An Entrancing Conversation with Ricardo Preve
Photo Credit: Ricardo Preve Films LLC
Ricardo Preve is an Argentine filmmaker, photographer, and activist. Preve owns the audiovisual production companies Ricardo Preve Films LLC and Esto del Cine SRL. Ricardo received undergraduate and graduate degrees in Agronomy and Forestry from Virginia Tech. He has worked as a director, producer, and scriptwriter in nearly thirty productions for film and television. His films include Coming Home, The Patagonian Bones, De la Nubia a La Plata, José Ignacio, and La noche antes. The Patagonian Bones (2015) and Coming Home (2019) have won international awards and recognition. Preve has made a name for himself as a Chagas activist, raising awareness about the deadly disease in coordination with the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) organization.
As a photographer, Ricardo made his debut as a professional photographer in 2010, donating a portion of the proceeds from his first photo exhibit about the African goddess "Iemanja" to the Doctors Without Borders organization in light of the recent catastrophic earthquake in Haiti. Later his photographs were gathered by UNESCO for the exhibit "Afrodescendants / Prints and Identities," than exhibited in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. I had the pleasure and honor of asking Ricardo about his new film Pathways, how art helped define the human experience, what made him want to be a filmmaker and photographer, and so much more.
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UZOMAH: What made you want to become a photographer and filmmaker?
RICARDO: That is a question the media often ask me, and I have never found a good answer. I can tell you that the opportunity arose in 2001 when I, like many other Argentines, lost my job in the manufacturing industry because of one of the many financial crises that periodically afflict my country of origin.
A friend of mine, Fernando Spiner, is an accomplished director, and he gave me an opportunity to work with him on the film “Goodbye Dear Moon.” As a result of that experience, it became clear that filmmaking was what I wanted to do.
Filming in the Aksha Hall of the Museum of La Plata, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo Credit: Bautista Cardini
U: Can you discuss the inspiration for your new film, "Pathways"?
R: "Pathways" was born to some degree from my personal experience. As a teenager, I came to the US from Argentina in 1977 and was amazed at America's kindness and welcoming attitude toward immigrants.
Beginning in 2001 and then accelerating in the last five years, that attitude has diminished and, in some cases, morphed into a hostile and racist atmosphere. I decided that I, as a Hispanic filmmaker, could not remain silent but had a responsibility to fight against this change in attitudes toward immigrants. And thus was born "Pathways."
U: What drew you to making documentaries, and why are documentaries essential to the film industry?
R: My college education was in the biological sciences (I have degrees in Agronomy and Forestry from Virginia Tech). I was taught to gather data, analyze it, and draw conclusions. When I began making films, I found it a natural transition to make factual movies since many of the thought processes involved in making a documentary were already familiar.
Documentaries have grown in relevance within the film industry in the last couple of decades because they address the critical issues of a rapidly changing world and give people a chance to reflect on what the future holds for us.
Ricardo Preve at the the Museum of La Plata, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo Credit: Bautista Cardini
U: How does art help define the human experience for you?
R: I would argue that there is no human experience without art. Art makes us different from other organisms on this planet and also elevates our condition to a higher level of humanity. I truly believe art has a strong, positive transformational power in our society.
The exterior of the Museum of La Plata, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo Credit: Bautista Cardini
U: How would you explain to someone some of the key differences and critical similarities to classic movies and documentaries?
R: I think classic fiction films and documentaries benefit from the 3-part (beginning, middle, and end) story structure we know from Greek philosophy. Filmmakers are storytellers, regardless of whether that story is true or a made-up fable.
From there, the creative paths of classic fiction films and documentaries can vary widely. Still, in the end, they both have a narrative arch with increasing tensions, where heroes overcome obstacles to reach a denouement, whether happy or sad.
Ricardo Preve on the set of the documentary. Photo Credit: Bautista Cardini
U: How do you plan to tell that story of those fleeing and coming to America and other countries as immigrants where it shows a different side than what the mass media tells and often tells with a bias?
R: In Argentina, we have a saying: “The camera does not lie.” I truly believe that when you approach a subject in a documentary with honesty and fairness, the truth does come out. The faces, gestures, and words of those who sometimes risk their lives to come to the US tell a story that overcomes all biases and can be seen in the images we record.
Interview with the former director of the Sudan National Museum in Khartoum, Sudan. Photo Credit: Ricardo Preve Films LLC
U: What would you tell a young filmmaker who wants to get into making films, especially documentaries?
R: I would tell them to start small and pick a subject in which they are uniquely qualified or very local to where they live. In other words, if you live in New York, don’t try to make your first documentary about the South Pacific islands. Instead, grab your camera and walk out your door: there are lots of stories waiting to be told where you live.
Filming at the Museum of La Plata, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo Credit: Bautista Cardini
U: What is the best part about creating films?
R: That magical moment when you realize that all of it (the sweat, the tears, the stress, etc.) was worth it because you created a work of art that can transform the human condition.
Second unit filming at the Sudan National Museum in Khartoum, Sudan. Photo Credit: Ricardo Preve Films LLC
U: What is the most crucial part of the principal photography phrase?
R: I once worked for an experienced and talented producer, and he told me some words that I never forgot: "Always do what is best for the film.“ When you are shooting a documentary, you must stay focused on the story you want to tell and work at recording your footage with passion and perseverance. Don't let other things distract you.
U: What is a filmmaker's most crucial role as a storyteller?
R: The video camera allows you to rescue stories that may be lying dormant and long forgotten. Through our work as visual storytellers, we rescue those bits of the human experience from being lost forever, and we add them to the cultural heritage of mankind.
For more about Ricardo's films and photography, please visit his site and Facebook. Also, follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
