9 - New Frontiers in Art Direction: João Guerra da Mata’s Contribution to Portuguese Cinema as a Case Study

Summary

INTRODUCTION

João Rui Guerra da Mata stands out as a unique case as far as Portuguese cinema is concerned. He made his debut as a costume and set designer in the mid-1990s, working closely with João Pedro Rodrigues as the latter's film career progressed. This partnership motivated Guerra da Mata to start developing his own body of work as a screenwriter, director, and editor, and he is also responsible for introducing the term “art direction” into Portuguese cinema. The aim of this chapter is to introduce Guerra da Mata's work by way of analysis of the shots and scenes that most clearly display his art direction in action.

As I explore the role of the art director, I will focus on the creative processes that materialize in props, décor, and costumes. I will also address the symbolism that is contained in both initial storyboarding and the screenplay, from the very beginning. This is especially important when we consider how objects in cinema can become the carriers of coexisting symbolisms and narrativities. Such an approach is only successful if we focus on the interconnectedness of the films and the narrative threads that develop among moving image sequences. By looking at the historical contextualization of the various meanings of the term “art direction” in contemporary cinema, I will explore the theoretical frameworks that may be used to discuss the various roles played by the film trades in the creative process as a set of signs and developments that propel the materialization of an idea from paper to screen. Hence, the analysis will be informed by a discussion of selected shots and scenes from the feature films O Fantasma (Phantom, 2000), Odete (Two Drifters, 2005), Morrer Como um Homem (To Die Like a Man, 2009), and O Ornitólogo (The Ornithologist, 2016), all of which were directed by João Pedro Rodrigues, with art direction by João Rui Guerra da Mata.

At what point do we start to see the intersection of the selection of artistic material with the stylistic choices that arise from the screenplay and film direction? From what moment does a creative process begin to develop between the film director and the different art departments? Only a few props, sets, and costumes are required to start unveiling the processes of art direction that are activated by contact with the screenplay and the initial selection of the choice of materials.