The film debuted for Alfonso Cuaron when he was young. These days, says the Oscar-winning director, life does that.
He made the comments at his Busan International Film Festival masterclass on Thursday, a day after he and his son Jonas Cuarón, his co-writer on the 2013 space survival drama “Gravity,” rewatched the film following an IMAX screening.
Alphonso’s relationship with filmmaking has changed over time. He said, “When I was young, films were everything and life was a part of it. Now the situation is the opposite.” “Life as an experience is what I care about most now.”
In that conversation, the pair reflected on their shared love of cinema and the technical experimentation behind “Gravity,” which won Alfonso the Best Director Oscar. Jonas also brought “Campion Gabacho” to Busan for its Asian premiere in the World Cinema section.
For Jonas, the core of “Gravity” was rebirth: two characters experiencing loss and finding a way to move forward, with limited dialogue and an atmosphere that made every action matter. Alfonso recalled their discussions about how setting and movement could express the will to survive.
Their collaboration was also based on films they watched together. At a press conference, Alfonso recalled Jonas’s childhood affection for Robert Bresson’s “A Man Escaped” and Vittorio De Sica’s “Bicycle Thieves.”
Jonas said, “By growing up watching the movies that they love, and then finding what I love, I tell a story that is simple but powerful in terms of emotion.”
Alfonso cited Hitchcock’s approach of putting ordinary people in extraordinary situations as a reference for “Gravity”, and emphasized the human interests behind its spectacle. Its extended takes were conceived from the beginning to maintain the emotional involvement of the audience.
The senior Cuaron recalled drawing inspiration from the LED displays at a Rolling Stones concert. For “Gravity”, the production used robot-controlled cameras and extensive CGI, as well as a custom-built LED light box to simulate the changing illumination of its digital space environment on the actors.
In the masterclass, Alfonso expanded his approach to long takes and framing, invoking French filmmaker Alain Resnais. “There are 1,000 possibilities for camera placement, but only one is right,” Alfonso said. “It’s not about what you see, it’s about what you don’t see.”
The emphasis on choosing what remains outside the frame led to his view that virtual reality cannot replace cinema.
Meanwhile, Jonas expressed his admiration for Korean-style filmmaking and its humor, citing “The Host,” “Parasite,” “Hope” and “No Other Choice.” She added that her young son’s enthusiasm for “Train to Busan” made the trip especially exciting for her family.
When asked about future work, Jonas said he remained focused on his newly completed film while exploring different approaches for projects in development. Alfonso expressed interest in making comedy and learning from the younger generation of filmmakers.
“I trust the audience,” Alfonso said. “Before a filmmaker, I am a cinephile.”