BAFTA released their nominations on January 18 and, it’s fair to say, they were pretty wild. There some shocking omissions, including Greta Gerwig being snubbed for Best Director for “Barbie” and Lily Gladstone missing out on a Best Actress nomination for “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
The flip of that side, however, means that there were a few pleasant surprises in the British academy’s lists. None more so than Teo Yoo, who reaped a Best Actor bid for his stirring performance in Celine Song‘s “Past Lives.” The A24 movie follows two former childhood best friends who reconnect as adults and find that they are still drawn to each other. Yoo delivers a quiet performance but is commanding and appealing on screen, at once a mysterious figure of masculinity and a gentle soul who, in many ways, still is his childhood self. It’s a delicate performance but a powerful one.
The flip of that side, however, means that there were a few pleasant surprises in the British academy’s lists. None more so than Teo Yoo, who reaped a Best Actor bid for his stirring performance in Celine Song‘s “Past Lives.” The A24 movie follows two former childhood best friends who reconnect as adults and find that they are still drawn to each other. Yoo delivers a quiet performance but is commanding and appealing on screen, at once a mysterious figure of masculinity and a gentle soul who, in many ways, still is his childhood self. It’s a delicate performance but a powerful one.
- 1/20/2024
- by Jacob Sarkisian
- Gold Derby
At their annual retreat, the traditional internal kick-off for the big Sundance Film Festival this January, programmer Charlie Reff was able to take some time to talk with me about Next Fest.
My colleague Carlos Aguilar has already written about this big L.A. event here, so I will cover other areas and fill in on the music components of the film program.
Each film is its own event so that audiences will go to one film and not necessarily all films. Though the series package is selling well, the individual ticket sales are significant not only selling out but in bringing in new audiences. Getting L.A. people’s attention is not an easy task, but the pairing of movies and music in the unique way Next is creating, plus the spectacular venue, the Theatre at the Ace Hotel, one of L.A.’s most lavish and historic film venues, downtown at 9th and Broadway, will also bring out new audiences who care about preservation of our art deco landmarks.
This year more than half the films that showed in Sundance came out quickly theatrically this spring and summer followed by their VOD releases. If they did not get released theatrically then they were eligible to be chosen for Next if they were sufficiently “renegade” in the best spirit of indie filmmakers, like past films “Obvious Child”, “Compliance”, “Appropriate Behavior”, “Tangerine” and “Escape from Tomorrow”.
Out of the six films chosen for the unconventional and forward thinking of their narrative styles – including one doc -- there is a full range of experience to be had.
Four films showing in the evening are paired with live musical acts which somehow fit the film in mood or in ideas and are new and next in film and music.
In addition there will be three world premiere music videos and a full-body, mind-blowing virtual reality flight simulator, Birdly which was shown this past Sundance in the New Frontier exhibition. You can experience being a bird from a first-person perspective through a full-body virtual reality set up….it’s free, in the mezzanine of The Theatre of the Ace Hotel and available through an onsite waitlist system.
The world premiere music videos are Superhumanoid’s music video for “Anxious in Venice”, premiering Friday along with Noah Baumbach’s out of the mold “Mistress America” (Fox Searchlight) followed by a live performance by Sky Ferreira.Health’s album trailer for “Death Magic” as part of Saturday evening’s screening of “ Entertainment“ (Magnolia Releasing) starring Michael Cera will be followed by a solo performance by Sharon Van Etten. “Death Magic” is directed by acclaimed graphic designer, title designer, and editor Pablo Ferro, who has worked alongside some of the most respected filmmakers of all time including Stanley Kubrick, Hal Ashby and Tim Burton. An experimental short film by Eddie Alcazar with soundtrack by Flying Lotus, “Fuckkkyouuu”, will premiere Sunday at the “Turbo Kid” (Epic Pictures Releasing) screening with a back-to-back DJ battle between Neon Indian and Toro Y Moi.
Pairing music audiences with movie audiences aims to bring new awareness of new art canvasses to people who do not have a lot of crossover knowledge of film on one hand or of music on the other. Musicians often want to make movies and both they and filmmakers have had the carpets pulled out from under them and are struggling to find their way amidst digitization. It seems self-evident that fimmakers appreciate music since soundtracks and even the most incidental music in a film can make or break it. By pairing “Mistress America” with Sky Ferreira, Charlie is sure Sky’s fans will love “Mistress America” which will result in new discussions and will perhaps begin to define how to make sense of movies to music audiences. The cross-pollination of audiences enriches everyone.
The two daytime films, “Cronies” by Michael Larnell and “Finders Keepers” will be followed by conversations, paired respectively with Robert Townsend, one of the Godfathers of the Independent Film World, actor, writer, director and producer of first of “Hollywood Shuffle” followed by many other films; and Saturday’s “Finders Keepers” directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel with Thomas Middletich (“Silicon Valley” ) along with the film’s subject John Wood himself! Speakers were chosen by the filmmakers who were told to ask who was influential them them and who would they want to see their film.
Among the filmmakers, cast and musicians expected to attend Sundance Next Fest are Rick Alverson, Noah Baumbach, Bryan Carberry, Munro Chambers, Greta Gerwig, Health, Tim Heidecker, Lola Kirke, Michael Larnell, François Simard, Superhumanoids, Gregg Turkington, Clay Tweel, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell.
Attendance is expected to be around 10,000 judging by lat year’s numbers. Last year all three film with music event was sold out. The opening screening in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery was huge and the screenings over three days had about 1,000 at each event.
Next is not just a film festival; it is an Event.
Sundance Next Fest is supported by Principal Sponsors – Acura and Adobe; Major Sponsor – Kickstarter; Media Sponsor – Kcrw; and Supporting Sponsors – Beachside Films, Dolby, FilmL.A., Inc., ShopHouse, Shudder, Skullcandy®, Southwest Airlines, Stella Artois®, The Theatre at Ace Hotel and the Utah Film Commission. As part of their presence at the festival, Adobe and Kickstarter will host panels open to the public on Saturday and Sunday afternoons;
Below is the full program in detail. Even more details and tickets ($15-25) now on sale can be found at sundance.org/next.
Friday, August 7, 8:00 p.m.
"Anxious in Venice" (Band: Superhumanoids, Director: Taylor Cohen) — It's 4:37 a.m. and someone straps a camera to your chest. Nearby, your hungover bandmate sips gas station coffee and the director yells about missing the sunrise. You hate performance music videos but you're sure this one will be different. Then again, when you've been up all night and are shooting without a permit -- you can't be sure of anything. Welcome to Anxious In Venice. Music Video. World Premiere
"Mistress America" / U.S.A. (Director: Noah Baumbach, Screenwriters: Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig) — Tracy is a lonely college freshman in New York, having neither the exciting university experience nor the glamorous metropolitan lifestyle she envisioned. But when she is taken in by her soon-to-be stepsister, Brooke – a resident of Times Square and adventurous gal about town – she is rescued from her disappointment and seduced by Brooke's alluringly mad schemes. Cast: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke. Los Angeles Premiere
Sky Ferreira — Sky Ferreira has quickly established herself as one of today’s most exciting new faces in music, film and fashion. She first signed to Capitol Records at the early age of 15 where she eventually wrote & executive produced her critically acclaimed debut album, Night Time, My Time. As an actress, she has worked with many independent filmmakers including Eli Roth, Liza Johnson & Matthew Porterfield. Sky is currently recording her highly anticipated new album, Masochism.
Saturday, August 8, 3:30 p.m.
"Finders Keepers" / U.S.A. (Directors: Bryan Carberry, Clay Tweel) — Recovering addict and amputee John Wood finds himself in a stranger-than-fiction battle to reclaim his mummified leg from Southern entrepreneur Shannon Whisnant, who found it in a grill he bought at an auction and believes it, therefore, to be his rightful property. Los Angeles Premiere
Followed by a conversation between directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel, subject John Wood and special guests Aubrey Plaza and Thomas Middleditch.
Saturday, August 8, 8:00 p.m.
"Death Magic" (Band: Health, Director: Pablo Ferro) — The sun slowly sets; its beauty soundtracked by a serene yet melancholy sound. As the last rays of light slip behind the clouds, a violent transformation takes place. The music, ever-changing and explosive, creates the imagery… supergraphic and never seen before! The quick cuts in sync with the music, introduce the emotional range and complexity of Health’S new album Death Magic. Album Trailer. World Premiere
"Entertainment" / U.S.A. (Director: Rick Alverson, Screenwriters: Rick Alverson, Gregg Turkington, Tim Heidecker) — In an attempt to revive his dwindling career and reunite with his estranged daughter, a broken, aging comedian plays a string of dead-end shows in the California desert. Cast: Gregg Turkington, John C. Reilly, Tye Sheridan, Michael Cera, Amy Seimetz, Lotte Verbeek. Los Angeles Premiere
Sharon Van Etten — Singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten writes from free-flowing emotional honesty and vulnerability, creating a bond with the listener that few contemporary musicians can match. Following her 2012 break-through Tramp, last year’s follow up Are We There and her new Ep I Don’t Want to Let You Down, Van Etten finds herself in full stride, writing, producing and performing.
Sunday, August 9, 3:30 p.m.
"Cronies" / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Michael J. Larnell) — Twenty-two-year-old Louis doesn’t know whether his childhood friendship with Jack will last beyond today. Cast: George Sample III, Zurich Buckner, Brian Kowalski. Los Angeles Premiere
Followed by a conversation between director Michael J. Larnell and special guest Robert Townsend.
Sunday, August 9, 8:00 p.m.
"Fuckkkyouuu" (Director: Eddie Alcazar, Music: Flying Lotus) — With the ability to travel in time, a lonely girl finds love and comfort by connecting with her past self. Eventually faced with rejection she struggles with her identity and gender, and as time folds onto itself only one of them can remain. Cast: Jesse Sullivan, Charles Baker. Experimental Short / Music Video. World Premiere
"Turbo Kid" / Canada, New Zealand (Directors and screenwriters: Anouk Whissell, François Simard, Yoann-Karl Whissell) — Set in a post apocalyptic year of 1997, this nostalgic tribute to ’80s action-adventure films follows an orphaned teenager who goes on an adventure to save his female-robot companion from the hands of the evil warlord who controls the only water supply. Cast: Munro Chambers, Laurence Leboeuf, Michael Ironside, Aaron Jeffery, Edwin Wright. Los Angeles Premiere
Neon Indian (DJ set) B2B Toro Y Moi (DJ set) — Neon Indian, the brainchild of Alan Palomo, is defined by a unique electro-mangled sound which has attracted fans and opening slots before acts like Massive Attack, The Flaming Lips, Phoenix and Chromeo. Toro Y Moi, the guise of Chaz Bundick, channels a wide swath of stylistic influences into his electronics-incorporating music and cites Big Star, Talking Heads and Todd Rundgren as some of his inspirations.
My colleague Carlos Aguilar has already written about this big L.A. event here, so I will cover other areas and fill in on the music components of the film program.
Each film is its own event so that audiences will go to one film and not necessarily all films. Though the series package is selling well, the individual ticket sales are significant not only selling out but in bringing in new audiences. Getting L.A. people’s attention is not an easy task, but the pairing of movies and music in the unique way Next is creating, plus the spectacular venue, the Theatre at the Ace Hotel, one of L.A.’s most lavish and historic film venues, downtown at 9th and Broadway, will also bring out new audiences who care about preservation of our art deco landmarks.
This year more than half the films that showed in Sundance came out quickly theatrically this spring and summer followed by their VOD releases. If they did not get released theatrically then they were eligible to be chosen for Next if they were sufficiently “renegade” in the best spirit of indie filmmakers, like past films “Obvious Child”, “Compliance”, “Appropriate Behavior”, “Tangerine” and “Escape from Tomorrow”.
Out of the six films chosen for the unconventional and forward thinking of their narrative styles – including one doc -- there is a full range of experience to be had.
Four films showing in the evening are paired with live musical acts which somehow fit the film in mood or in ideas and are new and next in film and music.
In addition there will be three world premiere music videos and a full-body, mind-blowing virtual reality flight simulator, Birdly which was shown this past Sundance in the New Frontier exhibition. You can experience being a bird from a first-person perspective through a full-body virtual reality set up….it’s free, in the mezzanine of The Theatre of the Ace Hotel and available through an onsite waitlist system.
The world premiere music videos are Superhumanoid’s music video for “Anxious in Venice”, premiering Friday along with Noah Baumbach’s out of the mold “Mistress America” (Fox Searchlight) followed by a live performance by Sky Ferreira.Health’s album trailer for “Death Magic” as part of Saturday evening’s screening of “ Entertainment“ (Magnolia Releasing) starring Michael Cera will be followed by a solo performance by Sharon Van Etten. “Death Magic” is directed by acclaimed graphic designer, title designer, and editor Pablo Ferro, who has worked alongside some of the most respected filmmakers of all time including Stanley Kubrick, Hal Ashby and Tim Burton. An experimental short film by Eddie Alcazar with soundtrack by Flying Lotus, “Fuckkkyouuu”, will premiere Sunday at the “Turbo Kid” (Epic Pictures Releasing) screening with a back-to-back DJ battle between Neon Indian and Toro Y Moi.
Pairing music audiences with movie audiences aims to bring new awareness of new art canvasses to people who do not have a lot of crossover knowledge of film on one hand or of music on the other. Musicians often want to make movies and both they and filmmakers have had the carpets pulled out from under them and are struggling to find their way amidst digitization. It seems self-evident that fimmakers appreciate music since soundtracks and even the most incidental music in a film can make or break it. By pairing “Mistress America” with Sky Ferreira, Charlie is sure Sky’s fans will love “Mistress America” which will result in new discussions and will perhaps begin to define how to make sense of movies to music audiences. The cross-pollination of audiences enriches everyone.
The two daytime films, “Cronies” by Michael Larnell and “Finders Keepers” will be followed by conversations, paired respectively with Robert Townsend, one of the Godfathers of the Independent Film World, actor, writer, director and producer of first of “Hollywood Shuffle” followed by many other films; and Saturday’s “Finders Keepers” directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel with Thomas Middletich (“Silicon Valley” ) along with the film’s subject John Wood himself! Speakers were chosen by the filmmakers who were told to ask who was influential them them and who would they want to see their film.
Among the filmmakers, cast and musicians expected to attend Sundance Next Fest are Rick Alverson, Noah Baumbach, Bryan Carberry, Munro Chambers, Greta Gerwig, Health, Tim Heidecker, Lola Kirke, Michael Larnell, François Simard, Superhumanoids, Gregg Turkington, Clay Tweel, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell.
Attendance is expected to be around 10,000 judging by lat year’s numbers. Last year all three film with music event was sold out. The opening screening in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery was huge and the screenings over three days had about 1,000 at each event.
Next is not just a film festival; it is an Event.
Sundance Next Fest is supported by Principal Sponsors – Acura and Adobe; Major Sponsor – Kickstarter; Media Sponsor – Kcrw; and Supporting Sponsors – Beachside Films, Dolby, FilmL.A., Inc., ShopHouse, Shudder, Skullcandy®, Southwest Airlines, Stella Artois®, The Theatre at Ace Hotel and the Utah Film Commission. As part of their presence at the festival, Adobe and Kickstarter will host panels open to the public on Saturday and Sunday afternoons;
Below is the full program in detail. Even more details and tickets ($15-25) now on sale can be found at sundance.org/next.
Friday, August 7, 8:00 p.m.
"Anxious in Venice" (Band: Superhumanoids, Director: Taylor Cohen) — It's 4:37 a.m. and someone straps a camera to your chest. Nearby, your hungover bandmate sips gas station coffee and the director yells about missing the sunrise. You hate performance music videos but you're sure this one will be different. Then again, when you've been up all night and are shooting without a permit -- you can't be sure of anything. Welcome to Anxious In Venice. Music Video. World Premiere
"Mistress America" / U.S.A. (Director: Noah Baumbach, Screenwriters: Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig) — Tracy is a lonely college freshman in New York, having neither the exciting university experience nor the glamorous metropolitan lifestyle she envisioned. But when she is taken in by her soon-to-be stepsister, Brooke – a resident of Times Square and adventurous gal about town – she is rescued from her disappointment and seduced by Brooke's alluringly mad schemes. Cast: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke. Los Angeles Premiere
Sky Ferreira — Sky Ferreira has quickly established herself as one of today’s most exciting new faces in music, film and fashion. She first signed to Capitol Records at the early age of 15 where she eventually wrote & executive produced her critically acclaimed debut album, Night Time, My Time. As an actress, she has worked with many independent filmmakers including Eli Roth, Liza Johnson & Matthew Porterfield. Sky is currently recording her highly anticipated new album, Masochism.
Saturday, August 8, 3:30 p.m.
"Finders Keepers" / U.S.A. (Directors: Bryan Carberry, Clay Tweel) — Recovering addict and amputee John Wood finds himself in a stranger-than-fiction battle to reclaim his mummified leg from Southern entrepreneur Shannon Whisnant, who found it in a grill he bought at an auction and believes it, therefore, to be his rightful property. Los Angeles Premiere
Followed by a conversation between directors Bryan Carberry and Clay Tweel, subject John Wood and special guests Aubrey Plaza and Thomas Middleditch.
Saturday, August 8, 8:00 p.m.
"Death Magic" (Band: Health, Director: Pablo Ferro) — The sun slowly sets; its beauty soundtracked by a serene yet melancholy sound. As the last rays of light slip behind the clouds, a violent transformation takes place. The music, ever-changing and explosive, creates the imagery… supergraphic and never seen before! The quick cuts in sync with the music, introduce the emotional range and complexity of Health’S new album Death Magic. Album Trailer. World Premiere
"Entertainment" / U.S.A. (Director: Rick Alverson, Screenwriters: Rick Alverson, Gregg Turkington, Tim Heidecker) — In an attempt to revive his dwindling career and reunite with his estranged daughter, a broken, aging comedian plays a string of dead-end shows in the California desert. Cast: Gregg Turkington, John C. Reilly, Tye Sheridan, Michael Cera, Amy Seimetz, Lotte Verbeek. Los Angeles Premiere
Sharon Van Etten — Singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten writes from free-flowing emotional honesty and vulnerability, creating a bond with the listener that few contemporary musicians can match. Following her 2012 break-through Tramp, last year’s follow up Are We There and her new Ep I Don’t Want to Let You Down, Van Etten finds herself in full stride, writing, producing and performing.
Sunday, August 9, 3:30 p.m.
"Cronies" / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Michael J. Larnell) — Twenty-two-year-old Louis doesn’t know whether his childhood friendship with Jack will last beyond today. Cast: George Sample III, Zurich Buckner, Brian Kowalski. Los Angeles Premiere
Followed by a conversation between director Michael J. Larnell and special guest Robert Townsend.
Sunday, August 9, 8:00 p.m.
"Fuckkkyouuu" (Director: Eddie Alcazar, Music: Flying Lotus) — With the ability to travel in time, a lonely girl finds love and comfort by connecting with her past self. Eventually faced with rejection she struggles with her identity and gender, and as time folds onto itself only one of them can remain. Cast: Jesse Sullivan, Charles Baker. Experimental Short / Music Video. World Premiere
"Turbo Kid" / Canada, New Zealand (Directors and screenwriters: Anouk Whissell, François Simard, Yoann-Karl Whissell) — Set in a post apocalyptic year of 1997, this nostalgic tribute to ’80s action-adventure films follows an orphaned teenager who goes on an adventure to save his female-robot companion from the hands of the evil warlord who controls the only water supply. Cast: Munro Chambers, Laurence Leboeuf, Michael Ironside, Aaron Jeffery, Edwin Wright. Los Angeles Premiere
Neon Indian (DJ set) B2B Toro Y Moi (DJ set) — Neon Indian, the brainchild of Alan Palomo, is defined by a unique electro-mangled sound which has attracted fans and opening slots before acts like Massive Attack, The Flaming Lips, Phoenix and Chromeo. Toro Y Moi, the guise of Chaz Bundick, channels a wide swath of stylistic influences into his electronics-incorporating music and cites Big Star, Talking Heads and Todd Rundgren as some of his inspirations.
- 8/6/2015
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Overshadowed by the major Hollywood contenders and the stars involved, the short film categories at the Academy Awards rarely get the attention they deserve. It can be argued that the filmmaking process for these smaller pieces requires a particular set of skills that must abide by the time and financial restraints that apply differently that to feature films. This year’s Live Action Short nominees all come from European filmmakers, but vary in content and scope. British director Mark Gill is among this batch of outstanding creators, his short The Voorman Problem is perhaps the one with the highest profile in the category. Starring Tom Hollander and Martin Freeman the story follows Doctor Williams who is called in to evaluate a prison inmate who maintains he is God. With elements of smart dark humor the filmmaker managed to create something witty, yet disturbingly thought provoking. Gill talked to us about the inspiration, his road to the Oscar nomination, and the incredible approach to get well-known actors to appear on his short film.
This is the first interview in a series of conversations with all five nominees in the category, all of which will appear here on SydneysBuzz this week.
Carlos Aguilar: How did the concept for the film originate?
Mark Gill: The idea is an adaption of a small section of a novel by David Mitchell, who wrote Cloud Atlas, the book is called number9dream. Within that book there is a small vignette, "Panopticon", the main character has a dream where he goes to the cinema and on the screen he can see all he world’s problems.
Aguilar: Since your film is an offbeat comedy combined with various existential elements, how do you think it would have worked as a more serious piece?
Gill: My worry is that when you are tackling something as religious you can start being preachy. Then I wouldn’t see any difference between me and religion, and I think that’s why to tackle religion I used comedy to try to demystify it from my personal standpoint. I think comedy is a great vehicle. It can be subtler like this.
Aguilar: What where the biggest challenges to make this short film given the caliber of talent involved, and with such a particular story?
Gill: The biggest challenge was to coordinate the actors’ schedules. We had a long pre-production period, 6 weeks. During the production process you are always thrown these challenges, or these curveballs and you have to react to them. To me it was just great to have that caliber of cast on board, collaborating with people like that is challenging but it was also a really fantastic moment.
Aguilar: Now that you mention the great actors you had a chance to work with, how difficult was it to get them on board for a short film?
Gill: We were very confident on our script, so we decided to approach some great actors, the first one we approach was Kevin Spacey. We just wrote him a nice letter and he responded very positively saying that he would like to help, he suggested we contacted Tom Hollander directly and not use his agent, which is something you are not supposed to do but it worked for us. Then Tom and I had a conversation and Martin’s name came up and we thought he’d be great. Tom sent Martin’s agent an email with the script, and Martin’s agent said yes. Sounds quite simple, but it really was that easy.
Aguilar: Was there pressure on you as the director having to work with such experienced actors?
Gill: There is always pressure when you are making a film. Simply having these two actors on board just raised everyone’s game, including me. I was just really interested to see what they would bring to it, during the first reading I didn’t offer any direction I just let them bring that they had to bring. Then it was just collaborating, working together, and refining it.
Aguilar: You mention the inspiration for the short was a piece of a novel, but what attracted you to this subject?
Gill: I’ve always been quite interesting in religion; I’m not a religious person. Looking at any religion all the God’s are quite psychotic, I thought it was an interesting concept to play with. Why do we put so much faith in them? That general idea attracted me.
Aguilar: After so many festivals and awards, how has this culminating experience - the Academy Award nomination - been for you?
Gill: It has been good. We were quite confident with what we put together, we knew it would do well but we didn’t think it would do this well. 45 festivals, the nomination for the BAFTA last year, but now the Academy Award, it is just an amazing thing to experience. We are so lucky that the Academy continues to support shot films, that's something that deserves a lot of respect. It is a great way to launch our careers, it is the biggest award in the world, even just to be nominated is a massive thing for us.
Aguilar: What are your future plans? Is there a feature you are working on now?
Gill: We got a feature. I can’t really say too much about that, there are some legal things we need to sign off before we can make any announcement. It has been in development for a couple years, and there are a lot of people invested, the Academy nomination has accelerated their interest, so we got that. I’m also looking at a couple of books to adapt.
This is the first interview in a series of conversations with all five nominees in the category, all of which will appear here on SydneysBuzz this week.
Carlos Aguilar: How did the concept for the film originate?
Mark Gill: The idea is an adaption of a small section of a novel by David Mitchell, who wrote Cloud Atlas, the book is called number9dream. Within that book there is a small vignette, "Panopticon", the main character has a dream where he goes to the cinema and on the screen he can see all he world’s problems.
