Neus Ballús is a Catalan film director and scriptwriter. Her first film, “The Plague,” premiered at Berlinale Forum and was nominated for the European Film Awards, LUX Prize, and Goya Awards. Her second feature, “Staff Only,” premiered in the Berlinale Panorama.
“The Odd-Job Men” will premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9. The fest is taking place September 9-18.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
NB: “The Odd-Job Men” is a film about how ordinary life is in fact extraordinary. It is a hybrid film that was shot with real people after a process of casting more than 1000 real-life plumbers and their real-life clients.
It’s a film about everyday people we all know: our neighbors, the people who sell us our bread, our plumbers and electricians. It explores how these normal people actually have extraordinary lives and stories.
Finally, it is a film about dealing with difference and diversity.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
NB: My stepfather was a plumber. Since I was 12 years old, he would come back home from work and recount all kinds of interesting and weird situations that he would find himself in while visiting his clients’ homes. I discovered that there were these relationships that got really close very quickly, accompanied by lots of drama, and comedy as well, all of which situations that could say a lot about how we relate to one another as humans.
This was the starting point of my film — how human communication can arise in a very simple situation that we all have experienced before.
W&H: What do you want people to think about after they watch the film?
NB: I’d like all of us to question ourselves: how we deal with differences in our daily relationships, not only with people we know well, but also with stranger, and how we deal with someone who is not like us in terms of language, color of their skin, economic status, or cultural background. This is the very nature of humanity: this ability within each of us to deal with this difference, to accept it, and to overcome it, so that we can find this mutual core, which is basically for me the start of a successful, happy community.
The second thing I’d like people to think about: to value our daily life, and to acknowledge that life is actually an adventure. It can appear less spectacular than the one that we see in movies, but my movie actually tries to prove otherwise — that our life can actually be very interesting. Our dramas and situations are very significant in how we are as humans.
It is an invitation to the audience to see their daily lives differently; they are the leaders of their daily lives, so they can act differently if they want to.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
NB: Actually, there were several challenges. First of all, finding the balance between lightness and depth, between comedy and drama, between documentary and fiction, between what was written in the script and what was improvised during the shoot.
Secondly, I had more than 70 hours of shot material and of course, there were many possible films within all that raw footage. The biggest challenge in my professional career has been to edit this movie; it took nine months of editing and it was a difficult task.
Casting, preparing, and working with non-professional actors — none of them had any experience in filmmaking beforehand. We spent two years prepping them to act as themselves in situations during the actual shoot in which they had to improvise and yet feel free to be themselves.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
NB: In Spain, we have this hybrid way of funding small-budget films — more than half of the budget comes from public institutions, the rest comes from various TV stations. For “The Odd-Job Men,” we needed at least five approvals of committees, co-producers, and other people involved. It wasn’t like we could approach a single studio to pitch the film; we had to prove to many people why it was a good idea to make this film and talk about this particular subject.
W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
NB: I started studying audiovisual communication with a far-removed idea of becoming a filmmaker; it has never been something I’d even dreamed of. I just became a filmmaker simply by doing it. I felt this very deep need to tell certain stories that seemed “normal,” but which I found really relevant.
Becoming a filmmaker came little by little with the need to shoot, and not with a conscious decision of becoming a filmmaker. As a matter of fact, the concept of being referred to as a filmmaker even after three features still feels weird for me. What defines me is quite simply this urge to film, to write, to shoot, to edit, and to tell stories.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
NB: On the first day of our contemporary cinema class, our teacher announced to the whole class that “none of you will become filmmakers.” It wasn’t a problem for me because I hadn’t aspired of becoming a filmmaker, considering that the filmmakers I knew were mostly male, American, and shooting genre movies.
As I’d mentioned, this wasn’t something I’d dreamed about. But then, I actually felt this strength that I could make my first film, and while shooting the film, I found myself saying: “I’m going to prove my teacher wrong!” So, this contemporary cinema teacher’s advice was probably the best and the worst at the same time.
W&H: What advice do you have for other women directors?
NB: To the women directors out there: All of you are so unique and we need your stories. One of the most difficult things I encountered as a storyteller was to believe in my own uniqueness and voice. I felt that it was my duty to find that voice, to be persistent, so that I could make this voice as close to its reality as possible.
Making a film is not something you do to prove anything to the world, but something that you have to do for yourself. If it’s interesting to you and if you’re persistent, it will be interesting to the world.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
NB: I can’t really say that I have a favorite film. Instead, I would like to tip my hat to the overall career of Claire Denis, a filmmaker I deeply respect. She’s very brave in terms of finding ways to explore her own voice and the limits of cinematic language in a very artistic and experimental manner. In her last film, “High Life”, I saw how as women we can get closer to making genre movies — but with another perspective.
I found “High Life” deeply inspiring. I really respect how Claire Denis dares to go beyond what we see every day.
W&H: How are you adjusting to life during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you keeping creative, and if so, how?
NB: This pandemic has forced us all to ponder on how we deal with uncertainty and how we can keep focus when there is so much suffering around us. But it’s also very inspiring to see how these challenges have shown us how we relate to one another, to death, and to ourselves. “The Odd-Job Men” is also about how we are all connected, and that the solution of a better understanding is actually connecting to each other.
This is what this pandemic is teaching us as well. Keeping connected with art, films, writing, expressing this sensation of the uniqueness of this moment, is actually helping us survive.
W&H: The film industry has a long history of underrepresenting people of color onscreen and behind the scenes and reinforcing — and creating — negative stereotypes. What actions do you think need to be taken to make it more inclusive?
NB: In Spain and Catalonia, there’s been a lot of talk about “quota” and how quotas can change the access of certain storytellers. We need to find some measures for public funding to represent diverse voices in the film community. It’s not going to change naturally; we have to take action in putting to the forefront underrepresented people who have something to say from a different perspective.
I myself try to do it; my films are shot in different languages and I try to give voice to people who I feel are more interesting than me. In the case of “The Odd-Job Men.” it was through one of my lead actors, Mohamed Mellali, someone who is originally from Morocco but he had been living in Spain for a few years and making a living as a plumber. Moha’s unique voice and perspective were what I’d needed in order for my film to give a deeper message to the audience.
