Is he one of the best actors of his generation. He does not like to embody linear characters, enjoys the complexity and contradiction in terms of representation and is not afraid to take risks.
Addressing three persogens you created in "the art of stealing," "the last condemned to death" and "call girl". Which of these three was a challenge in terms of building the characters?
IC: I really enjoyed doing the "call girl". Working with Antonio-Pedro Vasconcelos, by the scrypt, the way it was written and freedom that the director gives actors to work. It was a great challenge for the shooting speed and the characteristics of the character, was a police with lot of speed, who acted first three times before thinking.
You are attracted more to this kind of marginal characters, fleeing the stereotype of the typical good and the bad guy?
IC: Not necessarily. Whar attract me are projects where things are not absolutely linear and there is some complexity, marginals always have a rebellion that allure me, as well as the so called bad characters. But, I think it is funny as an actor not to make that decision a priori, that is, not decide whether a character is a villain. There were a few years a film that impressed me much with Bruno Ganz, a German actor, who was Hitler and what was interesting in the character is that we can create a certain empathy with him, which should not happen, due to what he made to humanity. As a human Hitler was evil for some, terrible for others, however, it was said that he had a wonderful relationship with his grandchildren, was a downright grandfather, as an actor I am interested in these contradictions and complexities.
You have a long career in Portuguese cinema. Looking at this point backwards, do you think there is an evolution, or a step backwards? Today we speak much of the crisis, of that there is no funding for the Portuguese cinema. How do you look at all this route?
IC: I think we had more economic good times. My generation picked up the movie boom, at least tried to, maybe we have not managed things the best way to set up schools, not in the literal sense, at least the habit of writing screenplays and directing actors, which I think they are two our weaknesses. It is always very difficult to find good scripts anywhere in the world and the direction of actors is not fully developed in Portugal, there are people who know how to film, but do not know always to direct and ultimately who is in front of the cameras are actors and not conducting technique, others will say otherwise, but this is where I stand. Today we face through a major crisis, funding stopped two years ago, there was a large drop in production, but on the other hand, was born a new generation that grew up with these limitations and quickly realized that they could not be waiting for support and went ahead with small projects and we have young filmmakers who are producing first and second works that I find interesting. I think our country has to solve the manner issues of patronage law, where a producer can get support from companies and they have counterparts in fiscal terms. This happens a lot in Brazil and when it was clarified the legal framework happen what they call the resumption, today Brazilian cinema has come a long way. We have to clarify, in my view, the patronage law in order to increase the independence of the state but also where you can get money in return for having viewers and movies that can be viewed by the public. Then there is also another issue where I think more and more that are the related rights, the image of the actors, we have had them and not now, it is to be paid not only to participate in the film, but each time it goes on wherever, for those who participated get a percentage of gain, it does not exist today. On one hand, the work we did continues to be passed on television, they receive money from advertising and who worked on the film does not get any more. Forcing an actor to have to participate in many things when it could be more economically safeguarded, on the other hand, and I hope to be right, because this will be solved one day, would create a larger initial investment in film production, would have a positive impact on the public and it will be worth being viewed from there to the future, so there would be a greater responsibility to pay those who participated in the film. I really believe it would have a positive impact on the industry, the actors would receive what was due them and to the public was not thrown into the eyes dozens of productions made in three strokes, at times that no one will actually see and which were produced by one reason only, just for the occupation of time schedule.
As an actor you have divided yourself in the theater, television and you participated in "ice". Can you tell me a little about this work?
Ivo Canelas: The "ice" is a science fiction story, with a very strong dreamy side which speaks, not wanting to uncover the script too much because there is an element of surprise that I do not intend to reveal, of criogenics, ie the freezing of bodies so that people can be resuscitadas in the future. My character works in this area, is who manages the criogenics company.
And why did you accepted to do this character? What attracted you?
IC: It attracted me the cast, Albano Geronimo, Afonso Pimentel, Ivana Vaquero and there was another side, which was the script, I had never worked on a science fiction movie and wanted to try.
You talked about the question of the actor need to always be working, you move between television and cinema, audiovisual has always been an area that attracted you more though theater?
IC: Theater, film and television I work in all areas.
You do not have any favorite?
IC: No, I like especially projects with colleagues, with people. Where there is that I believe may have value and I want to be there, regardless of medium, television, cinema, radio, dance, performance, or other. Fortunately I think it is a characteristic of my generation have been required to be positively multifaceted. I have no preference for the environment, either is valid to do good works.
Is there a Portuguese film that you would like to work with?
IC: I have never worked with João Canijo.
And internationally? There was a time that you went to do castings in the US, this is a bet you left aside?
IC: No, was done in certain molds, the last time I did this was in 2012, I spent a year living in New York I dedicated myself to try to get an agent, went to castings and the result was not expected, I think I planted some seeds, but not harvested anything. I am always available to find work wherever it is.
And who would you like to work at international level?
IC: I would love to work with PT Anderson who was the one who held the "Magnolia" and "there will be blood." I would also work with the latest, Steve MacQueen who did "Shame", the "Hanger".
And in the theater you think that there is some character you would like to incarnate and still do not have the maturity to cope?
IC: I do not know. There are a number of characters who I would like to do, but I'm do not really have a fetish in order to want to embody any in particular, I see it case by case. There is no character I ask myself if I have the maturity, perhaps wonder if I will have the human dimension to fill as it should be.
You feel difficulties in stripping some characters?
IC: No, you know, I was reading Antonio Damasio who speaks of the consciousness, he states that it is a well thought-out machine and excellent in function. For this to happen to me I would have to be malfunctioning, living on the edge of madness and there maybe I could not perform. The opposite is difficult, at least in shuffling consciousness enough to make it believe in something we are not.
