Guillermo Galoe Unpacks His Insider’s Vision of a Family Riven by Its Shanty Town’s Demolition in Critics’ Week’s ‘Sleepless City’

by

Rayo the white greyhound, a swift canine, chases a hare across sprawling meadows, spurred on by Toni and his family from a pickup truck driven by his grandpa Chule. The film “Ciudad sin sueño” (“Sleepless City”) commences with an atmosphere of jubilation and liberty, experienced by a Romani family residing in La Cañada Real, a nine-mile road that accommodates what is known as the largest shanty town in southern Europe, just a short trip west of Madrid.

Transition to the following scene in Cañada Real, where an excavator is tearing open the roof of a house as local officials carry out demolitions on the residences in Cañada Real. They provide alternative accommodations for some residents, including Toni’s family, in sterile apartment complexes located on the city outskirts. These new dwellings offer basic amenities like running water, electricity, a bedroom for each resident, and a nearby supermarket for convenience.

Sturdy and robust family leader Chule, whom Toni deeply respects, a scrap metal collector by trade, shows no signs of relocating. “Feel the breeze,” he suggests, spreading his arms wide. “We’re as vast as this field,” he shares with Toni, taking them out into the countryside. “That’s contentment,” he explains to Toni, indicating that expansiveness is happiness.

Despite not informing Toni yet, Chule secretly obtained a loan from the local drug dealer to purchase land and construct a legitimate home. In the process of this deal, he agreed to give up Rayo. The family of Bilal, Toni’s closest friend from Morocco, is relocating to the French coast. With this development, it seems that Toni’s time in Cañada Real may be coming to an end.

15, to the girl he admires, he’s considered worthless, like old scrap metal, yet he’s torn about his decision. The movie itself seems uncertain, mirroring the melancholic atmosphere of a fall Western – a town being swallowed by the tide of gentrification, symbolizing the end of an era that was freer.

Making its first appearance in Cannes Critics’ Week on Monday, the movie titled “Sleepless City” marks an impressive first full-length film by Spanish director Guillermo Galoe. Already recognized as a talented filmmaker, Galoe previously showcased his skills with the fiction short “Even Though It’s at Night,” a prelude to “Sleepless City,” which competed in the main competition at Cannes in 2023. The short film “Night” received a Spanish Academy Goya Award for the best fiction short movie. Earlier, Galoe’s work “Frágil Equilibrio” (2016) was also awarded a Goya for the best documentary feature.

Through the Cannes Festival’s Residence development program, and subsequently acquired by Best Friend Forever based in Brussels, the film “Sleepless City” has been licensed for distribution in Spain by BTeam Pictures.

This film is created by Les Valseurs and Les Films des Tournelles from France. In Spain, it’s distributed by Sintagma Films, which is Galoe’s own Madrid-based label, along with BTeam Prods, Buenapinta Media, and Encanta Film. The latter three are backing Alauda Ruíz de Azua’s “Lullaby,” a film Pedro Almódovar described as “the best debut in Spanish cinema for years.” If the initial reviews of “Sleepless City” are any indication, they might have another success on their hands.

EbMaster talked to Galoe just before “Sleepless City” bowed at Cannes.  

What made you particularly interested in telling this story?

I found myself immersed in tales of multiple family evictions, leading me to discover La Cañada Real. It left me speechless. Just 15 minutes from downtown Madrid and a mere 10 minutes from my own residence, there exists an entirely different universe, seemingly far removed yet surprisingly close, completely detached from reality and time. The sight took my breath away, stirring both my intuition and aesthetic senses. My films are birthed from personal experiences, and in this instance, I forged a connection with the world that ultimately transformed into a work of fiction within a real-life setting.

Or:

I delved into narratives about numerous family evictions, which led me to uncover La Cañada Real. It left me astounded. Just 15 minutes from central Madrid and a short 10-minute drive from my house, there lies a parallel universe that feels distant yet is within arm’s reach, detached from the world as we know it and time itself. The sight struck me deeply, resonating on an intuitive and aesthetic level. My films are inspired by experiences I have of a world before they touch my senses. In this case, I established a bond with that world, which ultimately morphed into a work of fiction within a real-life setting.

