“Instead of looking, I prefer to listen”

Sound and musical representation modes in João César Monteiro’s Snow White

Abstract

The phrase that Snow White directs to the prince in João César Monteiro’s film – and which serves as the title of this article – captures a central characteristic of the work. The film Snow White is more to be heard than seen, requiring the viewer to listen closely to its soundtrack. This research offers an innovative reading of Monteiro’s penultimate film, suggesting that sound and music are crucial in defining its representational modes. Through an audiovisual analysis and its articulation with a set of works, dialogues, and texts that orbit the film, we demonstrate how music and sound interact with each other and with the other filmic elements to determine space-time. Additionally, drawing on an interview with the sound director, Joaquim Pinto, an analysis of the script (Monteiro, 1999) and an interview given by Monteiro at the time of Snow White’s release, this research introduces new information to the academic field, allowing for connections to be drawn between the film’s production process and its final outcome.