César Pesquera. Filmmaker and visual artist

Santa Ana
 

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Awards
2019. Gold Laus ADG-FAD
2018. Salute Your Shorts. Honorable mention Best documentary. 

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Selected Screenings
2018. Aesthetica Short Film Festival. York (UK)
2018. Lago Film Fest. Revine Lago (IT)
2018. LA OLA. Los Angeles, New York, CDMX (USA, MX)
2018. Imagine Film Festival. Amsterdam (NL)
2018. South By Southwest (US). Nominee SXSW Grand Jury Award.
2018. Fest. Int. Cartage de Indias (CO)
2018. Guadalajara Film Festival (MX)
2018. Slamdance Festival (US)
2017. Sochi Film Festival (RU)
2017. Interfilm Festival. Berlin. (DE)
2017. BFI London Film Festival (UK)
2017. Sitges Film Festival (ES)
2017. Raindance Film Festival. London (UK)

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Credits
A PANDORA: project
Produced by STORY: In Association with Wild Goats Creative

Directed by César Pesquera
Written by Kako Mendez, Christian López and César Pesquera
Art Direction: Christian López, César Pesquera and Kako Mendez
Executive Producers: Víctor Mata and Ana Laura Solís
Produced by Salvador Gutiérrez Chacón and Víctor Mata
Co-Produced by Cecilia Salguero and Aldo Chacón
Director of Photography: José Luis Bernal
Still Photographer: Javier Tles
Costume Designer: Mairi Chisholm
Editor: César Pesquera
Music and sound design: Nick Smith
Colorist: Marc Morató
Title Lettering: Marta Cerdà
CGI: Entropy
VFX: Lastcrit

Featuring: Enrique Escobedo, Pirate Mike Patterson, Sonia Herbert, David Aaron, Carlo Roncaciano, Brian Brown, Diane Yoder Reynaldo. 

Cast: Rixt Leedy, Laura Niubó, Aldo Chacón.

Special Thanks: Anne Heuer, Cristopher Cichocki, Javier Tles, Pau Arregui, Mike McV, Yuki Noguchi, CSLA Equipment Rental, Metropolitana, Lastcrit, Mairi Chisholm, Dylan Berg, The Amargosa Hotel, Longstreet Inn & Casino Villa Anita

Short film  
8:18 | HD Video 1 Ch. | Stereo
Available formats: DCP | BluRay | QT HD

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Santa Ana elucidates the mysterious link between evil and the infamous Santa Ana Winds. The "Red Wind" originates inland and blows through the coastal Southern California. Legend has it that these extremely dry down-slope hot airs cause drastic mood swings among Angelenos, sparking tensions and uneasy wrathful human behaviors. 

Part documentary, part experimental video art, the film is a collection of visual allegories and testimonials from denizens of the deserts. Their bloodcurdling accounts, coupled with visual references from classic horror films, as well as literary works from authors like Joan Didion and Raymond Chandler, give the viewer a glimpse into the bleak landscape shaped by this wicked natural force. 

This devilish horror art-doc is the second artistic endeavor from Spanish director César Pesquera and art director Christian Lopez, who previously co-created Tramuntana, a film about the famous mediterranean wind. This time, writer Kako Mendez joined the team along with photographer Javier Tles to venture into the dessert and bring alive the story. The project is a co-production between Story: (Barcelona) and LA based Wild Goats Creative.

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