I believe you spent two years in La Cañada without shooting anything. 

I was only able to work there daily, for weeks, from 2019….

Do your experiences in creating documentaries often involve living through the reality portrayed before deciding the storyline?

Absolutely, I’m fond of cinematography that mirrors real-life experiences, and I find the world more relatable through a lens. We started conducting workshops, where we filmed short movies using smartphones, involving children and families.

Toni and Bilal’s films, which colorfully distort objects, settings, people’s faces or even entire garbage piles like in vivid dreams, might be interpreted as an escape from reality. Yet, they also mirror the tales shared by their grandmother about fantastical lands with a kaleidoscopic sky.

The vibrantly-hued photos were delightful, offering an artistic blend. They enabled me to visually weave together the tales I heard there, along with stories I had heard as a child. My grandparents hail from Extremadura, a region in southwestern Spain, and Portugal. Many of the gypsies residing in Cañada Real originate from the same area. My grandparents traversed the same fields, trained dogs together, listened to similar legends. From the start, the grandmother in the movie bore a striking resemblance to my own grandmother, touching me deeply.

Guillermo Arriaga once pointed out that a movie can be encapsulated in just a few phrases. In my view, “Sleepless City” is about saying farewell to a father.

In essence, my job involves delving into realms far removed from my personal experiences, seeking commonalities that resonate with me. For me, cinema embodies life itself, and life is a continuous voyage. Therefore, I wanted to discuss this connection, as it lies at the core of the film’s emotional narrative.

And the father is of course a father figure, Chule.  

The movie explores the concept of family inheritance, as Toni’s parents are quite young and aren’t fully capable of raising their own kids independently. Instead, it’s the grandparents who step in to provide care. A support system is always available for them.

That can be tremendously positive….

I concur. The movie isn’t about glorifying La Cañada Real, but it does provoke thought. As this world vanishes, what are we replacing it with? We have a homogenized, anxious capitalist world that’s hyper-connected yet dismally so. There’s little sense of community in metropolises. The film poses the question: Must we sacrifice everything for progress?

Toni is torn about the decision to move to Madrid. On one hand, he’s impressed by the convenience of running water from a tap in the flat that his parents have been offered. However, on the other hand, he ponders over what he would be giving up: Chule, the open fields, his pet dog, and the freedom he currently enjoys.

In the movie, the characters experience a profound sense of mourning. Toni isn’t just losing his friend and social circle but also the innocent perspective he had as a child, one capable of amazement and wonder. Uniquely, Toni can perceive things in La Cañada that most adults overlook. The film presents unusual images compared to what we typically see about places like La Cañada.

It’s clear as day when observing the specific, unfiltered moments of childhood, as Toni and Bildal play near the stream, trying to catch a lizard.

The movie explores a facet of grown-up existence – accepting that you can’t have all your desires fulfilled. The theme of freedom is also prominent. For Chule, freedom embodies the serene landscapes surrounding La Cañada, which he shares with Toni. Contrastingly, several younger characters in the movie appear to long for an escape from La Canada and its surroundings.

As a film enthusiast, I’d like to share my thoughts on the making of “Sleepless City.” While it was crafted with elements reminiscent of neo-realism, what truly sets it apart is its undeniable style. This stylishness is largely due to the exceptional work of our Director of Photography, Rui Poças, who has previously graced us with his artistry in films like “Zama” and “Grand Tour.” When embarking on the creation of “Sleepless City,” my aesthetic intentions were to blend realism with a touch of elegance, aiming to create a visual experience that resonates deeply with our audience.

For me, utilizing cameras served as a realm of liberty that I desired within the movie, yet it also intensified the character’s authenticity by capturing themselves through their mobile devices. The sequences I shot mimicked the style of a cell phone camera, devoid of edits or abrupt cuts.

Read More

2025-05-20 20:17