Beyond Borders: A Conversation with Director Fabien Martorell
By S. Nguyen
At a time when cinema increasingly moves across countries, cultures and platforms, Fabien
Martorell has built a career that defies conventional boundaries. From Paris to Los Angeles and
Johannesburg, the French filmmaker has forged a rare path between international genre cinema
and culturally grounded storytelling, crafting visually precise thrillers and crime dramas that
combine entertainment with deeper social and human concerns. Following the worldwide
success of Netflix’s Collision and ahead of the release of City of Gold, Martorell has emerged as
a filmmaker whose work speaks to audiences across borders while retaining a distinct authorial
voice. Behind the growing recognition remains the same obsession: using the language of
cinema to turn every image into a story.
Few filmmakers build careers that move so freely between continents. Do you feel
shaped by a particular film culture today, or by the experience of working between
several of them?
FM: Definitely by the experience of working between them. Every country has shaped the way I think
about cinema. France taught me the importance of authorship, of having a clear vision and
using cinema to explore meaningful social and human themes. South Africa reinforced that even
further. It’s a country of extraordinary cultural richness and complex realities, where stories are
deeply connected to identity, history and society. The United States taught me something
equally important: that a film is ultimately made for an audience. No matter how personal or
ambitious a story is, it has to connect emotionally and communicate clearly. American
filmmaking also has a remarkable understanding of cinematic language, of how visual and
sound codes can travel across cultures and speak to audiences around the world.
What fascinates me is the meeting point between these influences. I believe that the more a
story is rooted in a specific place, culture or reality, the more universal it can become. I think
music works the same way. A song can emerge from a particular culture and still resonate with
someone on the other side of the world because it speaks to something fundamentally human.
So I don’t feel attached to a single film culture today. I feel shaped by all three. In many ways, I
see myself as a bridge between them, and my films are perhaps the result of that collision.
Today, what interests you most: directing films, or building something larger around
them?
FM: Directing will always be at the heart of what I do, but today I’m equally interested in building
something larger around it. Every film is unique and should offer its own experience, but I’m also
developing a slate of feature films to be shot in South Africa for a global audience, with
internationally recognised actors in leading roles.
What interests me is creating a body of work with a clear identity. I’ve always been drawn to
genre cinema because it’s one of the most powerful ways to engage an audience, but I believe
entertainment and meaningful themes should go hand in hand. Whether the subject is social
inequality, identity, freedom, power or corruption, I want those ideas to exist beneath the surface
of the story without ever overwhelming it.
In many ways, that’s the DNA we’re building at Lucky Rhino in Johannesburg: films with
international appeal, rooted in strong genre storytelling, but connected to themes that matter
beyond the screen.
In an industry being transformed by streaming, social media and AI, what do you believe
audiences are still looking for from cinema?
FM: I think audiences are still looking for the same thing they have always looked for: a human
experience. Technology changes, platforms change, but people still want stories that help them
understand themselves and the world around them. They want to see their hopes, fears,
dreams, disappointments and contradictions reflected on screen. That’s what cinema has
always offered at its best. It remains deeply connected to people and reminds us that, no matter
where we come from, many of our emotions and struggles are shared. Sometimes a story can
even change the way we see ourselves and the world around us.
AI, social media and streaming will continue to transform the industry, but I don’t think they
change what audiences are searching for. People still want to be moved, challenged, surprised
and, sometimes, transformed. That’s something technology can help deliver, but it cannot
replace.
Success changes most people. What has success changed in you, and what has it not
changed?
FM: To be honest, I don’t think success has changed me that much. What hasn’t changed is my
desire to tell stories that matter and my commitment to the people I work with. I’ve always been
demanding, first with myself and then with those around me, because filmmaking is a collective
effort and everyone depends on one another. But I’ve also always believed that ambition and
kindness should go hand in hand.
If anything, success has reinforced my sense of responsibility. I didn’t follow a traditional path
into the industry, and many of the opportunities I’ve had were opportunities I had to create
myself. It wasn’t always easy, but that journey taught me resilience, independence and the
importance of perseverance. Today, if I can help talented people grow, gain confidence, take on
more responsibility, or create opportunities of their own, I try to do so. Whether through
mentoring, speaking to students, or supporting collaborators as they progress in their careers, I
believe it’s important to pass things on and help the next generation build its own path.
Working across different countries and cultures has also taught me the value of listening. On
projects like Collision, authenticity came from listening to people, understanding their
experiences, and remaining open to perspectives different from my own. The more experience I
gain, the more I realise that filmmaking is not just about having a vision, it’s about bringing
people together around it.
I think it’s important for filmmakers to remain accessible, to preserve a strong work ethic, and to
treat everyone with respect, regardless of their position. Success may change your
circumstances, but it shouldn’t change your values.
Without revealing too much, what can audiences expect from the next chapter of your
work?
FM: Our next project is Burning Line, a contained suspense-thriller about a surgeon who wakes up
trapped inside a coffin in a crematorium with less than an hour before the furnace reaches him.
While he fights to survive, his detective wife races against time to find him and gradually
uncovers the truth that put him there in the first place.
What attracted me to the story is that beneath the tension and the ticking clock lies a very real
human issue. The film explores organ trafficking, a subject that remains underrepresented in
mainstream cinema despite being a global problem. Behind the criminal networks are often
vulnerable people facing poverty, displacement or desperation, people who become targets
because they have few choices. The film doesn’t pretend to provide answers, but it shines a
light on a reality that deserves more attention.
For me, that’s one of the strengths of genre cinema. It allows you to engage an audience
through suspense while also confronting them with realities they might otherwise never
encounter.
