We’re looking forward to introducing you to Guido Segal. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Guido, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What are you being called to do now, that you may have been afraid of before?
Now that I’m older and more seasoned in my craft, I’m called to be an intermediary between creatives and executives. Since I understand the language of both worlds, so to speak, I find myself connecting people who come from different fields. It is a role I always suspected I could play and now I feel ready to do it. I’m happy to intercede in order to make a script work, to help someone land a job or understand what needs to happen for their project to take flight. It’s not like I necessarily get a financial or personal gain from it, but I do believe I have a responsibility to improve people’s lives if I can. So I try to recommend people for positions or I’ll help them pump up their script, if I feel I understand it and am equipped to do it. I want things to happen and the industry to be better, so if I can be an uninterested intermediary, I step up.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
When it comes to film and television, I try to cover most grounds. I am a screenwriter, a film professor, a programmer and a communicator. What I do best is express ideas through writing so that they can materialize. I absolutely love helping someone turn their passion projects into a screenplay they can put out into the world. I have been a translator in the past and that is what my business basically is: I translate abstract emotions and concepts into concrete and actionable documents. I’m originally from Argentina but I have lived and worked in the United States, Spain and Finland, and that cosmopolitan experience in multiples languages has made me more flexible and adaptable without losing my core identity and values. Name any challenge, I’m game.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
Unfortunately, back in 2006, I lived through two brutal car crashes in the lapse of six months. I wasn’t driving in any of them but the car was absolutely totaled. One was in the border between Spain and France, the other in Buenos Aires, in the middle of the night. In both cases, I instinctively checked on the driver, walked away of the vehicle, called 911, then the car insurance, then whoever I had last seen and, eventually, dealt with the aftermath. I was lucky to come out unscathed but I also discovered I can keep a cool head in the worst of scenarios. This was very reassuring. I understood that if I’m fortunate enough to escape death twice, and level-headed enough to act immediately and salvage what’s left, then I’ll be fine working in high-pressure environments. Since then, I bike or walk whenever possible, that much I know.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
When you work in a creative field, you think about giving up all the time. You also learn not to take it too seriously. You want to give up when you can’t find the proper tone for your script. You want to give up when a director or producer forces you to make changes you strongly disagree with. You want to give up when you don’t land the job you were sure to get, or when months go by without getting a job, or when pay turns out to be less than expected… there are so many situations that make you question your life choices. You go down the rabbit hole: “I should have been a lawyer… or a politician… or a commercial pilot.” But you don’t give up because you basically can’t. In my case, writing is not a job, it’s a vocation. It sounds like a cliché but it’s the truth. If a day goes by when I don’t write, it affects my mood, my mental health, my balance. A day of solid writing feels like a day well spent.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
My friends will say I’m pompous, and they’re not entirely wrong, but what I care about the most is truth. Now, that’s a complicated word, I’ll try to explain: everyone has their own truth, but I believe in sincerity when I see it. Honesty is felt on the page and onscreen. Maybe you can’t pinpoint exactly where but you feel it, when someone’s pouring their heart out and it resonates. Because emotional truth, regardless of your circumstances, is universal. At the end of the day, as humans, we all go through similar experiences and tribulations. When a work of art, or any sort of entertainment, addresses those crucial moments, it makes you feel less alone. There’s a transcendence to that. So, do I care about money, stability, love, friendship, family, pets, the future and the environment? Yes, deeply. But first and foremost, I need a good dose of truth.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I would worry less about accumulating money and belongings. I’m not a hoarder but, like everyone, I get too attached to things. If feels good to have money in the bank, and I’m usually careful about how I spend my well-earned bucks. And yet, reality shows that the more I get rid of clutter and the more I invest in experiences (traveling, hobbies, sports, adventures), the more I grow as a human. And none of it really affects my savings that heavily. So, the more I mature, the more I try to get rid of stuff and invest in life experiences. If I only had ten years left, I would dig deeper into that plan. Actually, I’ll start right now.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/primitivosegal/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guido-segal-6976591b7/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/guido.segal/
Image Credits
Aurèlie Lamachere, Cannes Film Festival
