“Apnea” is a short film made during a trip to the Canary Islands, which emerged from a reflection on the effects of living a life according to the consumerist principles of the capitalist system.
In this context, “Apnea” represents the sensation of holding one’s breath, not so much to survive, but rather due to a lack of air – the impossibility of inhaling existence with full lungs.
The worries of consumerist life stress us and crush us, making us forget how to breathe and leaving us gasping for air.
The protagonists of the film are a young man and woman engaged in a long-distance relationship, talking over the phone. During an anxiety crisis, she calls her partner asking him to reassure her in every way he can. He succeeds through a playful metaphor, inviting her to reflect on the things that really matter.
Apnea is a practice but also an unconscious process with which we try to push our problems away and this is the reason why there are many ways to breathe – we can do it, but we just need to figure out how.
The images of the Canarian nature, wild and impetuous, convey a sense of calm and lightheartedness. It is a place for the soul that welcomes you and invites you to gently let all negative thoughts fade away in peaceful silence, and teaches us to breathe again.
Directed and written by Raoul Ventura
