BAFTA 2025 shorts nominee interviews
Jose Prats on Adiós
In this interview series, we speak to some of the brilliant BAFTA short film nominees across the live action (which includes documentary) and animation categories. We should point out that of the five live action nominees, there is only one woman filmmaker, and the same is the case for the three animation nominees. Overall, that’s just two women filmmakers across a selection of eight films selected for the shortlists. And this is before we even discuss race, class, disability and queerness.
Many people are involved in the making of a film, and so we know that there are racialised and marginalised people in roles that aren’t necessarily listed in an award nomination. However, for there to only be two women directors named across eight nominations in the shorts category isn’t good enough. We hope to see this change in the future.
Jose Prats
Adiós
Writers: Bernardo Angeletti, Natalia Kyriacou, Jose Prats
Director: Jose Prats
Producer: Bernardo Angeletti
This pared back and sensitive stop motion short by Jose Prats tells the story of loss and loneliness of a man whose son is on the precipice of moving abroad from their countryside home. When they go out hunting, for what seems like a last outing together, the father’s sense of grief is palpable.
Inspired by director Jose Prat’s real home in rural Spain and with great attention to detail, Adiós is a simple yet incredibly moving story that many of us can relate to as we travel, move abroad and leave loved ones behind.
Here, director Jose Prats speaks to Molly Lipson about portraying his relationship with his father on screen, reclaiming pride in his culture, and the sheer scale of work involved in making this film.
Molly: Where did the idea for this story come from?
Jose: The story is based on my own experiences. I think that the only way to shine as a filmmaker and an artist is to do something personal – I’m inspired by something Bong Joon-ho, the director of Parasite and Okja said, which is that the most personal is the most creative, because it's the most unique. Originally, I’d written a version of this story as a live action film with a different location and different characters, but it never got made. When I shared that script with my producers and co-writers Bernardo and Natalia, they both really connected to the themes. Bernardo’s from Italy and Natalia’s family is from Cyprus, and I’m from Spain so we all really understood the emotions that come with parents or family members being left alone when you move to another country. That was the starting point, then we shaped this story into something way more personal to me about my relationship with my father.
M: And what is that relationship like?
J: That's a funny question because my father and I, well I don’t quite know how to articulate it, but our relationship isn’t the best, I wish it was much better. We're working on it, but he's a man from a different generation. When I became a teenager, I stopped enjoying the same things that my father liked doing, like hunting, for example, which created a big disconnect that comes through in the film.
M: What does your dad think of the film?
J: Him and my mum came to my NFTS graduation showcase where my film was screened and afterwards my mum told my dad, it’s you, that character is you, and my dad completely denied it, “No, no, I’m nothing like him.” A bit later on I asked him if he understood the story, all the details that were so similar to our real life, and I think he knew deep down.
M: Apart from the father character, how true to life is the rest of the film?
J: It’s actually all based on real life. The house, the landscape, that’s my house and the place where I grew up in Spain. Even the sounds of the gun were taken from the real guns. It was also really important to me that the voice actors were from my region in Spain. Our accent is actually famous in Spain – or perhaps I should say infamous. I wasn’t very proud of it growing up, but this is an homage to our culture and the way we talk, and making it clear that it doesn't mean we are lesser.
M: What was the experience of making such a personal film like?
J: It definitely came with its own set of fears. I was scared that my family, who have been to the actual house, would point out some detail that wasn't exact, for example. But at the same time, It was definitely easier to do it in animation format than live action.
M: What was the biggest obstacle you faced in making this film?
J: One thing that stands out is how much the grass and the vegetation in the outdoor scenes physically moved despite our best efforts to keep it in place. We ended up having to take night shifts to keep an eye on it. We were working ridiculous hours on this film, it was quite tough actually.
M: What’s next for you?
J: I’m currently developing another stop motion film but I need to get the funding. The great thing about NFTS is you get lots of resources for free, including crew and kit. But making shorts isn’t my job, it’s a hobby and it’s a very expensive one. I’m hoping in the future I’ll have the time and funding to be able to really dedicate the time towards making more films.
