All of the rebellious and timid trappings of a legendary artist wrapped up in self-doubt converge in Mauricio Bidault’s latest documentary, and third feature, “Mollusk” (“Molusco”), which chronicles the life and times of storied Mexican graphic artist José Ignacio Solórzano, known professionally as Jis.
Bidault (“Hasta el fin de los días”) debuts the film on June 13 at the 40th Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG), the project produced by Erredoce Cine. Mexico’s Alfhaville Cinema handles national distribution, while world sales are still up for grabs.
Carnal, with care – Jis shook the bedrock of the cordial, conservative Guadalajara community with filth, camp and candor. He stands as an artist for the rule breakers, the outsiders and an existential anti-hero who observes his life through his work and then shares that confusion, trepidation, glee and despair with the masses. Clocking in at just under two hours, it seems the journey could have lasted longer still, condensing a life into one film is no small feat.
“It’s a very stimulating process because during the editing, you get the feeling that the material itself is guiding you and defining its ideal form, as if it had a will of its own. The real challenge was that, with such articulate participants, with such unique intelligence and visions, we had a wealth of valuable material, and we had to ultimately choose which parts genuinely belonged to the story and the world we wanted to show. It was a very thorough process that I call ‘distillation’ in the editing stage,” Bidault told Variety.
Alongside steadfast friend and peer Trino Camacho, Jis shot to fame when the pair released a series of daring comics, “El Santos,” a collection of whacked-out narratives that featured graphic sex, drugs and quotidian minutiae. Amassing a cult following, the narratives were later turned into an acerbic animated film “El Santos contra la Tetona Mendoza,” that aired in 2012, with Guillermo del Toro and Cheech Marin contributing their voices to the project that went on to screen at Annecy the following year.
Perhaps one of the most affecting scenes in the documentary comes as Jis and Trino reminisce about their success over a bottle of wine, their eyes wide, genuine smiles draped from one ear to the next, while ruminating on their fruitful partnership and just how astonishing it is that their dark humor connected to such large audiences. The chemistry is palpable, as they continue to coax the chaos and joy out of one another like children.
The film further lifts the veil on the artist’s influence, as a variable smorgasbord of talent converges throughout to deconstruct the impact of his life, art, his curious process and disposition. Guillermo del Toro, Diego Luna and Argentine cartoonist Liniers are among those who appear alongside the artist’s close friends and family.
“Everything happened quite organically. Jis, along with Trino – they’ve had a long career, and they’re very beloved characters. As we were planning the documentary, names of friends who might like to be in the film kept coming up, like someone thinking about who to invite to a party. It turned out those friends were Guillermo del Toro, from the same generation and also from Guadalajara; Daniel Giménez Cacho, who had voiced ‘El Santos’ in the film; Liniers, a friend and fellow cartoonist; and so on. Suddenly, the film was filled with artists, musicians, designers, friends and relatives, who ultimately formed a very engaging conversation about Jis and a host of current issues that concern us,” Bidault explained.
Melancholy, mischievous, weighty and hedonistic at once, Jis and his existentialist musings formed an entire universe that acted as a refuge for the weary and delightfully depraved. Bidault not only relies on outside perspective, but worked to establish a bond with the artist that set the film on track to uncover his peculiar fascinations and obsessions. His whimsical and youthful spirit collides effortlessly with the tortured artist on his shoulder, as he continues to sketch near-daily observations and discuss life’s casualties and wonders with Trino on their podcast La Chora Interminable.
“Good art is timeless because it always tells us something new; even if the work doesn’t change, we change and experience things differently over time. The thing about youth is that it’s a time when you still have a clear vision, but you’re already aware of the possibilities that lie ahead; there’s a lot of energy, a lot of passion there,” Bidault relayed.
“What’s exceptional about Jis is that, at over sixty, he’s retained that attentive gaze toward everything around him without losing his sense of wonder. This tension between what he sees and imagines versus what’s expected of an ‘ordinary’ person is what gives his humor and his artwork tremendous strength and relevance, which defies the conventions of traditional caricature and takes his readers to unexpected corners of the mind. To sum up: his gaze is always youthful and his art, timeless,” he added.
A primer for those just discovering his work and a hefty ode to those fully familiar, the film naturally evolves into a nuanced conversation about the sterilization of art, as the artist’s work is never outwardly political but always astutely counter-culture. In a creative environment quick to strip humanity of its duality in a faux moral panic while chiding free thought in favor of talk-alike rhetoric, the group discusses the effects to true progress those actions produce and weigh abiding to organically changing social tides with the importance of limitless creative expression.
“Life isn’t a consumer product, despite what Instagram suggests. Lately, it seems like everything has to be simple, immediate, satisfying. Everything has to be labeled, or nicknamed and we immediately define whether it’s evil or virtuous without pausing to think for even a second. This can be understood by the changes in reality we’ve experienced during this time,” Bidault asserted.
“The truth is, life is complex and unpredictable, with many layers and twists and turns that are impossible to categorize. Sometimes we have to go against the grain. Art and humor force us to break out of those rigid coordinates through laughter, critical thinking and refusing to conform, to consider the world in different ways. And that’s how we move forward and grow as individuals and as societies. Ultimately, that’s the main theme of ‘Mollusk.’”
“Mollusk” was produced with support from the Mexican Film Institute through the Mexican Film Promotion Program (Focine) and the Government of the State of Jalisco, the Trust of the Film Commission of the State of Jalisco and the Ministry of Culture through the Proyecta Production program.
variety.com
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