I was born in Argentina, grew up and live in Switzerland, studied Cinematography in Italy, and work anywhere in the world. On the one side, I'm a cosmopolitan person, on the other, a stranger. It seems to me that if you wanna be a good cinematographer, you need to be a bit of such an outsider. It is necessary to be present close to the action but stay a little apart to look at what is happening from a different angle.
Growing up, I got some artistic influences from my family. My grandma was an artist, my grandpa was a poet and my mother is a journalist for Swiss Television. Since I was a child I was surrounded and immersed in the world of art and film making, although at that time I was much more attracted to the career of a professional cyclist. During my studies at the Cinema School in Milan, I started to work for the TV as a cableman. Actually, I did not feel like an ordinary worker, I was really inspired by some kind of mission we do.
Cinema is when a whole group of people gets together to create something that no one is completely imagining. This is a search for how to express what is written down but not yet shown. When you find a certain angle, or movement, or a special interaction of the camera, the space, and the person inside this space this is a striking discovery. As it existed before but became apparent only after you discovered it.
The cinematographer's function is to build a bridge between the audience and what is in front of the camera. At the same time we all need to remain inconspicuous - only then the interaction between the actors and the audience will be truly complete.
I almost had no idea what I was doing when I made my first feature movie, it was a challenge and it was really great. I live and work like that. It is very encouraging to change your way of view because it gives you the courage to make magic on the set and even mistakes that teach us a lot and give sometimes the best results.
We are visual storytellers, my work consists of telling myself and the audience about something, enriching their impressions of what they have seen, or offering a different interpretation of it. I like being a cinematographer and I'm glad I put all my eggs in this basket.