Aguilar: Since your film is an offbeat comedy combined with various existential elements, how do you think it would have worked as a more serious piece?
Gill: My worry is that when you are tackling something as religious you can start being preachy. Then I wouldn’t see any difference between me and religion, and I think that’s why to tackle religion I used comedy to try to demystify it from my personal standpoint. I think comedy is a great vehicle. It can be subtler like this.
Aguilar: What where the biggest challenges to make this short film given the caliber of talent involved, and with such a particular story?
Gill: The biggest challenge was to coordinate the actors’ schedules. We had a long pre-production period, 6 weeks. During the production process you are always thrown these challenges, or these curveballs and you have to react to them. To me it was just great to have that caliber of cast on board, collaborating with people like that is challenging but it was also a really fantastic moment.
Aguilar: Now that you mention the great actors you had a chance to work with, how difficult was it to get them on board for a short film?
Gill: We were very confident on our script, so we decided to approach some great actors, the first one we approach was Kevin Spacey. We just wrote him a nice letter and he responded very positively saying that he would like to help, he suggested we contacted Tom Hollander directly and not use his agent, which is something you are not supposed to do but it worked for us. Then Tom and I had a conversation and Martin’s name came up and we thought he’d be great. Tom sent Martin’s agent an email with the script, and Martin’s agent said yes. Sounds quite simple, but it really was that easy.
Aguilar: Was there pressure on you as the director having to work with such experienced actors?
Gill: There is always pressure when you are making a film. Simply having these two actors on board just raised everyone’s game, including me. I was just really interested to see what they would bring to it, during the first reading I didn’t offer any direction I just let them bring that they had to bring. Then it was just collaborating, working together, and refining it.
Aguilar: You mention the inspiration for the short was a piece of a novel, but what attracted you to this subject?
Gill: I’ve always been quite interesting in religion; I’m not a religious person. Looking at any religion all the God’s are quite psychotic, I thought it was an interesting concept to play with. Why do we put so much faith in them? That general idea attracted me.
Aguilar: After so many festivals and awards, how has this culminating experience - the Academy Award nomination - been for you?
Gill: It has been good. We were quite confident with what we put together, we knew it would do well but we didn’t think it would do this well. 45 festivals, the nomination for the BAFTA last year, but now the Academy Award, it is just an amazing thing to experience. We are so lucky that the Academy continues to support shot films, that's something that deserves a lot of respect. It is a great way to launch our careers, it is the biggest award in the world, even just to be nominated is a massive thing for us.
Aguilar: What are your future plans? Is there a feature you are working on now?
Gill: We got a feature. I can’t really say too much about that, there are some legal things we need to sign off before we can make any announcement. It has been in development for a couple years, and there are a lot of people invested, the Academy nomination has accelerated their interest, so we got that. I’m also looking at a couple of books to adapt.
- 2/17/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Buenos Aires-based International Sales Company Film Sharks will be present in Berlin with an incredibly eclectic lineup that includes animation, some of the most successful Latin American films of the past year, an even an Oscar Foreign Language submission.
Save Oz
Directed by Alberto Mar
A new animated film from Anima Estudios, the Mexican animation company that produced the successful Top Cat film, which has gross close to $14.7 million worldwide. Based upon the classic L. Frank Baum books, the film will infuse the well-known universe with its own characters and an original storyline. FilmSharks will be showing a Promo Reel in Berlin as the film is still in production expecting to be finished in the next few months.
The Mystery of Happiness (El Misterio de la Felicidad)
Directed by Daniel Burman
Santiago and Eugenio are more than friends, they are life long business partners. They understand each other without words, they care for each other, they need each other. One day Eugenio disappears without leaving any clues behind. Santiago immediately notices his absence, but only realizes what have happened when Eugenio's wife, Laura, lost and hopeless assures him that Eugenio has left. Santiago and Laura begin a journey in order to find him and end up discovering that they prefer to stay together in this quest rather than finding out where he is or what has happened to him. A film about love, but goes beyond it, it pushes boundaries, it explores the idea of loyalty and estrangement , and it definitely puts dreams over long lost promises.
Of Horse and Men
Directed by Benedikt Erlingsson
Iceland's Official Oscar Submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award
Read Carlos Aguilar's Review Here
A country romance about the human streak in the horse and the horse in the human. Love and death become interlaced and with immense consequences. Punctuated with humor, Of Horses And Men is an affectionate, yet unflinching portrait of a remote valley community as seen from the horses' perspective.
The Noble Family (Nosotros Los Nobles)
Directed Gaz Alazraki
Highest Grossing Mexican Film of All Time!
Read Sydney Levine's Piece on the Film
When successful construction Mogul, Herman Noble realizes his children are spoiled beyond redemption, he stages the company bankruptcy and seizure of all their assets. And tricks them into believing they are fugitives from the law. He moves them into their grandfather's dilapidated home in a poor neighborhood and makes them do something none of them have ever done before... work.
In Development
Mis-Fits (Working Title)
Directed by L.D. Napier
Starring Freida Pinto and Guy Pearce, Mis-Fits narrates the misadventures of a Brooklyn 'necro-detective', whose job is to encounter the whereabouts of lost or dead relatives.
Abracadaver
Directed by Pancho Rodriguez
After directing his massively successful debut feature, Eugenio Derbez returns to the screen starring in Abracadaver a thriller with black comedy tones (Ocean’s Eleven meets Crimen Ferpecto) by the director of Buena Vista’s Box Office Hit, Calling an Angel.
Death Fearless
Directed by Matias Gueilburt
Starring Academy Award-nominee Demian Bichir the film tells the story of Jesus Ontiveros, a retired sicario (hit man), has been released from prison after 20 years willing to leave behind his violent past. However, the appearance of his brother Pepe, the most popular narcocorrido singer, forces him to do one last job: to save his brother from the powerful man that commands half of Mexico.
Remora
Written by Andres Gelos
In a dying planet, beneath a thick ice shell, a huge submarine city travels across the pan-ocean. Its citizens prepare themselves for the exodus to the new world. Ratio, a seabed driller, uncovers the plan to sacrifice the first ships, which will fracture the ice shell so that only the ship carrying the society's elite will manage to go through it. After being accused of being a traitor, Ratio is rescued by Lania. She is an earth-bound, she belongs to a society of outcasts who live hidden inside a volcano. Ratio and Lania attempt to attach a ship carrying earth-bounds like a remora to the exodus ship in order to escape from the ice world in search for their destiny at the opposite end of the galaxy: a small blue planet with only one sun and only one satellite, where dinosaurs still prevail.
In Production
Torrente 5
Directed by Santiago Segura
The Ultimate in Bizarre is back, considered today one of the biggest European Franchises by far. Theatrically worth over $140 million and sold in over 45 countries.
Save Oz
Directed by Alberto Mar
A new animated film from Anima Estudios, the Mexican animation company that produced the successful Top Cat film, which has gross close to $14.7 million worldwide. Based upon the classic L. Frank Baum books, the film will infuse the well-known universe with its own characters and an original storyline. FilmSharks will be showing a Promo Reel in Berlin as the film is still in production expecting to be finished in the next few months.
The Mystery of Happiness (El Misterio de la Felicidad)
Directed by Daniel Burman
Santiago and Eugenio are more than friends, they are life long business partners. They understand each other without words, they care for each other, they need each other. One day Eugenio disappears without leaving any clues behind. Santiago immediately notices his absence, but only realizes what have happened when Eugenio's wife, Laura, lost and hopeless assures him that Eugenio has left. Santiago and Laura begin a journey in order to find him and end up discovering that they prefer to stay together in this quest rather than finding out where he is or what has happened to him. A film about love, but goes beyond it, it pushes boundaries, it explores the idea of loyalty and estrangement , and it definitely puts dreams over long lost promises.
Of Horse and Men
Directed by Benedikt Erlingsson
Iceland's Official Oscar Submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award
Read Carlos Aguilar's Review Here
A country romance about the human streak in the horse and the horse in the human. Love and death become interlaced and with immense consequences. Punctuated with humor, Of Horses And Men is an affectionate, yet unflinching portrait of a remote valley community as seen from the horses' perspective.
The Noble Family (Nosotros Los Nobles)
Directed Gaz Alazraki
Highest Grossing Mexican Film of All Time!
Read Sydney Levine's Piece on the Film
When successful construction Mogul, Herman Noble realizes his children are spoiled beyond redemption, he stages the company bankruptcy and seizure of all their assets. And tricks them into believing they are fugitives from the law. He moves them into their grandfather's dilapidated home in a poor neighborhood and makes them do something none of them have ever done before... work.
In Development
Mis-Fits (Working Title)
Directed by L.D. Napier
Starring Freida Pinto and Guy Pearce, Mis-Fits narrates the misadventures of a Brooklyn 'necro-detective', whose job is to encounter the whereabouts of lost or dead relatives.
Abracadaver
Directed by Pancho Rodriguez
After directing his massively successful debut feature, Eugenio Derbez returns to the screen starring in Abracadaver a thriller with black comedy tones (Ocean’s Eleven meets Crimen Ferpecto) by the director of Buena Vista’s Box Office Hit, Calling an Angel.
Death Fearless
Directed by Matias Gueilburt
Starring Academy Award-nominee Demian Bichir the film tells the story of Jesus Ontiveros, a retired sicario (hit man), has been released from prison after 20 years willing to leave behind his violent past. However, the appearance of his brother Pepe, the most popular narcocorrido singer, forces him to do one last job: to save his brother from the powerful man that commands half of Mexico.
Remora
Written by Andres Gelos
In a dying planet, beneath a thick ice shell, a huge submarine city travels across the pan-ocean. Its citizens prepare themselves for the exodus to the new world. Ratio, a seabed driller, uncovers the plan to sacrifice the first ships, which will fracture the ice shell so that only the ship carrying the society's elite will manage to go through it. After being accused of being a traitor, Ratio is rescued by Lania. She is an earth-bound, she belongs to a society of outcasts who live hidden inside a volcano. Ratio and Lania attempt to attach a ship carrying earth-bounds like a remora to the exodus ship in order to escape from the ice world in search for their destiny at the opposite end of the galaxy: a small blue planet with only one sun and only one satellite, where dinosaurs still prevail.
In Production
Torrente 5
Directed by Santiago Segura
The Ultimate in Bizarre is back, considered today one of the biggest European Franchises by far. Theatrically worth over $140 million and sold in over 45 countries.
- 2/1/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
During today's Awards Ceremony in de Doelen (Rotterdam), the winners of Iffr’s nineteenth Hivos Tiger Awards Competition, as well as of the second Big Screen Award Competition and of the Netpac, Fipresci, Knf, and MovieZone awards were announced. Tomorrow Saturday, 1 February the festival audience favorites will be awarded the Upc Audience Award for best festival film and the Dioraphte Award for best Hubert Bals Fund-supported film.
Hivos Tiger Awards
Fifteen first or second films by talented filmmakers from around the globe competed in the 2014 Hivos Tiger Awards Competition. The Jury consisted of distinguished filmmaker Elia Suleiman; celebrated Dutch filmmaker Nanouk Leopold, Indonesian filmmaker and former Tiger Award nominee Edwin; Violeta Bava, Bafici programmer and film producer from Argentina and Japanese actress and producer Kiki Sugino. Each Hivos Tiger Award comes with a prize of €15,000 for the filmmaker.
The winners of the three equal Hivos Tiger Awards 2014 are:
Anatomy of a Paper Clip (Yamamori clip koujo no atari)
by Ikeda Akira (Japan, 2013)
“Challenging narrative form with precision and economy, this film elevates observations of the absurd in human behavior, and brings it into the poetic domain.”
Ikeda Akira (1976, Japan) began to make his own short films while studying English literature at Bunkyo University. After being involved in various fields such as theatre, music and dance, he directed his first feature-length film The Blue Monkey in 2006. Anatomy of a Paper Clip is his second feature.
Something Must Break (Nånting måste gå sönder)
by Ester Martin Bergsmark (Sweden, 2014)
“A free-floating personal voyage traces the pains and pleasures of intimacy, recounted in a tender depiction of characters, with a sincere and playful use of cinematographic language.”
Ester Martin Bergsmark (1982, Sweden) trained at the Swedish University College of Arts, Crafts and Design. Together with Mark Hammarberg he made the award-winning documentary Maggie in Wonderland
(2008). In 2010, he made Fruitcake as part of the experimental feminist porn suite Dirty Diaries. She Male Snails (2012) won several awards at the Gothenburg International Film Festival.
Han Gong-Ju
by Lee Su-Jin (South Korea, 2013)
“A skilfully crafted and highly accomplished debut – deviating from classicist structure, this film lures the spectator to participate in the pleasures of storytelling through an extraordinary and intricate narrative puzzle.”
Lee Su-Jin (South-Korea) is a screenwriter and director. He made several award-winning short films in his homeland. His roll of honour continues with his debut feature Han Gong-Ju, which won two awards at Busan, plus the top prize at the film festival of Marrakech.
Hivos director Edwin Huizing:
“Hivos aims to give young filmmakers a voice. To inspire us; to push boundaries. Their work has the potential to break open societies, so thoughts and creativity can flow more freely. The Hivos Tiger Awards give them the recognition they deserve.”
The Big Screen Award
Iffr introduced a new competition in 2013: The Big Screen Award Competition, aimed at supporting the distribution of films in Dutch cinemas. Ten very recent films with no Benelux distributor confirmed were nominated for this prize. An audience jury, chaired in 2014 by Christine de Baan, chose the winner. Iffr will connect a prize of €10.000 to the award in 2014. The money is for the distributor to support the costs of publicity for the releases of the winning film in cinemas in the Netherlands.
The winner of The Big Screen Award 2014 is:
Another Year
(Yeshche odin god) by Oxana Bychkova (Russia, 2014)
“At a time when Dutch media abound with negative news about Russia, Another Year
takes us straight into the daily lives of the young people who will shape its future and makes us open up our hearts to them. More than just a simple love story, it shows us how globalization meets tradition in present-day Russia, how they clash, and how they might be reconciled. Pitch perfect, beautifully acted and choreographed, modest, subtle and utterly convincing.”
Oxana Bychkova (1972, Ukraine) is a screenwriter and director. She studied journalism in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, graduating in 1995. After a career as a radio journalist, Bychkova began studying directing in 2000, focusing on filmmaking. Another Year is her first feature film.
Netpac Award
The Netpac Jury (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) awards the best Asian film in the Iffr 2014 Official Selection. The Jury consisted of Paul Agusta, filmmaker, filmcritic and poet from Indonesia; Defne Gursoy, film critic and writer from Turkey; and Anu Rangachar, programme director of the Mumbai Film Festival, India.
The winner of the Netpac Award 2014 is:
28
by Prasanna Jayakody (Sri Lanka, 2014)
“A well-measured and crafted film that emotionally engages the audience through poetic storytelling of a critical subject.”
Prasanna Jayakody (1968, Sri Lanka) was born into an artistic family strongly rooted in traditional Sinhala values, and grew up in a Buddhist environment. This became a major inspiration for his productions. He made his debut at the age of 21 with the stage drama Shadows and Men, which was a critical success. He then started directing television dramas that were loved by the masses and won him numerous television awards. His earlier films Sankara (2006) and Karma (2010) have also screened at Iffr.
Fipresci Award
The Jury of the International Association of Film Critics Fipresci (Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique) awards the best film among the twenty-two world premieres in Bright Future 2014. The Jury consisted of president Blagoja Kunovski, Macedonia (Mrtv, Kinopis, Sintheses); Maria Fosheim Lund, Norway (Aftenposten, Wuxia); Guilhem Caillard, Canada (Séquences, Panorama-Cinéma, Cineuropa); Alberto Castellano, Italy (Il Manifesto, Segnocinema) and Sasja Koetsier, the Netherlands (De Filmkrant, Tijdschrift Lover).
The winner of the Rotterdam Fipresci Award 2014 is:
The Songs of Rice (Pleng khong kao)
by Uruphong Raksasad (Thailand, 2014)
“Fully relying on its strong cinematography, it creates an immersive sensory experience that makes us part of a vivid community revolving around the cultivation of a tiny grain.”
Uruphong Raksasad (1977, Thailand) studied film and photography at Thammasat University. After graduating in 2004, he worked as an editor and post-production supervisor on several Thai feature films. Since 2004, he has focused on his own career, returning to the region where he was born and shooting his feature debut Stories from the North (2006). The Songs of Rice is his third feature.
Knf Award
For the Knf Award, The Dutch Circle of Film Critics (Knf) Jury chose the winner out of the ten films in The Big Screen Award Competition 2014. The Knf Award consists of a subtitled Dcp. The Knf Jury consisted of Kees Driessen (Vrij Nederland); Paul van Es (Troskompas/TVKrant); Jelle Schot (Vpro/Cinema.nl); Nienke Huitenga (Lola/Filmtab) and Quirijn Foeken (Biosagenda).
The winner of the Knf Award 2014 is:
To Kill a Man (Matar a un hombre)
by Alejandro Fernández Almendras (Chile/France, 2013)
Read the review by Carlos Aguilar Here
“A compelling film with great visual style, impressive acting, and exactly the right length. The story is both simple and challenging. We follow the humiliation of the protagonist step by step and are confronted with our own fears in the process. This unremitting psychological thriller deserves to be seen on the big screen.”
Alejandro Fernández Almendras (1971, Chile) has a degree in journalism and worked as a film critic, photographer and journalist. Since 2002, he makes short films and video installations. His award-winning feature film debut Huacho (Alone)
premiered in Cannes in 2009.
MovieZone Award
MovieZone Jury gives young people the opportunity to fully experience a film festival and present their opinions on film. The MovieZone Iffr Jury consisted of five members between the ages of 15 and 18: Hanneke Bijker; Dzifa Kusenuh; Mauro Casarini; Moeddie Sherif and Floris Detering. In Rotterdam, they selected the winner out of eighteen eligible festival films. The winner of the MovieZone Iffr Award 2014 receives € 1,500 for promotion of the film among young people. The film also has a chance to become part of an Eye educational film programm.
The winner of the MovieZone Award 2014 is:
Jacky in the Kingdom of Women (Jacky au royaume des filles)
by Riad Sattouf (France, 2014)
“It was like a classical fairytale but with a completely different point of view. The makers of the film created a whole new world with the art direction and costume design and the film had a theme that everyone can relate to. The film was really funny but also had a great message.”
Riad Sattouf (1978, France) is a French writer, comic book artist and director with Syrian roots. He has successfully published various graphic novels and has a weekly comic in the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. In 2009, he made his directing debut with the award-winning film Les beaux gosses. Jacky au royaume des filles is his second film.
Iffr previously announced winners of the Canon Tiger Awards for Short Films
and Arte International and Eurimages for best CineMart 2014 projects...
Hivos Tiger Awards
Fifteen first or second films by talented filmmakers from around the globe competed in the 2014 Hivos Tiger Awards Competition. The Jury consisted of distinguished filmmaker Elia Suleiman; celebrated Dutch filmmaker Nanouk Leopold, Indonesian filmmaker and former Tiger Award nominee Edwin; Violeta Bava, Bafici programmer and film producer from Argentina and Japanese actress and producer Kiki Sugino. Each Hivos Tiger Award comes with a prize of €15,000 for the filmmaker.
The winners of the three equal Hivos Tiger Awards 2014 are:
Anatomy of a Paper Clip (Yamamori clip koujo no atari)
by Ikeda Akira (Japan, 2013)
“Challenging narrative form with precision and economy, this film elevates observations of the absurd in human behavior, and brings it into the poetic domain.”
Ikeda Akira (1976, Japan) began to make his own short films while studying English literature at Bunkyo University. After being involved in various fields such as theatre, music and dance, he directed his first feature-length film The Blue Monkey in 2006. Anatomy of a Paper Clip is his second feature.
Something Must Break (Nånting måste gå sönder)
by Ester Martin Bergsmark (Sweden, 2014)
“A free-floating personal voyage traces the pains and pleasures of intimacy, recounted in a tender depiction of characters, with a sincere and playful use of cinematographic language.”
Ester Martin Bergsmark (1982, Sweden) trained at the Swedish University College of Arts, Crafts and Design. Together with Mark Hammarberg he made the award-winning documentary Maggie in Wonderland
(2008). In 2010, he made Fruitcake as part of the experimental feminist porn suite Dirty Diaries. She Male Snails (2012) won several awards at the Gothenburg International Film Festival.
Han Gong-Ju
by Lee Su-Jin (South Korea, 2013)
“A skilfully crafted and highly accomplished debut – deviating from classicist structure, this film lures the spectator to participate in the pleasures of storytelling through an extraordinary and intricate narrative puzzle.”
Lee Su-Jin (South-Korea) is a screenwriter and director. He made several award-winning short films in his homeland. His roll of honour continues with his debut feature Han Gong-Ju, which won two awards at Busan, plus the top prize at the film festival of Marrakech.
Hivos director Edwin Huizing:
“Hivos aims to give young filmmakers a voice. To inspire us; to push boundaries. Their work has the potential to break open societies, so thoughts and creativity can flow more freely. The Hivos Tiger Awards give them the recognition they deserve.”
The Big Screen Award
Iffr introduced a new competition in 2013: The Big Screen Award Competition, aimed at supporting the distribution of films in Dutch cinemas. Ten very recent films with no Benelux distributor confirmed were nominated for this prize. An audience jury, chaired in 2014 by Christine de Baan, chose the winner. Iffr will connect a prize of €10.000 to the award in 2014. The money is for the distributor to support the costs of publicity for the releases of the winning film in cinemas in the Netherlands.
The winner of The Big Screen Award 2014 is:
Another Year
(Yeshche odin god) by Oxana Bychkova (Russia, 2014)
“At a time when Dutch media abound with negative news about Russia, Another Year
takes us straight into the daily lives of the young people who will shape its future and makes us open up our hearts to them. More than just a simple love story, it shows us how globalization meets tradition in present-day Russia, how they clash, and how they might be reconciled. Pitch perfect, beautifully acted and choreographed, modest, subtle and utterly convincing.”
Oxana Bychkova (1972, Ukraine) is a screenwriter and director. She studied journalism in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, graduating in 1995. After a career as a radio journalist, Bychkova began studying directing in 2000, focusing on filmmaking. Another Year is her first feature film.
Netpac Award
The Netpac Jury (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) awards the best Asian film in the Iffr 2014 Official Selection. The Jury consisted of Paul Agusta, filmmaker, filmcritic and poet from Indonesia; Defne Gursoy, film critic and writer from Turkey; and Anu Rangachar, programme director of the Mumbai Film Festival, India.
The winner of the Netpac Award 2014 is:
28
by Prasanna Jayakody (Sri Lanka, 2014)
“A well-measured and crafted film that emotionally engages the audience through poetic storytelling of a critical subject.”
Prasanna Jayakody (1968, Sri Lanka) was born into an artistic family strongly rooted in traditional Sinhala values, and grew up in a Buddhist environment. This became a major inspiration for his productions. He made his debut at the age of 21 with the stage drama Shadows and Men, which was a critical success. He then started directing television dramas that were loved by the masses and won him numerous television awards. His earlier films Sankara (2006) and Karma (2010) have also screened at Iffr.
Fipresci Award
The Jury of the International Association of Film Critics Fipresci (Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique) awards the best film among the twenty-two world premieres in Bright Future 2014. The Jury consisted of president Blagoja Kunovski, Macedonia (Mrtv, Kinopis, Sintheses); Maria Fosheim Lund, Norway (Aftenposten, Wuxia); Guilhem Caillard, Canada (Séquences, Panorama-Cinéma, Cineuropa); Alberto Castellano, Italy (Il Manifesto, Segnocinema) and Sasja Koetsier, the Netherlands (De Filmkrant, Tijdschrift Lover).
The winner of the Rotterdam Fipresci Award 2014 is:
The Songs of Rice (Pleng khong kao)
by Uruphong Raksasad (Thailand, 2014)
“Fully relying on its strong cinematography, it creates an immersive sensory experience that makes us part of a vivid community revolving around the cultivation of a tiny grain.”
Uruphong Raksasad (1977, Thailand) studied film and photography at Thammasat University. After graduating in 2004, he worked as an editor and post-production supervisor on several Thai feature films. Since 2004, he has focused on his own career, returning to the region where he was born and shooting his feature debut Stories from the North (2006). The Songs of Rice is his third feature.
