Juan Pablo Di Pace: DUINO Was An Answer To 'What Am I Doing

"DUINO," executive produced by the late Norman Lear, marks the feature debut of Juan Pablo Di Pace and his long-time collaborator Andrés Pepe Estrada. The film follows Matias, a filmmaker grappling with an unfinished movie inspired by his elusive first love, Alexander, a Swedish friend he met at a boarding school in 1997. Their strong yet brief friendship, marked by tenderness and fascination, is abruptly cut short when Alexander is expelled, leaving Matias with a story of unspoken emotions. 25 years later, Matias decides to confront his past by meeting Alexander again, discovering the intertwining of life and art and confronting the potent power of memory. "DUINO" is a visual and emotional masterpiece that celebrates friendship, love, and the transformative nature of growing up.

Juan Pablo Di Pace speaks with US LIFESTYLE about his journey with DUINO, moving to America, and his love for the industry.

Juan Pablo, can you tell us about your life in America and how it has impacted your creative process? 

 JP: I moved to the States 11 years ago from Madrid, Spain and it was a great decision. My life in America has been full of great collaborations with awesome people in front and behind the camera, and of course the impact living here has on my creativity is enormous. In LA I feel like I have the right frame of mind to write, I spend a lot of my time alone.

DUINO image

Take us through your journey with DUINO. What drove you to this project?

JP: DUINO is a personal piece I wrote during 2020. I had just finished a movie for Paramount as an actor, and it was the time I think all of us needed to find more meaning, more connection, to ask the super honest question of “what am I doing?” And “what do I want to do, really?” So DUINO was an answer to that. I had wanted to make a feature for decades and this story was the right one as a first film.

I think all of us needed to find more meaning, more connection, to ask the super honest question of “what am I doing?” And “what do I want to do, really?” So DUINO was an answer to that

What was the significance of Norman Lear’s involvement?

JP: Norman Lear and I were introduced by his partner Brent Miller. They read the script and felt passionate about being part as Executive Producers. I had the most wonderful conversations with Norman through the process, and when he watched it at Sony he was incredibly proud, I am so lucky to have his blessing for the film.

Was it difficult to switch from actor to Director? Which do you enjoy best?

 JP: I love it all… But you do use different parts of your brain. When you act, you worry about the emotional part of your character’s journey. Which in itself, is already challenging but you have one job only. When you direct and produce (and write) you’re changing hats constantly, like having a dinner party in your mind, a running dialogue, where everyone feels important and want to be heard. So a lot of it is about breathing and making sure you’re stirring the ship in the right direction. It wasn’t really difficult to switch from acting to directing, because I had my co-director Andres Pepe Estrada -who is also a childhood friend and incredible film editor- so I made the conscious choice of not “self-direct” myself if I was in a scene. I left all the other hats at the door when I was onscreen.

 

What themes were you exploring with this film and what are their significance to everyday life?

JP: It is a movie that dwells with memory, with parenting, with romanticizing the past so much that sometimes it can blind our path to love in the present. We were very drawn to the concept of “life imitating art” and vice versa. The significance to every day life is that it is a universal story: we all fell in love for the first time, we all had that one person we obsessed about, and we all have parents who did the best they could.

Can you share with us, in what ways you pulled from your personal life for this film? 

JP: Quite a few. I wanted it to feel be authentic to the people, the places, the era I am talking about, so I drew a lot from reality, my reality when I got a scholarship to an international school in Italy -The United World College of the Adriatic- in 1997, coming all the way from Argentina. That experience changed my life, and I was really inspired to talk about this place, with the multi-cultural element it has and also how teenage emotions can be magnified so much.

Juan Pablo and Andreas

What challenges were you met with while making the film? What went perfectly well?  

JP: Nothing was perfect but everything was as it should be! We shot while the effects of the pandemic and its regulations were very much a part of life, so that was a challenge of course. But somehow, events and people appeared at the right time when we encountered an issue, like angels, to take the film to completion. You can imagine making indie films is a challenge by itself, and we also had an intercontinental cast in two cities around the world… But I see it all as perfection, I am so proud of everyone in the team that made this movie possible.

Who helped with the styling of the film from staging to the costumes? Where did you pull inspiration from? 

JP: My mother Marta Maineri, who is a painter, is the costume designer and production designer of the film. It was really important to have the 1997 style very right, so she pulled from everywhere from old photo albums, to catalogues of the time, movies, music.

How do you see your work impact the lives of Americans today or in the future? 

JP: I would love to leave things that make people ask themselves questions, but also that are beautiful. As an audience member I love being a little uncomfortable and also inspired. I gravitate towards movies that are subtle and also aesthetically pleasing. As a musician and ex-dancer myself, I love it when the choreographic element of filmmaking, the rhythm, the style, the editing, is in the forefront as well as the story. I would like to believe that those are things I spend my time in making a movie and that people will take away from watching it.

What are your future plans within the industry? How do you see your career evolve?

JP: I am fortunate in being able to do what I love. You could say I sacrificed a lot to become an artist, 23 years in the film business now. So I would love to continue, to make more films as an actor and also as a writer/director - to keep telling stories I am passionate about, and to do it until I drop. I love this job.

Is there anything specific you want to share with our readers?

JP: Come see Duino at Frameline48 this coming Sunday, June 23 in San Francisco!

For tickets:  https://www.frameline.org/films/frameline48/duino

And come see me perform in New York’s 54 Below on October 4 and 5.

Find Juan Pablo, Andres and Duino on social media: @duinomovie @juanpablodipace @andrespestrada