Q&A: Julio Torres and Tilda Swinton on their surreal New York saga ‘Problemista’
Julio Torres mined his own life and experiences to make his feature directorial debut “ Problemista,” in which he plays an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador caught in the nightmarish Catch-22 of the U.S. immigration system.
His character Alejandro desperately needs someone to sponsor his work visa, and he thinks he may have found that person in Tilda Swinton’s Elizabeth, a caustic, put-upon art critic. Together they embark on a wild, surreal New York odyssey of setbacks, bureaucratic nonsense, and art world characters all trapped in their own mazes.
Torres, too, is from El Salvador but instead of
