QUESTION#1: What excited you the most when making this film?: Filming in my hometown, Miami. Bringing a gothic literary fantasy, to a place often viewed as a nonstop party-on-the-beach, allowed me to show a depth to Miamians that is rarely explored in media.

QUESTION#2: What was the most significant film you've seen AT THE THEATER in 2024, and how did it influence your filmmaking?: The Wild Robot. The water-colored world, recalling the classic days of Miyazaki and Disney animation, stayed with me past the theater. Sanders' direction was sincere and witty. It reminded me of animation's ability to cut through the noise and reach our depths. I want that for my live-action work.

QUESTION#3: What's an obvious and not-so-obvious question someone might ask about your film?: When I first wrote the script, I overestimated how many people were familiar with "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock." So, I'm often asked, "What on earth is a 'Prufrock'?" But, once they understand who "Purdock" is, they ask why the poem meant so much to me.
My high school lit teacher, Ms. Borges, assigned "The Lovesong" to us in freshman year (the character in the first scene of the film is named for Borges, who is a continual influence on my work). Ever since I read the ambling stanzas at the age of 14, one line bound me to the tragic protagonist:

"I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid."

I had big dreams growing up, but they were tempered. As a child of immigrants, I was too smart to risk my life pursuing a career in film. Yet - I couldn't shake the desire. Would I, too, forever wear the shackles of indecision and revision? Where could I fit into a legacy of artists that rewarded the vices of intolerant men? I questioned and wondered until the day I rediscovered Prufrock. Not Eliot the writer, but the character he condemned. I knew I could not change the fate of those written out of this story before they could even read it. But maybe, with a little gumption, I could write my own.

QUESTION#4: A magic movie genie is giving you an unlimited budget for your next production! However, you're only allowed to use it on either "above line" or "below line" resouces. Which do you choose and why?: It would have to be below-the-line resources. All my films have fantastical elements and the biggest challenge for executing them is the budget. I am fortunate, working at an Acting Conservatory, to be surrounded by remarkably talented actors - and through my schooling, DP's and producers. I believe our star focused industry often deprives us of the endless well of talent in the theater and the yet-to-be discovered. I would take that magic genie budget and make sets worthy of Broadway, special effects make-up for terrific beasts, and elaborate choreographed numbers that give dancers a decent wage. For above-the-line, I'll turn to the right and left of me and lift those people up. And if no magic genie comes, we'll make magic anyway.

QUESTION#5: What is it about your current movie that will influence your next film?: I've always been drawn to revisionist fantasies with spellbinding scores (shout-out to Thomas Nielsen for Prufrock's magnificent music). I love movies that make the everyday world around us spectacular. The next project I'm working on is an AI Thriller inspired by the legend of Medusa. It re-examines who is truly villainous in the classic tale of a woman's likeness stolen for the profit of men. The through line of these two films is that women can be bold, brilliant and even wicked. We are unconfined by what marks us. To quote my Saving Prufrock protagonist, Ada, "we live by our own pen."

Social media tags to share with our readers: Instagram: @_karinapadron, @savingprufrockfilm