Knf Award
For the Knf Award, The Dutch Circle of Film Critics (Knf) Jury chose the winner out of the ten films in The Big Screen Award Competition 2014. The Knf Award consists of a subtitled Dcp. The Knf Jury consisted of Kees Driessen (Vrij Nederland); Paul van Es (Troskompas/TVKrant); Jelle Schot (Vpro/Cinema.nl); Nienke Huitenga (Lola/Filmtab) and Quirijn Foeken (Biosagenda).
The winner of the Knf Award 2014 is:
To Kill a Man (Matar a un hombre)
by Alejandro Fernández Almendras (Chile/France, 2013)
Read the review by Carlos Aguilar Here
“A compelling film with great visual style, impressive acting, and exactly the right length. The story is both simple and challenging. We follow the humiliation of the protagonist step by step and are confronted with our own fears in the process. This unremitting psychological thriller deserves to be seen on the big screen.”
Alejandro Fernández Almendras (1971, Chile) has a degree in journalism and worked as a film critic, photographer and journalist. Since 2002, he makes short films and video installations. His award-winning feature film debut Huacho (Alone)
premiered in Cannes in 2009.
MovieZone Award
MovieZone Jury gives young people the opportunity to fully experience a film festival and present their opinions on film. The MovieZone Iffr Jury consisted of five members between the ages of 15 and 18: Hanneke Bijker; Dzifa Kusenuh; Mauro Casarini; Moeddie Sherif and Floris Detering. In Rotterdam, they selected the winner out of eighteen eligible festival films. The winner of the MovieZone Iffr Award 2014 receives € 1,500 for promotion of the film among young people. The film also has a chance to become part of an Eye educational film programm.
The winner of the MovieZone Award 2014 is:
Jacky in the Kingdom of Women (Jacky au royaume des filles)
by Riad Sattouf (France, 2014)
“It was like a classical fairytale but with a completely different point of view. The makers of the film created a whole new world with the art direction and costume design and the film had a theme that everyone can relate to. The film was really funny but also had a great message.”
Riad Sattouf (1978, France) is a French writer, comic book artist and director with Syrian roots. He has successfully published various graphic novels and has a weekly comic in the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. In 2009, he made his directing debut with the award-winning film Les beaux gosses. Jacky au royaume des filles is his second film.
Iffr previously announced winners of the Canon Tiger Awards for Short Films
and Arte International and Eurimages for best CineMart 2014 projects...
- 2/1/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Reworking the vision of the late Belgian author Gabrielle Vincent for the screen proved to be an utter success for director Benjamin Renner and his co-directors Stéphane Aubier and Vincent Pata. The gorgeous illustrations and endearing story of her characters has been translated into animation in a sublimely elegant manner by the trio of filmmakers. In the film Ernest & Celestine the imperfect nature of her drawings and the watercolor backgrounds have been kept intact, which makes for a delightful and warm atmosphere throughout the piece. This is an artful, handcrafted, and unforgettable piece of animation unlike the fast-paced and formulaic movies that dominate the market today. Following the story of Celestine, a loving mouse who wants to become friends with someone from another world - a huge bear named Ernest, the film is heartwarming and absolutely beautiful to look at. Director Benjamin Renner talked to us about the process of adapting Vincent's work, the music, the voice over, and why these pair of unlikely friends are so unavoidably likeable.
Ernest & Celestine will screen at this year's Sundance Film Festival as part of a new section titled 'Sundance Kids'
Carlos Aguilar: Where you familiar with the material before getting involved in the project, or how difficult did you find adapting Gabrielle Vincent’s storybooks into a film?
Benjamin Renner: I actually didn’t know the books when I was a kid. I got the book when the producer asked me to work on the film, so I didn’t have any nostalgia about the books. It was more about discovering everything. As I started working on the adaptation, I really loved the illustrations and the minimalism, and it was something very beautiful. I wanted to make animation that looked like an animated sketchbook. We wanted to be able to “feel the paper” like it was a book, so we used watercolor backgrounds and things like such.
Aguilar: Did you and your co-directors feel any pressure or great responsibility since these are characters loved by many people with an extensive fan base?
Renner: There was a lot of pressure of course. Gabrielle Vincent passed away so she couldn’t tell us what she thought of the film or anything, so we had to rely on what we thought she would have liked on the film. So surely I felt a lot of pressure.
Aguilar: Was the character design entirely inspired by the original books, or did you have other animated films as inspiration?
Renner: It was mainly based on the books. We had a wonderful designer who did all the characters, and of course he was always looking at the books. Sometimes there were some characters that like the dentist who didn’t exist in the book, so he had to create them.
Aguilar: For the voice work, where you involved in the process? Did you choose who was going to voice each character?
Renner: I was working with the man in charge of the casting. I helped directing the action telling them “Maybe you should do it more like this or like that”, and then I was also there for the recording sessions. We did it twice, once before we did the animation, and when we were done with the animation we recorded all the actors once again, so we could really be more precise on certain scenes.
Aguilar: What was the approach used by the screenwriter when creating this story out of so many different books that revolve around the characters?
Renner: He didn’t really try to take all the books and make it into one story. He wanted to make his own story. The thing is, he knew Gabrielle Vincent the author of the books, and he knew she was a very delicate person and vey sensitive. He knew her books were more like a refuge, like a little paradise. She was drawing a paradise because she was scared of the world around her. Knowing this, Daniel Benac wanted to make something that starts in a very dark world but ends in the world of Gabrielle Vincent. Through the film you can see her world. Ernest and Celestine at the beginning don’t know each other, once they know each other they live together exactly like in the book, that’s how he wanted to do it. The first part of the film has nothing to do with the books, and the second part is completely linked to the books.
Aguilar: There is an unlikely friendship between the two main characters. Ernest and Celestine aren’t supposed to be friends. What do you think is the message the author and now your film are trying to convey?
Renner: There are several messages. One is that people shouldn’t have prejudices about others, this one of the biggest messages in the film. Also, respecting the will of some people in society, like if they want to read, or draw, or play music, they should be ale to do it as long as they want it. Drawing was also very important for me. I really wanted as a message for children to have the will to pick up a pen and start drawing, it was quite important for me.
Aguilar: What do you think is special about traditional animation since now most films are being made in 3D? Do you prefer one style of animation in particular?
Renner: For me 3D animation is also great, but in France we don’t have hug e budgets for our films. Ernest & Celestine cost 9.6 million Euros, so that’s not much compared to big budgets like Pixar or DreamWorks. The thing is though we don’t have big budgets, with drawing you can draw absolutely anything you want, you just have to find the right way to draw it. There is an example that I often give. In the script there is a scenes where Ernest and Celestine are chased by hundreds of cop rats running after them, this scene had the producer really worried. She was saying “That’s too many characters, you can’t draw that, it’s going to cost too much money” So I suggested to create these characters that are sort of more like a wave of a thousand mice, which is easier to draw and in a way even more impressive. In drawing you always have to find a trick so you can tell any story but you won’t have to pay too much to make it.
Aguilar: Could you talk a bit more about creating the world? You talked about using watercolors, it seems like it was very difficult to get the feeling of the books right onto the film
Renner: Gabrielle Vincent always drew like sketchy, very spontaneously. You can really see in her drawings that she was very spontaneous. We learned that when she was drawing she would work on a single drawing and if it was not correct, she would not correct it but she would always take another piece of paper and she started redoing it, and redoing it, and redoing it until she was satisfied.
For the animation I wanted to have the spontaneous feeling, so the animation, as you can see, it’s not really clean, the lines are dirty, they are open, because it is more like you are sketching an animation rather than making something very precise. We had a very long casting process of animators so we could find exactly the right person who could feel this kind of drawing because it is very particular.
Aguilar: Why do you think the audience connects with these characters?
Renner: Ernest and Celestine are a bear and a mouse, immediately when you hear of a bear and a mouse together you can’t avoid to think about an ogre eating a small child. I really love that you see them and instantly think about that, but at the same time the relationship is completely opposite to that “eating” relationship, it’s more like a friendship. I think it is even stronger than that.
Aguilar: The music plays a crucial role in giving the film an elegant and classic atmosphere. What attracted you to this particular style or composer?
Renner: It took us a long time to find the composer, we had a long casting process, and we met Vincent Courtois who is a cello artist and I really wanted someone who was really an artist rather than a big composer. Vincent Courtois likes to play with 4 or 5 people and I really liked his intimate way of working, and we tried to have this feeling in the music. Sometimes he said he was just with his friends and he was just improvising, and I really loved his way of working.
Aguilar: What’s next for you? Are there any projects you are working on at the moment?
Renner: Right now I’m working on a graphic novel and a short film that might be extended into a feature. I’m hoping for the production we gather together the artists of Ernest & Celestine as we really wish to work together again.
Ernest & Celestine will screen at this year's Sundance Film Festival as part of a new section titled 'Sundance Kids'
Carlos Aguilar: Where you familiar with the material before getting involved in the project, or how difficult did you find adapting Gabrielle Vincent’s storybooks into a film?
Benjamin Renner: I actually didn’t know the books when I was a kid. I got the book when the producer asked me to work on the film, so I didn’t have any nostalgia about the books. It was more about discovering everything. As I started working on the adaptation, I really loved the illustrations and the minimalism, and it was something very beautiful. I wanted to make animation that looked like an animated sketchbook. We wanted to be able to “feel the paper” like it was a book, so we used watercolor backgrounds and things like such.
Aguilar: Did you and your co-directors feel any pressure or great responsibility since these are characters loved by many people with an extensive fan base?
Renner: There was a lot of pressure of course. Gabrielle Vincent passed away so she couldn’t tell us what she thought of the film or anything, so we had to rely on what we thought she would have liked on the film. So surely I felt a lot of pressure.
Aguilar: Was the character design entirely inspired by the original books, or did you have other animated films as inspiration?
Renner: It was mainly based on the books. We had a wonderful designer who did all the characters, and of course he was always looking at the books. Sometimes there were some characters that like the dentist who didn’t exist in the book, so he had to create them.
Aguilar: For the voice work, where you involved in the process? Did you choose who was going to voice each character?
Renner: I was working with the man in charge of the casting. I helped directing the action telling them “Maybe you should do it more like this or like that”, and then I was also there for the recording sessions. We did it twice, once before we did the animation, and when we were done with the animation we recorded all the actors once again, so we could really be more precise on certain scenes.
Aguilar: What was the approach used by the screenwriter when creating this story out of so many different books that revolve around the characters?
Renner: He didn’t really try to take all the books and make it into one story. He wanted to make his own story. The thing is, he knew Gabrielle Vincent the author of the books, and he knew she was a very delicate person and vey sensitive. He knew her books were more like a refuge, like a little paradise. She was drawing a paradise because she was scared of the world around her. Knowing this, Daniel Benac wanted to make something that starts in a very dark world but ends in the world of Gabrielle Vincent. Through the film you can see her world. Ernest and Celestine at the beginning don’t know each other, once they know each other they live together exactly like in the book, that’s how he wanted to do it. The first part of the film has nothing to do with the books, and the second part is completely linked to the books.
Aguilar: There is an unlikely friendship between the two main characters. Ernest and Celestine aren’t supposed to be friends. What do you think is the message the author and now your film are trying to convey?
Renner: There are several messages. One is that people shouldn’t have prejudices about others, this one of the biggest messages in the film. Also, respecting the will of some people in society, like if they want to read, or draw, or play music, they should be ale to do it as long as they want it. Drawing was also very important for me. I really wanted as a message for children to have the will to pick up a pen and start drawing, it was quite important for me.
Aguilar: What do you think is special about traditional animation since now most films are being made in 3D? Do you prefer one style of animation in particular?
Renner: For me 3D animation is also great, but in France we don’t have hug e budgets for our films. Ernest & Celestine cost 9.6 million Euros, so that’s not much compared to big budgets like Pixar or DreamWorks. The thing is though we don’t have big budgets, with drawing you can draw absolutely anything you want, you just have to find the right way to draw it. There is an example that I often give. In the script there is a scenes where Ernest and Celestine are chased by hundreds of cop rats running after them, this scene had the producer really worried. She was saying “That’s too many characters, you can’t draw that, it’s going to cost too much money” So I suggested to create these characters that are sort of more like a wave of a thousand mice, which is easier to draw and in a way even more impressive. In drawing you always have to find a trick so you can tell any story but you won’t have to pay too much to make it.
Aguilar: Could you talk a bit more about creating the world? You talked about using watercolors, it seems like it was very difficult to get the feeling of the books right onto the film
Renner: Gabrielle Vincent always drew like sketchy, very spontaneously. You can really see in her drawings that she was very spontaneous. We learned that when she was drawing she would work on a single drawing and if it was not correct, she would not correct it but she would always take another piece of paper and she started redoing it, and redoing it, and redoing it until she was satisfied.
For the animation I wanted to have the spontaneous feeling, so the animation, as you can see, it’s not really clean, the lines are dirty, they are open, because it is more like you are sketching an animation rather than making something very precise. We had a very long casting process of animators so we could find exactly the right person who could feel this kind of drawing because it is very particular.
Aguilar: Why do you think the audience connects with these characters?
Renner: Ernest and Celestine are a bear and a mouse, immediately when you hear of a bear and a mouse together you can’t avoid to think about an ogre eating a small child. I really love that you see them and instantly think about that, but at the same time the relationship is completely opposite to that “eating” relationship, it’s more like a friendship. I think it is even stronger than that.
Aguilar: The music plays a crucial role in giving the film an elegant and classic atmosphere. What attracted you to this particular style or composer?
Renner: It took us a long time to find the composer, we had a long casting process, and we met Vincent Courtois who is a cello artist and I really wanted someone who was really an artist rather than a big composer. Vincent Courtois likes to play with 4 or 5 people and I really liked his intimate way of working, and we tried to have this feeling in the music. Sometimes he said he was just with his friends and he was just improvising, and I really loved his way of working.
Aguilar: What’s next for you? Are there any projects you are working on at the moment?
Renner: Right now I’m working on a graphic novel and a short film that might be extended into a feature. I’m hoping for the production we gather together the artists of Ernest & Celestine as we really wish to work together again.
- 1/9/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
As this year's Academy Awards nominations approach, and after the shocking selection of films conforming the Academy's shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Film Award, audiences will get the opportunity to see some of the films that were dismissed but which are absolutely deserving of attention. Rather than including all of the 76 Submissions the Palm Spring Film Festival decided to shorten their program to 45 of what they considered the best representation of the extensive amount of films.
Included in the program are all of the 9 shortlisted films, all the other major omissions, and many more obscure titles that showcase some of the most interesting voices in World Cinema today. Most of these films have been awarded prizes and received praise at major festivals from Sundance to Cannes and Toronto, and will give the viewer a broader view of the category beyond the assumed frontrunners.
Below is a list with more information on each of the films that will be screening at Palm Springs with reviews and interviews with the filmmakers for the majority of them. Read more about the complete list of 76 Foreign Language Oscar Submissions visit Here
For more information on the Palm Springs International Film Festival visit Here
Argentina
The German Doctor (Wakolda)
Dir: Lucia Puenzo
Language: Spanish, German, Hebrew
U.S Release: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Isa: Pyramide
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Un Certain Regard
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Case Study by Sydney Levine
Australia
The Rocket
Dir: Kim Mordaunt
Language: Lao
U.S Release: Kino Lorber
Isa: Level K
Festivals: Berlin 2013: Best First Feature Film ,Tribeca 2013: World Narrative Competition
Trailer
Austria
The Wall
Dir: Julian Polsler
Language: German
U.S Release: Music Box Films - May 31, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Sitges Ff 2012 Official Fantastic, Mumbai Ff 2012 Int'l Competition
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Belgium
The Broken Circle Breakdown
Dir: Felix van Groeningen
Language: Flemish
U.S Release: Tribeca Film - November 1, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Berlinale - Efm 2013 - Panorama
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Bosnia And Herzegovina
An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker
Dir: Danis Tanović
Language: Bosnian, Romani
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Berlinale Competition,Efm Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Cambodia
The Missing Picture
Dir: Rithy Panh
Language: French
U.S Release: Acquired by Strand Releasing for U.S Distribution
Festivals: Cannes 2013 - Un Certain Regard Prix, San Sebastian 2013 Pearls
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Canada
Gabrielle
Dir: Louise Archambault
Language: French
U.S Release: eOne
Isa: eOne
Festivals: Toronto- Tiff 2013, Locarno International Film Festival 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Chile
Gloria
Dir: Sebastian Lelio
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Roadside Attractions
Isa: Funny Balloons
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Toronto - Tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Sydney Levine
China
Back to 1942
Dir: Feng Xiaogang
Language: Mandarin, English
U.S Release: Well Go USA - May 14, 2013
Isa: Huayi Brothers
Festivals: Rome Film Festival 2012, Dubai International Film Festival 2012
Trailer
Croatia
Halima's Path
Dir: Arsen Anton Ostojić
Language: Bosnian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Tallinn Black Nights Iff 2012 - EurAsia (Special Jury Prize)
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Denmark
The Hunt
Dir: Thomas Vinterberg
Language: Danish
U.S Release: Magnolia Pictures - July 12, 2013
Isa: TrustNordisk
Festivals: Cannes 2012 Competition, Toronto - Tiff 2012, AFI Fest 2012
Trailer
Egypt
Winter of Discontent
Dir: Ibrahim el-Batout
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Venice International Film Festival, Cairo International Film Festival, Dubai Film Festival
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Finland
Disciple
Dir: Ulrika Bengts
Language: Finnish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Helsinki Ff 2012, Montréal World Ff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
France
Renoir
Dir: Gilles Bourdos
Language: French
U.S Release: Samuel Goldwyn Films - March 29, 2013
Isa: Wild Bunch
Festivals: Cannes 2012 Un Certain Regard
Trailer
Georgia
In Bloom
Dir: Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß
Language: Georgian
U.S Release: Big World Pictures
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Cicae award Berlinale Forum 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Germany
Two Lives
Dir: Georg Maas
Language: German
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Beta Cinema
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Toronto-tiff 2013, Busan 2013
Trailer
Hong Kong
The Grandmaster
Dir: Wong Kar-wai
Language: Cantonese, Mandarin
U.S Release: The Weinstein Company - August 23, 2013
Isa: Fortissimo
Festivals: Berlinale -Efm 2013
Trailer
Hungary
The Notebook
Dir: Janosz Szasz
Language: Hungarian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Iceland
Of Horses and Men
Dir: Benedikt Erlingsson
Language: Icelandic
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Icelandic Film Centre
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Sundance 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
India
The Good Road
Dir: Gyan Correa
Language: Gujarati
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: National Film Board of India
Festivals: London Indian Film Festival in 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Iran
The Past
Dir: Asghar Farhadi
Language: French, Persian
U.S Release: Sony Pictures Classics - December 20, 2013
Isa: Memento
Festivals:Cannes 2013 Competition-Won Best Actress, Toronto - Tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Israel
Bethlehem
Dir: Yuval Adler
Language: Hebrew
U.S Release: Adopt
Isa: Westend
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2013 Discovery, Telluride Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival
Trailer
Italy
The Great Beauty
Dir: Paolo Sorrentino
Language: Italian
U.S Release: AJanus Films
Isa: Pathe
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition, Berlin Efm 2013,
Trailer
Interview by Sydney Levine
Japan
The Great Passage
Dir: Yuya Ishii
Language: Japanese
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Shochiku
Festivals: Fantasia Ff 2013 Official Selection
Trailer
Kazakhstan
Shal (The Old Man)
Dir: Yermek Tursunov
Language: Russian, Kazakh
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Latvia
Mother, I Love You
Dir: Janis Nords
Language: Latvian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: New Europe Film Sales
Festivals: Los Angeles Film Festival 2013, Berlinale Generation KPlus (Grand Prix of the International Jury for the best feature film)
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Mexico
Heli
Dir: Amat Escalante
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Ndm
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition-Winner Best Director, San Sebastian 2013 Horizontes Latinos,
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Morocco
Horses of God
Dir: Nabil Ayouch
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Cannes 2012, Bif London Film Festival 2012
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
The Netherlands
Borgman
Dir: Alex van Warmerdam
Language: Dutch
U.S Release: Drafthouse Films
Isa: Fortissimo
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition, Busan 2013, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
New Zealand
White Lies
Dir: Dana Rotberg
Language: Maori
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Film Sales Company
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Norway
I Am Yours
Dir: Iram Haq
Language: Norwegian, Urdu
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Palestine
Omar
Dir: Hany Abu-Assad
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Adopt FilmsIsa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Un Certain Regard, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Philippines
Transit
Dir: Hannah Espia
Language: Filipino, Tagalog, Hebrew
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Cinemalaya Film Festival 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Poland
Walesa
Dir: Andrzej Wajda
Language: Polish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Films Boutique
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2013, Venice- Biennale 2013
Trailer
Romania
Child's Pose
Dir: Calin Peter Netzer
Language: Romanian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Beta Cinema
Festivals: Berlinale - Efm 2013 - Competition (Golden Bear for the Best Film), Toronto - Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Articles by Sydney Levine, Berlin Diary #2
Russia
Stalingrad
Dir: Fedor Bondarchuk
Language: Russian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Saudi Arabia
Wadjda
Dir: Haifaa al-Mansour
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Sony Pictures Classics - September 13, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Cannes 2012, Venice International Film Festival 2012, Los Angeles Film Festival, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Serbia
Circles
Dir: Srdan Golubovic
Language: Serbian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Sundance 2013 World Dramatic, Berlinale - Efm 2013 Forum
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Sydney Levine
Singapore
Ilo Ilo
Dir: Anthony Chen
Language: Mandarin, Hokkien, English, Tagalog
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Directors Fortnight, Toronto - Tiff 2013 Discovery
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Slovenia
Class Enemy
Dir: Rok Biček
Language: Slovene
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
South Korea
Juvenile Offender
Dir: Kang Yi-kwan
Language: Korean
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Finecut
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2012 Contemporary World Cinema,
Trailer
Spain
15 Years and One Day
Dir: Gracia Querejeta
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Latido
Festivals: San Sebastian 2013 Made in Spain, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Switzerland
More Than Honey
Dir: Markus Imhoof
Language: German, Mandarin
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Films Boutique
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2012 Tiff Docs, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Turkey
The Butterfly's Dream
Dir: Yılmaz Erdoğan
Language: Turkish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Istanbul Film Festival, Los Angeles Turkish Film Festival
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
United Kingdom
Metro Manila
Dir: Sean Elllis
Language: Filipino, Tagalog
U.S Release: Paladin/108 Media
Isa:
Festivals: Sundance 2013 World Dramatic, Berlin Efm 2012, Cannes 2012, Afm 2012, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Uruguay
Anina
Dir: Alfredo Soderguit
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Berlin International Film Festival, Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar...
Included in the program are all of the 9 shortlisted films, all the other major omissions, and many more obscure titles that showcase some of the most interesting voices in World Cinema today. Most of these films have been awarded prizes and received praise at major festivals from Sundance to Cannes and Toronto, and will give the viewer a broader view of the category beyond the assumed frontrunners.
