BUDDY FILMMAKING
Actor Chris Santos gets to work with a close friend as writer, director
Chris Santos is a hard-working man.
The actor peruses dozens of projects a week.
Yet what piques his interest are the projects that are going to give him a challenge.
This is why Santos jumped at the chance to work on the film “Perfect,” which will be released later this year.
“There are a couple of things I look for in a project,” he says. “It’s the character and what type of character is going to challenge me. I want something unique and something I can put my trademark on. The second is the writing. And the third is who is going to be in the film with me — other actors or directors and producers.”
Working on “Perfect,” Santos got the opportunity to work with one of his best friends, New Mexico native Eddie Alcazar.
The film screened at this year’s South by Southwest Film Festival in March as part of the “visions” category.
Oh, not to mention that Academy Award-winning producer Steven Soderbergh signed on to the project.
“Eddie flies his N.M. flag very high,” Santos says. “He loves Albuquerque and New Mexico. I think secretly it would be a dream of his to take a big project back to New Mexico. He’s my first friend from New Mexico and we’ve really bonded with each other.”
“Perfect” tells the story of a young man with a violent past who enters a mysterious clinic where the patients wildly transform their bodies and minds using genetic engineering.
The psychological thriller fully captivates its audience as it steers them along a thought-provoking journey while providing a luxurious treat for science fiction fans.
Santos, who had already been cast in the film, brought it to the attention of Soderbergh, who in turn fell in love with the project, jumping on board to produce.
“It was all a journey that fell together,” he says. “The screening at the festival was amazing and it started to gain some buzz. I don’t think Eddie is even allowed to screen it for anyone else now.”
Santos says working with Alcazar was amazing because the two are friends and have been kicking around ideas for a few years.
“There’s this level and skill that comes out of him that is unrivaled,” he says. “Eddie specifically wrote this part for me and I couldn’t be happier. He asked me what type of character I wanted to play and he came back three weeks later and had a script. It’s been pretty amazing.”
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