We recently connected with Teo Marinakis and have shared our conversation below.

Teo, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

My latest short film, “Sigal,” is the largest and most meaningful project I have undertaken. Not only because it took 18 months from conception to completion, but because it delves into complex themes of mental health and violence through the lens of a latino in the United States. The film follows Sigal, a troubled young man wrestling with his own psychology. As his reality becomes increasingly blurred, it leads to an extreme point where the lines between fear, protection, and violence are crossed.

The story was born out of a personal experience in 2020 which initially left me grappling with intense, angry emotions. However, as I processed the incident, my perspective shifted from anger and fear to empathy and understanding. This personal journey profoundly influenced the narrative of “Sigal,” transforming it into more than just a story about a break-in; it became an exploration of the broader issues of mental health and the impact of violence.

“Sigal” isn’t a tale of heroes and villains. It’s a nuanced narrative that challenges viewers to look beneath the surface and consider the human stories behind the headlines we read on the news daily. Working on “Sigal” has been quite a cathartic journey. I’ve learned so much about the craft in the process, but also about myself. Through observing and giving voice to people who are usually overlooked, the goal is to foster dialogue amongst viewers while leaving space for interpretation.

Teo, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Teo Marinakis, and I’m a filmmaker and artist based in NYC. I’ve always been passionate about blending cultures and exploring the human psyche. I grew up in Santiago, Chile, with a Brazilian mother and an Argentinian/Greek father and have been immersed in those different cultures my whole life. I spent all my summers in Brazil and Argentina, going to Carnaval, football games, listening to artists like Tim Maia and Gilberto Gil, and watching national classics like “Nueve Reinas” and “City of God,” all which shaped my artistic perspective and instilled cultural influences that I channel into my work today.

My filmmaking journey began at a young age. At school I went through many phases and explored various art forms such as drawing, painting, theatre, dance, music production, and photography. The creative process within each discipline led me to film as a medium of expression. I see it as the ultimate fusion of art forms, offering a platform to explore and express complex human experiences and emotions.

In 2017, I moved to NYC to study Film and Television at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. After graduation, I co-founded a production company focused on high-quality short-form content like music videos and commercials. However, after two years of working with clients like Gabriella Hearst and Selah Marley, I decided to part ways and focus on my own directing and cinematography work.

My short films, such as “Cabourg” (2019), “French Riviera” (2021), “Pandora’s Box” (2021), and Prjct: Voyager (2022), have been showcased at numerous film festivals, including the Hip Hop Film Festival in New York, the French Riviera Film Festival in Cannes, and FICIMAD in Madrid.

Currently, I’m focusing on writing and developing a long form project I’ve been tinkering with for a couple years, that takes place in Argentina. All while I direct and shoot ads and music videos to continue expanding my commercial portfolio and relationships with companies and clients.

With every project I aim to connect with audiences through stories that evoke emotional responses and turn personal and cultural experiences into artistic expressions.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is to craft films that don’t just entertain but shake you awake. I want my creations to be genuine and raw and to resonates with viewers; with their joys, sorrows, and hopes. I want my projects to merge different mediums, mixing story, music, performance, culture, and visuals into new universes.

What drives me is alchemical connection – taking disparate pieces of human experience and collapsing them into something that makes people feel, think, and see the world through all its different layers.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I graduated college in May 2020 in New York City in the midst of the first wave of COVID-19. The city was in full lockdown. This was also the semester I was supposed to shoot my thesis. With everything shut down, the idea of shooting a film seemed impossible, and online classes just couldn’t provide the hands-on experience required for filmmaking.

Frustrated and uncertain, I ended up graduating without having the chance to create and deliver my final project. But later that year, inspired by Robert Rodriguez’s “Rebel Without a Crew,” I decided to shoot the film independently with gathered a group of friends and my own equipment. It was a challenging yet incredibly rewarding experience. We maximized the limited resources we had, which taught me many lessons about creativity, problem-solving, and resilience.

A few years later, when the university lifted all production restrictions, they offered us the opportunity to return and shoot our projects with their resources. I seized this chance to shoot my thesis film the way it was originally intended, developing an entirely new story in the process. This new project came with its own set of challenges, but that’s another story.

While many of my peers moved on without completing their thesis films, I created two films from which I gained immense knowledge and experience. If I hadn’t pushed through and insisted on making each project come to life, I don’t think I would be where I am today.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.teomarinakis.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teomarinakis/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teomarinakis/
• Other: https://vimeo.com/teomarinakis

Image Credits

Anahita De Vito, Alejandro Segovia, Jessica Neves, Carlos Slusher, Sebastian Delascasas