Below is a list with more information on each of the films that will be screening at Palm Springs with reviews and interviews with the filmmakers for the majority of them. Read more about the complete list of 76 Foreign Language Oscar Submissions visit Here
For more information on the Palm Springs International Film Festival visit Here
Argentina
The German Doctor (Wakolda)
Dir: Lucia Puenzo
Language: Spanish, German, Hebrew
U.S Release: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Isa: Pyramide
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Un Certain Regard
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Case Study by Sydney Levine
Australia
The Rocket
Dir: Kim Mordaunt
Language: Lao
U.S Release: Kino Lorber
Isa: Level K
Festivals: Berlin 2013: Best First Feature Film ,Tribeca 2013: World Narrative Competition
Trailer
Austria
The Wall
Dir: Julian Polsler
Language: German
U.S Release: Music Box Films - May 31, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Sitges Ff 2012 Official Fantastic, Mumbai Ff 2012 Int'l Competition
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Belgium
The Broken Circle Breakdown
Dir: Felix van Groeningen
Language: Flemish
U.S Release: Tribeca Film - November 1, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Berlinale - Efm 2013 - Panorama
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Bosnia And Herzegovina
An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker
Dir: Danis Tanović
Language: Bosnian, Romani
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Berlinale Competition,Efm Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Cambodia
The Missing Picture
Dir: Rithy Panh
Language: French
U.S Release: Acquired by Strand Releasing for U.S Distribution
Festivals: Cannes 2013 - Un Certain Regard Prix, San Sebastian 2013 Pearls
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Canada
Gabrielle
Dir: Louise Archambault
Language: French
U.S Release: eOne
Isa: eOne
Festivals: Toronto- Tiff 2013, Locarno International Film Festival 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Chile
Gloria
Dir: Sebastian Lelio
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Roadside Attractions
Isa: Funny Balloons
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Toronto - Tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Sydney Levine
China
Back to 1942
Dir: Feng Xiaogang
Language: Mandarin, English
U.S Release: Well Go USA - May 14, 2013
Isa: Huayi Brothers
Festivals: Rome Film Festival 2012, Dubai International Film Festival 2012
Trailer
Croatia
Halima's Path
Dir: Arsen Anton Ostojić
Language: Bosnian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Tallinn Black Nights Iff 2012 - EurAsia (Special Jury Prize)
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Denmark
The Hunt
Dir: Thomas Vinterberg
Language: Danish
U.S Release: Magnolia Pictures - July 12, 2013
Isa: TrustNordisk
Festivals: Cannes 2012 Competition, Toronto - Tiff 2012, AFI Fest 2012
Trailer
Egypt
Winter of Discontent
Dir: Ibrahim el-Batout
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Venice International Film Festival, Cairo International Film Festival, Dubai Film Festival
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Finland
Disciple
Dir: Ulrika Bengts
Language: Finnish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Helsinki Ff 2012, Montréal World Ff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
France
Renoir
Dir: Gilles Bourdos
Language: French
U.S Release: Samuel Goldwyn Films - March 29, 2013
Isa: Wild Bunch
Festivals: Cannes 2012 Un Certain Regard
Trailer
Georgia
In Bloom
Dir: Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß
Language: Georgian
U.S Release: Big World Pictures
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Cicae award Berlinale Forum 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Germany
Two Lives
Dir: Georg Maas
Language: German
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Beta Cinema
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Toronto-tiff 2013, Busan 2013
Trailer
Hong Kong
The Grandmaster
Dir: Wong Kar-wai
Language: Cantonese, Mandarin
U.S Release: The Weinstein Company - August 23, 2013
Isa: Fortissimo
Festivals: Berlinale -Efm 2013
Trailer
Hungary
The Notebook
Dir: Janosz Szasz
Language: Hungarian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Iceland
Of Horses and Men
Dir: Benedikt Erlingsson
Language: Icelandic
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Icelandic Film Centre
Festivals: Berlin Efm 2013, Sundance 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
India
The Good Road
Dir: Gyan Correa
Language: Gujarati
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: National Film Board of India
Festivals: London Indian Film Festival in 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Iran
The Past
Dir: Asghar Farhadi
Language: French, Persian
U.S Release: Sony Pictures Classics - December 20, 2013
Isa: Memento
Festivals:Cannes 2013 Competition-Won Best Actress, Toronto - Tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Israel
Bethlehem
Dir: Yuval Adler
Language: Hebrew
U.S Release: Adopt
Isa: Westend
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2013 Discovery, Telluride Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival
Trailer
Italy
The Great Beauty
Dir: Paolo Sorrentino
Language: Italian
U.S Release: AJanus Films
Isa: Pathe
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition, Berlin Efm 2013,
Trailer
Interview by Sydney Levine
Japan
The Great Passage
Dir: Yuya Ishii
Language: Japanese
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Shochiku
Festivals: Fantasia Ff 2013 Official Selection
Trailer
Kazakhstan
Shal (The Old Man)
Dir: Yermek Tursunov
Language: Russian, Kazakh
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Latvia
Mother, I Love You
Dir: Janis Nords
Language: Latvian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: New Europe Film Sales
Festivals: Los Angeles Film Festival 2013, Berlinale Generation KPlus (Grand Prix of the International Jury for the best feature film)
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Mexico
Heli
Dir: Amat Escalante
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Ndm
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition-Winner Best Director, San Sebastian 2013 Horizontes Latinos,
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Morocco
Horses of God
Dir: Nabil Ayouch
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Cannes 2012, Bif London Film Festival 2012
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
The Netherlands
Borgman
Dir: Alex van Warmerdam
Language: Dutch
U.S Release: Drafthouse Films
Isa: Fortissimo
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Competition, Busan 2013, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
New Zealand
White Lies
Dir: Dana Rotberg
Language: Maori
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Film Sales Company
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Norway
I Am Yours
Dir: Iram Haq
Language: Norwegian, Urdu
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Palestine
Omar
Dir: Hany Abu-Assad
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Adopt FilmsIsa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Un Certain Regard, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Philippines
Transit
Dir: Hannah Espia
Language: Filipino, Tagalog, Hebrew
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Cinemalaya Film Festival 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Poland
Walesa
Dir: Andrzej Wajda
Language: Polish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Films Boutique
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2013, Venice- Biennale 2013
Trailer
Romania
Child's Pose
Dir: Calin Peter Netzer
Language: Romanian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Beta Cinema
Festivals: Berlinale - Efm 2013 - Competition (Golden Bear for the Best Film), Toronto - Tiff 2013 Contemporary World Cinema
Trailer
Articles by Sydney Levine, Berlin Diary #2
Russia
Stalingrad
Dir: Fedor Bondarchuk
Language: Russian
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: N/A
Trailer
Saudi Arabia
Wadjda
Dir: Haifaa al-Mansour
Language: Arabic
U.S Release: Sony Pictures Classics - September 13, 2013
Isa: The Match Factory
Festivals: Cannes 2012, Venice International Film Festival 2012, Los Angeles Film Festival, Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Serbia
Circles
Dir: Srdan Golubovic
Language: Serbian
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Sundance 2013 World Dramatic, Berlinale - Efm 2013 Forum
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Sydney Levine
Singapore
Ilo Ilo
Dir: Anthony Chen
Language: Mandarin, Hokkien, English, Tagalog
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Memento
Festivals: Cannes 2013 Directors Fortnight, Toronto - Tiff 2013 Discovery
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Slovenia
Class Enemy
Dir: Rok Biček
Language: Slovene
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Toronto-tiff 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
South Korea
Juvenile Offender
Dir: Kang Yi-kwan
Language: Korean
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Finecut
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2012 Contemporary World Cinema,
Trailer
Spain
15 Years and One Day
Dir: Gracia Querejeta
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Latido
Festivals: San Sebastian 2013 Made in Spain, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
Interview by Carlos Aguilar
Switzerland
More Than Honey
Dir: Markus Imhoof
Language: German, Mandarin
U.S Release: Tba
Isa: Films Boutique
Festivals: Toronto - Tiff 2012 Tiff Docs, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Turkey
The Butterfly's Dream
Dir: Yılmaz Erdoğan
Language: Turkish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Istanbul Film Festival, Los Angeles Turkish Film Festival
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar
United Kingdom
Metro Manila
Dir: Sean Elllis
Language: Filipino, Tagalog
U.S Release: Paladin/108 Media
Isa:
Festivals: Sundance 2013 World Dramatic, Berlin Efm 2012, Cannes 2012, Afm 2012, Berlin Efm 2013
Trailer
Uruguay
Anina
Dir: Alfredo Soderguit
Language: Spanish
U.S Release: Tba
Festivals: Berlin International Film Festival, Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema
Trailer
Review by Carlos Aguilar...
- 1/9/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Working in the documentary field and as an actress at the beginning of her career, Spanish filmmaker Gracia Querejeta has solidified herself as one of the most promising creators working in her country today. Her latest work 15 Years +1 Day tells the story of a teenager trying to find himself while sorting out his relationship with his strict grandfather. The film is simultaneously a mystery, as the small town, to which the protagonist is sent as punishment for his bad behavior, is troubled with the unsolved death of another young man. Comedic, endearing, and superbly acted her film comments on the nature of parents-children relationships, and the expectations they both have of each other. Acclaimed actress Maribel Verdu stars in the film which was selected to represent Spain at the 86th Academy Awards. The director talked to us days before the shortlist announcement, and delved into her inspiration, working with the actors, and the how adults can learn from the youth.
Read the Review for '15 Years +1 Day' Here
Carlos Aguilar: Your film blends elements of a mystery into a family drama. How difficult was it to include both of these themes into a cohesive narrative?
Gracia Querejeta: Well, what we wanted to do was to portray sort of a “train crash” between two people from two different generations, who are also united by a family bond, like a grandfather and a grandson. Therefore, from this “train crash” everything else was born. Both the emotional part and the crime part of the movie were born from it.
Aguilar: Why did you decide to make a film about a boy and his mother, rather than a mother and her daughter?
Querejeta: Perhaps it is because of that old saying which explains that sons are for mothers and daughters for fathers I’m not sure [Laughs]. I thought that a woman with the characteristics that Maribel Verdu’s character has, with that certain emotional fragility, could show a different closeness towards her son from what a father cold have. Maybe it is also because I am the mother of a boy.
Aguilar: Given that she is such a respected actress both in Spain and internationally, how was your experience working with Maribel Verdu? Did you consider her for the role from the beginning of the writing process?
Querejeta: I had already worked with Maribel in the film Seven Billiard Tables, for which she won her first Goya as Best Leading Actress. I feel like my relationship with her has transcended from one between an actress and a director, we are basically friends now. It was guaranteed that she was going to interpret the role extraordinarily. On the other hand, it was going to be really pleasant to work with her. In this case I did think of her from the moment I started writing the film.
Aguilar: I feel like your film is trying to say something about children, and the moment we all realize our parents are flawed individuals. Is this correct?
Querejeta: What attracted me to a story like this was that idea that even if we as adults are not always perfect, we think that teenagers are the ones who need to learn from the adults. This movie doesn’t try to prove it, but to show that they are not always the only ones who need to learn, but that adults can learn a lot form younger people.
Aguilar: Besides working with someone as experienced as Verdu, how was it to work with the fresh young actors and the rest of the cast?
Querejeta: It was easier than what it looks like because the casting process was extremely long. We were lucky to choose right in that sense. We also rehearsed a lot, so by the time we started shooting they had the entire film ready. Sincerely it has been a pleasure to work with all of them.
Aguilar: Is there any type of pressure or expectations since your film was chosen to represent Spain at the Academy Awards over many other films?
Querejeta: Not from my part. I take these things with a lot of tranquility. We are going to try to get as far as we can get, and this is a long race and a very complex one. We are already content and proud of having been chosen by the Spanish Academy to represent Spain. We will see where we can get.
Aguilar: What kinds of experiences inspire to write your stories? Are these things that have happened to you or someone you know? Or simply issues you like to explore?
Querejeta: I think I mentioned it to someone recently, although this is not at all an autobiographical work, all the stories in the film are stories I know from close people around me or people who have been in my life. In the end, family, friendships, and everything else that happens to us and moves us, many times ends up becoming a source of inspiration.
Aguilar: What or who inspired you to write a character like Jon? This is a boy that is conflicted, yet very loyal.
Querejeta: Probably from my own son [Laughs], even though my son never did anything close to the things shown in the film, thanks God. My inspiration also came from the relationship him and me had when he was younger, and also perhaps from some of my fears at the time.
Aguilar: Can you talk about the link between the main characters? Is the generational divide something you think affects the way they interact with one another?
Querejeta: I think this has to do with trying to create adult characters, and that throughout the movie we discover that they are as troubled as the teenager “like father, like son.” We have an adult male character who is a man completely closed to life incapable of showing his feelings to others. A man who at a certain point decided to accept loneliness instead of living with his wife, and isolates himself from the world. We also have a daughter who has suffered from her father’s decisions, and who also has her own issues, like her husband’s suicide, which she ends up explaining in the film. I was interested in showing that the link between father and daughter had to with not having emotional closure.
Aguilar: On that note, do you believe Jon, who represents the youngest generation, can teach a lesson to his older counterparts?
Querejeta: Definitely. He is the character who creates the conflict that drives the film. However, in the end I think he is the sanest character [Laughs]
Aguilar: You make an effort to expose most of the characters’ relationships with their parents, including those of minor characters like Jon’s friends. What was your intention?
Querejeta:
Yes. In a sense this theme unites all these kids’ lives despite being so distinct, and economically and culturally different. There is a sequence at the beach in which Jon talks to the Ecuadorian boy about their lives, about their parents. Then he talks to the other kid who tells him “My father killed himself and mother doesn’t know it” or “My mother died of cancer” These are kids who haven’t had easy lives and that unites them.
Read the Review for '15 Years +1 Day' Here
Carlos Aguilar: Your film blends elements of a mystery into a family drama. How difficult was it to include both of these themes into a cohesive narrative?
Gracia Querejeta: Well, what we wanted to do was to portray sort of a “train crash” between two people from two different generations, who are also united by a family bond, like a grandfather and a grandson. Therefore, from this “train crash” everything else was born. Both the emotional part and the crime part of the movie were born from it.
Aguilar: Why did you decide to make a film about a boy and his mother, rather than a mother and her daughter?
Querejeta: Perhaps it is because of that old saying which explains that sons are for mothers and daughters for fathers I’m not sure [Laughs]. I thought that a woman with the characteristics that Maribel Verdu’s character has, with that certain emotional fragility, could show a different closeness towards her son from what a father cold have. Maybe it is also because I am the mother of a boy.
Aguilar: Given that she is such a respected actress both in Spain and internationally, how was your experience working with Maribel Verdu? Did you consider her for the role from the beginning of the writing process?
Querejeta: I had already worked with Maribel in the film Seven Billiard Tables, for which she won her first Goya as Best Leading Actress. I feel like my relationship with her has transcended from one between an actress and a director, we are basically friends now. It was guaranteed that she was going to interpret the role extraordinarily. On the other hand, it was going to be really pleasant to work with her. In this case I did think of her from the moment I started writing the film.
Aguilar: I feel like your film is trying to say something about children, and the moment we all realize our parents are flawed individuals. Is this correct?
Querejeta: What attracted me to a story like this was that idea that even if we as adults are not always perfect, we think that teenagers are the ones who need to learn from the adults. This movie doesn’t try to prove it, but to show that they are not always the only ones who need to learn, but that adults can learn a lot form younger people.
Aguilar: Besides working with someone as experienced as Verdu, how was it to work with the fresh young actors and the rest of the cast?
Querejeta: It was easier than what it looks like because the casting process was extremely long. We were lucky to choose right in that sense. We also rehearsed a lot, so by the time we started shooting they had the entire film ready. Sincerely it has been a pleasure to work with all of them.
Aguilar: Is there any type of pressure or expectations since your film was chosen to represent Spain at the Academy Awards over many other films?
Querejeta: Not from my part. I take these things with a lot of tranquility. We are going to try to get as far as we can get, and this is a long race and a very complex one. We are already content and proud of having been chosen by the Spanish Academy to represent Spain. We will see where we can get.
Aguilar: What kinds of experiences inspire to write your stories? Are these things that have happened to you or someone you know? Or simply issues you like to explore?
Querejeta: I think I mentioned it to someone recently, although this is not at all an autobiographical work, all the stories in the film are stories I know from close people around me or people who have been in my life. In the end, family, friendships, and everything else that happens to us and moves us, many times ends up becoming a source of inspiration.
Aguilar: What or who inspired you to write a character like Jon? This is a boy that is conflicted, yet very loyal.
Querejeta: Probably from my own son [Laughs], even though my son never did anything close to the things shown in the film, thanks God. My inspiration also came from the relationship him and me had when he was younger, and also perhaps from some of my fears at the time.
Aguilar: Can you talk about the link between the main characters? Is the generational divide something you think affects the way they interact with one another?
Querejeta: I think this has to do with trying to create adult characters, and that throughout the movie we discover that they are as troubled as the teenager “like father, like son.” We have an adult male character who is a man completely closed to life incapable of showing his feelings to others. A man who at a certain point decided to accept loneliness instead of living with his wife, and isolates himself from the world. We also have a daughter who has suffered from her father’s decisions, and who also has her own issues, like her husband’s suicide, which she ends up explaining in the film. I was interested in showing that the link between father and daughter had to with not having emotional closure.
Aguilar: On that note, do you believe Jon, who represents the youngest generation, can teach a lesson to his older counterparts?
Querejeta: Definitely. He is the character who creates the conflict that drives the film. However, in the end I think he is the sanest character [Laughs]
Aguilar: You make an effort to expose most of the characters’ relationships with their parents, including those of minor characters like Jon’s friends. What was your intention?
Querejeta:
Yes. In a sense this theme unites all these kids’ lives despite being so distinct, and economically and culturally different. There is a sequence at the beach in which Jon talks to the Ecuadorian boy about their lives, about their parents. Then he talks to the other kid who tells him “My father killed himself and mother doesn’t know it” or “My mother died of cancer” These are kids who haven’t had easy lives and that unites them.
- 1/3/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Less than two years after winning the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film with A Separation, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi returns with yet another astonishing family drama. In The Past his characters are forced to come to terms with their memories and regrets as the story unfolds like riveting mystery. Set in France, this marks the first time the director makes a film outside of his native country and in a different language. However, his masterful storytelling is still as captivating and distinct. Farhadi has a particular vision incomparable with any other filmmaker working today.
His latest work stars Academy Award-nominated actress Bérénice Bejo in a complex and emotionally affecting role, for which she won the Best Actress award at this year's Cannes Film Festival. Undoubtedly, The Past is another masterwork from Farhadi, and definitely this writer's absolute favorite film of the year. Chosen to represent Iran once again at the Academy Awards, the brilliant director talk to us about his detailed writing process, working with actors, and what inspires him to create.
Read the Review of The Past Here
Carlos Aguilar: One of the most fascinating things about this film is that you chose to create a story about the past, which entirely takes place in the present. No flashbacks, no dream sequences, just the characters dealing with the repercussions. Why did you choose to write the film in this manner?
Asghar Farhadi: There are two reasons why I chose this way of working, not going back to the past through flashbacks. One is that this is a realist film and in a realist work I can’t conceive that you could break the timeline.
The second thing is that, while we don’t have flashbacks, we nonetheless refer so frequently to the past in such a way that the spectators can construct the pat in their own mind.This is a more difficult film than my previous films because as the spectator is watching the film, he or she sees two films in fact. One is the film that is unfolding on the screen that takes place in the present, and the other film is the film that the viewer is constructing in their own mind of the past. That is to say that I believe the viewers now have a fairly complete picture of this family’s past. It was important to me to make a film where I don’t show the past but where the spectators can see the past.
Aguilar: Here in ‘The Past’ and in ‘A Separtion’, you crafted films about failed relationships. What attracts you to stories about the end of something?
Farhadi: In my opinion when you speak about relationships between people, you are actually talking about everything in their world because everything is contained in that relationship. I believe these relationships are very rich in material and many questions spring from them. This is not a matter of just a relationship between two individuals, it is something that can be expanded to contain things outside of that family.
Aguilar: How do you begin the writing process for a new film? What sort of inspiration ignites your creative process?
Farhadi : It varies with each film, the point of initiation so to speak. Looking back at my works now, it seems that in general the spark at the start is a memory, someone’s memory of an event. The memory resides in my mind over a period of years, and without me being aware of it, it keeps appearing to me in order to be transformed into a story. For instance for the film The Past, this is a memory that a friend of mine had told me had happened to him.
When he was telling me that story it wasn’t as though I thought “I’m going to make this into a film” but years later I came to believe “I want to make this film.” Hence there is a very long process from the first initial point until the point of writing. I have to transform that memory into a story in which my own preoccupations are reflected and contained. I try very hard to write in a very orderly and continual disciplined manner.
Aguilar: Why did you decide to tell this story in another country and in another language, given that this s the first time you have done it?
Farhadi: It was dictated by the story itself because it was the story of a man returning to a place from which he had been distant for a long time. He had been away for a long time. But why I picked France amongst all the other countries? There are several reasons. On the one hand there is the fact that my films are really seen in France, and as a result there came to be a relationship between me and those people, and that culture.
Another thing is that many Iranians of a progressive intellectual background ended up moving to France and living there. This is part of our contemporary Iranian history. And then, when you choose to make a film whose subject is the past, is best to choose a city in which to make it where the past is still present and visible.
Aguilar: Your films are subtle mysteries and you tend you tend to play with the viewer’s expectations. You create twists and reveal secrets in a very particular manner. How do you create these moments during the writing process?
Farhadi: It is very difficult to say how I do it because as I’m doing that, I’m not myself aware of what it is I’m doing. But I’m going to give you some guesses. One is that I’m always careful about the thing I’m writing to make sure a viewer can imagine it happening to themselves. The second point is that I like storytelling, and for storytelling you need a drama. And for there to be drama, you need twists, and by twists I mean the ability to constantly change the trajectory of the story.
I always feel that a viewer has an expectation about every moment of the film and where it’s going, so if I act against that, I’ve created a twist. In fact it becomes a kind of game with the expectations of the viewer. This is the superficial appearance. In the layer beneath there is a hidden theme. The result of each twist is that the judgment of the audience member is challenged.
Aguilar: How difficult was it for you to work with both French and Iranian actors in this film?
Farhadi : I employed the same methods that I’ve used with my actors in previous film here as well. Prior to shooting we always have several months of rehearsals. If you were to come to the room where we do our rehearsals you would probably imagine we are preparing for a play. But in the rehearsals what we rehearse is not what the actors are going to perform in the film. It’s more of an exercise for the actors to come to know the background of those characters. Because I write the screenplay entirely and precisely, there is the danger that an actor might feel that this finite role is being imposed on them. I want the actors to feel that this is their own role, and that they can go back to point zero and develop this character.
Aguilar: There are several instances in which the characters have conversation that are inaudible to the viewer as they happen behind glass doors or other separations. Subtly these scenes create an interesting tension. How do you decide where to place them in the film?
Farhaid: There is a rule I obey when inserting those kind of scenes, and that is to put them in places where the audience member is not aware of them, where they go unnoticed. This establishes a relationship with their unconscious. If in a moment you were to see a scene like that and go “the director did this thing” I would venture to say that it was not in the right position in the film so I try to move it to a place where it goes unnoticed.
Aguilar: Following all the success you had with “A Separation” do you feel there are more expectations from your work? How has this changed the way you make films?
Farhadi: No, I’m following the path that I was on before, and had I not had this success I would still be on this path. I haven’t yet reached the end of this path so there is no reason to change course. The previous successes have only made it more possible for viewers to better know my accent, my cinematic language, and my voice.
His latest work stars Academy Award-nominated actress Bérénice Bejo in a complex and emotionally affecting role, for which she won the Best Actress award at this year's Cannes Film Festival. Undoubtedly, The Past is another masterwork from Farhadi, and definitely this writer's absolute favorite film of the year. Chosen to represent Iran once again at the Academy Awards, the brilliant director talk to us about his detailed writing process, working with actors, and what inspires him to create.
Read the Review of The Past Here
Carlos Aguilar: One of the most fascinating things about this film is that you chose to create a story about the past, which entirely takes place in the present. No flashbacks, no dream sequences, just the characters dealing with the repercussions. Why did you choose to write the film in this manner?
Asghar Farhadi: There are two reasons why I chose this way of working, not going back to the past through flashbacks. One is that this is a realist film and in a realist work I can’t conceive that you could break the timeline.
The second thing is that, while we don’t have flashbacks, we nonetheless refer so frequently to the past in such a way that the spectators can construct the pat in their own mind.This is a more difficult film than my previous films because as the spectator is watching the film, he or she sees two films in fact. One is the film that is unfolding on the screen that takes place in the present, and the other film is the film that the viewer is constructing in their own mind of the past. That is to say that I believe the viewers now have a fairly complete picture of this family’s past. It was important to me to make a film where I don’t show the past but where the spectators can see the past.
Aguilar: Here in ‘The Past’ and in ‘A Separtion’, you crafted films about failed relationships. What attracts you to stories about the end of something?
Farhadi: In my opinion when you speak about relationships between people, you are actually talking about everything in their world because everything is contained in that relationship. I believe these relationships are very rich in material and many questions spring from them. This is not a matter of just a relationship between two individuals, it is something that can be expanded to contain things outside of that family.
Aguilar: How do you begin the writing process for a new film? What sort of inspiration ignites your creative process?
Farhadi : It varies with each film, the point of initiation so to speak. Looking back at my works now, it seems that in general the spark at the start is a memory, someone’s memory of an event. The memory resides in my mind over a period of years, and without me being aware of it, it keeps appearing to me in order to be transformed into a story. For instance for the film The Past, this is a memory that a friend of mine had told me had happened to him.
When he was telling me that story it wasn’t as though I thought “I’m going to make this into a film” but years later I came to believe “I want to make this film.” Hence there is a very long process from the first initial point until the point of writing. I have to transform that memory into a story in which my own preoccupations are reflected and contained. I try very hard to write in a very orderly and continual disciplined manner.
