Cristobal Krusen is an incredibly interesting fellow. The Tampa born, internationally-recognized writer/director’s 2001 film Final Solution was shown last month at the Sundial. I was lucky enough to chat with Mr. Krusen before he came here for the showing. Following are a few snippets from my forty-minute conversation with the filmmaker.
Final Solution is showing at the Sundial. Why here? Why now?
Twenty-five years ago, apartheid in South Africa came to an official end. Nelson Mandela was elected in the first-ever democratic election in South Africa, ushering in a new era. We are showing it to commemorate the anniversary of the end of apartheid, and Tampa Bay was chosen because I was born and raised in Tampa. It’s kind of a homecoming and to share my work with my hometown.
The film has a spirit about it that is very positive and inspiring – at times even brave. It’s a moving story that will still grab an audience, and has now been remastered in hi-def, which has given the film a whole new life. We also enhanced the audio, made some new edits to improve the flow of the film, and shot a new ending. Final Solution is based on a true story involving real people. The new ending of the film that tells the audience where those people are today.
Are there common themes that carry throughout your filmography?
A good portion of Final Solution unfolds in a church, but it isn’t a church service. The church is given a different use than it might ordinarily have. There’s a major scene where a debate is held inside a church. The current film I’m working on, called The Puzzle Factory, is another feature film in which a major portion takes place in a church. In this case, it’s an abandoned church that has fallen into disrepair, which serves as the primary location for some very important scenes.
As a Christian, I want to encourage the church to be more engaged with the world. Rather than keeping all the unwashed, pagans and sinners away, the church should be a place where all can gather. You see that in Final Solution when the minister of a church in a black township says, “I’ve been trying to get you inside the walls of this church for fifteen years.” That pastor is actually played by John Kani, a great actor, who plays King T’Chaka in Black Panther.
I want to bring the good news to the people, realizing that some may not be so readily inclined to either hear the message or come into the venues where Christians congregate. They need more encouragement. I want to find ways to make the message of Christianity appealing, interesting and thought-provoking for people who are outside the church. That’s very important to me in my work.
How did growing up in Tampa influence your writing and directing?
I don’t come from a family of artists and writers, but I did receive a good education. I’m very thankful for that. I went to St. John’s Parish Day School in Tampa, and studied under Father George Burchill. I have to give him credit for giving me a love of literature. He really pushed his students to read widely. That definitely had a major influence on me, because at heart I’m a storyteller. There has to be a story, because that’s what people ultimately want to experience through movies. They want to be swept up in a story that will move them, that will intrigue them, that will teach them at some level.
I honestly did not think of being a filmmaker as a child, even as a young teenager. I thought more of being a writer, and I do often write the screenplays that I direct. I’m much more filmmaker than writer, but literature, especially poetry, had a huge influence on me. I love poetry. The idea of using language to literally induce real emotion, even physical sensations, just through words…whether that sensation is nostalgia, or perhaps a certain awe of nature. To me, it’s just amazing and remarkable how poetry is able to inspire people the way it does, and I try to incorporate that principle into my film work. I’m still perfecting it, but that is my goal – to utilize the vocabulary of poetry to guide my filmmaking.
Run, don’t walk, to Amazon Prime and give Final Solution a watch! Also keep an eye out for Krusen’s upcoming film, The Puzzle Factory. In the interim, enjoy his other films and books. He has made quite a fan of me, and there’s a good chance you’ll become one, too!
