The Human Voice is a short film directed by Pedro Almodóvar inspired by the play of the same name by Jean Cocteau. The character played by Tilda Swinton is waiting for her partner to return home and take his belongings after having ended their relationship on the phone. But we never get to know who is at the other end of the line, or the reasons behind his decision.
That’s the starting point of Forget Me Not, the latest short film by independent adult-film director Noel Alejandro, which explores a break-up from the point of view of a person who decides to end a stable relationship to pursue their own path in life.
Through a one-sided telephone conversation, the movie delves into topics as deep and universal as the fear of loneliness, the individualism of the 21st century, and the doubts when it comes to making a life-changing, irreversible decision. To achieve this, Noel Alejandro uses very few characters. There is Leo, the protagonist (played by Javier des Leon); Raúl, his unseen partner, at the other end of the line; and an anonymous young man (played by Abel Sanztin) whose sexual encounter with Leo triggers the decision to end the relationship. But it also has the constant presence of a silent but observant fourth character: a coffin in the middle of the room that indirectly questions the main character about the wisdom of his decision.
This is a short film for adults, with a clear emphasis on sexual content, but with a paradox that’s present throughout the filmography of Noel Alejandro: while sex is the main theme, it’s also a doorway to talking about the deepest aspects of human relationships. These relationships can arise because of sex, but can also break down because of it.
Noel Alejandro’s short films not only explore the context of sexual intercourse but also stand out because of their high artistic quality in terms of image composition and lighting, pacing, the use of music or the acting skills of the performers.
The film features Javier des Leon playing Leo, in what could be considered his first fictional role, although it’s not his first time in front of a camera. A multidisciplinary artist, musician and model, des Leon is a content creator who explores sensuality and sexuality with an artistic vision and with his own body as the protagonist.
Forget Me Not – released on November 18th on Noel Alejandro’s website, noelalejandrofilms.com.
About the director:
Noel Alejandro is a Barcelona-Berlin-based independent filmmaker and conceptual adult films director whose path is driven by all kinds of art that break taboos. Having directed Eloi & Biel (2012), Bad Medicine (2015), Roomies (2015), Thank You… (2016), The Cable Guy (2016), Doing Elliot (2016), Trivial (2017),
Call Me a Ghost (2017), The End (2018), SWEAT (2018), The Seed (2018), Serodiscordantes (2019) and Under The Rain (2019), his work has been hailed as unique, originative and avant-garde. It was recently said to “erase the line between art and porn”, and to emerge as “the best hope of contemporary independent gay porn”.
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About the protagonist:
Javier des Leon is a model, musician, stylist and Only Fans content creator. Based in Madrid and Paris, this versatile artist explores the boundaries between art, sensuality, eroticism and pornography. He has recently released his debut album titled On Red, a set of five genre-defying electronic tracks clearly influenced by 2000s techno and dance music.
