The secrets of “Días de Santiago” told by Pietro Sibille: Santiago existed, he took care of the house of a renowned soccer player

Almost two decades after the premiere of Josué Méndez’s debut feature and one of the best films in the history of Peruvian cinema, Sibille Eslava recalls details of her creation.

“It did not have a great premiere, no more than 50,000 people went to see it, however it is the one that received the most recognition. The movie became much more famous over the years, thanks to bootlegging. Until now there are taxi drivers who remember her. When I get into a taxi they mention it to me”, assures the national artist.

“It did not have a great premiere, more than 50,000 people did not go to see it, however it is the one that received the most recognition.”

Known by some as the Peruvian Taxi Driver, “Días de Santiago” was screened at major international festivals. Pietro Sibille He was awarded as Best Actor at the Lima Film Festival and at the international festivals of Bratislava and Buenos Aires. The austere budget Peruvian feature film won 30 awards in total.

character building

To build and understand Santiago, Pietro Sibille turned to the man who inspired this film: the fierce ex-combatant of the Peruvian Navy, from whom he received military-required physical training and shared entertaining and endless talks.

“. For almost two months I developed my character closely with him. At that time, Santiago worked in La Molina taking care of the home of soccer player Flavio Maestri, who played in Chile. When I visited him, I stayed the night, and the next day he gave me personal military training, he taught me how to pick up a weapon, how to patrol. We would go running at five in the morning. He told me what he experienced in the Cenepa Conflict between Peru and Ecuador. They were shocking stories, strong“, remember.

“I tried to take all the details that he gave me, but also those that were in the script. While it is true, much of the story is built based on Santiago’s experiences, there is also some fiction, “she clarifies.

In Méndez’s feature film there are no flashbacks. The leaps of time in Santiago’s mind are expressed through black and white. The memories of the war are only in the head of the disturbed ex-military.

Sibille also details that the phrase that her character constantly repeats in the film was taken from the real Santiago: “Everything has its order, everything has its reason for being. Without order nothing exists. I am the man and you are the woman.

“He was exaggeratedly methodical, always he believed someone was following him and it wasn’t paranoia. He was sure of that. He was always vigilant, attentive. I tried to capture all those details, the tension in his body, his face, his embarrassment. It was intense work”, recalls the actor.

Greater demand

He also points out that the scene he recorded on the last day of filming, on a hill in Villa María del Triunfo, marked his memories due to its great intensity and physical demand.

“It was recorded at night, for several hours. In that scene, Santiago lights a huge bonfire and begins to pretend that he is in the war, training, patrolling. He imagines that he has a rifle in his hands, he throws himself to the ground, rampages, screams, throws himself. It is unknown if he is real or he is hallucinating. It was a strong, intense scene that lasted several hours. When I took off my borceguíes (boots), which squeezed me, I had injuries. Occupational hazards”, he delimits.

“When I took off my borceguíes (boots), which squeezed me, I had injuries. Perks of the trade”

Pietro Sibille

“Santiago, who accompanied me in training and on recordings, liked how I interpreted it. And many taxi drivers felt identified with the character. To this day, when I get in a taxi, they mention it, they congratulate me. And for an actor there is no greater satisfaction and reward than that”, he emphasizes.

Días de Santiago arrived in Peruvian theaters on September 30, 2004. Along with Pietro Sibille Milagros Vidal, Marisela Puicón, Ricardo Mejía, Lili Urbina, Alhelí Castillo, Ivy La Noire, Erick García, among others, performed.