“To go back home with my people to shoot a movie was fantastic,” says director J.A. Bayona, whose film “Society of the Snow” has been selected as Spain’s entry for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards. “Every time I work in Hollywood I bring my people with me. It’s been a whole journey. I did my first movies in Spain, ‘The Orphanage,’ ‘The Impossible’ and ‘A Monster Calls.’ I established my voice. I wanted to show the world, ‘This is who I am.’ I moved to Hollywood. Then, doing this film after so many years, this is where I really like to be. I’m going back to my people. Being selected for the Oscars was extraordinary.”

We talked with Bayona as part of Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with 2023/2024 awards contenders. Watch our exclusive video interview above.

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