Caru Alves de Souza Wins at The Berlinale: "Nobody Expected Anything Like This"

The Brazilian creative wins global recognition for her second feature film, 'Meu nome é Bagdá' (My name is Baghdad), a compelling manifesto on female power

At 40, Caru Alves de Souza (@caruperu) is more than a veteran of cinema. Daughter of two important Brazilian filmmakers, Tatá Amaral and Francisco César Filho, this scriptwriter, director, and producer has a deep and historic relationship with the seventh art.

"My parents are cinephiles, I grew up in cinemas. I remember being there, very small, running, and playing between the seats while they watched films. And the audiences were so patient," laughs de Souza "It's incredible they didn't throw us out!"

Later, her games moved onto the film sets where Tatá and Francisco produced films together throughout the 1980s. It was only natural that, although she studied History, Caru went into film. Since 2007, she has written and directed a number of new projects, from shorts and features to TV productions.

Her most recent work, the feature "Meu nome é Bagdá" (My name is Baghdad) – a powerful and moving tale of a girl skater in a hostile and macho environment on the outskirts of São Paulo – has earned her critical acclaim and the top prize for best film in the Generation 14plus category of the 70th Berlin International Film Festival.

We interviewed Caru on a video call in São Paulo, where she is spending quarantine with her family.

"We had such an incredible reception, so warm, that I said to the film team, 'Guys, this has already been the prize. It doesn't matter if we don't leave here winners. It's been worth it,'" recalls Caru. "When they announced us as the winners, I couldn't believe it. I didn't expect it. Nobody expected anything like this!"

Watch the highlights of our conversation with the filmmaker in the video below:

Below, Caru tells us about the film

How much of you is in Bagdá and the film's other characters?

This is a film about women challenging the norms of society. There's definitely a lot of myself in it. I come from a family of women, all strong protagonists in their own lives. (The film's story) has everything to do with how I was raised. It's the same for other projects of mine. (In the short film) Family Affair, the protagonist feels like an ugly duckling but, finally, becomes a swan. My first feature, Underage, is a beach story inspired by the life of my cousin, with a lot of things related to my family life. There's always a lot of yourself, it's unavoidable. But it's never planned or conscious, I start realizing it as I go.

Who and what were your influences with this film? Is Lucrecia Martel an inspiration for you?

Lucrecia Martel is a big reference for me. Her aesthetic isn't necessarily reflected in this film but she's an inspiration to me as a woman and Latin American filmmaker.

A film that impacted me a lot is Kids by Larry Clark. I was a teenager in the 90s when I saw it and it influenced me... really badly (she laughs). I didn't feel identified. I watched it again when I was older and it was only then that I loved it. In every film I make, I return to Kids. It was a big influence for My name is Baghdad, a film that is totally connected to youth and the world of skating. There's also a lot of John Cassavetes too, I love his films. I study them and they influence me a lot.

Sometimes, however, the reference isn't a film or an image, but a song. I usually compare my films to music. Underage would be indie rock, something mawkish (she laughs). My name is Baghdad is punk rock. It has that attitude. We grabbed it and made it, pushing forward as much as we could and, only then, were we able to understand what we were doing. It's three chords and 'Let's go!'

What has this film, and cinema in general, given you that another art couldn't?

A special chance to reflect: being able to look at a reality other than mine in detail and express my own vision of it. The act of creating is so important as it allows you to act on the world, not just react. Cinema gives me the opportunities to be an agent, not just a passive object receiving information: that's to say, it lets me try and transform the world and people. That's a lot, so much: to live actively, not passively.

Achieving success so soon can have a negative effect: everything you do from here could lead to unconscious pressure to repeat it, right?

The thing is, I don't really understand the concept of success. What is it? We're always fighting for things. Each film, each project, is a challenge, a new process. Does seeing your film in a big festival and taking a trophy mean success? I don't know.

With another film, you might not have won prizes or recognition but you grew as a person, you learned something about yourself or other people. I like to approach every film as an incredible experience in itself. Each film is an adventure. I'll come out of it transformed, for better or for worse. That's what adventures are.

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