Aguilar: Why did you decide to tell this story in another country and in another language, given that this s the first time you have done it?
Farhadi: It was dictated by the story itself because it was the story of a man returning to a place from which he had been distant for a long time. He had been away for a long time. But why I picked France amongst all the other countries? There are several reasons. On the one hand there is the fact that my films are really seen in France, and as a result there came to be a relationship between me and those people, and that culture.
Another thing is that many Iranians of a progressive intellectual background ended up moving to France and living there. This is part of our contemporary Iranian history. And then, when you choose to make a film whose subject is the past, is best to choose a city in which to make it where the past is still present and visible.
Aguilar: Your films are subtle mysteries and you tend you tend to play with the viewer’s expectations. You create twists and reveal secrets in a very particular manner. How do you create these moments during the writing process?
Farhadi: It is very difficult to say how I do it because as I’m doing that, I’m not myself aware of what it is I’m doing. But I’m going to give you some guesses. One is that I’m always careful about the thing I’m writing to make sure a viewer can imagine it happening to themselves. The second point is that I like storytelling, and for storytelling you need a drama. And for there to be drama, you need twists, and by twists I mean the ability to constantly change the trajectory of the story.
I always feel that a viewer has an expectation about every moment of the film and where it’s going, so if I act against that, I’ve created a twist. In fact it becomes a kind of game with the expectations of the viewer. This is the superficial appearance. In the layer beneath there is a hidden theme. The result of each twist is that the judgment of the audience member is challenged.
Aguilar: How difficult was it for you to work with both French and Iranian actors in this film?
Farhadi : I employed the same methods that I’ve used with my actors in previous film here as well. Prior to shooting we always have several months of rehearsals. If you were to come to the room where we do our rehearsals you would probably imagine we are preparing for a play. But in the rehearsals what we rehearse is not what the actors are going to perform in the film. It’s more of an exercise for the actors to come to know the background of those characters. Because I write the screenplay entirely and precisely, there is the danger that an actor might feel that this finite role is being imposed on them. I want the actors to feel that this is their own role, and that they can go back to point zero and develop this character.
Aguilar: There are several instances in which the characters have conversation that are inaudible to the viewer as they happen behind glass doors or other separations. Subtly these scenes create an interesting tension. How do you decide where to place them in the film?
Farhaid: There is a rule I obey when inserting those kind of scenes, and that is to put them in places where the audience member is not aware of them, where they go unnoticed. This establishes a relationship with their unconscious. If in a moment you were to see a scene like that and go “the director did this thing” I would venture to say that it was not in the right position in the film so I try to move it to a place where it goes unnoticed.
Aguilar: Following all the success you had with “A Separation” do you feel there are more expectations from your work? How has this changed the way you make films?
Farhadi: No, I’m following the path that I was on before, and had I not had this success I would still be on this path. I haven’t yet reached the end of this path so there is no reason to change course. The previous successes have only made it more possible for viewers to better know my accent, my cinematic language, and my voice.
- 12/17/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
We are very pleased that our own Carlos Aguilar has been selected as IndieWire announces finalists for the 2014 IndieWire | Sundance Institute Fellowship For Film Criticism.
For the first time, IndieWire is launching a new partnership with the Sundance Institute in memory of the late film critic Roger Ebert: The IndieWire | Sundance Institute Fellowship For Film Criticism will help send six aspiring film critics to the Sundance Film Festival for the duration of the Park City gathering.
This initiative, generously supported by the Roger Ebert Scholarship for Film Criticism, follows successful workshops along similar lines that IndieWire helped organize in Locarno and New York. For the Sundance Fellowship, we received more than 450 applications around North America, a startling number filled with countless strong, passionate writers with a broad range of sensibilities.
IndieWire has written that '...It was a painfully tough decision to whittle our list down to six finalists, but we couldn’t be happier with caliber of the accepted critics, whose names we’re excited to unveil today'.
During Sundance, these critics will review numerous world premieres at the festival in addition to tracking buzz, contributing to RogerEbert.com and our own Criticwire blog. They will also have the chance to analyze the state of their craft by working alongside several critic “mentors” and experience innumerable networking opportunities at the most prominent festival in America.
Further from IndieWire, '...You’ll be hearing a lot from them in these parts even before the festival kicks off on January 16, so get used to these names, and stay tuned for more details about each of them.'
Their names:
Carlos Aguilar
Kyle Burton
Robert Cameron Fowler
Katherine Kilkenny
Emma Myers
Mary Sollosi...
For the first time, IndieWire is launching a new partnership with the Sundance Institute in memory of the late film critic Roger Ebert: The IndieWire | Sundance Institute Fellowship For Film Criticism will help send six aspiring film critics to the Sundance Film Festival for the duration of the Park City gathering.
This initiative, generously supported by the Roger Ebert Scholarship for Film Criticism, follows successful workshops along similar lines that IndieWire helped organize in Locarno and New York. For the Sundance Fellowship, we received more than 450 applications around North America, a startling number filled with countless strong, passionate writers with a broad range of sensibilities.
IndieWire has written that '...It was a painfully tough decision to whittle our list down to six finalists, but we couldn’t be happier with caliber of the accepted critics, whose names we’re excited to unveil today'.
During Sundance, these critics will review numerous world premieres at the festival in addition to tracking buzz, contributing to RogerEbert.com and our own Criticwire blog. They will also have the chance to analyze the state of their craft by working alongside several critic “mentors” and experience innumerable networking opportunities at the most prominent festival in America.
Further from IndieWire, '...You’ll be hearing a lot from them in these parts even before the festival kicks off on January 16, so get used to these names, and stay tuned for more details about each of them.'
Their names:
Carlos Aguilar
Kyle Burton
Robert Cameron Fowler
Katherine Kilkenny
Emma Myers
Mary Sollosi...
- 12/12/2013
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Neighboring Sounds, Brazil's Submission for the Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. U.S. : The Cinema Guild. International Sales Agent: FiGa Films
With a unique and innovative cinematic voice Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho has garnered international acclaimed for his debut feature Neighboring Sounds. Evocative and intricately written the film compiles several stories of people living in an affluent community, in which the sounds and silences are as important as the characters themselves. His film has been selected as the Brazilian submission to compete for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and it is definitely one the most interesting works of the year. The director talked to us extensively about the origin of the concept, the crucial role of the sound design, and the intriguing dream sequences in the film.
Read the Review for Neighboring Sounds Here
Carlos Aguilar: Your film explores seemingly simple occurrences, yet it is definitely complex. Could you talk about the concept and how the stories came to be?
Kleber Mendonça Filho: Well I had been making short films before making this first feature. I made 6 or 7 shorts over the last decade, when you watch some of them you might understand where Neighboring Sounds comes from. Basically it started off as an exercise in writing, and I had some notes on situations, on people, people living their lives, and common situations that take place everyday. Things I witnessed, things I observed, and stories I heard about. I thought that it would be interesting to dramatize these situations and still make something that would make sense cinematically. A lot of the situations in the film are very simple and very mundane, but if I shot them in a classical style in a more cinema style, whatever that means, it would be appealing to me anyway.
I think that’s how the basic idea for Neighboring Sounds came about. Something very trivial but dramatized in a more, almost classic, 1970s style. Going back to some of the films that I always liked from the 70s, some of the films that I grew up with, some films that take their time to establish a place, a location, a setting. Some of the films that actually make you look at a character and try to figure out what he/she is doing. I think that was the basic desire to make this film.
Aguilar: Obviously the sound design for the film is very particular, could you talk about the process of creating it and how it relates to the voyeuristic quality of the images?
Mendonça Filho: One thing I didn’t want for this film was like in other cases where you watch a film and it has sounds, but it seems to have sound for the sole reason that it won’t be silent. Sound is just there to make sure you understand that it is not a silent film. But in other films sound has a more prominent role in the way it tells the story. I think it modern society as a whole, but definitively in Brazil, spaces are so well divided and there are so many barriers, and so many divisions, so many lines and so many borderlines, basically telling you that you should be here but not here. This is my space and this is your space, and this is expressed very dramatically in architecture, we have a very kind of aggressive, almost medieval concept for architecture, which is basically keeping people out. So you get high walls, fences, and electric fences, and divisions like that.
But sound doesn’t really respect any of that, sound goes through walls, and over security fences, and it becomes an almost physical presence. I think that was one of the ideas for sound, making sound something that is physical. The dog barking for example, it’s right inside Bea’s place, in fact it’s right inside her head. The nightmare sequence is another example; it just becomes this unreal and hyperrealist series of noises of people coming into the house. The other thing is that I really didn’t want to use dramatic music, so sound became almost like music but without giving too much away. It is just a series of noises placed in what I thought would be the right moment, and that in a way acts like music but is not really music, is basically just sound.
Aguilar: Often Brazilian films focus on the favelas and the struggles of the lower class. Your film shows a different side of Brazilian society and it exposes certain of a class issues, was did something you decided to explore when writing the film?
Mendonça Filho: It was, because I don’t really have the personal experience of a favela. I really respect the communities of the favelas. I think they are extremely complex and rich environments but I haven’t really had the personal training of living or having had an experience there, so I wouldn’t have the confidence to make something that would be honest. I might even be wrong, but I usually work with personal experiences, and that’s the personal experience I have, of that particular class and that particular environment, the one you see in the film. In fact that’s where I lived, that’s my neighborhood. I’ve been photographing that place for many years since I was in college. I kind of knew where to put the camera. I had my favorite angles, even before I made the film. Not only physically, in terms of the locations themselves, but also some of the human interaction and the tension. The stuff that happens in the film a lot of it comes from personal observations. I’ve seen a lot of Brazilian films and most times I kind of react negatively, because of the way I think they portray places they don’t really know or care about. This is something that I specifically tried to avoid in my film.
Aguilar: Added to the sound design that creates a certain intriguing atmosphere, there are several surreal sequences in the film. One of them is a waterfall of blood, which has been talked about extensively. Why did you decide to include these in a very realistic film overall?
Mendonça Filho: Basically you can do anything in a film. I could have place a spaceship in the middle of that street [Laughs], but I just didn’t think it would be the right film to add a spaceship to. You can do anything, and I love to talk about this because is so organic to the process. When I was writing the film there were moments when I got tired. When I got to about half the script I couldn’t really stand being on that street anymore. Sometimes you are working and you feel like walking out into the terrace, stretching, looking out and feeling the night air on your face. It felt very much like that, and I felt we had to leave the street for some time. That’s when the idea for the trip to the family property in the countryside came about, which makes complete sense because that’s how young people deal with their family’s heritage. Once a month or once in six months they drive to their family’s property to spend the weekend. The idea came about because I couldn’t stand being on that street any longer, I felt suffocated, and I suspected the viewer would be suffocated the same way I was.
The other thing, when I was writing the script it came naturally that some situations were based on fear. When you write a scene where somebody is afraid of something you instantly go to decades of genre cinema: horror, suspense, and thrillers. Those are very cinematic genres, when you shoot a close-up of someone and you can see fear in the person’s face, or anticipation, or some kind of anxiety, it’s a very cinematic image. Those things came naturally to the film. There is a very trivial scene where the security guys are asleep, it’s late, and a mysterious car drives by. Nothing really happens in the scene, but the way it was shot creates a very anxious moment because you don’t know what’s happening or who is inside. It is a very realistic film but sometimes it goes that way.
There are two sequences that are nightmares, one of them is very clear. The girl has a nightmare of people coming into the house. Since it’s a nightmare I can do basically anything, she could turn into an elephant in the middle of the scene. It’s complete freedom. The other one, the one you mentioned, in my mind is a dream, but it is not clear because it was an odd feel to it. It is still kind of realistic, it would make sense for João to go there. They are at the waterfall and the blood thing takes place, I thought it would be a strong image. We managed to do it with the right trickery and I kept it in the film. I still think it makes sense. Without trying to explain too much, a lot about this film has to do with history, and the impact of history on the way we live now. Of course that image is very suggestive about the effects of history and the past.
Aguilar: There is a great array of people in the film, different family dynamics. Is there a reason why you chose to go that route rather than concentrating on one group?
Mendonça Filho: One good thing about a good book or a good film, or maybe even a song, I’m not a musician but I love to listen to music, is the range that each piece is able to give you. Like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ by Queen, 1975, that song is so epic. It goes in so many different places, it’s and opera and it is heavy metal, and it’s so crazy as it goes every which way. I kind of like films like that. I think Neighboring Sounds is a film about people, the more people I had the more pleasure I got out of the experience of making the film and handling those different characters.
Everyday we walk out onto the street and we see different people, you meet good looking people, overweight people, Black people, Asians, and you can be friends with all of them or you can even dislike them all, that’s life. I thought if I had different samples of different people in my film it would be truthful about living in the world today. The characters are part of different families, even the security guy, he had a family, something happened to his family but he still very much feels like he is part of a family. In a way it is also a film about family.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Brazil at the Academy Awards. Is there any pressure or expectations that come with this honor?
Mendonça Filho: I’m here doing my job and still working for the film even after a year since it started showing. It is a film that has constantly surprised me , and I’m actually enjoying this process. There is pressure back home, but I try to minimize it anyway I can, and I understand that this is a very complex process. But I’m here for the ride and I’m trying tot do my best, like I’m here talking to you now [Laughs].
With a unique and innovative cinematic voice Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho has garnered international acclaimed for his debut feature Neighboring Sounds. Evocative and intricately written the film compiles several stories of people living in an affluent community, in which the sounds and silences are as important as the characters themselves. His film has been selected as the Brazilian submission to compete for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and it is definitely one the most interesting works of the year. The director talked to us extensively about the origin of the concept, the crucial role of the sound design, and the intriguing dream sequences in the film.
Read the Review for Neighboring Sounds Here
Carlos Aguilar: Your film explores seemingly simple occurrences, yet it is definitely complex. Could you talk about the concept and how the stories came to be?
Kleber Mendonça Filho: Well I had been making short films before making this first feature. I made 6 or 7 shorts over the last decade, when you watch some of them you might understand where Neighboring Sounds comes from. Basically it started off as an exercise in writing, and I had some notes on situations, on people, people living their lives, and common situations that take place everyday. Things I witnessed, things I observed, and stories I heard about. I thought that it would be interesting to dramatize these situations and still make something that would make sense cinematically. A lot of the situations in the film are very simple and very mundane, but if I shot them in a classical style in a more cinema style, whatever that means, it would be appealing to me anyway.
I think that’s how the basic idea for Neighboring Sounds came about. Something very trivial but dramatized in a more, almost classic, 1970s style. Going back to some of the films that I always liked from the 70s, some of the films that I grew up with, some films that take their time to establish a place, a location, a setting. Some of the films that actually make you look at a character and try to figure out what he/she is doing. I think that was the basic desire to make this film.
Aguilar: Obviously the sound design for the film is very particular, could you talk about the process of creating it and how it relates to the voyeuristic quality of the images?
Mendonça Filho: One thing I didn’t want for this film was like in other cases where you watch a film and it has sounds, but it seems to have sound for the sole reason that it won’t be silent. Sound is just there to make sure you understand that it is not a silent film. But in other films sound has a more prominent role in the way it tells the story. I think it modern society as a whole, but definitively in Brazil, spaces are so well divided and there are so many barriers, and so many divisions, so many lines and so many borderlines, basically telling you that you should be here but not here. This is my space and this is your space, and this is expressed very dramatically in architecture, we have a very kind of aggressive, almost medieval concept for architecture, which is basically keeping people out. So you get high walls, fences, and electric fences, and divisions like that.
But sound doesn’t really respect any of that, sound goes through walls, and over security fences, and it becomes an almost physical presence. I think that was one of the ideas for sound, making sound something that is physical. The dog barking for example, it’s right inside Bea’s place, in fact it’s right inside her head. The nightmare sequence is another example; it just becomes this unreal and hyperrealist series of noises of people coming into the house. The other thing is that I really didn’t want to use dramatic music, so sound became almost like music but without giving too much away. It is just a series of noises placed in what I thought would be the right moment, and that in a way acts like music but is not really music, is basically just sound.
Aguilar: Often Brazilian films focus on the favelas and the struggles of the lower class. Your film shows a different side of Brazilian society and it exposes certain of a class issues, was did something you decided to explore when writing the film?
Mendonça Filho: It was, because I don’t really have the personal experience of a favela. I really respect the communities of the favelas. I think they are extremely complex and rich environments but I haven’t really had the personal training of living or having had an experience there, so I wouldn’t have the confidence to make something that would be honest. I might even be wrong, but I usually work with personal experiences, and that’s the personal experience I have, of that particular class and that particular environment, the one you see in the film. In fact that’s where I lived, that’s my neighborhood. I’ve been photographing that place for many years since I was in college. I kind of knew where to put the camera. I had my favorite angles, even before I made the film. Not only physically, in terms of the locations themselves, but also some of the human interaction and the tension. The stuff that happens in the film a lot of it comes from personal observations. I’ve seen a lot of Brazilian films and most times I kind of react negatively, because of the way I think they portray places they don’t really know or care about. This is something that I specifically tried to avoid in my film.
Aguilar: Added to the sound design that creates a certain intriguing atmosphere, there are several surreal sequences in the film. One of them is a waterfall of blood, which has been talked about extensively. Why did you decide to include these in a very realistic film overall?
Mendonça Filho: Basically you can do anything in a film. I could have place a spaceship in the middle of that street [Laughs], but I just didn’t think it would be the right film to add a spaceship to. You can do anything, and I love to talk about this because is so organic to the process. When I was writing the film there were moments when I got tired. When I got to about half the script I couldn’t really stand being on that street anymore. Sometimes you are working and you feel like walking out into the terrace, stretching, looking out and feeling the night air on your face. It felt very much like that, and I felt we had to leave the street for some time. That’s when the idea for the trip to the family property in the countryside came about, which makes complete sense because that’s how young people deal with their family’s heritage. Once a month or once in six months they drive to their family’s property to spend the weekend. The idea came about because I couldn’t stand being on that street any longer, I felt suffocated, and I suspected the viewer would be suffocated the same way I was.
The other thing, when I was writing the script it came naturally that some situations were based on fear. When you write a scene where somebody is afraid of something you instantly go to decades of genre cinema: horror, suspense, and thrillers. Those are very cinematic genres, when you shoot a close-up of someone and you can see fear in the person’s face, or anticipation, or some kind of anxiety, it’s a very cinematic image. Those things came naturally to the film. There is a very trivial scene where the security guys are asleep, it’s late, and a mysterious car drives by. Nothing really happens in the scene, but the way it was shot creates a very anxious moment because you don’t know what’s happening or who is inside. It is a very realistic film but sometimes it goes that way.
There are two sequences that are nightmares, one of them is very clear. The girl has a nightmare of people coming into the house. Since it’s a nightmare I can do basically anything, she could turn into an elephant in the middle of the scene. It’s complete freedom. The other one, the one you mentioned, in my mind is a dream, but it is not clear because it was an odd feel to it. It is still kind of realistic, it would make sense for João to go there. They are at the waterfall and the blood thing takes place, I thought it would be a strong image. We managed to do it with the right trickery and I kept it in the film. I still think it makes sense. Without trying to explain too much, a lot about this film has to do with history, and the impact of history on the way we live now. Of course that image is very suggestive about the effects of history and the past.
Aguilar: There is a great array of people in the film, different family dynamics. Is there a reason why you chose to go that route rather than concentrating on one group?
Mendonça Filho: One good thing about a good book or a good film, or maybe even a song, I’m not a musician but I love to listen to music, is the range that each piece is able to give you. Like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ by Queen, 1975, that song is so epic. It goes in so many different places, it’s and opera and it is heavy metal, and it’s so crazy as it goes every which way. I kind of like films like that. I think Neighboring Sounds is a film about people, the more people I had the more pleasure I got out of the experience of making the film and handling those different characters.
Everyday we walk out onto the street and we see different people, you meet good looking people, overweight people, Black people, Asians, and you can be friends with all of them or you can even dislike them all, that’s life. I thought if I had different samples of different people in my film it would be truthful about living in the world today. The characters are part of different families, even the security guy, he had a family, something happened to his family but he still very much feels like he is part of a family. In a way it is also a film about family.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Brazil at the Academy Awards. Is there any pressure or expectations that come with this honor?
Mendonça Filho: I’m here doing my job and still working for the film even after a year since it started showing. It is a film that has constantly surprised me , and I’m actually enjoying this process. There is pressure back home, but I try to minimize it anyway I can, and I understand that this is a very complex process. But I’m here for the ride and I’m trying tot do my best, like I’m here talking to you now [Laughs].
- 12/5/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Omar, Palestine's Submission for the Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. U.S. : Adopt Films. International Sales Agent: The Match Factory
Internationally acclaimed director Hany Abu-Assad's latest feature Omar takes him back to his native Palestine to tell a story about the extremely difficult decisions that an average, everyday man must face -- whether to follow his heart or stay true to his convictions. After the winning Un Certain Regard's Special Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival, the film has been selected as the Palestinian submission to compete for an Oscar nomination in the Best Foreign Language Film Category. Such a feat is not unknown for Abu-Assad whose previous film shot in the occupied territories, Paradise Now, earned him an Academy Award nomination and won the Golden Globe Award in the same category. As with most films about the political and military conflicts in the region, the issues are certainly relevant, but as the filmmaker mentioned himself, this is a film about love in the face of grueling adversity. Hany Abu-Assad talked to us about the message of the film, the casting his protagonist and the pressures of the Awards race.
Read the earlier review for Omar Here
Carlos Aguilar: How do you create a story that inevitably is politically charged, but is about the individuals rather than only about the conflicts?
Hany Abu-Assad: Actually, I think I do it unconsciously. There is no theory about how to balance it very well. It is not like you calculate it or you come up with a formula. It is all about experiencing the past. I think unconsciously you do that. I think also filmmaking in general is about feeling and not about theory. You need to know a lot of rules about filmmaking: character development, grammar, and all these thing, but then you use it instinctively. I ask myself this question all the time. I have no solid theory, I just do what I feel is right.
Aguilar: Omar is between two words. He is divided between saving his life and doing what he thinks is right to help his people. Could you talk about this duality whic he experiences?
Abu-Assad: In general I like movies that deal with trapped men. Men that need to make choices that are not obvious or easy choices. Then how do you visualize this? You create this character conflicted between two sides, because drama is about the conflict of two things, between your duty and your will, between what you want and what you can’t have. It is all conflict between two things, and this is why you put your character in a place where you can visualize the conflict.
Aguilar: Could you tell me about what the wall signifies, both in your film and for the Palestinian people living with it everyday?
Abu-Assad: In the film it is just an obstacle. Every love story has obstacles; in ‘Romeo and Juliet’ the obstacle is that the families are fighting. In Omar the obstacle is the wall. This is the outside obstacle, because the inside obstacle between the two lovers is trust. You need a visualization of the outside obstacle and what can be better than a wall. For the Palestinians it means a division from each other, because the wall didn’t separate Palestinians from Israelis, it separated them from themselves. This is the reality, and the wall is a kind of jail to the Palestinians.
Aguilar: Could you talk about the casting process, especially about your decision to cast Adam Bakri, in the leading role, which he plays outstandingly?
Abu-Assad: The casting is very simple actually, but it is very important. You choose the best actor for the role, and you test them and you test them, and you bring them back, and you have to make sure the actors fit the roles. Adam Bakri is a young actor, but I saw potential in him, I thought he could make Omar a much better character than what was written. That is why I chose him.
Aguilar: Did you experience any resistance or difficulties to shooting in Palestine, given the theme of the film?
Abu-Assad: Not his time, it was an easy shoot for me. I didn’t have any trouble with the authorities or the Israeli army. I’m very happy about that, maybe finally they are going to let me do what I have to do. [Laughs]
Aguilar: Without revealing the ending of the film, could you talk about why you chose to end the film this way, so abruptly, and in such a powerful manner?
Abu-Assad: First of all, the ending is real. I knew this would be the ending in advance, because this is the story I read in the newspaper. I know we can’t reveal the ending, but the story was about a collaborator who killed his agent with the same gun the agent gave him. I thought, “Wow this is a strong ending”, and because we are dealing with this subject in the film, I knew before writing that this would be the ending. Dramatically, it makes sense, because lets say, when your character makes a choice that will force him to make another choice between two bad choices, then the ending can’t be different than what it is now.
Aguilar: Your films essentially give a cinematic voice to the Palestinian cause; do you see film as a tool for social change?
