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Chus Gutiérrez, in front of CNIO and next to the Intra-Venus statue by artist Marina Vargas. / Laura Lombardía. CNIO.
A film crew and a research group are not so different, as they are both made up of people. No wonder then that, when filmmaker Chus Gutiérrez explains at a research center of excellence her vision of teamwork, a full auditorium listens in awe. She came to the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO) invited by WISE (Women in Science Office) to talk about Team Management from a Feminist Perspective.
Gutiérrez’s words exude decades of experience. She is a prominent figure in the new generation of female film directors in Spain. Her well-grounded career as a director and screenwriter includes, among others, thirteen feature films and as many short films. She was nominated for the Goya Awards for Best New Director in 1992 for Sublet, and in 2001 her film Retorno a Hansala received three nominations for Best New Actress, Best Original Song and Best Screenplay.
“In my sets, we speak in feminine,” says Chus Gutiérrez at the very beginning of her speech. “It’s a detail, but it’s revolutionary, because many things can be changed from within”.
The filmmaker mentions some other ‘details’ she considers crucial when it comes to putting together a good team. Diversity is one of them “not only in terms of gender, but also of origin, of age… I enjoy being around young people, but I also go for hiring women my age, because I like to be with my peers, with people with whom I share experience”.
Another important feature, “in film and everywhere, I think, is knowing how to listen,” she continues. “We work with very talented people –the reason they have got there–. I’ve learned to make the most of other people’s talent. And this requires respect, knowing how to listen, and being open and generous”.
People are happier without confrontations
One of the most valuable skills she has acquired throughout her career, Gutiérrez says, is the ability to resolve conflicts: “We spend many hours together on the set, some of which are extremely tense, because there are pressures, crises to overcome. We experience very intense relationships condensed in time, and that brings about tensions between teams. The best thing I’ve learned in my career is how to listen in order to stop those confrontations, without them leaving a trace. And I have found that people are happier without confrontations”.
Another essential lesson: “Ego is useless,” she says, bluntly. “The ego is the great destroyer of today’s society. Ever since I started to kill my ego, I am much happier, and I make the people I work with happier.”
Killing the ego helps, among other things, to “allow myself the luxury of making mistakes. We all make mistakes, beginning by myself. It feels embarrassing at first, sure, but then you realize that it’s not so important. And when you play it down, you became aware that it is no big deal for others either. You are not that important. In turn, you must be generous: if I can afford to make mistakes, so can others.
Working in a team also implies being aware of where the other person stands. “There are no robots in my team, I work with people who can go through situations that affect their work. And I think a feminist perspective helps me understand where others are standing at a certain moment. Feminism is for everyone: if you have children you have to be able to take care of them, whether you are a father or a mother”.
“Power continues to be male. There are still very few women running countries. But we must keep on changing the world, even through small gestures, which have the potential of changing it because they represent our own attitude towards the world. A compassionate attitude makes us all happier”.