Assimilate is a 13 minute short film packed with struggle, love and drama. The film was written, directed and edited by Zandir Santos. It was filmed primarily in France and in Cape Verde, the locations where the film takes place. Zandir says, “We selected real life locations. Using real life locations, for me, is the best way to capture as much realness as can be captured in a film. Nothing is made up, it’s all there. You just have to seize it and projected in the most meaningful way possible.”
He goes on to emphasize, “The locations needed to be real because the film is real. It’s authentic. For example, the lead character goes from struggle to struggle. From fight to fight and never giving up. That’s real! And that’s the DNA of most immigrants, no matter what country in the world they immigrate to.”
The acting in Assimilate is extremely convincing. Zandir says, “The best acting can come from people who have passed similar situations as you character or are engaged in similar situations as your character. They have the experience and they can draw from it. That’s what we did with this film as far as the acting goes. We generally casted people who have lived similar situations. When you do that, there isn’t much acting. I always say, the best actors are those who don’t act.”
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Zandir feels that the film has been received very well. “I certainly think it has been received very well. I say that because with social media, Facebook in this case, you can track results.” Zandir states that at the time of this interview “the film has received hundreds of comments, hundreds of reactions and hundreds of shares and has nearly 15 thousand Facebook views.”
Some people find it risky to make a film available on Facebook for people to view because it’s free. To this notion Zandir counters with, “First of all, the fact that it’s free for viewing on Facebook doesn’t mean you can never earn money from it. For example, if a film you put out for free opens up doors for you to get paid to make a film, then you’ve made money from it, you understand. And also, it’s a film that I really wanted people to see…even at not cost! Though they can still supported financially by purchasing it here on MarilynFilms.com, if they’d like to.
When asked about what else is in store for the film Zandir affirms. “We will continue to promote the film, as we have done, via social media, on radio interviews, online platforms, among others. Also, given that we have launched it on Facebook, I’m not sure how film festivals will react to it. However, if that’s not a concern for them, we can certainly look into placing it in a few film festivals.”
He also affirms, “The biggest marketing platform is ultimately word of mouth. We’re encouraging everyone to watch the film, available on my Facebook page, FOR FREE!” He laughs. “And to also share it on Facebook’s Messenger app and to share it on their Facebook wall. It’s a free and convenient way that people can support the film and help us bring it to a wider audience. I really feel that the world should see this film. It’s a wonderful film.”
He closes out, “I’m extremely confident that, by far, most people who watch the film will love it. Therefore, watch it and share.
We went ahead and embedded the film to this article for you to watch. Enjoy!
VIEW ALL FILMS BY ZANDIR SANTOS
Below is a button link to view all films by Zandir Santos, available here on MarilynFilms.com. We encourage you to support independent filmmaking by viewing the films and we’d love to hear your take on them. You can simply leave a review and star rating upon viewing the film(s) or send us your comments via our CONTACT page.
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