when I was about 11, a neighbour showed me 2001: A Space Odyssey. And that was the first time I understood that cinema was not just a told story. It was a whole complex art, mixing so many elements that invite you into that specific world. So I would say, camcorder, plus playmobil, plus that 2001 old tape, and Gonçalo had no other future option, apart from making cinema.

Tell us about ‘Shame of dying in Winter’. How do you describe it?

It’s an emotional story that I thought about the first time when my grandma passed away. After a few years, during the pandemic, I’ve decided to come back to it and write down some of the things that I had in memory. From the things that my grandparents told me to my desire of imagining new stories. This is a story about traditions, about small town settings, about the attention we give to death nowadays. It made me comprehend the importance of the ritual of the funeral that was a bit foreign to me. The movie is highly inspired by my grandparents and, while unfortunately my grandma didn’t watch it, I’m very glad I managed to show it to my grandpa before he passed away.

Please tell us about your favorite filmmakers.

I’m a big fan of European cinema, but also that more american stylish cinema, too. One of my favorite filmmakers is Yorgos Lanthimos. I love how he can present such absurd scenarios and stories that seem so far from our reality at first glance, but then, when you stop to think about it, they actually tell so much about our society. I love that room to think he give us.

If you were given a good budget, what would be your ideal project?

I would invest in opening new independent cinemas that show movies that are not done thinking about the money they will make at the box office. And including all forms of cinema, including short film sessions.

Describe how you would ensure that production is on schedule. What steps would you take?

This short was very tough to pre-produce, because I was living in Rome (Italy) at the time while preparing to shoot in Monchique (Portugal). I had to call a lot of people and employ my vacation days back in Portugal to work on the pre-production. But I’m very happy a lot of people helped me with the best intentions they had and we’ve managed to complete it through!

What was the hardest part of making ‘Shame of dying in Winter’.

Definitely the pre-production for the reasons I’ve mentioned above.

If possible, tell us about your next work. What plans do you have for your future work?

I’ve recently shot a new short-film still in Rome, a couple of weeks before I left the city for good. That was crazy too, because I had to manage moving out, leaving my work and my friends, leaving the house (for another temporary one) and preparing all the production that I wrote, directed and shot. And now I’m starting the post-production, also by myself XDIndependent cinema is quite hard and sometimes it really makes you wonder why you’ve decided to go down this road. But when you hear that loud call for “camera, sound, lights, action” it puts me again into that little boy’s magical moments, where I imagined those playmobil toys gaining life and being part of my stories.