Un Dia Solitario en Invierno
A Lonely Day in Winter
Written and Directed by Santiago Cantu
Writer/Director: Santiago Cantu
Music: Marcelo Cantu
Runtime: 1hr and 3min
Genre: Existential Drama
During the winter of 2022 I had a lot of time to work on filming, especially considering how the pandemic lockdown was still going on. I initially started recording a couple of test shots, messing around with an anamorphic lens for the phone. Yet this shots slowly formed scenes, which started creating a narrative. Realizing the potential story, I decided to make a feature film, aiming for a 45 minute runtime.
The film is very simple, following a high school student with the loss of his brother. Throughout the story, the main character struggles with his purpose in life, looking for ways he could spend his life and be happy, while also exploring the grief of his brother’s death. These plot lines collide in the movie’s low point when the main character gives up, believing there is nothing more that will give him meaning.
In my process I worked on capturing emotions through the atmosphere of the film, using the ambient score, minimal editing, and dramatic lighting. I improved significantly in my film composition in order to create engaging and intentional images, and I gave my brother the opportunity to score the film. There are many flaws within the film, but it was still an incredible step in my filmmaking journey, and I couldn’t be proud of this work
