KINGDOM. Director's Statement
“KINGDOM” is a visual metaphor of how generational trauma and societal conditioning are ingrained in us from the very beginning of our lives. As the inaugural episode of the "HUMAN CONCEPTS” series, this short film sets the stage for a journey into the essence of human psychology and the strong social critique that will characterize the following short-films to come.
The concept of the film is to visually represent the invisible forces that mold human identity. The invisible structures of the nation state and the community to which we belong, that shape our earliest perceptions and our deepest understandings of the world. And to remind people that there is a kid inside each of us.
Ever since I was a kid in high-school, when we studied the history of the Enlightenment, I’ve remembered this one quote from Rousseau: “Man is naturally inclined to do good, but society corrupts him.” Perhaps an old-fashioned, overused idea. But it is a true idea. Today more than ever for me. I believe in this idea to my core. And this film is, in some way, Rousseau’s quote made into a film.
I decided to make the film in stark black and white, paying tribute to the origins of cinema while symbolizing the simplicity and complexity of beginnings: be it the dawn of human consciousness, or the initial starkness of life that eventually blossoms into complexity.
Furthermore, it was very important that "KINGDOM" carried a message of peace. I wanted to make a strong commentary of the ways in which societal conditioning can perpetuate conflict. We are sending our children to die in war.
This is a film about awakening, challenging viewers to break free from the mental models that have silently shaped us. It is an invitation to reimagine what it means to be truly free in a world that ceaselessly tries to define us.
I sincerely hope that you like watching it! And thank you for taking the time to watch this film.
From Barcelona with love,
Andrés.