By Jack Giroux
Claudia Castello forges her own path. Before the editor behind such films as “Creed,” “Fruitvale Station,” and “Prey” was even working in film, she was a professional athlete from Copacabana, Brazil. Some filmmakers spent their youth obsessing over movies, but the 14-year-old Castello was winning bodyboarding competitions before turning pro.
After studying journalism at FACHA (Faculdades Integradas Hélio Alonso) in Rio, she told CineMontage, “Editing found me.” Castello’s career in the arts has led her to a remarkable life, which includes editing films and television from El Salvador, where she surfs nearly every day – except for when we spoke with her, as she was recovering from a minor injury.
She’d generally catch waves before editing a new horror picture, “Rosario,” directed by Felipe Vargas. For “Rosario,” Castello puts herself in the shoes of the titular protagonist (played by Emeraude Toubia), who loses her grandmother and, through a series of supernatural events, finds herself reconnecting with her culture and family.
Castello spoke with CineMontage about the life experiences – on the waves and in the editing room – that have shaped her as an editor.
CineMontage: How much does surfing inspire your work? Is there something about the pacing of riding a wave that makes you look at scenes in a similar light?
Castello: Surfing, for me, dictates how I see life – to tell the truth. It’s flowing with nature, like the footage. The footage presents you with a rhythm, and you don’t fight with it; you just go with it.
CineMontage: Say when you get caught under a wave and you have to remain calm and patient in the chaos – how does that compare with editing?
Castello: It’s actually easier when you’re surfing. It sounds more life-threatening – and it probably is – but it’s easier for me when I’m under a wave because I know it’s just the ocean and me. Sometimes dealing with a group of people – because editing involves a team, like working with a director, with the producers, with your team – it’s a little more complex, because you’re dealing with a lot of personalities and expectations. Nature is just nature. It is pure flow and honesty; it is what it is. There are no implied subjects or needs or feelings. It’s straightforward.
CineMontage: Have you ever had the experience where you’re stuck on a scene, you go surfing, and return with answers for the problem-solving?
Castello: If I get away from what I’m doing for a little while, it definitely clears my mind, and I have many ideas. When I’m surfing, that’s when things click for me. If I have a problem that I have to solve, I just go out there and be present. Physically, emotionally, it helps. I found that working very, very long hours is detrimental to my work. If I do an eight-hour session, and if I go out there and I surf, I come back and work way faster. The ideas flow much better than if I’m just sitting here and putting a strain on my body and my mind. That is actually detrimental to being creative and being sensitive. I definitely need that – going away and breathing different air and coming back with the solutions.
CineMontage: Living a life helps.
Castello: Yeah, being human. Connect with your nature and let yourself flow better because we are creative – we’re not machines.
CineMontage: So your environment plays a huge role in your work. Living in El Salvador versus Los Angeles, how does living there inspire your work?
Castello: Connecting with people. I go out of my house – people look at you, they say hi, and you have smalltalk. It’s a more simple way of connecting with people, and it keeps you more grounded. I feel like in L.A., people are a little bit over their heads. It’s a lot of competition. You have to pretend you’re somebody. There’s a contrast of living between L.A. and being in Central America. I live in a rural place. In addition to being a surfing area, it’s very mellow.
CineMontage: When you did your post-grad at USC, were there many lessons that spoke to these lessons, in regards to staying present?
Castello: I think they prepare you for the industry. They’re very tough on you. They make you work many, many hours – more than what would be healthy, I think. School was in the inverse direction, meaning mental health for me. But I think it’s a way of preparing you for what the industry is. It’s not like that in a bad way, because it wasn’t. If you go through the first year of school, you can go through pretty much any challenge. It was a good, shocking way to enter the industry. And then once you’re there, you can find your own balance.
CineMontage: What was a key takeaway from USC for you?
Castello: One thing that they did that stuck with me that was very important was that you always have to find your own voice. So that was my mantra – always being truthful to yourself and in choosing the work you want to do. Very early on, I had one USC professor that told me, “Cláudia, what do you want to do now?” And I’m like, “What do you mean, what do I want to do? I’m just starting. Whatever comes to me, I have to do it.” And she’s like, “No.”
CineMontage: The idea of finding your voice, how was that journey for you?
Castello: Well, I was always aware of social justice because I grew up in Brazil in an area where you saw everything. I was exposed to rich people, different colors, different backgrounds, and a very, very mixed environment. It made me aware of everyone’s story – and that’s what I bring to my work. I can connect with each character in a very honest way because of this background that I have of putting myself in people’s shoes and understanding everybody’s hardship. So, that’s the kind of projects that I tend to be involved with, that talk about human beings on a deeper level. For example, “Rosario” talks about an immigrant that grows up in the U.S., and she’s a little bit ashamed of her past and she wants to thrive and be successful, and she struggles with that – her past and her present. My USC professor, Brenda Goodman, and Felipe, I must add, inspired me while telling this story.
CineMontage: You also studied journalism before coming to the states. When you work on a horror movie like “Rosario,” how much does your journalism background come into crafting a film’s point of view?
Castello: One thing that I learned very early on also in school was that there’s not one truth – there are points of view. If I’m at war and I’m seeing everything happening in front of me, I still don’t know the real story. I have to pick one point of view and stick with it. In this case, with “Rosario,” I always put myself in her shoes, of battling with her family love and also her shame of not being present for her past life.
CineMontage: Since you first envisioned a career in journalism, when did editing begin to really speak to you?
Castello: I didn’t know I wanted to be an editor. I didn’t know I wanted to do film. I went to journalism school and all that, and I just fell into a job where I had to edit director’s reels. It gave me independence I really liked. I started editing friends’ movies, and then I just got new opportunities from that. I only knew how to use Final Cut. I thought, “I can do this,” but I didn’t really understand filmmaking. I needed more background, so I applied to USC and was accepted. And when I was there, this was a craft that really spoke to me. It found me. Editing found me. It was somewhere I could be creative and have freedom, even though it feels heavy. Everybody said, “Oh, how boring. How heavy it must be.” No, it’s a lot of fun.
CineMontage: You had that USC professor ask early on, “What do you want to do now?” Today, with all your success, where do you want to go from here?
Castello: I’ve thought about being a director many times, but I enjoy what I do, so I want to keep editing. I want to keep finding great projects and great people to work with – people who can understand that I can collaborate and I can bring to the table a voice. My main goal is finding those people who can collaborate in respectful, fun ways, where we can prioritize the work and just enjoy, because life goes so fast. I don’t have huge expectations. My expectations – just live happily and use my talents the best way I can, respect who is working with me and be respected.
CineMontage: It’s funny, sometimes you hear from people in the industry: I forget this job is supposed to be fun.
Castello: Sometimes it becomes stressful and boring – and what’s the point? We’re all going to die.
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