It is a short film of 15 minutes, written and directed by César Schofield Cardoso. It is, in the words of Filintio Elísio Correia e Silva, root is a very cosmopolitan film, roothed, performative, that talk about the things of the Cape Verdean man, not beeing a very green country and have a very rough and hard nature. Then addresses the man struggling with this nature, this port with Africa, which has African music and European culture brought by religion.
What led you to write a script for a film without words?
César Schofield Cardoso: I must frame this project in my beginings as a photographer and for a long time I did only photography, which is an act of speaking only with the image. When I started making films I carried that way, this purely visual language, then "root" was done that way. Also I am very intrigued the Cape Verdean people, how holds up, we are a country that has long periods of drought, I would say that is intense, there are people living in a very hard way and I wonder how these people survived all this time. Intrigues me also this coexistence, which is not very peaceful, between cultures. So, the film has those elements, in addition to a nature that is very powerful, visually and to those cultures that are in permanent shock in dialogue, reconstruction, is a universe that defines me as much as cape verdean. It is of the things that I observe in my own land, is a topic that is very dear to me.
You speak of culture shock, but there is another between nature and religion?
CSC: Yes, I must say that all religions intrigue me, but particularly Catholicism. I am interested in the blame, we are sinners, we are guilty, we must suffer, resign ourselves, right? So I bring it, I put this question in comparison with the beat, which came directly from Africa and that is the force of struggle, non-resignation, these are the elements that put in conversation.
The dry element is placed in opposition to the water at the beginning and end of the film, why?
CSC: The cinema is a language and we used our components and tricks. Talking about a drouth with the sound of water it particularly violent this condition happens that is an aspect that jumps right out when you see the film and that people talk a lot and works, because viewers are annoyed, that water appears almost as a joke, is not it? (laughs)
