Producer / Co-Director

Nina Gilden Seavey

How did you come to work on this film?

Several years ago I received a call from Stephen Higgins, a first-time filmmaker who was looking for someone to come on as a producer of this film - both to attract the financing that would allow for the editing, scoring, and post-production of the film as well as well as to help shape the story.

I have never been a fan of the bullfight, but my father, Louis Gilden, was a huge fan. He was a civil rights lawyer in the '60's and '70's and I believe he saw his work as similar to matador's - he would go into the ring (the courtroom), alone, and it was his job to conquer the danger and rage that would charge him in these very controversial cases. For him his work was either "kill or be be killed." So he was a huge fan of the bullfight, and would go see the fights and read all of the poetic literature about it. He died several years ago and when Stephen called, I thought this was perhaps an opportunity for me to understand the spectacle for which he had such passion.

I initially worked with Stephen to create a budget for the project and then warranted the final work on the production such that it would come to successful completion.

As we worked through the editing and the finishing of the film, I became more and more involved in the creative elements of the film and joined Stephen as co-director.

As the Founding Director of both The Documentary Center at George Washington University and SILVERDOCS: AFi/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival, and with 25 years experience making documentary films, you've probably seen a few films. Was they're anything surprising about this project?

As a filmmaker, film festival director and educator, I see a lot of bad films -- huge, wasted, opportunities. When I saw the footage that was shot on this project, I knew the film could be a great "spectacle film." I believe that documentary films rely too much on "understanding" and not enough on "experiencing" the content of a film. This project seemed to bring the opportunity to actually engage emotionally with David, the central character in the film, and the passion that is the bullfight. That is not something that comes along everyday.

What was the most challenging part of working on this project?

The fact is that I didnt like the bullfight when I began working on the film and still find it an odd, barbaric tradition. So I had to overcome my personal proclivities that would have turned the film into a "point/counterpoint" discussion about the various perspectives on the corrida and instead truly accept the tradition and David's quest to become the top-ranked bullfighter in the world. It was tough. But I came out with a great respect for him and his endeavor.

Which element(s) of the film do you think work the best?

The film is visually stunning - both the way that it is shot and the emotion with which it is edited. And it is all driven by an astonishing score that truly captures the passion and excitement that is the bullfight. The corrida has been the inspiration for so many great orchestral works and I believe that John Califra's score truly makes this film transcendent.

Has working on this film enable you to form an opinion on the subject that you didn't have before?

I understand the bullfight now as part of the strong, rich tradition of Spain in a way that I had never appreciated before.

Would you go to see a live bullfight now?

Interesting question. Hmmmmm. I'm not sure.