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Watch Submerged by Juan Lume

The main actions happen after the mysterious disappearance of Joaquin, a lonely and reserved man, somewhat paranoid and obsessed with the idea of time travel.

Trying to prove this theory through his own death under the idea that once dead he can cross from one time to another. From there, Joaquin seeks to find the logic to this hypothesis, until the situation becomes more and more a supernatural experience. It seems that everything is related to the inexplicable event of his disappearance. In turn, this condition suggests keeping him trapped in a kind of universe parallel to reality; an eternal return to the place where he supposedly disappeared. This is how Joaquín sees himself traveling again and again within all possible scenarios without finding a way. out or explanations, nor the solution to what motivated him to start this strange and unpredictable journey; without a way out to help explain if it is possible to change the course of events or everything moves towards an invariable destination. Juan Lumé is the director of Submerged and we spoke to him about the making of his film.

What motivated you as a filmmaker to work on Submerged?

SUMERGIDO is the result of a personal concern from an early age about the existence of parallel worlds, the multiverse and the relationship they have with our subconscious. The points where these intersect and connect with reality is the result of the short film SUMERGIDO.

I believe in a higher consciousness that some people reach because they are connected to something intangible, which allows us to discover a different and superior nuance of what we conceive as reality.

The character’s heartbreaking loneliness, as well as the timelessness of the events taking place in the script, helped me to conceptualize what it would mean to reach the other side of this dimension and the connection with our other realities.

How did you start making films and what was the first film project you created as a director?

When I was a child I usually played at making home movies, I have always been a big fan of films, photography and reading. Through reading I could develop a great imagination, besides having many references. In my teens I often missed classes to go to the movies (I keep on smiling when I remember those days). My first real approach to cinema as a director was in a fiction workshop organized at Balmaceda 1215 in Santiago de Chile. After that I took different acting and film courses, what pushed me to work for many years as a producer, consequently, directing films was a dream that I had to put off for some years. Until, in collaboration with Ignacio Verdugo, we founded the production company Go.Films, where my first short film was «Caída Libre» (Free Fall), a drama about Pedro and Nina’s life, a couple who, between sex, drugs and several discussions, fill their lives by playing dangerously between passion and suicide, creating in them a pursuit in the extremes. This short film starred Italo Spotorno and Martina Sivori, two important actors in most of my works. It was a great experience that allowed me to quickly approach at the cinema world in order to want to continue investigating this language.

 

How difficult is it to fund independent films and what were some of the challenges of making this independent film?

It is extremely difficult, you must have a great desire of wanting to make your movie to be able to achieve it. You must be willing to work hard and overcome quickly when things get complicated in order to have new ideas that allow you to keep moving forward. I consider fundamental the willingness to learn that each process provides, no matter how difficult it may be at times. I am deeply grateful to my closest team for supporting with strength and conviction each project that we as Go.Films have set out to do. In that way, besides my work, the work done by Ignacio verdugo as general producer and Italo Spotorno as actor has been essential, we have developed an interesting, creative and production team together. In addition to Romina Leiva in Photography Direction.

Which genre is your most favorite genre to work on? Why?

The psychological thriller, without doubt, awakens a great interest in my creative and research processes. I consider it highly attractive to look at the mental confrontations that each character may have, to develop their humanity, to talk about their contradictions, fears, impulses, phobias, etc. Personally, I think this genre allows me to investigate in detail what a character is feeling or thinking. It demands intimacy in the narrative, it requires talent and intelligence in acting, without forgetting that a visually attractive story must be built.

 

What is your next film project and what are you currently working on?

My next project will be to direct my first feature film «Asedio» a psychological thriller starring Italo Spotorno. We are working on it with Ignacio Verdugo and our production company Go.Films. We are currently in production and rehearsing process. It has been a long process of intensive psychological research regarding the characters, applying the Acting technique “El Método” (The Method) we are looking for the true emotions and thoughts of the roles we are going to play. We investigate how to define the difference between our behavior as well as the characters’ behavior, finding all the arguments for the actions that happen on the script, and then continuing from that point to act on yourself, without thinking about where your personal action ends and the character’s begins. The film shows Santiago’s life, a distinguished upper-class lawyer who appears to have a strong character, but who lives completely absorbed by a confusing and suffocating secret that is tormenting him. “Asedio” tells us about a world far from realistic optics within a continuous and frenetic movement. It shows us the physical and emotional sacrifice of a man who fights against disturbing shadows and dreamlike images.

How can cinema and films have an impact on society?

Cinema has had a great influence on the way we see the world, it is something that has revolutionized the way we think in society. I think that cinema can be a «reality builder» which not only influences fashions or customs, but clearly generates influence on an emotional level. This suggests other possibilities, considering that cinema is not only a means of entertainment, it could also be a way of making us better people. Furthermore, it can create a connection with people who are also with you, in the same room, at the same time. This happens as a result of the message transmitted by the film itself, which, in most cases, are similar to your reality.

