Isabel Coixet, the acclaimed Catalan film director, shared in ‘The Mathematics of the Mirror’ her experience with the destructive criticism of Carlos Pumares. “He said I had to cut off my head and I thought cinema wasn’t for me,” Coixet revealed, remembering the difficult start to her career after the release of her first film, ‘Too Old to Die Young’.
Since she was a child, Coixet knew she wanted to make films, inspired by her grandmother who worked as a box office clerk at the Texas cinema in Barcelona. Despite the difficulties of directing her second film, she was always clear that cinema was her true passion. “I released my first film before I was 30, but it took me seven years to release my second one,” she explained.
The director confessed that, due to Pumares’ words, she felt great anguish when thinking about cinema. “It was difficult for me to watch movies. Everything related to cinema caused me anguish,” she commented. However, her vocation propelled her to move forward, eventually establishing herself as a prominent figure in the industry.
“Everything related to cinema caused me anguish”
Isabel Coixet, Spanish film director and screenwriter
Isabel Coixet has not forgotten those negative criticisms, although she now handles them in a more pragmatic way. “I handle failure better than success,” she said, highlighting that for her a failure would have been not having published her second film. “I’m having a career in film and that’s success,” she added.
Throughout his career, Coixet has learned that he can’t please everyone and has accepted that criticism, good and bad, is part of the process. “I have a tendency to remember the bad ones. Why, with all the good things that happen to me, do I have to focus on the bad ones? ”She reflected.
With her characteristic candor, the director concluded that her success lies in her perseverance and passion for cinema, despite the initial obstacles. “I fought hard for my vocation and that has led me to where I am today,” she said.
