When you look at the broader scope of the city-scape, one could easily be deceived by a certain monochromatic, almost sepia quality. The city has a lot of browns and oranges. Brick and stone.

However, when one ventures through the various barrios, this apparently 'grim' energy is immediately undermined by the vibrancy of the tiendas and dwellings. You find yourself blind-sided by gorgeous blues, pinks and greens. Especially in the poorer areas of the north and south and even the lower-central city. And while they emit a tremendous pollution, the vehicles of the street are often spectacles of their own. Canary yellow taxis weave and cut through the arteries of the city, while brilliantly painted buses roar and jostle for position; flaunting their tropical bodies, spilling over with commuters.

Because of the Mountains which border the eastern perimeter of the city, there is a significant amount of cloud cover. Fortunately for Bogotanos (unfortunately perhaps, for the environment) the potent altitudinal winds move the smog to the distant plains, maintaining a purity to the light there - without haze. It often has a beautiful, even consistency - perfect for our purposes.

It is imperative that we acknowledge the city as a character in 'Broken Kingdom'. A good proportion of this movie is exteriors and we have to coalesce the spirit of the narrative with the natural light and energy of Bogota. When a character feels haunted or alienated, the city should feel scary and oppressive. When a protagonist is hopeful or optomistic, so too should the city feel bright and full of wonder.

As in most major global cities, Bogota has its affluent and poor citizens. The proportion of poorer citizens however, is vastly greater than what we are accustomed to in the United States. Furthermore, the 'barrios mas povre' are not isolated to a particular region or remote quadrant of the city. In fact a stroll through Bogota for just 15 minutes can unveil to one the violently pendulous integration of rich and poor. You can walk the dynamic of rich street to poor street, then back again about 5 times within such a given space of time.

The city is a gigantic sprawl - not unlike Los Angeles - though it has maintained a 'grid-like' structural system like that of New York. Geographically it's like a monstrous square running on a slightly North-Western/South-Eastern axis. The lofty views are not restricted to those that can afford them, either. In fact many of the most impoverished citizens have erected their makeshift towns and settlements in the heights of the mountains over-looking the city. This makes for a wonderful opportunity in 'Broken Kingdom', given that we will be able to capture some of the more grim conditions of living in Bogota, surrounded by the magnificence of the incongruous panorama.

There is a dirty, hard energy in Bogota. It has an almost feline sexuality. It seems to want to punch and kiss you all at once. The residents wear this energy. An inherent magnetism and immediacy. Present and unapologetic. Fortunaterly also, it is a metropolis with many faces and layers, to suit our various ideas and themes.