TELENOVELA: LATIN AMERICAN SENTIMENTAL CULTURE?

From March 23 to 31, Casa de América in Madrid celebrates the discussion conference:  TELENOVELA: ¿CULTURA SENTIMENTAL LATINOAMERICANA? 

The conference will present panels, roundtable discussions, music and films related to telenovelas. Guest speakers include writers, actors, producers and academic researchers. 

I highly recommend following the conference via its  activities calendar.

IN CARACAS: INSIDE LA VIDA ENTERA

This isn't really a blog post, it's a note so you know that I haven't forgotten about my blog. I'm in Caracas inside the production of telenovela LA VIDA ENTERA. My days are long and intense. This is why I haven't written in my blog for too long.

LOOKING FOR THE "INTERNATIONAL" TELENOVELA IN MIAMI

I haven't been able to write in my blog in many days. The reasons are mainly two: 

1. The semester presses on with classes to be prepared, exams to be graded, etc.
   
2. I went to Miami on a short, but fruitful research trip.

Miami is now a key destination in the telenovela world. This is where most Latin American production companies have their "international" branch. It's also the place where decision making occurs for the two largest Spanish-speaking networks in the U.S.:  Telemundo and  Univisión. I went to Miami in search for answers to the main question:

What are the requirements for a telenovela to be successful in the international market?

To explore this and other related questions, I chose key people who have worked successfully both inside and outside Venezuela. My gratitude goes to all of them for the time they spent with me. I want to thank particularly Mr.  Arquímedes Rivero and writers Perla Farías, Alberto Gómez, Vivel Nouel and Valentina Párraga for their generosity as they answered my many questions.

Now, it's time to analyze and deepen what I learned in Miami...and to prepare my next research trip to Caracas, where I'll go back to the set and locations of telenovela La Vida Entera.

BEHIND THE CAMERAS: THE USE OF PLAYBACKS

It's relatively common to be able to listen to characters' thoughts in telenovelas. This is done via playbacks: pre-recorded dialogue that is then played in the scene as if the character is "thinking" it. Playbacks can add dramatic texture or humor to a scene.

Following is an inside look at a telenovela scene that uses playbacks. It's from the telenovela that is my current case study,  La Vida Entera.

Context: Guille (Luis Gerónimo Abreu), whose main objective is to take to bed as many pretty women as he possibly can, is at a bar with Clarita (Yina Vélez). Her conversation is not exactly an intelligent one. Guille's thoughts and attempts at distracting himself while she talks make for a humorous scene in which playbacks are a key element. 

Here are the texts of the three playbacks, as they appear in the original script (I apologize to non-Spanish speakers. The gist is that Guille laments Clarita's lack of brains and then decides to sing in his head a kids' tune to distract himself):

GUILLE (SONRIENTE)
Espantoso. La guerra de Bosnia y tú, pa’ lo que salga. (PLAYBACK, CON LA MISMA SONRISA) Clarita es tan bella como tan bruta, de pana. Pero, bueno, Guille: aguanta, que el premio es gordo. (FIN DE PLAYBACK) ¿No quieres otro trago?

GUILLE (PLAYBACK)
Ah, pues. Y encima no la puedo rascar para acelerar el procedimiento.

GUILLE
Soy todo oídos, mi reina. (PLAYBACK, CANTA) Había una vez un barquito chiquitico, había una vez un barquito chiquitico, HABIA UNA VEEEEEZ un barquito chiquitiiico…

Here's the taping of the first and third playbacks (increase volumen in the first one):

And, finally, the scene as it aired on television:

It's always interesting to see the unavoidable distance between the script and mise-en-scene. For instance, the scene was written so that Clarita would talk nonstop through Guille's "thoughts." That's not how it was done.

The scene was taped in the morning hours in a closed bar with only the actors, extras and technical crew. However, the scene's establishing shot (Caracas at night), plus the illumination and placement of extras make the bar night scene believable.

The telenovela production process is always interesting because it has all the paradoxes that are part and parcel of this genre: it has artistic elements, but it's industrial. It involves a lot of hard work, but it's still plagued with imperfections. And this mix keeps me interested, even after all these years observing how telenovelas are "made."