Roberto F. Canuto & Xu Xiaoxi

Filmmakers and producers
Founders of Almost Red Productions
Roberto F. Canuto and Xu Xiaoxi are filmmakers and producers, founders of Almost Red Productions. Their work moves between Europe and Asia, shaped by a cross-cultural perspective and a strong commitment to auteur cinema.
Their films have been presented at international film festivals, building a consistent global trajectory while engaging with themes related to identity, memory, and LGBTIQ+ experiences.
Primarily working in fiction, they develop character-driven stories rooted in human experience, where emotional intimacy and visual language play a central role. In 2011, they founded Almost Red Productions, consolidating a creative collaboration that began through earlier projects in the United States and has since expanded internationally.
Behind the scenes of Sunken Plum film shoot in Chengdu with directors and crew during nighttime filming

Filmmaking Approach

A character-driven perspective. Their work is grounded in character and emotional truth, allowing stories to unfold through subtle gestures, silences, and intimate moments rather than conventional narrative structures.
Visual language and atmosphere. Particular attention is given to composition, rhythm, and the relationship between image and sound, creating immersive environments where atmosphere becomes an essential narrative element.
A flexible creative process. Each project is approached as a unique exploration, adapting form and method to the story while maintaining a coherent artistic vision shaped by collaboration and experimentation.
Xuan (Manuel Pizarro) in an introspective moment by a lake inside a natural cave – IUS of Time (IUS del tiempo)

Narrative Focus

Identity and memory. Their films explore how personal and collective identities are shaped by memory, time, and lived experience, often through characters navigating moments of transformation marked by silence, distance, and unspoken emotion, as seen in IUS of Time.
LGBTIQ+ perspectives. A recurring element in their work is the exploration of LGBTIQ+ experiences, approached with sensitivity and nuance, focusing on emotional depth rather than representation as a label, as seen in Floating Melon and Advent.
Territory and cultural distance. Their stories frequently unfold across different cultural and geographical contexts, reflecting on displacement, belonging, and the invisible boundaries that define human relationships, as explored in Sunken Plum, part of the Invisible Chengdu trilogy.

Almost Red Productions

Almost Red Productions was founded in 2011 in Chengdu, China, as the continuation of a creative collaboration that began in 2008 in the United States, where Roberto F. Canuto and Xu Xiaoxi developed their first works while studying filmmaking in Los Angeles.

 

During these early years, they created projects under the name Almost Red, including Toto Forever, Mei Mei, and the feature film Desire Street, laying the foundations of a shared artistic voice that would later define their work.

 

Based in China for several years, they combined fiction, short documentaries, and commercial work, expanding their practice across different formats while deepening a cross-cultural perspective. In 2020, they established themselves in Spain, continuing their activity through Almost Red Producciones while maintaining strong creative ties with China.

 

Their films have been presented at international film festivals such as Raindance and the Málaga Film Festival, among many others, and have received numerous international awards, consolidating a trajectory that connects Europe, Asia, and the United States.

The Creative Core of Almost Red

At the core of Almost Red is a shared vision shaped by two distinct perspectives, where cultural distance becomes a space for connection, and storytelling emerges through image and emotion.

Roberto F. Canuto

Filmmaker, producer and editor

Roberto F. Canuto is a Spanish filmmaker, producer, and editor based in Asturias. He studied Audiovisual Communication at the Complutense University of Madrid before completing an MFA in Filmmaking at the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles, where he began developing his early projects.

 

His work has been presented at international film festivals such as Raindance Film Festival (London), SEMINCI – Valladolid International Film Festival, and Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival, among others, establishing a consistent presence within the independent film circuit.

 

With a background that combines European and international experience, his practice brings together narrative precision and a strong visual sensibility, shaped by years of work across Spain, the United States, and Asia.

Every story begins in a specific place, but what matters is how it resonates beyond it.

Xu Xiaoxi

Filmmaker and cinematographer

Xu Xiaoxi is a Chinese filmmaker and cinematographer originally from Chengdu. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (South Africa) and later completed an MFA in Filmmaking at the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles, developing his work within an international context.

 

His work has been presented at international film festivals across Europe, Asia, and the United States, and has received several awards, including recognition for cinematography. His work has also been the subject of a monographic exhibition at the A4 Art Museum in Sichuan, featuring screenings and production materials that highlight his creative trajectory.

 

With a background rooted in visual arts, his approach to filmmaking is strongly shaped by image, composition, and atmosphere. Moving between China, Europe, and the United States, his work reflects a sensitivity to cultural nuances and an interest in the emotional spaces that exist between people, places, and identities.

I think through images—light, distance, and the space between what is seen and what is felt.