Carlos Alcántara announces spin-off of Asu Mare and reflects on the few opportunities for an older adult actor

Carlos Alcantara It was almost five decades old when he made history in Peru with “Asu Mare,” the highest-grossing Peruvian film of all time. At the age of 50, he was awarded at the Malaga Festival as Best Latin American Actor for “Guardian Dog.” And in the middle of this year, he co-starred in “La casa del caracol, his second Spanish film. This December 8th he also premieres “El Refugio”, his third Spanish installment. While other great actors of his age evaluate leaving the stage because they feel that there is only room for the youngest, the popular ‘Cachín’ advances unstoppable. 2022 will crystallize one of his wildest dreams. “Directing the spin-off of ‘Asu Mare’ will be the most important project of my life”, He assures.

“At 57 years old, it is not that proposals are pouring into me, but I never imagined making two films in Spain so fast and with interesting roles, almost leading roles. On this side of the world, the opportunity for older people is much greater”, Highlights the Peruvian actor and producer.

“El Refugio”, a film co-produced by Tondero and directed by the Malaga director Macarena Astorga, is the third film by the national artist in Spain. The first was “Lost”, a co-production with Spain and Argentina, with Luisana Lopilato and Amaia Salamanca. The second was “The house of the snail.”

“In this way we are trying to enter the international market, especially the Spanish. For me it is positive to try in a league with greater competition”Says Alcántara Vilar.

SYNOPSIS

A movie star in low hours (Carlos Alcántara) and an emerging heartthrob (David Guapo) who threatens to displace the former thanks to the tricks of their agent. The owner of the high mountain hotel and her crazy sister, promoter of a new and peculiar discipline that mixes yoga and feng shui. A group of children wanting to have fun, but also to discover hidden secrets. A taciturn, all-seeing bellboy. All of them converge one weekend, days before Christmas, in a hotel, where everything will happen.

You return to comedy with “El Refugio”. Are you more comfortable in that genre?

; but I’m also looking to play other characters, to get out of my comfort zone and to be able to experiment with thriller, drama and terror.

Spanish actors such as Loles León, Leo Harlem, María Barranco, David Guapo, Mariam Hernández, Sara Sálamo, Antonio Dechent, are part of this film. How about the experience of working with them?

Because of my personality and my character, I always try to fit in with the group, being respectful, arriving on time and doing what I have to do. It takes my character to always be hooked on everyone and to continue learning from each one, because practically

The character of David Guapo wears a chullo in the film, did you have any interference in that?

It was a contribution from Leslie Hinojosa, one of our best costumes. She proposed the chullo and they loved the idea. And we are proud that part of our culture has been present in this film.

What was it like to record in Sierra Nevada?

It was incredible because it was recorded in summer, with 40 degrees of temperature. To record the snow and people skiing we had to travel to Tignes, a French city, which at this time of year is full of snow. Then we returned to Sierra Nevada and with a machine that throws something very similar to snow, it was recorded outdoors. Technological advancement does spectacular things, it happens back to you.

-What was the scene that most marked you?

There is a scene where David and I ended up making a movie together. I do his mentor, a kind of Sean Connery (Henry Jones) with Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones), but it had to be released because it was so long.

Your character (Antonio Rojas), an actor who has been giving life to ‘Indiana Jones Latino’ for many years, finds it difficult to accept that they have chosen a younger artist for a new version of the film. Have you ever felt age as an obstacle? Did it ever limit your career?

. And that does not happen in Spain, in Brazil or Argentina, for example. It should be interesting to enter people’s lives from the age of 40 or 50, because there are constantly conflicts that could be good stories to tell. . Many years ago, Javier Cámara, a friend with whom I made the film “Seven seeds”, told me that from the age of 50, papers were going to rain on me. And at 57 years old it is not that it is raining, but I never imagined making two films so fast (in the same year, 2021) and with almost leading roles.

Brad Pitt, who is 57 years old, He said that he acts less and less because he feels that Hollywood is for young actors …

Hollywood is a machine for creating idols, there is a trend towards the young, the fresh, the sporty. That is why there is so much consumption of the filter to look better.

Will you undergo any cosmetic repair or rejuvenation surgery?

It does not occur to me to have an operation or to put something on my face that makes gestures impossible. If you start to sew an accordion so that it does not wrinkle, it will stop sounding. A face that no longer has expressiveness is surely going to limit itself, and I am gestural. I say it now, but if my eye begins to fall and it does not allow me to see, surely there will be a trade. But wearing something to go against the fall or gravity is not in my plans. I also have no plans to paint or put hair on. Next year in “Just Like Me” they will see me with a prosthesis in my hair because for a character I have no problem putting on a wig, a beard, gaining or losing weight.

Since the box office success of “Asu Mare”, do you feel that you have a responsibility to always be at the top, to make productions that work, that overcome the hurdle left by this film?

I have always assumed any character with responsibility and respect. This year I will direct and I will also do it with respect for that public that has responded when we have needed it. I have always felt that I am a kind of athlete in my career because sport has always been linked to my life, to reach the goal before everyone else. Now I am less competitive because I do not want to get frustrated if I do not reach the goal, but I do not stop fighting until I reach it.

And have there been goals that you have not managed to achieve?

Perhaps at the football level, because I am from the generation in which we all wanted to be footballers. And, obviously, there is a stage in my life where I got frustrated when I was not cast in the castings. I always wanted to be the lead and when I saw another actor being chosen, I would complain. It made my head roll a lot, I thought he was a bad actor. Now I am in a more mature professional and personal stage, with new goals driving with my foot on the brake, rather than on the accelerator.

What are your goals?

Acting better and better, learning more, being with better directors and screenwriters, just that. It’s not that I want to be the best in the country, or in the world. I already got an award at the Malaga Festival, as Best Latin American Actor for “Guardian Dog”, and the funny thing is that this year I was at that festival and when I won I couldn’t go because I was filming in Peru. I definitely want to direct my first movie too, which is something that’s going to happen next year.

Direct the spin-off of “Asu Mare”?

That’s how it is. Since I started in this, directing has always been my dream, and I am assuming it with all the professionalism and experience of having been in the other films.

Will you act in this project?

I plan to show up for a bit of fun, but no one will know it’s me, even though it’s great if someone recognizes me. When directing this film I will have to keep my head in everything, more than ever, it would be difficult to direct and act.

Will an actor play you?

In the first “Asu Mare” I was 48 years old, but I was one of 16. In the second I was 50, but I was one of 25, and in the third I was 55 years old, but I was one of 31. I no longer give for make me younger. The movie is going to be about friendship, so I better be quiet and give my friends a higher priority.