The Way He Looks

The sweet and sunny Brazilian romance, “The Way He Looks,” is writer/director Daniel Ribeiro’s feature-length version of his 2010 short “I Don’t Want to Go Back Alone.” Leo (Ghilherme Lobo) is a blind teenager whose BFF, Giovana (Tess Amorim), assists him in school and walks him home. When Gabriel (Fabio Audi) joins their class, he befriends Leo and Gi, as she’s called. A class assignment forces Gabriel and Leo to work together, and the guys quickly form an intimate bond inciting Gi’s jealousy.

What makes “The Way He Looks” so magical is that Ribeiro shows the two guys falling in love. They never discuss their emotions, but they are all tactile. Ribeiro met with Out Front to talk about gay teens, shower scenes, and “The Way
He Looks.”

Gary M. Kramer: Why did you feel you needed to expand your short into a feature?

Daniel Ribeiro: When I thought about this blind character discovering that he was gay, I knew it had to be my first feature. Blindness provides a way to talk about sexuality because Leo had never seen a boy or a girl. His feelings were not based on anything he had seen; it was just how he felt — his other senses. I thought Leo was a character we’d never seen before, and this coming-of-age film would be a good first feature for me to represent who I am. I wanted to keep the same actors because they had a huge chemistry in the short.

Leo is very careful about expressing his emotions. Can you discuss how you constructed his character?

I think we are all like that … adapting — especially someone [like Leo] who is bullied. In places where he has more power (as at home), he can be strong. He is able to have a dialogue with his parents. I didn’t want him to be protected by anyone other than Gi and his mother.

Leo’s mother sees him as being very responsible. Do you think gay teens are more mature?

I think a lot of gay people mature really young because they have to deal with something huge in their lives and they have to do it by themselves. Nowadays, it’s easier for gay teens to be more open, but when I was a teenager, I went through a period where I couldn’t share everything I was feeling. I was always thinking, and I think a lot of gay people go through that, and mature really fast and really young. I don’t have Leo question his sexualty, which I went through. I think gay kids shouldn’t have to go through this period of questioning who they are. You need some time to understand what you are feeling, but when you realize you’re gay, it should be okay.

What can you say about the shower scene?

I think there has to be a shower scene in a gay film. In the short, we have the same concept where Leo changes in front of Gabe, and Gabe looks at him and realizes that he can look at Leo and Leo doesn’t realize he’s staring. Because they were older, I could do it with nudity, and it would be important for the characters. It’s a big deal for gay teens when they have to shower with other people — you can get an erection because your body can’t hide your sexuality. l

“The Way He Looks” was a Best of Cinema Q feature this year, and is available for pre-order at Amazon.com.