Abu-Assad: Not change, but a tool for resistance. First of all, movies are really to entertain. A movie should entertain you in a way that will also open your mind. I think movies are tools to enrich your experience, in this case as resistance to injustice and to the Occupation.
Aguilar: Would you say Omar is a film about love or about the Occupation?
Abu-Assad: About love. About human beings trapped under the Occupation. About a love story under the Occupation.
Aguilar: Do you think this is a film that people from Israel will be willing to see, and what do you think they will get from it?
Abu-Assad: I showed it to some Israelis and they liked it very much as a movie, and also they thought that because it is so real, and everything that happens in it is real, they felt like this is the real story. We will start showing it very soon in December, or January of next year in the cinemas of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa.
Aguilar: Has the film premiered in Palestine, what was the reaction from the locals there?
Abu Assad: Yes, and it has been really successful. People are coming and the film is confronting them with issues that they know about, or have heard about, and it has given them material to think about these issues, which is good.
Aguilar: This is the second time that one of your films represents Palestine at the Oscars, and you were actually nominated for ‘Paradise Now’ a few years ago. How do you feel about this on the second time around? Is there any pressure?
Abu-Assad: It’s funny you ask this [Laughs], there is a lot of pressure you see, because you know the game more than before, and you know how the pressure will be. On one hand I’m very happy, really happy, but on the other side I’m worried because the responsibility is bigger than before.
Aguilar: Given that there so many thematic layers to ‘Omar’, how would you summarize its underlining message?
Abu-Assad: The most important thing about his film is that it is a tragic love story, it is timeless and placeless. It is also an entertaining thriller. It is about human beings who try to do right but by making wrong choices they are forced to make much more difficult choices. The audience should know that this is a movie not just about politics, but it is really about people, love, trust, and betrayal.
Internationally acclaimed director Hany Abu-Assad's latest feature Omar takes him back to his native Palestine to tell a story about the extremely difficult decisions that an average, everyday man must face -- whether to follow his heart or stay true to his convictions. After the winning Un Certain Regard's Special Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival, the film has been selected as the Palestinian submission to compete for an Oscar nomination in the Best Foreign Language Film Category. Such a feat is not unknown for Abu-Assad whose previous film shot in the occupied territories, Paradise Now, earned him an Academy Award nomination and won the Golden Globe Award in the same category. As with most films about the political and military conflicts in the region, the issues are certainly relevant, but as the filmmaker mentioned himself, this is a film about love in the face of grueling adversity. Hany Abu-Assad talked to us about the message of the film, the casting his protagonist and the pressures of the Awards race.
Read the earlier review for Omar Here
Carlos Aguilar: How do you create a story that inevitably is politically charged, but is about the individuals rather than only about the conflicts?
Hany Abu-Assad: Actually, I think I do it unconsciously. There is no theory about how to balance it very well. It is not like you calculate it or you come up with a formula. It is all about experiencing the past. I think unconsciously you do that. I think also filmmaking in general is about feeling and not about theory. You need to know a lot of rules about filmmaking: character development, grammar, and all these thing, but then you use it instinctively. I ask myself this question all the time. I have no solid theory, I just do what I feel is right.
Aguilar: Omar is between two words. He is divided between saving his life and doing what he thinks is right to help his people. Could you talk about this duality whic he experiences?
Abu-Assad: In general I like movies that deal with trapped men. Men that need to make choices that are not obvious or easy choices. Then how do you visualize this? You create this character conflicted between two sides, because drama is about the conflict of two things, between your duty and your will, between what you want and what you can’t have. It is all conflict between two things, and this is why you put your character in a place where you can visualize the conflict.
Aguilar: Could you tell me about what the wall signifies, both in your film and for the Palestinian people living with it everyday?
Abu-Assad: In the film it is just an obstacle. Every love story has obstacles; in ‘Romeo and Juliet’ the obstacle is that the families are fighting. In Omar the obstacle is the wall. This is the outside obstacle, because the inside obstacle between the two lovers is trust. You need a visualization of the outside obstacle and what can be better than a wall. For the Palestinians it means a division from each other, because the wall didn’t separate Palestinians from Israelis, it separated them from themselves. This is the reality, and the wall is a kind of jail to the Palestinians.
Aguilar: Could you talk about the casting process, especially about your decision to cast Adam Bakri, in the leading role, which he plays outstandingly?
Abu-Assad: The casting is very simple actually, but it is very important. You choose the best actor for the role, and you test them and you test them, and you bring them back, and you have to make sure the actors fit the roles. Adam Bakri is a young actor, but I saw potential in him, I thought he could make Omar a much better character than what was written. That is why I chose him.
Aguilar: Did you experience any resistance or difficulties to shooting in Palestine, given the theme of the film?
Abu-Assad: Not his time, it was an easy shoot for me. I didn’t have any trouble with the authorities or the Israeli army. I’m very happy about that, maybe finally they are going to let me do what I have to do. [Laughs]
Aguilar: Without revealing the ending of the film, could you talk about why you chose to end the film this way, so abruptly, and in such a powerful manner?
Abu-Assad: First of all, the ending is real. I knew this would be the ending in advance, because this is the story I read in the newspaper. I know we can’t reveal the ending, but the story was about a collaborator who killed his agent with the same gun the agent gave him. I thought, “Wow this is a strong ending”, and because we are dealing with this subject in the film, I knew before writing that this would be the ending. Dramatically, it makes sense, because lets say, when your character makes a choice that will force him to make another choice between two bad choices, then the ending can’t be different than what it is now.
Aguilar: Your films essentially give a cinematic voice to the Palestinian cause; do you see film as a tool for social change?
Abu-Assad: Not change, but a tool for resistance. First of all, movies are really to entertain. A movie should entertain you in a way that will also open your mind. I think movies are tools to enrich your experience, in this case as resistance to injustice and to the Occupation.
Aguilar: Would you say Omar is a film about love or about the Occupation?
Abu-Assad: About love. About human beings trapped under the Occupation. About a love story under the Occupation.
Aguilar: Do you think this is a film that people from Israel will be willing to see, and what do you think they will get from it?
Abu-Assad: I showed it to some Israelis and they liked it very much as a movie, and also they thought that because it is so real, and everything that happens in it is real, they felt like this is the real story. We will start showing it very soon in December, or January of next year in the cinemas of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa.
Aguilar: Has the film premiered in Palestine, what was the reaction from the locals there?
Abu Assad: Yes, and it has been really successful. People are coming and the film is confronting them with issues that they know about, or have heard about, and it has given them material to think about these issues, which is good.
Aguilar: This is the second time that one of your films represents Palestine at the Oscars, and you were actually nominated for ‘Paradise Now’ a few years ago. How do you feel about this on the second time around? Is there any pressure?
Abu-Assad: It’s funny you ask this [Laughs], there is a lot of pressure you see, because you know the game more than before, and you know how the pressure will be. On one hand I’m very happy, really happy, but on the other side I’m worried because the responsibility is bigger than before.
Aguilar: Given that there so many thematic layers to ‘Omar’, how would you summarize its underlining message?
Abu-Assad: The most important thing about his film is that it is a tragic love story, it is timeless and placeless. It is also an entertaining thriller. It is about human beings who try to do right but by making wrong choices they are forced to make much more difficult choices. The audience should know that this is a movie not just about politics, but it is really about people, love, trust, and betrayal.
- 11/28/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
The Disciple, Finland's Submission for the Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. U.S. : None Yet. Producer: Långfilm Productions Finland Oy
With The Disciple , her third narrative feature, Finnish director Ulrika Bengts returns to tell another coming-of-age story set in a remote island, but this time with darker undertones. Intriguing and strikingly beautiful the film follows Karl, an orphan who wants to learn the ropes and help in the island's lighthouse. However, the man in charge, Hasselbon, is not fond of the idea. His extreme standards make his own son Gustaf's life miserable, as he doesn't think he has what it takes to become the captain of a ship. Although simple in its conception, the great performances and the atmosphere created by the outstanding soundtrack make for a suspenseful experience. Bengts talked to us about how difficult it was to shoot on the island, her own take on working with actors, and the process to create the film's score.
Read the Review for The Disciple Here
Carlos Aguilar: The music is extremely expressive and evocative in this film; can you talk about the process of finding or composing this music?
Ulrika Bengts: The composer is my husband, Peter Hägerstrand, so we have been working together for about twenty years making other movies together. But this time it was a real challenge because I told him I didn’t want to have any melodies in the music, I wanted it to be disharmonic. Peter made music that didn’t sound melodious at all but it didn’t fit the picture, it was totally wrong. I was obsessed with this idea that it should be industrial in a way. But then one day when we met he said “Ok, in the end I recorded something else that is not for this movie” and then I listened to it and it was going to be the friendship theme between the two guys, and then I went ”Yes, here it is, it should be really a really melodious score based on piano, violin, cello.” So that’s how we made it. And of course the piano scene when Dorrit, the mother plays, was part of the story, and we composed that piece before we started shooting.
Aguilar: How did you work with cast in order to achieve such emotional, yet subdued performances?
Bengts: I was so lucky that we had a week of rehearsals together, just me and the actors. Because the actors didn’t know each other before, they were completely new to each other. We talked a lot about the characters, about their back story, their background, what happened to them before the film starts, and what we thought happens after the film ends. I handled it by talking a lot.
Aguilar: Specifically talking about the young cast, how did you handle the violent sequences with them?
Bengts: I’ve mad a lot of films with young actors and with children, so it is not unfamiliar to me. I think I handle young actors exactly the same way I handle grown up actors, by asking the same questions. Because when we are on the set, they are not children or teenagers, they are actors, and they are working. Basically, when we had that week of rehearsal I wanted to give them some terminology, like the words we use when we are filming.Erik Lönngren, he plays Karl, I had worked with him before on my first feature Iris, which was two years before The Disciple, and he is a very skilled amateur actor. He has been in a lot of amateur stage plays. But Patrik Kumpulainen, the guy playing Gustaf, this was his very first experience, not only in film but also as an actor, he had never acted before. When we were rehearsing he really made me nervous because he used to ask me “Ulrika, what kid of face to you want me to put on in this scene” and I said “Patrick my dear boy, acting is not about putting on faces, you have to understand your character and feel his feelings” and he understood it. It was really cheerful to see the way he developed during this five weeks that we were shooting on the island.
Aguilar: The film seems to be about fathers and sons and about achieving certain expectations. Hasselbond, the patriarch, wants to be in control. Would you agree these are the messages the film tries to convey?
Bengts: I think The Disciple is mainly about control. The father is trying to control everyone, both the living and the dead on the island, he trusts no one, and he is prepared to be betrayed at every moment. I was interested in exploring what happens to people that have to live under such circumstances, where someone else is setting the rules and you have to obey in every situation. To me Karl is the main character because he wants to stay in the island due to his own background of course. For him this is a new opportunity in life and he really wants to be good in Hasselbond’s eyes, even though he understands he is not a good person and that the rules in this island are not sane. This is a very sick kind of micro-society, but he still tries to obey the rules and he goes through moral choices in almost every scene.
Aguilar: Do you think the story worked better by not showing Elof’s story, Gustaf’s older brother who died mysteriously?
Bengts: Yes, I wanted to make it so that the audience could make up their own pictures of how Elof’s life was and what happened t him.
Aguilar: Do you see Hasselbond , the father, as the villain or a product of his isolated environment?
Bengts : Of course I think he is evil because no one has the right to behave the way he behaves, but It think Niklas Groundstroem who played Hasselbond, has some kind of sensitivity and honorability that makes you feel that he is a poor wounded person. I didn’t want to show what happened to him, or why he has become the way he is. Personally, I think that because he has bonded so much with Karl, he had the same experiences as Karl had.
Aguilar: Could you talk about your experience shooting on location on this isolated island?
Bengts: It was quite hard for all of us. We stayed at the lighthouse island, which is really in the middle of the sea, for five week. It was hard work, as I told you there are only this lighthouse and the house on this island so there were no places to stay for the crew. We had a small crew, about 30 people. Most of us stayed at the sailing ship you see in the movie, the ship of Gustaf’s dream, but everyone couldn’t fit it, so part of the crew stayed on set. The photographer, and his crew, they lived in tents for five weeks. It was really kind of a special shooting; I have never been through something like that before, and probably won’t again either. Of course since we were in an isolated island there were only snakes and sea birds, and you have only one location that is marvelous, so the story comes even closer to you. It allowed us to get deep into the emotions. We could focus on the story and the development of the characters. We worked in a quite simple way because we had no time to do a storyboard, so when we were shooting a scene, I rehearsed with the actors and we decided how they should move, the photographer was also present, and we discussed together what we were shooting in that scene. It was kind of an unusual way of working but the actors had a lot of freedom. I think you can see that this helped them.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Finland at the Academy Awards this year, is there any pressure on you because of this?
Bengts: To me is only joy. I’m very proud of our movie, and I’m proud that Finland made the decision that this movie should represent the country. I’m hopeful. I don’t feel the pressure at all, if we are shortlisted or get a nomination, is just a bonus. Representing Finland has helped the movie a lot already. When it was official we got quite a lot of invitations from international film festivals. After it was announced that it was the selection, the number of invitations rose 400%.
With The Disciple , her third narrative feature, Finnish director Ulrika Bengts returns to tell another coming-of-age story set in a remote island, but this time with darker undertones. Intriguing and strikingly beautiful the film follows Karl, an orphan who wants to learn the ropes and help in the island's lighthouse. However, the man in charge, Hasselbon, is not fond of the idea. His extreme standards make his own son Gustaf's life miserable, as he doesn't think he has what it takes to become the captain of a ship. Although simple in its conception, the great performances and the atmosphere created by the outstanding soundtrack make for a suspenseful experience. Bengts talked to us about how difficult it was to shoot on the island, her own take on working with actors, and the process to create the film's score.
Read the Review for The Disciple Here
Carlos Aguilar: The music is extremely expressive and evocative in this film; can you talk about the process of finding or composing this music?
Ulrika Bengts: The composer is my husband, Peter Hägerstrand, so we have been working together for about twenty years making other movies together. But this time it was a real challenge because I told him I didn’t want to have any melodies in the music, I wanted it to be disharmonic. Peter made music that didn’t sound melodious at all but it didn’t fit the picture, it was totally wrong. I was obsessed with this idea that it should be industrial in a way. But then one day when we met he said “Ok, in the end I recorded something else that is not for this movie” and then I listened to it and it was going to be the friendship theme between the two guys, and then I went ”Yes, here it is, it should be really a really melodious score based on piano, violin, cello.” So that’s how we made it. And of course the piano scene when Dorrit, the mother plays, was part of the story, and we composed that piece before we started shooting.
Aguilar: How did you work with cast in order to achieve such emotional, yet subdued performances?
Bengts: I was so lucky that we had a week of rehearsals together, just me and the actors. Because the actors didn’t know each other before, they were completely new to each other. We talked a lot about the characters, about their back story, their background, what happened to them before the film starts, and what we thought happens after the film ends. I handled it by talking a lot.
Aguilar: Specifically talking about the young cast, how did you handle the violent sequences with them?
Bengts: I’ve mad a lot of films with young actors and with children, so it is not unfamiliar to me. I think I handle young actors exactly the same way I handle grown up actors, by asking the same questions. Because when we are on the set, they are not children or teenagers, they are actors, and they are working. Basically, when we had that week of rehearsal I wanted to give them some terminology, like the words we use when we are filming.Erik Lönngren, he plays Karl, I had worked with him before on my first feature Iris, which was two years before The Disciple, and he is a very skilled amateur actor. He has been in a lot of amateur stage plays. But Patrik Kumpulainen, the guy playing Gustaf, this was his very first experience, not only in film but also as an actor, he had never acted before. When we were rehearsing he really made me nervous because he used to ask me “Ulrika, what kid of face to you want me to put on in this scene” and I said “Patrick my dear boy, acting is not about putting on faces, you have to understand your character and feel his feelings” and he understood it. It was really cheerful to see the way he developed during this five weeks that we were shooting on the island.
Aguilar: The film seems to be about fathers and sons and about achieving certain expectations. Hasselbond, the patriarch, wants to be in control. Would you agree these are the messages the film tries to convey?
Bengts: I think The Disciple is mainly about control. The father is trying to control everyone, both the living and the dead on the island, he trusts no one, and he is prepared to be betrayed at every moment. I was interested in exploring what happens to people that have to live under such circumstances, where someone else is setting the rules and you have to obey in every situation. To me Karl is the main character because he wants to stay in the island due to his own background of course. For him this is a new opportunity in life and he really wants to be good in Hasselbond’s eyes, even though he understands he is not a good person and that the rules in this island are not sane. This is a very sick kind of micro-society, but he still tries to obey the rules and he goes through moral choices in almost every scene.
Aguilar: Do you think the story worked better by not showing Elof’s story, Gustaf’s older brother who died mysteriously?
Bengts: Yes, I wanted to make it so that the audience could make up their own pictures of how Elof’s life was and what happened t him.
Aguilar: Do you see Hasselbond , the father, as the villain or a product of his isolated environment?
Bengts : Of course I think he is evil because no one has the right to behave the way he behaves, but It think Niklas Groundstroem who played Hasselbond, has some kind of sensitivity and honorability that makes you feel that he is a poor wounded person. I didn’t want to show what happened to him, or why he has become the way he is. Personally, I think that because he has bonded so much with Karl, he had the same experiences as Karl had.
Aguilar: Could you talk about your experience shooting on location on this isolated island?
Bengts: It was quite hard for all of us. We stayed at the lighthouse island, which is really in the middle of the sea, for five week. It was hard work, as I told you there are only this lighthouse and the house on this island so there were no places to stay for the crew. We had a small crew, about 30 people. Most of us stayed at the sailing ship you see in the movie, the ship of Gustaf’s dream, but everyone couldn’t fit it, so part of the crew stayed on set. The photographer, and his crew, they lived in tents for five weeks. It was really kind of a special shooting; I have never been through something like that before, and probably won’t again either. Of course since we were in an isolated island there were only snakes and sea birds, and you have only one location that is marvelous, so the story comes even closer to you. It allowed us to get deep into the emotions. We could focus on the story and the development of the characters. We worked in a quite simple way because we had no time to do a storyboard, so when we were shooting a scene, I rehearsed with the actors and we decided how they should move, the photographer was also present, and we discussed together what we were shooting in that scene. It was kind of an unusual way of working but the actors had a lot of freedom. I think you can see that this helped them.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Finland at the Academy Awards this year, is there any pressure on you because of this?
Bengts: To me is only joy. I’m very proud of our movie, and I’m proud that Finland made the decision that this movie should represent the country. I’m hopeful. I don’t feel the pressure at all, if we are shortlisted or get a nomination, is just a bonus. Representing Finland has helped the movie a lot already. When it was official we got quite a lot of invitations from international film festivals. After it was announced that it was the selection, the number of invitations rose 400%.
- 11/26/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
The Broken Circle Breakdown, Belgium's Submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award Nomination. U.S. : Tribeca Films. International Sales Agent: The Match Factory
In recent years modern Belgian cinema has increasingly received more international attention due to the sophisticated stories and artful aesthetics utilized by the country's filmmakers. Great examples are the Academy Award-nominated Bullhead, and last year's Our Children. This year the breakthrough hit The Broken Circle Breakdown has placed its director Felix Van Groeningen under the spotlight thanks to its originality, its soundtrack, and the outstanding performances by Veerle Baetens and Johan Heldenbergh. Van Groeningen, whose previous films include The Misfortunates and With Friends Like These, crafted an incredible love story that deals with the tragic death of a couple's daughter and the way they each cope with this. It is told in a non-linear manner that enhances the poetry of the images, and adorned with the beautiful sadness of Bluegrass music. The Broken Circle Breakdown has been nominated for 5 European Film Awards including Best European Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay, and it is Belgium's Official Submission for the 86th Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. The director talked to us about the extensive writing process, working with Heldenbergh, who wrote the play upon which the film is based, and choosing the precise song for each sequence.
Read the review for The Broken Circle Breakdown
Carlos Aguilar: One the things that really work in the film is the fact that is so fragmented in a sense, was that a decision that came from the screenplay, or from the original material?
Felix Van Groeningen: It really came together. It was formed by trial and error; I knew when I was going to adapt this type of play that we were going to have to play with time. Because that’s sort of how it worked in the theater as well, but it was very different, it was just two people talking but they announced what was going to happen very soon, and then they were talking about good times and then they went back to the illness of their daughter. So, it did work that way but very differently. I knew that was one of the powerful things of the play that I wanted to recreate in the film. What it led to was so inspirational it was an experience. Most films have a climatic sequence or emotional climax after one hour or close before the ending, but here you have this kind of emotional impact already after ten minutes or so.
What it led to was that at one hour the climatic scene is still there and it goes way beyond. That’s what we were always trying to do during writing, where we developed different story lines and timelines, and just went back and forth to make this work. During editing we questioned that, we felt that it wasn’t working the way it could or the way it should. We forgot about the way we structured it, but we kept the idea and we started playing around with scenes and forgot about the logic and why we had structured like that. What resulted was a movie where you have this very emotional response very quickly, but it took out the logic, the cerebral take on it from the shooting script, but it made the poetry bigger and the magic even bigger. That’s something we understood by trying things and it was great to discover it.
Aguilar: Could you talk about the underlining spiritual themes? Didier doesn’t believe in God and Elise does, how did you infused that with all of the other issues the story deals with?
Van Groeningen: Well it’s a lot. [Laughs]. The play was a big inspiration, it worked on the play and it was so well written and put together combining all of these layers of very different people still being in love with each other. The characters are very believable and they are very grounded in life, but they are also archetypes of people. It works because it is layered, they are not just one thing but it changes, they both have a big arc and that makes it very real and complex. That’s why it works for me and why I think it’s very exciting, you cannot really pinpoint what it really means, because it means so many things at the same time. It is about a couple falling apart, it is a bout two people who cannot communicate anymore because they have different reactions on a big tragedy in their lives, which is also very human. It is about somebody very religious who doesn’t want to talk about things and somebody who needs to talk about everything, and tears things down because of that. It is all that combined in these characters.
Aguilar: Given that Johan Heldenbergh wrote the original play of which you talk about, how was it to work with him as an actor on a film based on material so personal to him?
Van Groeningen: I called him and I asked him if I could make it into a movie and my second question was “Would it be Ok if I don’t write with you? If I write it with somebody else maybe, but you wouldn’t be involved in the writing” He immediately say “Yes, of course, I was going to say the same thing, so no worries. Go ahead you have my blessing, and I’m not going to interfere, you do your thing, I did mine for two years, and I won’t be able to have distance from it, and I like your other films” We have worked together before and he likes my work. We had a couple discussions where I asked about every little detail that I didn’t understand, but I realized at some point in the writing process that I would still have these questions, “ why is this here?” or “should we do that?” and that I had a different take on certain things. I had ideas on how they lived, that was never mentioned in the play, you didn’t see where they were living, what their jobs were, they didn’t talk about it because you didn’t need to know, it was just very focused on their story.
In the movie as we show 7 years of their lives we needed to have it be pat of it, that’s when my fantasies started working. I had this idea about this couple living wild outside in the countryside, running around naked, that kind of imagery. That was something Johan would have never done, he let me add those things and he was actually amazed by what I did with it, and he was always very constructive he would say to me “That’s a great idea, too bad I didn’t come up with that for the play because it’s good” [Laughs]. So, I worked on it for a very long time so it really became mine. Once we started rehearsing Johan acted as an actor, it was his baby but he felt that I was so involved that he respected the choices that I made that were different from the play.
Aguilar: Veerla is a real singer/actress, and here she has a role that demands a lot from those two facets. How did you help shape her performance and what did she bring to the character you imagined?
Van Groeningen: She is more of an actress, but in the meantime she has started her own band and she has done musicals, she has always loved singing. She is a very demanding actress, when I cast her we were one year away from shooting. Two days after I had chosen her and we had agreed we would work together she was sending me emails asking, “How are we going to do this? How are we going to do that?” She immediately was like a pit bull [Laughs] she bites and she won’t let go. Immediately she started thinking about this and wanted me to say things to her and I was still a year from shooting so a lot of times I was like “I don’t know Veerla we’ll see” [Laughst]. “Give me time!” That was amazing too, you felt her commitment and I think she listened a lot to Bluegrass, she added songs to the play list that we were putting together.
