Peer Review: Cisma

Who are three contemporaries that you admire?

Dirk Koy – I absolutely love this visual artist from Basel. He blends humour and cutting-edge technology to create truly unique moving images. His work is a playground for the imagination. 

Es Devlin – She’s not a filmmaker, but probably the most brilliant stage designer of our time. She crafts immersive worlds for artists like The Weeknd, Beyoncé, U2, and Travis Scott—yet her style remains unmistakably hers. Even in massive commercial projects that go through probably endless revisions, you can still feel her soul in them. That’s just incredible. 

It’s such a battle to get to that moment that when it finally happens, it feels surreal. Almost magical.

Valentin Petit – Losing Valentin Petit at just 32 was a massive blow to the audiovisual world. His work remains groundbreaking, seamlessly merging technical mastery with bold aesthetics. He reminds me of the loss of Nagi Noda—I can’t help but wonder what kinds of mind-blowing feature films they would have made if they were still here. It’s heartbreaking to think of the masterpieces that will never be. 

Above: English artist and stage designer Es Devlin at the exhibition of her work, An Atlas of Es Devlin

Please share 3-4 pieces of work that exemplify great direction, and explain why?  

The opening scene of Anatomy of a Fall—a ball rolls down the stairs, a dog follows it, then stops and observes something happening off-screen. Just like that, the director, Justine Triet, hooks us into the mystery of what happened in this house. This quiet, deliberate storytelling is the mark of a true master. And that final scene with the same dog, plenty of meaning … pure poetry. 

LOBO was my true college. Coming back to work with them feels as natural as coming home after a long trip. 

ASAP Rocky - Tailor Swif (directed by Vania Heymann & Gal Muggia, watch here) – This blew my mind. It’s like they broke a record for the most bizarre ideas by second. Inventiveness at its peak. 

My friend Fernando Nogari directed an incredible piece for Deezer - amazing casting, choreography, cinematography, and editing, all flawlessly orchestrated. When everything in a film feels effortlessly perfect, you know the director had a tight grip on every detail. That’s the work of a good director. 

Above: ASAP Rocky's music video Tailor Swif, directed by Vania Heymann & Gal Muggia

What do you like most about the work that you do?  

The best part? Seeing ideas materialise. The hardest part? Managing anxiety. You have an idea, you put it on paper, you convince people it works, you plan, you adjust, you explain it to a massive team, you solve problems before they even happen—and then you still deal with the unexpected. After all that, you shoot everything in just a few days. It’s such a battle to get to that moment that when it finally happens, it feels surreal. Almost magical. But, honestly? It’s mostly just pure relief. Then, the next day you want everything again. 

The key is to always be learning, always studying. 

You recently returned to LOBO, how you found yourself back where you started your filmmaking journey?  

I was studying mechanical engineering when I landed my first job at LOBO. It was my real film school—I learned composition, 3D, animation, and even opened a camera for the first time there. LOBO was my true college. Coming back to work with them feels as natural as coming home after a long trip.