Why do you want to make films and be a filmmaker?

Cinema has been an important part of my life for many years, therefore, telling stories to provide not only fun but also a moment of reflection or even company, generates in me a great enthusiasm to do this work. I think that cinema is a really motivating experience for many people. It’s also a way of sharing knowledge, producing debate and opinion, and this is always a very positive thing from any point of view.

FILM DAILY
Explore the surreal world of the indie short film ‘Submerged’

www.filmdaily.co/indie-film/submerged-film/

 

We have all felt like we don’t belong. There’s been a time or an incident in each of our lives where we felt detached from the world around us. It eventually passes, but there’s always the sneaking suspicion that we are right. Could we be in the wrong timeline or the wrong parallel universe? This is the thread filmmaker Juan Octavio Lumé Poblete dares to follow with his new short Submerged.

Submerged revolves around Joaquin, a lonely and disenchanted man who believes that he doesn’t belong. He theorizes that his death will allow him to walk between different time periods freely, but his attempt to test this theory results in a tense, mind-bending affair. Soon, Joaquin is unsure whether the supernatural experience he’s having is real or the result of his dwindling sanity.

 

Things get even stranger when Joaquin realizes that he’s trapped in a universe parallel to his own reality, and forced to watch himself traverse every possible scenario leading up to his disappearance. Joaquin must then determine whether it’s possible to change the course of previous events or whether the past (and future) are set in stone.

Juan Lumé has been toying with time travel and parallel realities since he was a child. He has long pondered the existence of these concepts, and he knew from an early age that he wanted to explore them in an artistic medium. The director believes that some mental conditions are actually just means of connecting to a higher plane of thought.

 

 

“Some people may consider it dementia, but I believe in the higher consciousness that some achieve by being connected to something intangible that leads us to discover a different and higher shade of what we conceive as reality”, Lumé explained. He also felt it was important to establish a level of emotion and relatability with the main character in the film.

“The character’s heartbreaking loneliness along with the timelessness of the events that occur in the script”, Lumé added. “It helped me conceptually chart what it would mean to reach the other side of this dimension and the connection to our other realities”.

FILM DAILY
‘Submerged’: The short science fiction film you need to see

www.filmdaily.co/indie-film/submerged-short-film/

 

Submerged is the latest release from director Juan Lumé. It’s a fascinating sci-fi drama that follows an obsessed loner named Joaquin as he attempts to prove the existence of time travel. He believes the only way to move across different plans of time is to die, so he winds up in a parallel dimension where he is forced to find his way back.

Submerged, also known as Submergido, is Lumé’s third short film after Caida Libre (2018) & Home (2020). The concept for the film stemmed from childhood, however, when Lumé began to ponder the existence of different realities. He has had a lifelong fascination with the multiverse theory, which is the belief that our reality exists on a plane with millions of alternates. The narrative possibilities that could be pulled from such a discovery were similarly endless.

The film delves into the blurriness of Joaquin’s mental health, and whether his visions are merely the result of delusion. Juan Lumé stated that the character is really meant to be tapping into a higher consciousness.

“Some people may consider it dementia, but I believe in the higher consciousness that some achieve by being connected to something intangible that leads us to discover a different and higher shade of what we conceive as reality”, the director added.

Isolation is another theme that recurs throughout Submerged. Joaquin is seemingly out of sorts with the world, and his loneliness fuels his desire to visit different timelines. It serves as a sort of beacon of hope, a chance for him to start anew and make meaningful connections with people.

The desire to make meaningful connections is what drove Lumé’s writing process. “The character’s heartbreaking loneliness along with the timelessness of the events that occur in the script”, he reasoned. “It helped me to conceptually chart what it would mean to reach the other side of this dimension and the connection to our other realities.”

As with so many time travel films, Submerged dares to ask whether our fate is our own to decide or a predetermined destination that we have no control over. These are huge questions to present to the viewer, but Submerged does so in a way that feels intimate and emotionally satisfying.

Juan Lumé intends to take his ambitious concepts to the next level. He helmed the stage plays Hansel y Gretel (2015-16) & Prometeo (2019), the former of which was nominated for a CLAP Award, and he’s currently working on the preproduction for his feature film debut, Asedio. Lumé will serve as director & producer on the film.

In addition to his creative endeavors, Lumé is the cofounder of Go.Films and the former General Producer for the multi-space cultural theatre “Ladrón de Bicicletas” in Santiago, Chile. He also experience in pedagogy and is teaching short film workshops in the field of Fiction at the Cultural Corporation Balmaceda 1215.