She was very engaged, and I guess what I helped her the most with was styling, giving her my take on how Elise would look, like the whole Rockabilly thing, the tattoos where part of the story from the original play. Then I found a tattoo artist and we got together with the make-up artist to talk about where each tattoo would come. It was very much collaboration, I brought little ideas and she would pick them and used them to become someone else. We rehearsed for like three weeks, after they had already rehearsed a lot of times. We did improvisations on the very hefty situations with all the freedom to work out of context, to not just play those scenes but to try and get the feeling. That was great because we created intimacy between the three of us, we trusted one another, and we felt we had gone that far with those emotions, which made it easier afterwards on set to recall them.
Aguilar: Music is a crucial part of the story and the characters’ relationship. Can you talk about the process of choosing the songs that appear in the film?
Van Groeningen: Choosing the songs was part of the writing process, which took like a year and a half. Writing is trying bad ideas most of the time and sometimes hitting a great idea, and keeping that and cutting the rest, and start over and over. Editing was also important, because of the structure we chose we also had the ability to put songs at different moment than where they were intended to be, which made it more emotional. What I realized also, it was that it wasn’t going to work if we just had 12 songs put into the movie without having a narrative or dramatic function. So we came up with scenes where the songs would really fit or vice versa we had scenes and we found songs that would fit. For example the song where Elise becomes part of the band, we see her just listened to Didier talking about the music, then we see the band rehearsing at the campfire and her already clapping a little, and the next time you see them both on stage and she is singing better than he is. [Laughs]. To come up with those little stories was really fun and to also make them fit with how the music or lyrics work emotionally, it was just really fun.
Aguilar: There is a scene near the end of the film that deals with the afterlife; can you talk about the purpose of this particular sequence?
Van Groeningen: The whole idea of the structure has to do with that. You could see the movie as the film of your life, or the film of Elise’s life, which she is seeing before she might be dying. For me everything builds up to that moment, so it is not something that is different than the rest, it is the climax of the movie. Everything that we used before is leading up to that moment; all the different realities come to together.
Aguilar: Did you listen to Bluegrass music before the film? Or did you develop a taste for it thanks to the story?
Van Groeningen: I lived with it for two years, and I still love it, but it has its own place now. I’m never going to use it again in a movie. It has been such a great thing to dive into this and discover it, and to have a purpose for discovering it. I’m not very musical, I do listen to music but only if I have a reason, and here the reason was the movie.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Belgium at the Oscars this year, what are you thoughts on this?
Van Groeningen: I’m very proud, but Belgium is a small country [Laughs]. If you are representing France or Germany it is something else, but I’m happy. I feel they sent the right film, and I think it does have a chance because it has done so well in the festival circuit. We’ve won awards from juries and audiences. It touches a great range of different people.
Aguilar: Do you think that despite the unequivocally American music in the film, it is still an authentically Belgian film?
Van Groeningen: Good question. For example in France where people don’t speak the language either, and they would only see the images, they might say, “This is just an American movie done really well and people speak Flemish, it’s weird”. For me it feels very authentic, it feels very authentically Belgian or Flemish, but because of the way it looks it has an American feel too. It really combines those two worlds well.
In recent years modern Belgian cinema has increasingly received more international attention due to the sophisticated stories and artful aesthetics utilized by the country's filmmakers. Great examples are the Academy Award-nominated Bullhead, and last year's Our Children. This year the breakthrough hit The Broken Circle Breakdown has placed its director Felix Van Groeningen under the spotlight thanks to its originality, its soundtrack, and the outstanding performances by Veerle Baetens and Johan Heldenbergh. Van Groeningen, whose previous films include The Misfortunates and With Friends Like These, crafted an incredible love story that deals with the tragic death of a couple's daughter and the way they each cope with this. It is told in a non-linear manner that enhances the poetry of the images, and adorned with the beautiful sadness of Bluegrass music. The Broken Circle Breakdown has been nominated for 5 European Film Awards including Best European Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay, and it is Belgium's Official Submission for the 86th Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. The director talked to us about the extensive writing process, working with Heldenbergh, who wrote the play upon which the film is based, and choosing the precise song for each sequence.
Read the review for The Broken Circle Breakdown
Carlos Aguilar: One the things that really work in the film is the fact that is so fragmented in a sense, was that a decision that came from the screenplay, or from the original material?
Felix Van Groeningen: It really came together. It was formed by trial and error; I knew when I was going to adapt this type of play that we were going to have to play with time. Because that’s sort of how it worked in the theater as well, but it was very different, it was just two people talking but they announced what was going to happen very soon, and then they were talking about good times and then they went back to the illness of their daughter. So, it did work that way but very differently. I knew that was one of the powerful things of the play that I wanted to recreate in the film. What it led to was so inspirational it was an experience. Most films have a climatic sequence or emotional climax after one hour or close before the ending, but here you have this kind of emotional impact already after ten minutes or so.
What it led to was that at one hour the climatic scene is still there and it goes way beyond. That’s what we were always trying to do during writing, where we developed different story lines and timelines, and just went back and forth to make this work. During editing we questioned that, we felt that it wasn’t working the way it could or the way it should. We forgot about the way we structured it, but we kept the idea and we started playing around with scenes and forgot about the logic and why we had structured like that. What resulted was a movie where you have this very emotional response very quickly, but it took out the logic, the cerebral take on it from the shooting script, but it made the poetry bigger and the magic even bigger. That’s something we understood by trying things and it was great to discover it.
Aguilar: Could you talk about the underlining spiritual themes? Didier doesn’t believe in God and Elise does, how did you infused that with all of the other issues the story deals with?
Van Groeningen: Well it’s a lot. [Laughs]. The play was a big inspiration, it worked on the play and it was so well written and put together combining all of these layers of very different people still being in love with each other. The characters are very believable and they are very grounded in life, but they are also archetypes of people. It works because it is layered, they are not just one thing but it changes, they both have a big arc and that makes it very real and complex. That’s why it works for me and why I think it’s very exciting, you cannot really pinpoint what it really means, because it means so many things at the same time. It is about a couple falling apart, it is a bout two people who cannot communicate anymore because they have different reactions on a big tragedy in their lives, which is also very human. It is about somebody very religious who doesn’t want to talk about things and somebody who needs to talk about everything, and tears things down because of that. It is all that combined in these characters.
Aguilar: Given that Johan Heldenbergh wrote the original play of which you talk about, how was it to work with him as an actor on a film based on material so personal to him?
Van Groeningen: I called him and I asked him if I could make it into a movie and my second question was “Would it be Ok if I don’t write with you? If I write it with somebody else maybe, but you wouldn’t be involved in the writing” He immediately say “Yes, of course, I was going to say the same thing, so no worries. Go ahead you have my blessing, and I’m not going to interfere, you do your thing, I did mine for two years, and I won’t be able to have distance from it, and I like your other films” We have worked together before and he likes my work. We had a couple discussions where I asked about every little detail that I didn’t understand, but I realized at some point in the writing process that I would still have these questions, “ why is this here?” or “should we do that?” and that I had a different take on certain things. I had ideas on how they lived, that was never mentioned in the play, you didn’t see where they were living, what their jobs were, they didn’t talk about it because you didn’t need to know, it was just very focused on their story.
In the movie as we show 7 years of their lives we needed to have it be pat of it, that’s when my fantasies started working. I had this idea about this couple living wild outside in the countryside, running around naked, that kind of imagery. That was something Johan would have never done, he let me add those things and he was actually amazed by what I did with it, and he was always very constructive he would say to me “That’s a great idea, too bad I didn’t come up with that for the play because it’s good” [Laughs]. So, I worked on it for a very long time so it really became mine. Once we started rehearsing Johan acted as an actor, it was his baby but he felt that I was so involved that he respected the choices that I made that were different from the play.
Aguilar: Veerla is a real singer/actress, and here she has a role that demands a lot from those two facets. How did you help shape her performance and what did she bring to the character you imagined?
Van Groeningen: She is more of an actress, but in the meantime she has started her own band and she has done musicals, she has always loved singing. She is a very demanding actress, when I cast her we were one year away from shooting. Two days after I had chosen her and we had agreed we would work together she was sending me emails asking, “How are we going to do this? How are we going to do that?” She immediately was like a pit bull [Laughs] she bites and she won’t let go. Immediately she started thinking about this and wanted me to say things to her and I was still a year from shooting so a lot of times I was like “I don’t know Veerla we’ll see” [Laughst]. “Give me time!” That was amazing too, you felt her commitment and I think she listened a lot to Bluegrass, she added songs to the play list that we were putting together.
She was very engaged, and I guess what I helped her the most with was styling, giving her my take on how Elise would look, like the whole Rockabilly thing, the tattoos where part of the story from the original play. Then I found a tattoo artist and we got together with the make-up artist to talk about where each tattoo would come. It was very much collaboration, I brought little ideas and she would pick them and used them to become someone else. We rehearsed for like three weeks, after they had already rehearsed a lot of times. We did improvisations on the very hefty situations with all the freedom to work out of context, to not just play those scenes but to try and get the feeling. That was great because we created intimacy between the three of us, we trusted one another, and we felt we had gone that far with those emotions, which made it easier afterwards on set to recall them.
Aguilar: Music is a crucial part of the story and the characters’ relationship. Can you talk about the process of choosing the songs that appear in the film?
Van Groeningen: Choosing the songs was part of the writing process, which took like a year and a half. Writing is trying bad ideas most of the time and sometimes hitting a great idea, and keeping that and cutting the rest, and start over and over. Editing was also important, because of the structure we chose we also had the ability to put songs at different moment than where they were intended to be, which made it more emotional. What I realized also, it was that it wasn’t going to work if we just had 12 songs put into the movie without having a narrative or dramatic function. So we came up with scenes where the songs would really fit or vice versa we had scenes and we found songs that would fit. For example the song where Elise becomes part of the band, we see her just listened to Didier talking about the music, then we see the band rehearsing at the campfire and her already clapping a little, and the next time you see them both on stage and she is singing better than he is. [Laughs]. To come up with those little stories was really fun and to also make them fit with how the music or lyrics work emotionally, it was just really fun.
Aguilar: There is a scene near the end of the film that deals with the afterlife; can you talk about the purpose of this particular sequence?
Van Groeningen: The whole idea of the structure has to do with that. You could see the movie as the film of your life, or the film of Elise’s life, which she is seeing before she might be dying. For me everything builds up to that moment, so it is not something that is different than the rest, it is the climax of the movie. Everything that we used before is leading up to that moment; all the different realities come to together.
Aguilar: Did you listen to Bluegrass music before the film? Or did you develop a taste for it thanks to the story?
Van Groeningen: I lived with it for two years, and I still love it, but it has its own place now. I’m never going to use it again in a movie. It has been such a great thing to dive into this and discover it, and to have a purpose for discovering it. I’m not very musical, I do listen to music but only if I have a reason, and here the reason was the movie.
Aguilar: Your film is representing Belgium at the Oscars this year, what are you thoughts on this?
Van Groeningen: I’m very proud, but Belgium is a small country [Laughs]. If you are representing France or Germany it is something else, but I’m happy. I feel they sent the right film, and I think it does have a chance because it has done so well in the festival circuit. We’ve won awards from juries and audiences. It touches a great range of different people.
Aguilar: Do you think that despite the unequivocally American music in the film, it is still an authentically Belgian film?
Van Groeningen: Good question. For example in France where people don’t speak the language either, and they would only see the images, they might say, “This is just an American movie done really well and people speak Flemish, it’s weird”. For me it feels very authentic, it feels very authentically Belgian or Flemish, but because of the way it looks it has an American feel too. It really combines those two worlds well.
- 11/13/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Once again this Fall AFI Fest will take place in the heart of Hollywood on November 7-14, 2013. Presented by the American Film Institute and Audi, the 27th edition of the festival encompasses the year's best in cinema from around the world's most important festivals. The program includes some of the most anticipated films that will surely be in the running this Award Season, as well as several Foreign Language Oscar Submissions, films from new voices in cinema, as well as classic films restored for the delight of new audiences. AFI Fest is a World Class film festival that is also, surprisingly, free for the public, which really assures people in Los Angeles, and those who visit for the festival, that they can enjoy great films without any burden.
The festival's director Jacqueline Lyanga talked to us about the specifics of each section in the festival, the arduous selection that begins early every year, and how AFI Fest represents the new, broader way Hollywood operates today.
Carlos Aguilar: Could you briefly discuss the selections process for the festival, given that it is a very eclectic and varied program?
Jacqueline Lyanga: Our festival has evolved over the past few years; we are not a festival that focuses on World Premieres. What we do is, we start looking for films in January at Sundance, and then we go to Rotterdam, Berlin, Tribeca and South By Southwest, Cannes, Locarno, Telluride, and lastly Toronto is the last festival that we attend. We look to bring, as best as we can, a program that serves as a kind of almanac of the year. We look to bring the best films of the year and try to inspire in the local audience, and in those who come to Los Angeles for the festival, dialogues around cinema that we have experience over the course of the year as we go from festival to festival, to showcase the ideas that filmmakers are exploring around the world.
Aguilar: In regards to each section, what is new this year? Could you give us an overview of the distinct sections of the festival?
Lyanga: We have one competitive section for feature films, that’s our New Auteurs section. New Auteurs is a section that highlights first and second time international filmmakers. We look to have it be very international, there is one American filmmaker in it, and we look to showcase films of young filmmakers with a bold new creative vision. That’s a really exciting program, many of these films have won awards at other festivals, and then they play together in the same section at AFI Fest.
World Cinema encompasses a number of kinds of filmmakers, emerging filmmakers, master filmmakers, The Lunchbox is by a first time director, then we have filmmakers like Kim Ki-duk with Moebius, or Sebastian Lelio, who has made a few films, with Gloria starring Paulina Garcia. It showcases a lot of great international performances as well.
The Special Screenings are highly anticipated films often from the Fall Festival Circuit, and of course our Galas, our big nightly red carpets. That section is also very much a combination of studio films, independent films, auteur films, and foreign films. We have The Last Emperor in 3D, we have Inside Llewyn Davis, Saving Mr. Banks, Out of the Furnace, so a lot of different kinds of filmmaking, which really showcases what Hollywood is now, which is really a big part of our message this year.
We want people to see the festival as the way in which Hollywood encompasses icons, masters, and emerging filmmakers, American filmmakers and foreign filmmakers. Our guest Artistic Director is Agnes Varda, as I’m sure you know, she selected a program of films. That program will showcase two of her films Cleo from 5 to 7 and Documenteur, as well as a film that she restored with her children, her daughter Rosalie and her son Mathieu, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, her late husband Jacques Demy’s film.
So we have a really great cross-section of filmmaking in the program. We also have a new section this year called Cinema’s Legacy in which we highlight restoration and film anniversaries, all of the films in that section have a connection to our program the one I just mentioned, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, that Agnes Varda restored. The other two are The Court Jester, which stars Danny Kaye, who also starred in the original The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. It is Danny Kaye’s centennial this year, which we are celebrating. The third film Mary Poppins, which is the film that inspired our Opening Night film Saving Mr. Banks that tells the story of the making of Mary Poppins.
Aguilar: What drew you to select Agnes Varda to be this year’s Guest Artistic Director?
Lyanga: It is really exciting for us that she is our first female Guest Artistic director, and a director that has been so influential to the French New Wave. The French New Wave was extremely influential to American filmmakers especially in the 70’s, so that influence and us seeking for masters in that role like David Lynch, and as you know Pedro Almodovar or Bernardo Bertolucci, and it just seemed perfect to follow those three with Agnes Varda.
Aguilar: Given that you have attended all the major film festivals in the world what makes AFI Fest different or special?
Lyanga: One of the great things about the festival is that it’s free. I think it’s amazing, because of great partners, great sponsors like Audi, American Airlines who helps us bring in the filmmakers, or Motorola who is a big sponsor this year, or Coca-Cola, they enable us to really put on a World Class film festival for free. The audience doesn’t have to worry about the cost of the ticket; the cost of the ticket doesn’t have to be a barrier to experience the best of contemporary World Cinema. I think that’s what makes me really excited every year about programming this festival and then ultimately about Opening Night.
Aguilar: What is the relationship between AFI Fest and the AFI Conservatory Alummi?
Lyanga: The festival offices are on the Institute’s campus, which is where the conservatory is housed. Every year, including this year, we definitely have some AFI Alumni’s films playing at the festival. Drake Doremus, who was a Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner with Like Crazy a few years ago, has a film called Breath In at the festival this year. Producer Brian Udovich is present with a film called We Gotta Get Out Of This Place in our American Independent section, which was at Toronto earlier this year. We have alumni as a screenwriter and another as a cinematographer on Out of the Furnace. Also La Jaula de Oro a Spanish/Mexican Co-Production directed by an AFI cinematography alumni. We have some in the shorts program as well; a short called Whale Valley, another short called Machsom, also Wild Horses by Stephanie Martin. So we have several AFI Alumni with films in the program.
Aguilar: The program includes several Submissions to compete for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award; do you think AFI serves as a platform to increase the chances of these films at getting a nomination?
Lyanga: Often times when we invite a film it hasn’t even been selected yet, so we don’t know, we find out afterwards. It’s always exciting to find that out because it means more opportunities and more attention for the filmmakers. Festivals certainly do have a role to help promote cinema, and to build audiences for the filmmakers, and to help build the filmmakers’ careers. The fact that the festival takes place in Los Angeles provides a great opportunity for those films and those filmmakers to get the attention from both the public audience and the industry audience that might have been difficult for them to attain otherwise.
Aguilar: Lastly, why should people come to AFI Fest 2013, and what are you most excited about this year?
Lyanga: I think a lot of people came to festival over the past two or three years and had a great experience, and discovered new films and new filmmakers, and fell in love with films that they were looking forward to seeing. We will definitely have that again this year. There are some films that people have been hearing about, films like Her, Philomena, Mandela, August Osage County, or The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, that people can’t wait to see and they are going to come see them at the festival. There is the return of some great filmmakers like the Cohen Brothers, that’s really exciting, is something great to look forward to. They return to their partnership with T-Bone Burnett. Of course, I think in our New Auteurs section specially, there are some great new directors to discover. Across the World Cinema program, fantastic performances in Child’s Pose, in Gloria, Omar, Bethlehem, Gabrielle, there is a global experience and what filmmakers are exploring and the issues that people are tackling around the word. It’s a great place to escape, to be entertained, and in many way to educate both in documentaries and in narrative films.
For tickets, schedules, and more information on AFI Fest visit Here...
The festival's director Jacqueline Lyanga talked to us about the specifics of each section in the festival, the arduous selection that begins early every year, and how AFI Fest represents the new, broader way Hollywood operates today.
Carlos Aguilar: Could you briefly discuss the selections process for the festival, given that it is a very eclectic and varied program?
Jacqueline Lyanga: Our festival has evolved over the past few years; we are not a festival that focuses on World Premieres. What we do is, we start looking for films in January at Sundance, and then we go to Rotterdam, Berlin, Tribeca and South By Southwest, Cannes, Locarno, Telluride, and lastly Toronto is the last festival that we attend. We look to bring, as best as we can, a program that serves as a kind of almanac of the year. We look to bring the best films of the year and try to inspire in the local audience, and in those who come to Los Angeles for the festival, dialogues around cinema that we have experience over the course of the year as we go from festival to festival, to showcase the ideas that filmmakers are exploring around the world.
Aguilar: In regards to each section, what is new this year? Could you give us an overview of the distinct sections of the festival?
Lyanga: We have one competitive section for feature films, that’s our New Auteurs section. New Auteurs is a section that highlights first and second time international filmmakers. We look to have it be very international, there is one American filmmaker in it, and we look to showcase films of young filmmakers with a bold new creative vision. That’s a really exciting program, many of these films have won awards at other festivals, and then they play together in the same section at AFI Fest.
World Cinema encompasses a number of kinds of filmmakers, emerging filmmakers, master filmmakers, The Lunchbox is by a first time director, then we have filmmakers like Kim Ki-duk with Moebius, or Sebastian Lelio, who has made a few films, with Gloria starring Paulina Garcia. It showcases a lot of great international performances as well.
The Special Screenings are highly anticipated films often from the Fall Festival Circuit, and of course our Galas, our big nightly red carpets. That section is also very much a combination of studio films, independent films, auteur films, and foreign films. We have The Last Emperor in 3D, we have Inside Llewyn Davis, Saving Mr. Banks, Out of the Furnace, so a lot of different kinds of filmmaking, which really showcases what Hollywood is now, which is really a big part of our message this year.
We want people to see the festival as the way in which Hollywood encompasses icons, masters, and emerging filmmakers, American filmmakers and foreign filmmakers. Our guest Artistic Director is Agnes Varda, as I’m sure you know, she selected a program of films. That program will showcase two of her films Cleo from 5 to 7 and Documenteur, as well as a film that she restored with her children, her daughter Rosalie and her son Mathieu, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, her late husband Jacques Demy’s film.
So we have a really great cross-section of filmmaking in the program. We also have a new section this year called Cinema’s Legacy in which we highlight restoration and film anniversaries, all of the films in that section have a connection to our program the one I just mentioned, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, that Agnes Varda restored. The other two are The Court Jester, which stars Danny Kaye, who also starred in the original The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. It is Danny Kaye’s centennial this year, which we are celebrating. The third film Mary Poppins, which is the film that inspired our Opening Night film Saving Mr. Banks that tells the story of the making of Mary Poppins.
Aguilar: What drew you to select Agnes Varda to be this year’s Guest Artistic Director?
Lyanga: It is really exciting for us that she is our first female Guest Artistic director, and a director that has been so influential to the French New Wave. The French New Wave was extremely influential to American filmmakers especially in the 70’s, so that influence and us seeking for masters in that role like David Lynch, and as you know Pedro Almodovar or Bernardo Bertolucci, and it just seemed perfect to follow those three with Agnes Varda.
Aguilar: Given that you have attended all the major film festivals in the world what makes AFI Fest different or special?
Lyanga: One of the great things about the festival is that it’s free. I think it’s amazing, because of great partners, great sponsors like Audi, American Airlines who helps us bring in the filmmakers, or Motorola who is a big sponsor this year, or Coca-Cola, they enable us to really put on a World Class film festival for free. The audience doesn’t have to worry about the cost of the ticket; the cost of the ticket doesn’t have to be a barrier to experience the best of contemporary World Cinema. I think that’s what makes me really excited every year about programming this festival and then ultimately about Opening Night.
Aguilar: What is the relationship between AFI Fest and the AFI Conservatory Alummi?
Lyanga: The festival offices are on the Institute’s campus, which is where the conservatory is housed. Every year, including this year, we definitely have some AFI Alumni’s films playing at the festival. Drake Doremus, who was a Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner with Like Crazy a few years ago, has a film called Breath In at the festival this year. Producer Brian Udovich is present with a film called We Gotta Get Out Of This Place in our American Independent section, which was at Toronto earlier this year. We have alumni as a screenwriter and another as a cinematographer on Out of the Furnace. Also La Jaula de Oro a Spanish/Mexican Co-Production directed by an AFI cinematography alumni. We have some in the shorts program as well; a short called Whale Valley, another short called Machsom, also Wild Horses by Stephanie Martin. So we have several AFI Alumni with films in the program.
Aguilar: The program includes several Submissions to compete for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award; do you think AFI serves as a platform to increase the chances of these films at getting a nomination?
Lyanga: Often times when we invite a film it hasn’t even been selected yet, so we don’t know, we find out afterwards. It’s always exciting to find that out because it means more opportunities and more attention for the filmmakers. Festivals certainly do have a role to help promote cinema, and to build audiences for the filmmakers, and to help build the filmmakers’ careers. The fact that the festival takes place in Los Angeles provides a great opportunity for those films and those filmmakers to get the attention from both the public audience and the industry audience that might have been difficult for them to attain otherwise.
Aguilar: Lastly, why should people come to AFI Fest 2013, and what are you most excited about this year?
Lyanga: I think a lot of people came to festival over the past two or three years and had a great experience, and discovered new films and new filmmakers, and fell in love with films that they were looking forward to seeing. We will definitely have that again this year. There are some films that people have been hearing about, films like Her, Philomena, Mandela, August Osage County, or The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, that people can’t wait to see and they are going to come see them at the festival. There is the return of some great filmmakers like the Cohen Brothers, that’s really exciting, is something great to look forward to. They return to their partnership with T-Bone Burnett. Of course, I think in our New Auteurs section specially, there are some great new directors to discover. Across the World Cinema program, fantastic performances in Child’s Pose, in Gloria, Omar, Bethlehem, Gabrielle, there is a global experience and what filmmakers are exploring and the issues that people are tackling around the word. It’s a great place to escape, to be entertained, and in many way to educate both in documentaries and in narrative films.
