about

My Films

I write, direct, and produce my own narrative, fiction films, mostly in Colombia, my birthplace, and in New York City, where I live. My projects are a result of a deep collaboration with actors and crews. 

Currently, my work revolves around characters living on society’s margins: elders, failed artists, and the economically disadvantaged. These films explore their routines, favoring minimalistic narratives over spectacle, with conversational, non-action-driven scripts. They are imbued with my own observations about how the world we live in –with all its contradictions and pressures– shapes our lives. Earlier, based on my familiarity with Colombia’s tumultuous history, my films focused on how violence and trauma shape inner experience. 

Formally, my films have evolved from a naturalistic production design to an approach in which props, sets, and stages are reduced to its essence, sometimes forgoing them altogether, and shooting in black box stages. I believe that by stripping visual language to its essentials, performance and storytelling are foregrounded, offering a more visceral and unfiltered experience.A question I often ask myself is if the bareness of actors on a minimally furnished stage can fully conjure the mystery, magic, and charm of cinema? I believe the answer is yes.

Bio

Mauricio Arango was born in Bogotá, Colombia and lives and works in New York City. His films have been screened widely at art and film festivals including New Directors/New Films at MOMA and the Lincoln Film Society, New York; Kino Der Kunst, Münich;  FiD, Marseille; VideoBrasil, Sao Paulo; Rencontres Internationales, Paris; and IndieLisboa, Lisbon.

He is an alumnus of the Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum and has participated in residences at Headlands Art Center in San Francisco, the MacDowell Artist Colony, USA; Museo El Barrio, New York.

His films have won numerous awards including from The Foundation For Contemporary Art, New York; RivieraLab Coproduction Fund, Mexico; Filmmakers Fund, Rooftop Films, New York; Matt Robert Arts, London; Puffin Foundation; National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures; Bush Foundation, and The Jerome Foundation, New York.