DIRECTOR SPOTLIGHTCoco Roy
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As a Boston-based filmmaker, how does the local art and film community influence your work? Are there any collaborators or spaces that have been particularly supportive?
I’m really lucky because my community of friends and collaborators has always been incredibly supportive over the years. I love working with many of the same actors in my films, and fortunately, my friends are always up for it. Lisa Xu, who plays the lead witch in this film, has been in almost all my projects (thanks, Lisa!). Renato Montenegro and I have collaborated on multiple films, and I believe his beautiful scores are what truly bring the films to life.
Local drag performer Sherman constantly inspires me, and we’ve collaborated many times. Casey Spec is my oldest collaborator, and even though we don’t live in the same city anymore, he always manages to make a cameo in my films. My husband, Salty, is my biggest supporter and collaborator. He’s the person I bounce ideas off of, and he’s there for every film—whether it’s holding lights, helping with continuity, or just dealing with me destroying our apartment to turn it into a set and being a lunatic.
I’m really lucky because my community of friends and collaborators has always been incredibly supportive over the years. I love working with many of the same actors in my films, and fortunately, my friends are always up for it. Lisa Xu, who plays the lead witch in this film, has been in almost all my projects (thanks, Lisa!). Renato Montenegro and I have collaborated on multiple films, and I believe his beautiful scores are what truly bring the films to life.
Local drag performer Sherman constantly inspires me, and we’ve collaborated many times. Casey Spec is my oldest collaborator, and even though we don’t live in the same city anymore, he always manages to make a cameo in my films. My husband, Salty, is my biggest supporter and collaborator. He’s the person I bounce ideas off of, and he’s there for every film—whether it’s holding lights, helping with continuity, or just dealing with me destroying our apartment to turn it into a set and being a lunatic.
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Mark Anastasio of The Coolidge has always been incredibly supportive of my work, for which I’m very grateful. Thanks to Mark, Cheyenne Harvey, and the Coolidge Corner staff, I was able to film there recently, which was huge, and I’m extremely thankful.
I’ve had the opportunity to screen with GRRL HAUS CINEMA and the Boston Underground Film Festival, both at The Brattle. Every time I’ve been a part of those Brattle screenings, I feel like I’m truly part of the local scene. It’s exciting to see what other people in town (and beyond) are creating. I also work in the film industry, and through that, I’ve made friends who all help each other out on short films whenever we can. All of this is a long-winded way of saying that I really love the community of artists I’m surrounded by, and I’m so grateful for all their inspiration and support. As far as influence goes, as I mentioned, I’m fortunate to be surrounded by so many performers and artists who really push me. When you’re around people who are constantly creating, it fuels you to do the same. |
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In ‘Sogno Rosso’, you play a lot with the theme of supernatural (witches, magic)—is there something specific that inspired you?
It's just something I’ve always been drawn to. I’ve always been a day dreamer so its not too wild that a lot of my films revolve around dreamscapes. I’ve always been fascinated by dreams and loved any stories or films about witches and magic. I love all the different things a witch can represent depending on what lens you’re viewing them. Powerful , smart , sexy, wise, scary, scorned the list goes on and on. |
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I really enjoyed the almost dream like and psychedelic vibes of the film—how do you achieve this visually on Super 8? Is it mostly in-camera techniques or post-production experimentation?
It's a little of both. I really love the texture of super 8 so that's I guess the baseline. I’ve also worked with it for a while so you learn what colors can really pop on what film, what lighting etc.. so I definitely play with that when I’m designing costumes and lighting. I love overlaying images and I do that digitally when I’m editing. When I first started learning film I would edit everything on a tiny splicer. But now I shoot on film and then edit digitally. I like to have a balance of letting the look and feel of the film shine through with some experimentation with the editing.
It's a little of both. I really love the texture of super 8 so that's I guess the baseline. I’ve also worked with it for a while so you learn what colors can really pop on what film, what lighting etc.. so I definitely play with that when I’m designing costumes and lighting. I love overlaying images and I do that digitally when I’m editing. When I first started learning film I would edit everything on a tiny splicer. But now I shoot on film and then edit digitally. I like to have a balance of letting the look and feel of the film shine through with some experimentation with the editing.
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Could you share insights into the production process for Sogno Rosso? How long was the shoot, and were there any notable challenges or memorable experiences during filming?
It was shot over a period of a couple months because we shot in the woods, at the beach and then I turned our apartment into a set (sorry Salty ha). I also made the backdrops and costumes so that took some time. Some of the film didn’t come out which was a massive bummer so I ended up having to reshoot some scenes so that was challenging. All of the beach scenes were extremely planned out because we were shooting with the tides - It had to be shot at low tide - and with the sunset. We also shot in the ocean so there was a little bit of please don’t drop the camera and once we shot my scenes going in the water that was kinda it because I only had one costume. Also there were people at the beach so trying to not get other beach goers in the shot is always a fun challenge. In tandem with all of this along with after filming,Renato and I would have meetings about score and sound design . Then once I got the film back and edited it then I send it again for him to score, then we go back and forth about sonic cues ect. Its a lot of work for a short film! |
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The film explores grief through a surreal journey within the protagonist's mind, featuring encounters with witches. How did you conceptualize this inner landscape, and what role do the witches play in the protagonist's emotional or psychological transformation?
The ocean has always been a really healing place so I wanted the protagonist to end up there. I also feel like running and being transported to this “ island” was a good representation of loneliness and grief. The witches are the guides on this journey. At first the passenger is scared and sees them as a warning but then realizes they are guiding her. She’s running the whole time and drowning. You can’t run from grief or sadness , you can be swallowed by it , but ultimately its something you have to conquer yourself. The witches are essentially there to be like you’re not alone though it may feel like it. |
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Coco Roy is a leo born under a full moon. She is a local filmmaker and musician. Her films are heavily influenced by the occult , tarot and the dream world.
You can find more about her work at : https://cocoroy.com/home.html |
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