Camilo Idrobo has always wanted to be a filmmaker ever since his parents gave him a Jonas Brothers-themed camcorder. Next weekend, he’ll finally achieve his goal of seeing his work on a large silver screen when the Esquire Theatre shows two of his films.
Born in Quito, Ecuador, he spent his youth making home movies before coming to Cincinnati on a scholarship from Northern Kentucky University to study film.
“I seriously took that camcorder everywhere. I was obsessed. As I grew up, I realized this was something I wanted to do as a career, but I felt a little disillusioned because Ecuador doesn’t have much of a film industry, so I came here,” he said. “But I’ve always had a passion to share how the world looks and feels with others. My country is so beautiful that it’s hard not to.”
Much of his work deals with immigrants, refugees and the fraught state of those groups in America—a subject matter he initially worried he wouldn’t be able to properly take on.
“I thought it’d be difficult, and I thought I wouldn’t have enough perspective on where I am to tell a story and achieve it. But then I realized my perspective could be valuable if I could show an outside look into how I view the U.S., and that could potentially be unique and interesting.”
The first film, “Hollow Hopscotch,” is a narrative short that explores two families in contemporary America. One, a Latin-American family, was forcibly separated and their story is told from the eyes of a young girl who imagines what conversations with her father would be like; the other, an American family, is responsible for that separation and is the type of privilege that allows them to have “a normal domestic life where they have everything.” That family’s story is told through a patriarch who “terrorizes” his family thanks to his strong beliefs in toxic masculinity.
The next film, “Mosaic,” is a feature-length documentary following Aiken High School in College Hill, where immigrant and refugee youth participate in the school’s “Illustrated Memoir Project” over the course of the semester.
That project has ESL (English as a Second Language) students write and illustrate their life stories through the medium of illustrated novels or comic books. The goal is for students to bring their own perspective and their own lives to learning English so as not to make them feel as if they’re starting from scratch.
“A lot of these kids already speak two, three, four languages. I got to follow them and witness their life stories, and how they’re inspired by stories that have been told before. It helps them to belong in their new community and to be able to have confidence in their voice and their background,” Idrobo said. “Even just getting to hear those kids speak was incredibly impactful. The world is filled with beautifully rich stories, and we should listen to them, take action from what they show us about our reality, and look for more.”
It’s an experience Idrobo can relate to. As a child, he didn’t know anyone who was passionate about films like he was, so most of his cinema knowledge came from a different source.
“In Ecuador, piracy is completely legal. So you go to the ‘movie store,’ and they have literally every single movie on Earth on DVD for $1.50. Like, I bought the whole Fellini collection for $10,” he said. “Having access to literally anything my mind could wander to helped me gain a broad perspective on what film could be. I explored so much just because I had access to everything.”
A particular influence on his work was the films of Jean-Luc Godard, especially his practice of film as philosophy and his view that film has boundless potential as an art form yet is most often used to perpetuate violence and inequality throughout the world. Another film that’s been driving Idrobo’s work for the past three years is Chantal Akerman’s classic documentary-drama “News from Home.”
In the film, Akerman—a Belgian immigrant—cycles through several long takes of buildings, people and places in 1970s New York as she reads aloud letters her mother has sent her from across the ocean. The letters often reference births, deaths and dramatic incidents from her hometown. Each letter ends with her mother asking when she’ll come home. As the film progresses, the narration slowly fades out until the words are imperceptible.
“I felt very connected to that, because my parents are always asking when I can come back. A lot of our messages are logistical, or ‘this person you knew has cancer,’ or ‘your cousin isn’t doing very well.’ Things that really make you feel like a stranger to your own home,” he said. “Usually I watch films with a very technical eye. But the first time I saw that film, I couldn’t stop crying. And now, I do a lot of talking to the people who aren’t there anymore in my films.”
In his journey as a filmmaker, he credits the local arts community in Cincinnati and the people he’s found here with helping him progress along the way.
“Until now, I’ve never really had people I can get so close to. A lot of us are without family, so we formed our own family. Coming together to create my own family, as so many others have done in this very beautiful and very rich city, is my favorite thing I’ve done here,” he said.
“You know, I could’ve ended up in, like, North Dakota. But I saw Cincinnati had a vibrant culture and a great arts scene, and said ‘I think this would be a good place to see if I can get something going.’ I could not have predicted how wonderful it’d turn out.”
Post-graduation, he plans to continue being an independent filmmaker. One day, he hopes he’ll make a film in Ecuador. But for the time being, he still can’t believe that not just one, but two of his works are going to be shown at the same movie theater that he already frequents several times a month.
When he put up the announcement from the Esquire Theatre on social media, a friend back home that he hadn’t heard from in years replied to remind Idrobo that he always talked about seeing his films on the big screen and he’s finally achieved that dream.
“I feel very validated that I came here with just a suitcase and have turned this into a whole career, even if it’s still just getting started. Because when I look back at my youth, it seemed impossible, right?” he said. “I’m incredibly excited. I couldn’t be happier about it. And I’m absolutely thrilled to see what could possibly come next.”
Camilo Idrobo’s two films screen next Friday, May 8, at the Esquire Theatre. Ticket proceeds will entirely benefit the LULAC Ohio Educational Foundation Scholarships, the same scholarship that allowed Idrobo to come to America. For more information, visit the Esquire’s website.