There are words that sound good in the world of cinema even before you know what they mean. “International co-production” is one of them.

It evokes film festivals, partnerships, and cultural exchanges. All true. But if you work in film production, you know that a co-production is above all a matter of method. How are decisions made? Who manages what? And how do you merge two different ways of working into a single film?

With Trucco y Parrucco, we asked ourselves this for the first time. It was our first international project, created in collaboration with the Argentine production company Criatura Films and Devil May Care. On screen, it’s a comedy set in the world of Milan Fashion Week. Behind the scenes, however, it was an exercise in coordination, organization, and—inevitably—problem-solving.

Production begins long before the first take

The set is just the most visible part of a film.

The real production begins months earlier, when you have to build a project that works on paper even before it works in front of the camera. Budget, schedule, locations, permits, logistics, communication between departments: every detail contributes to making that first take possible.

For Trucco y Parrucco, we handled all aspects of the Italian executive production, coordinating the shoot and bridging the gap between creative and organizational needs. It’s work that rarely makes it into the behind-the-scenes photos, but without which the behind-the-scenes wouldn’t exist.

A bilingual crew is a great learning experience

Working on an international production means dealing with different languages, customs, and approaches.

We soon realized that the real challenge wasn’t translating from Italian to Spanish, but finding a shared method. Every production has its own pace, its own priorities, and its own way of handling the unexpected. That’s precisely the beauty of it: learning something new while working together to make the same film.

In the end, cinema has only one universal language: finding a solution—preferably before the next call.

Milan is more than just a backdrop

Setting a short film in the world of Milan Fashion Week means engaging with a specific aesthetic: creativity, fashion, speed, and a city that thrives on international influences.

The goal wasn’t to document a specific event, but to recreate its energy and use it as the narrative driving force of the story. The protagonists of Trucco y Parrucco arrive from Argentina with the dream of presenting their own collection, and Milan becomes the place where ambitions, cultures, and personal journeys converge.

Behind this lighthearted atmosphere, however, lies very concrete production work: finding the right locations, establishing effective logistics, and adapting to the unexpected without losing sight of the project’s direction.

And this is probably the best compliment a production department can receive: when the audience doesn’t notice all the work that goes on behind the scenes.

The film continues to live on after the final take

When a short film is finished, another phase has actually just begun.

Festival distribution is a journey made up of strategies, submissions, and interactions with very diverse audiences. Each selection is an opportunity to understand how the film is perceived, interpreted, and received.

With Trucco y Parrucco, this journey has led us to win awards such as Best Story at the Sarajevo Fashion Film Festival, Best Short Film at the New York International Film Awards, and, more recently, Best Story at the Chicago Feedback Film Festival, Best Young Director at the Tokyo Film and Screenplay Awards, and Best Indie Short Film at the Hollywood International Indie Film & Screenplay Awards.

Awards are always nice. But what really matters to us is seeing the film continue to reach new audiences and spark new conversations.

What We Take Home

Every production leaves us with something different.

Trucco y Parrucco taught us that an international co-production isn’t about everyone working the same way, but about bringing different skills to serve the same story.

It’s an approach we’ll continue to bring to our future projects, because we believe that cinema is also this: a way to build bridges between people, languages, and cultures. And, every now and then, a great reason to open one more Excel spreadsheet.