
"If you can make sure that everyone is on the same page, the better your chances are to produce and create most fluidly. That is the beauty of the collaborative process: all these beautiful, creative minds, working together to tell one story."
João Côrtes
João is the son of a music producer and a school coordinator. He started his acting career in theatre at the age of 12. Back then, he also drew the public's attention for his participation in a series of commercials by the operator Vivo, launched in 2013. His performance was praised, and he began getting invitations to play significant roles on a few famous TV shows in Brasil. Apart from his acting success, João was always keen to experience new stuff and, in 2018, he participated in the second season of the talent show 'Popstar', becoming then the runner-up in the competition. His success on the show led him to become the presenter of the third season. In 2019, João surprised his fans once again when turning his focus to the 7th art. 'By Those Hands that Lead Me' is his debut feature film, premiered at the FIN Atlantic International Film Festival, in Canada.
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By Those Hands that Lead Me
Country of origin: Brasil
Narrative Feature Film
'By Those Hands that Lead Me' tells a slice of Amora’s life: A 22-year-old girl, born out of two artistic parents, that becomes an orphan when she’s very young. Amora goes thru the challenges of becoming an independent woman, having to deal with the pain of her loss.

We have seen so many actors who've made a successful transition to the director's chair in cinema history. In the end, both crafts are not so different. One could argue a maestro should know how to play music, and a musician should be eventually able to coordinate the band. In the film world, this metaphor is not so accurate because a director should be able not just to direct the cast but also to understand a bit about every other department such as editing, sound, colour, etc. João felt ready to give that jump, and we were curious about his work approach as a recent director. Mostly regarding the most challenging task for a director: managing the crew's creative process. According to him "I think, as a director, that communication is key. Actually, not only as a director but as an artist. You have to be willing to open yourself up to your team. Let them know what you're going for, what kind of movie you want to make. At first, you need to be very clear about where you want to go and what's on your mind. What you imagine in terms of concept, feeling, message, storytelling... And if you can pass it on to your cast and crew, if you can make sure that everyone is on the same page, the better your chances are to produce and create most fluidly. That is the beauty of the collaborative process: all these beautiful creative minds working together to tell one story. But for that to happen, they all need to be connected".
Have you ever seen that act where the guy gets a bunch of plates spinning on the ends of sticks? Now imagine doing that while having twelve people screaming at you, balancing a budget, and chasing the sunset. That's directing. We have a sense of how high the stress levels can be. What makes all of it worse is the added stress of not knowing if and when you'll work again. There are a thousand reasons that your movie can lose money that have absolutely nothing to do with you. Guess what? Each of these reasons will always be the director's fault.
João seems to be ready for the challenge. Everything was new for him on this project, and he seemed to handle the pressure quite well. When asked about it, his relaxed attitude reveal the spirit of a leader. "Well, this is my debut film, so everything was new! I feel like it's a combination of many things. Time is one of them. If you have enough time to read the script, to discuss it with everyone, to study and prepare it, etc. That will help to ease the pressure. Also, you have to choose your crew wisely. Work with people that will add to your project. Smart people that will listen. In that sense, I chose people from different backgrounds. My 23-year-old brother, Gabriel, was the cinematographer, one of the actors - Bruno Suzano, is 26 years old, not very experienced as well, but a huge talent. And at the same time, the soundtrack was composed by Ed Côrtes who did the soundtrack for the City of God, Lord of War, etc. The editor of the film was Federico Brioni, who worked on big projects like 'Coisa Mais Linda', for Netflix... So to have that mixture gives you balance, and it helps a lot. But most importantly: You need to trust your instincts. Wildly. You need to trust yourself, as hard as it may be. And trust the feeling that led you to that position. And it's an exercise to keep coming back to the core of what you first imagined, even with all the millions of things that you'll have to decide and take care of. As a director, you are a leader. In my case, I was the writer and director, so I knew what the film should look like and how each scene should feel like I had to stick with that and take everyone with me. Stand your ground".
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