Julio Torres Talks Bringing Alejandro’s Immigration Story To Life In Problemista

Julio Torres is bringing to life the complex narrative of immigration in his new film Problemista. Set in New York City, we follow the journey of young Alejandro, who moves from El Salvador to the Big Apple with dreams of toy making. This story masterfully illustrates the daunting and exhausting immigration process while also managing to infuse a playfully lighthearted energy that carries the storyline. Pop Culture Planet writer Makkedah Ramsey spoke with Julio Torres to discuss how he brought Alejandro's story to life in his directorial debut.

Torres, known for his work on Saturday Night Live and as the co-creator, writer, and executive producer of the HBO series Los Espookys, finds Alejandro's story very personal, which makes it different from other movies he has worked on. Throughout the film, Alejandro's main focus is to secure his sponsorship to remain in New York City, taking on odd jobs and doing everything within his power to secure his support from his new boss and art critic Elizabeth (Tilda Swinton). The depth of this experience, shown by Alejandro's anxiety in the immigration office and his experience subletting his room, forcing him to find a lack of space of his own, depicts an intimacy that one can only find in personal experience or lots of research. “I too went from getting a work visa to a student visa. It was really the jumping-off point for the movie,” Torres told me, confirming that "a big chunk" of Alejandro's story was inspired by his journey.

But in actuality, this isn’t just his story. It's the story of many immigrants striving to create a life in cities like New York. Torres's approach to sharing this weighty narrative was marked by a desire for emotional authenticity. "It came about very organically. I wanted to create something that felt very emotionally honest,” he said. “It was just sort of a story that I wanted to tell and it made its way into a movie."

Though a large part of this film is surrounded by the nightmare that is the immigration system, we also are embarking on a personal journey for Alejandro, as he finds himself in this strange place that is much different than what he experienced in El Salvador. He's awkward, speaks low, and not confidently, but he learns a sense of self. When Elizabeth enters his life, his already complicated and unusual life becomes more so. His relationship with her was "exposure therapy.” Elizabeth is irrational and makes herself the biggest person in the room, but she got results. She was unlike anything Alejandro had to deal with before. Yes, he was relying on her to be his sponsor, but she also pushed him to chase his dreams. "He saw a chance to really prove himself," said Torres, and ultimately, he learned from her and gets his dream job.

Alejandro’s personality is a large part of what makes this film playful. Another standout was most definitely his backpack. He is rarely seen without it. During a Craigslist cleaning job, where he was asked to remove his pants, it never even dawned on him to remove his backpack. It’s almost as if it was a part of him. "I am a backpack person and I feel like New York people are backpack people. It was one of those details that felt very specific and very true," Torres said, noting the significance of the backpack in deepening Alejandro's character. "I wanted him to feel like a little explorer. A little robot with his little antenna collecting data."

Alejandro's backpack isn't the only element that sets the tone for the movie visually. The film is aesthetically pleasing, with a maze created as a visual representation of Alejandro's struggle. Bringing that to life was no simple task. “Working in collaboration with production designers is really now one of my very favorite things,” Torres explained. “The joy of walking into a set and seeing it be done and finished after they’ve only been little sketches in your notebook is so wonderful."

Julio Torres’ feature film Problemista was released in select theaters on March 1 and is now available in theaters everywhere.