“Arabian Nights – Volume 2” was screened as the Japan Premiere at the Hiroshima International Film Festival 2015, and then a talk show was held by Miguel Gomes who directed the film, and Mr. Akasaka, a film critic.

When Mr. Akasaka asked director Gomes to provide a massage for the audience, director Gomes said after a little thought, “The film you watched today is the same film as you watched yesterday, but actually they are different from each other, and I don’t know why they are different. At first, I tried to make a film which would be completed in one volume, but in the end, the film became a trilogy. In this series of films “Arabian Nights,” three main characters appear, and various stories of Portugal develop by linking to the three characters’ identities. It’s helpful to understand the stories of the films by, for example, regarding the stories as a game. That is, the stories have several stages, and in Volume 2, the main characters are in a hard stage. At first, I tried to complete the films in two volumes, but Volume 2 was too depressed, so I made Volume 3 to allow me to sleep peacefully. The films describe Portugal and Portuguese, and characters in the films are lonely, but a dog, Dixie, alone is not lonely. All human beings are irresponsible, and behave in a nonsense manner, because their society is irresponsible. The dog alone doesn’t belong to the society, so only the dog lives honestly.”

When Mr. Akasaka asked the audience if they have any questions, a woman asked, “I was moved by the films not only today, but also yesterday. Did you appoint famous actors to the films?” Director Gomes answered, “The main character in Volume 1 was an amateur actor, the main character in Volume 2 was an amateur actor who studied drama, and the main character in Volume 3 was a professional actor. I like appointing various actors, e.g., amateur actors, professional actors, to my films.”

Mr. Akasaka asked the next question, asking, “Did you give performance training etc. to the actors?” Director Gomes answered, “Performance begins with characters in front of a camera, and understanding what is expressed by the characters. I don’t ask an amateur actor to act as a professional, and ask a professional actor to act as an amateur, because amateur and professional actors act with their own features.”

Then, Mr. Akasaka asked about performance. Director Gomes answered, “Performance training to a dog was very easy, it is only necessary to order the dog to “stay,” “shake,” and “hold it.” By mastering these orders, it was possible to make the dog act like Robert De Niro. The amateur actor in Volume 1 usually works in mountains to hunt birds. I chose him because he acts very natural as a hunter. On the other hand, I think it was hard for the actor in Volume 2 who studied drama to play a role of judge. Usually, a judge controls everything, but the judge in this film wavered in her feeling as the trial proceeded, and behaved irrationally. While I made a script with her, we considered together how to describe a situation of losing control.”

Finally, Mr. Akasaka informed the audience that a short film directed by Director Gomes will be screened today, and “Arabian Nights – Volume 3”will be screened tomorrow. Then, the talk show ended.