Interview with Director of Photography Rui Poças

entrevista ao Diretor de Fotografia Rui Poças

Abstract

The interview presented here took place in Portugal, by videoconference, on 19 January 2025. When I heard about the call for submissions for this magazine's ‘Cinematography in Latin American Audiovisuals’ dossier, and considering the career of cinematographer Rui Poças, I contacted him to check his interest and availability for an interview. He accepted immediately, and it was decided that the main topic would be Lucrecia Martel's film Zama (2017). The aim of the interview is to explore Rui Poças' creative and technical process, from reading the script to making the film, and to understand Lucrecia Martel's approach to the construction of Zama's imagery. Rui Poças is Portuguese, born in Porto, and considered one of the best directors of photography in the world. He began his career in the documentary genre and later in fiction. He studied cinema at the Escola Superior de Teatro e Cinema, in Lisbon, and in 1994 he attended the Advanced Film Course at the New York Film Academy. He made his film debut as director of photography in 1991 and has directed several award-winning feature films, such as: Morrer Como Um Homem (2009), Tabu (2012), O Ornitólogo (2016), Deserto (2017), Zama (2017), Frankie (2019) and, most recently, Grand Tour (2024), among others.  Lucrecia Martel's Zama premiered at the 74th Venice International Film Festival, earning Rui Poças a nomination and recognition as a runner-up at the International Cinephile Society Awards, among names such as Alfonso Cuarón and Lukasz Zal. In 2019 he won important international awards such as the Fenix for Ibero-American cinema and the Platino for his work as director of photography. Rui Poças is known internationally for his striking images and the fluidity of his cinematographic quality in different genres. Rui Poças is a member of AIP, the Portuguese Image Association and ABC - the Brazilian Cinematography Association.