For tickets, schedules, and more information on AFI Fest visit Here...
- 11/8/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Organized by Film Independent and the Lmu School of Film and Television in collaboration with Lacma, the film series Camera's d'Afrique has brought some of the best films from West Africa to audiences in Los Angeles.The series curator, Elvis Mitchell, a respected film critic and radio host of Kcrw's The Treatment, selected films from the region that best exemplify the continent's ancient storytelling traditions and that showcase the filmmakers' unique vision.
The series, running until the end of October, opened with the U.S. Premier of Cannes winner Grigris, a Chadian film from veteran director Mahamat Saleh Haroun, and which is now the countries Official Selection for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Mitchell expressed his excitement to bring these unique perspectives in World Cinema to Los Angeles and hopes that, if successful, the program can explore other regions of the African continent and even the world in future editions.
Read more about Cameras d'Afrique Here
Carlos Aguilar: Could you talk about the approach, and the selection process of the films, I had the chance to watch Grigris, during the opening night, which was great. How did you choose these films?
Elvis Mitchell: Grigris was pretty terrific wasn’t it? It all started with Steve Ujlaki, he is the dean at the Lmu Film School, and he wanted to do a project where we would bring some films over from the Fespaco Film Festival in Burkina Faso but we weren’t able to attend. We wanted to bring films from that festival, so that helped us to focus on West Africa and that part of the world. The problem is that Africa is an enormous continent, and there are so many different films being made in all those countries, so it made it easier for us, in terms of the selection process, to concentrate on films that came from that part of the continent.
Aguilar: Specifically speaking about Grigris, now that it is Chad’s Official Submission for the Academy Awards, how do you think an international audience will receive it?
Mitchell: First of all I think Haroun is a world-class filmmaker; he is basically the Chadian film industry. I think it is such a great piece of filmmaking. It starts off, and you think you are going to get one film, it starts off with all that energy, you get to see Soulémane Démé take to the screen like a movie star, and then it becomes a whole other different story. All his films have been about these lives in transition and this ambition to do something better with your life. I think this kind of encapsulates what he does so beautifully. I think in visual terms it is such a great film to watch. It won the Vulcan Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and I’m just thrilled that finally Chad is getting around to submitting a film. I can’t think of anybody who deserves the nomination as much as Haroun does.
The film demands that kind of attention, what I can tell you about the audience’s reactions to the film afterwards, us that people couldn’t stop talking about it. It was one of those great experiences at Lacma where people were just buzzing about it in the lobby afterwards. People want to stand around talking to other people about it, and that’s when I knew we had something remarkable, which of course is kind of obvious once you see the film. It deserves that kid of attention that it would get just by virtue of being nominated.
Aguilar: More than anything, Grigris is a film about hope. Sometimes it feels like people associate African stories with mere survival and films like the ones you have chosen don’t always get the attention they deserve. Of all the films that you considered, what attracted you to these selection?
Mitchell: Another thing about Grigris is that Haroun has made a career out of picking faces for his movies that have never acted before, but you never know that. Everybody in Grigris takes to the camera as if they were veteran actors and born to the medium. I think that is part of the excitement in seeing that movie. Specially seeing it in a theater in the United States for the first time. I think the excitement is transmitted to the audience, and the audience is infected by it. That was the thing I had in mind when we were selecting the films for the series, I just wanted people to get that kind of sense of sheer pleasure and acceleration that the filmmakers get from making these films. Filmmakers who think to the camera like Wong Kar-wai or Del Toro, these filmmakers, not just Americans, can transmute what they think to the camera, and Haroun is one of them. L’Absence by Mama Keita is another one of those films, I think all the films that are in the series are movies that do that, movies that you just basically get caught up in watching them.
Aguilar: Are there any plans to expand this project and do series on films from other regions of the world, or other parts of Africa?
Mitchell: Certainly we want to. We are looking at this first year of Cameras d’Afrique as just a way to introduce audiences to the idea, anything like this takes a while to catch on. Especially when it’s a part of the world that people don’t really know about, and unfortunately people don’t tend to think of Africa as a place for filmmakers. Like I said in my introduction, there is a storytelling tradition in Africa that’s older than in any other place in the world. I think there is a thrill in seeing that storytelling tradition combined with a relatively new technology as cinema for them. Hopefully we get some traction this year, hopefully we get enough attention, and audiences so we can do this again next year with another region of the continent and start looking to other places as well.
It’s funny that coming out of some screenings people said to me “Are they going to be more films from Mauritania? What about other parts of West Africa?” and I said “We are doing this a step at a time” The more success we have with this, the better place we will be for having more of these movies, and from other regions next time. It’d be great to have films from Cape Verde or Sierra Leone, but we do have films from Mali, Mauritania, and the Ivory Coast. I’m so excited about the idea of being able to continue this and moving on to another part of the continent for next year.
Aguilar: How would you summarize the Cameras d’Afrique series? What makes the films of this region unique or special in comparison to other currents in World Cinema?
Mitchell: There are storytelling traditions that come from Africa that are unique from anywhere else. We had a filmmaker from Burkina Faso, Idriss Diabate, and he was saying his last name, Diabate, is an old Burkina Faso name and it means storyteller. His very name lends itself to that tradition of storytelling. Each country has its own way of communicating a narrative and through that expressing family experiences in emotional stories. With these films we have a chance to see how there are differences, some are subtle, some not so subtle between each of the areas. Just the idea of seeing a type of narrative we’ve not seen before is a chance to be surprised. I think that’s what audiences want, to be stimulated by films and I think that’s what each of these films do in ways that maybe are new and unique to American audiences.
The takeaway is to remember how up everybody was after Grigris, that’s when I felt we had done something right. People didn’t want to leave, they wanted to share this with the people they’ve just seen it with “What did you think of that scene? What did you think of her? Wasn’t she a different person when she took that wig off? “ Everybody had something to say about it, and I think thus far that has been the reaction to all the films we’ve shown. We are hoping that is the reaction to everything we play so audiences can feel like they trust these films coming from a part of the world that they don’t know enough about and just come and take a chance on something new.
The series, running until the end of October, opened with the U.S. Premier of Cannes winner Grigris, a Chadian film from veteran director Mahamat Saleh Haroun, and which is now the countries Official Selection for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Mitchell expressed his excitement to bring these unique perspectives in World Cinema to Los Angeles and hopes that, if successful, the program can explore other regions of the African continent and even the world in future editions.
Read more about Cameras d'Afrique Here
Carlos Aguilar: Could you talk about the approach, and the selection process of the films, I had the chance to watch Grigris, during the opening night, which was great. How did you choose these films?
Elvis Mitchell: Grigris was pretty terrific wasn’t it? It all started with Steve Ujlaki, he is the dean at the Lmu Film School, and he wanted to do a project where we would bring some films over from the Fespaco Film Festival in Burkina Faso but we weren’t able to attend. We wanted to bring films from that festival, so that helped us to focus on West Africa and that part of the world. The problem is that Africa is an enormous continent, and there are so many different films being made in all those countries, so it made it easier for us, in terms of the selection process, to concentrate on films that came from that part of the continent.
Aguilar: Specifically speaking about Grigris, now that it is Chad’s Official Submission for the Academy Awards, how do you think an international audience will receive it?
Mitchell: First of all I think Haroun is a world-class filmmaker; he is basically the Chadian film industry. I think it is such a great piece of filmmaking. It starts off, and you think you are going to get one film, it starts off with all that energy, you get to see Soulémane Démé take to the screen like a movie star, and then it becomes a whole other different story. All his films have been about these lives in transition and this ambition to do something better with your life. I think this kind of encapsulates what he does so beautifully. I think in visual terms it is such a great film to watch. It won the Vulcan Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and I’m just thrilled that finally Chad is getting around to submitting a film. I can’t think of anybody who deserves the nomination as much as Haroun does.
The film demands that kind of attention, what I can tell you about the audience’s reactions to the film afterwards, us that people couldn’t stop talking about it. It was one of those great experiences at Lacma where people were just buzzing about it in the lobby afterwards. People want to stand around talking to other people about it, and that’s when I knew we had something remarkable, which of course is kind of obvious once you see the film. It deserves that kid of attention that it would get just by virtue of being nominated.
Aguilar: More than anything, Grigris is a film about hope. Sometimes it feels like people associate African stories with mere survival and films like the ones you have chosen don’t always get the attention they deserve. Of all the films that you considered, what attracted you to these selection?
Mitchell: Another thing about Grigris is that Haroun has made a career out of picking faces for his movies that have never acted before, but you never know that. Everybody in Grigris takes to the camera as if they were veteran actors and born to the medium. I think that is part of the excitement in seeing that movie. Specially seeing it in a theater in the United States for the first time. I think the excitement is transmitted to the audience, and the audience is infected by it. That was the thing I had in mind when we were selecting the films for the series, I just wanted people to get that kind of sense of sheer pleasure and acceleration that the filmmakers get from making these films. Filmmakers who think to the camera like Wong Kar-wai or Del Toro, these filmmakers, not just Americans, can transmute what they think to the camera, and Haroun is one of them. L’Absence by Mama Keita is another one of those films, I think all the films that are in the series are movies that do that, movies that you just basically get caught up in watching them.
Aguilar: Are there any plans to expand this project and do series on films from other regions of the world, or other parts of Africa?
Mitchell: Certainly we want to. We are looking at this first year of Cameras d’Afrique as just a way to introduce audiences to the idea, anything like this takes a while to catch on. Especially when it’s a part of the world that people don’t really know about, and unfortunately people don’t tend to think of Africa as a place for filmmakers. Like I said in my introduction, there is a storytelling tradition in Africa that’s older than in any other place in the world. I think there is a thrill in seeing that storytelling tradition combined with a relatively new technology as cinema for them. Hopefully we get some traction this year, hopefully we get enough attention, and audiences so we can do this again next year with another region of the continent and start looking to other places as well.
It’s funny that coming out of some screenings people said to me “Are they going to be more films from Mauritania? What about other parts of West Africa?” and I said “We are doing this a step at a time” The more success we have with this, the better place we will be for having more of these movies, and from other regions next time. It’d be great to have films from Cape Verde or Sierra Leone, but we do have films from Mali, Mauritania, and the Ivory Coast. I’m so excited about the idea of being able to continue this and moving on to another part of the continent for next year.
Aguilar: How would you summarize the Cameras d’Afrique series? What makes the films of this region unique or special in comparison to other currents in World Cinema?
Mitchell: There are storytelling traditions that come from Africa that are unique from anywhere else. We had a filmmaker from Burkina Faso, Idriss Diabate, and he was saying his last name, Diabate, is an old Burkina Faso name and it means storyteller. His very name lends itself to that tradition of storytelling. Each country has its own way of communicating a narrative and through that expressing family experiences in emotional stories. With these films we have a chance to see how there are differences, some are subtle, some not so subtle between each of the areas. Just the idea of seeing a type of narrative we’ve not seen before is a chance to be surprised. I think that’s what audiences want, to be stimulated by films and I think that’s what each of these films do in ways that maybe are new and unique to American audiences.
The takeaway is to remember how up everybody was after Grigris, that’s when I felt we had done something right. People didn’t want to leave, they wanted to share this with the people they’ve just seen it with “What did you think of that scene? What did you think of her? Wasn’t she a different person when she took that wig off? “ Everybody had something to say about it, and I think thus far that has been the reaction to all the films we’ve shown. We are hoping that is the reaction to everything we play so audiences can feel like they trust these films coming from a part of the world that they don’t know enough about and just come and take a chance on something new.
- 10/25/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
John Krokidas debut feature, Kill Your Darlings, exudes passion, for love, for heartbreak, for writing, for cinema. It is not a surprise both him and his writing partner were so excited to talk about their project, and explain how important their devotion to the characters, and their stories were for them while developing it. There is no much explanation that could surpass the great answers the duo had for us in our recent interview, they are wordy, intelligent, and overall full of absolute joy to have made their passion project into a reality.
Carlos Aguilar: Given that the characters were real people, did you have any reservations on casting recognizable faces like Michael C. Hall or Daniel Radcliffe?
John Krokidas: Any reservations?! Are you kidding me? [Laughs] this is my dream cast come true I feel like a won the lottery and then spent a dollar on it and won another lottery. In regards to Michael C. Hall, Austin had envisioned Michael in that role from day one.
Austin Bunn: That’s right. I had seen him in Six Feet Under, and he was amazing. Knowing the history that David Kammerer had red hear, he was the brightest person in the room, he was in a way kind of the older brother to a lot of these young artists, so I had seen him in Six Feet Under, so I suggested him to John.
Krokidas: One thing we had to reconcile and come to terms with at certain point in the writing process, is that we weren’t trying to portrait literary legends. We didn’t want this to be a traditional biopic, we wanted, in the spirit of these guys, to knock the icons of the pedestal and really just examine who they were at the age in which this movie took place in 1944. At that point Allen Ginsberg was not Allen Ginsberg with beats round his neck, and a huge beard. He was an insecure but extremely bright 17 year-old in Paterson, New Jersey, he had an emotional ill mom, a dad who was a poet, and he had his own secret aspirations to be a poet was ashamed to tell his father because he thought his father would disapprove.
That’s a character that we can write, that’s a character that we can cast, and we felt if we did too many “wink winks” “knot knots“ to the future then we wouldn’t have done a good job. The joke is that, the worst version of the script would be if at the end of the movie Jack Kerouac turning to everybody and going “Ok guys I’ll be going “On the Road” and seeing you later” . We worked really hard not to look to the future but to really focus our research up to the point of the end of this movie in 1945.
Aguilar: Since you mention you weren’t particularly interested in the future of what these people would become, did you ever go back and read any of the material they wrote years after the period in which this movie takes place?
Bunn: I’m really proud of the search we did and we put in, it’s what is accurate in the film. You are hearing the genuine prose of Allen Ginsberg at the end of the film, that is the poem he wrote the day after David Kammere died, and he went to the a bar, and ‘You Always Hurt the One You Love” was playing on the jukebox. There is lots of ways in which we planted seedlings, big concepts that will pay off years down the line, but at this moment you are seeing the origin point. Something like “First thought, best though” which became a credo for Ginsberg and for Kerouac as they went on to their illustrious careers, here you hear Lucien articulate it for the first time. William Burroughs ended up writing cut up novels like Naked Lunch and Junkie, and you see in this film the moment in which the idea I occurring to him, to use the ruins of the classic to create something new. So there is a lot of research in the film, it never became a huge burned, in a way they were like breadcrumbs for us thought the story.
Krokidas: An of course Carlos, we read all the biographies from front to back, and there is so much material out here. Then we certainly became insecure about not being authentic to the characters and who they were at the time period of the movie, and that point it was like phase two of our search, in which we limited ourselves from their birth up to end of the film. Then I had the actors focus their personal research at that time period.
Aguilar: There is a sense of magical realism in the film, was this something that developed in the screenplay or was it a directorial choice?
Bunn: The moment I think you are referring to is the Jazz club scene, and for screenwriters out here in the universe reading this, we had so many drafts of that. It was always magical, I think we were trying to find a way to bring to life the spirit of a revolution beginning, the sense of the frame taking off the world, and what an awesome cinematic opportunity to figure out how to take literature and make it purely visual. As you can imagine there is a lot of different ways you can do that.
Krokidas: I think what was important for us, even from the writing process and then through the directorial process working with my department heads and the cast, was that we wanted this to be a movie about firsts: leaving home for the first time, going to New York for the first time, being at your first school party and feeling awkward, trying drugs for the first time, falling in love and having sex for the first time. We really wanted to movie to feel like it was from the perspective of a 17 year-old, and as you probably can remember from being 17, everything feels so big and important when you are 17, and those emotions are right at the surface and we wanted that expressiveness to be reflected in the writing but also in the cinematography and in the way I directed the camera.
Aguilar: Going back to the actors, Daniel Radcliffe gives a completely fearless performance, which will completely shatter his image as a child star in Harry Potter, how did you as a director help him shape this performance?
Krokidas: Daniel is such a hard worker. Even while he was doing the Broadway play, a musical, he and I would be once a week for two months before ewe went into production. And he said to be, which I thought it was really poignant, that he wanted to treat this movie as if it were his first film as well. When we started talking about his acting technique and how he likes to prepare he said “You know what, I don’t want to approach this movie like I’ve approached my other films”, and I’ve studied acting in college, I was a horrible actor myself but because of all the training that I’ve had, I kind of devised a method with him that worked for him to really get him out of his head, to free up his emotions, and approach breaking down a script and building a character in away that he hadn’t worked before. In return the really cool thing is that our relationship grew strong that it allowed me to be insecure and vulnerable and say to him “Oh my God I’m about to shoot my first movie in four weeks, what the heck have I gotten myself into”. He taught me several lessons about directing and how to control a set, the kind of stuff that you would never get in film school.
This movie was a lot of firsts for everyone involved. Look at David Kross who wanted to approach a straight dramatic role for the firs time. That was just really exciting and thrilling and I hope that energy made it on to the screen.
Aguilar: Did you want the film to focus on the love triangle between the characters or about Ginsberg’s development as a poet?
Bunn: I don’t think those two things are so distinct actually. John taught me that a script really has to be, at core, about the theme being developed and explore. You can’t just make a film about beautiful visuals or interesting scenes; it has to have a thematic idea. So, what we came upon was this notion that there is an emotional violence that comes with the birth of the self, we see a lot of movies the liberationist feeling about how amazing it is to become yourself, but this is a film about the darker edges of that. For us the sexuality and the love story was the wedge that opened Allen.
Krokidas: When we look at this relationship between Allen and Lucien, and then thought about some the relationships in our life, the more I talk about it the ore universal I find it is. We feel that there is that person that you meet at college or once you leave home, or whatever you do with your life, and you meet somebody that is more charismatic and confident , perhaps even better looking and charming than you. But that person sees something gin you, and see possibilities that you dint even excited in yourself, and they take you under their wing and they help you start to grow. The irony with these relationships is that they want you to grow but only so high and never as high as themselves.
In writing class they often tell you that you need to metaphorically kill your parents in order to really liberate yourself and find your own voice, the biggest irony is that these kind of first-love-transformational-friendship-relationships is that ultimately in order for you to really grow and claim your own voice you have to somehow surpass that person, and cut them out of your life. The love story and the birth of an artist story are incredibly intertwined in out opinion, and that was the intention. It is not a story of a first mutual love, is the story about falling in love with that beautiful tortured poet, musician, that we all fell in love with in college, and when you try so hard to be the person that you think that they want to fall in love with. It is not until the end of that relationship, the break-up, the ashes that we really get the strength to finally realize is about being ourselves. That’s what we wanted to capture.
Aguilar: The title, out of all the things that you could have titled the film, why did you choose Kill Your Darlings? Was it something literally or as you were implying before, metaphorical?
Bunn: I went to graduate school a the writers workshop at the university of Iowa, and that phrase is one of those core principles you heard a lot in writers’ workshops. You have to take your before little moment in whatever you’ve written is probably the weakest and you have to cut it. As we were thinking about different titles, let me tell you there were some other ones that weren’t nearly as good, we landed on this concept because it has so many resonances that were so powerful for the story. On one level it’s a writer’s story, is about deciding what belongs in a story and what doesn’t, on the other hand is about choosing your favorite most beloved thing and deciding that it needs to go away, or it needs to be killed, and when you look at this murder story is hard not see the connections there.
Aguilar: Does this film come full circle for you as a first film John? Is there anything you would have done differently?
Krokidas: I’ve been living with this one for ten years, there is no way I would have picked a different story. I’m so in the middle of it now that is hard for me to look back and see the lesson I’ve learned from it. All I can say is that it feels like a really honest outpouring of my relationship with Austin, working with the cast and the crew to tell this story.
Carlos Aguilar: Given that the characters were real people, did you have any reservations on casting recognizable faces like Michael C. Hall or Daniel Radcliffe?
John Krokidas: Any reservations?! Are you kidding me? [Laughs] this is my dream cast come true I feel like a won the lottery and then spent a dollar on it and won another lottery. In regards to Michael C. Hall, Austin had envisioned Michael in that role from day one.
Austin Bunn: That’s right. I had seen him in Six Feet Under, and he was amazing. Knowing the history that David Kammerer had red hear, he was the brightest person in the room, he was in a way kind of the older brother to a lot of these young artists, so I had seen him in Six Feet Under, so I suggested him to John.
Krokidas: One thing we had to reconcile and come to terms with at certain point in the writing process, is that we weren’t trying to portrait literary legends. We didn’t want this to be a traditional biopic, we wanted, in the spirit of these guys, to knock the icons of the pedestal and really just examine who they were at the age in which this movie took place in 1944. At that point Allen Ginsberg was not Allen Ginsberg with beats round his neck, and a huge beard. He was an insecure but extremely bright 17 year-old in Paterson, New Jersey, he had an emotional ill mom, a dad who was a poet, and he had his own secret aspirations to be a poet was ashamed to tell his father because he thought his father would disapprove.
That’s a character that we can write, that’s a character that we can cast, and we felt if we did too many “wink winks” “knot knots“ to the future then we wouldn’t have done a good job. The joke is that, the worst version of the script would be if at the end of the movie Jack Kerouac turning to everybody and going “Ok guys I’ll be going “On the Road” and seeing you later” . We worked really hard not to look to the future but to really focus our research up to the point of the end of this movie in 1945.
Aguilar: Since you mention you weren’t particularly interested in the future of what these people would become, did you ever go back and read any of the material they wrote years after the period in which this movie takes place?
Bunn: I’m really proud of the search we did and we put in, it’s what is accurate in the film. You are hearing the genuine prose of Allen Ginsberg at the end of the film, that is the poem he wrote the day after David Kammere died, and he went to the a bar, and ‘You Always Hurt the One You Love” was playing on the jukebox. There is lots of ways in which we planted seedlings, big concepts that will pay off years down the line, but at this moment you are seeing the origin point. Something like “First thought, best though” which became a credo for Ginsberg and for Kerouac as they went on to their illustrious careers, here you hear Lucien articulate it for the first time. William Burroughs ended up writing cut up novels like Naked Lunch and Junkie, and you see in this film the moment in which the idea I occurring to him, to use the ruins of the classic to create something new. So there is a lot of research in the film, it never became a huge burned, in a way they were like breadcrumbs for us thought the story.
Krokidas: An of course Carlos, we read all the biographies from front to back, and there is so much material out here. Then we certainly became insecure about not being authentic to the characters and who they were at the time period of the movie, and that point it was like phase two of our search, in which we limited ourselves from their birth up to end of the film. Then I had the actors focus their personal research at that time period.
Aguilar: There is a sense of magical realism in the film, was this something that developed in the screenplay or was it a directorial choice?
Bunn: The moment I think you are referring to is the Jazz club scene, and for screenwriters out here in the universe reading this, we had so many drafts of that. It was always magical, I think we were trying to find a way to bring to life the spirit of a revolution beginning, the sense of the frame taking off the world, and what an awesome cinematic opportunity to figure out how to take literature and make it purely visual. As you can imagine there is a lot of different ways you can do that.
Krokidas: I think what was important for us, even from the writing process and then through the directorial process working with my department heads and the cast, was that we wanted this to be a movie about firsts: leaving home for the first time, going to New York for the first time, being at your first school party and feeling awkward, trying drugs for the first time, falling in love and having sex for the first time. We really wanted to movie to feel like it was from the perspective of a 17 year-old, and as you probably can remember from being 17, everything feels so big and important when you are 17, and those emotions are right at the surface and we wanted that expressiveness to be reflected in the writing but also in the cinematography and in the way I directed the camera.
Aguilar: Going back to the actors, Daniel Radcliffe gives a completely fearless performance, which will completely shatter his image as a child star in Harry Potter, how did you as a director help him shape this performance?
Krokidas: Daniel is such a hard worker. Even while he was doing the Broadway play, a musical, he and I would be once a week for two months before ewe went into production. And he said to be, which I thought it was really poignant, that he wanted to treat this movie as if it were his first film as well. When we started talking about his acting technique and how he likes to prepare he said “You know what, I don’t want to approach this movie like I’ve approached my other films”, and I’ve studied acting in college, I was a horrible actor myself but because of all the training that I’ve had, I kind of devised a method with him that worked for him to really get him out of his head, to free up his emotions, and approach breaking down a script and building a character in away that he hadn’t worked before. In return the really cool thing is that our relationship grew strong that it allowed me to be insecure and vulnerable and say to him “Oh my God I’m about to shoot my first movie in four weeks, what the heck have I gotten myself into”. He taught me several lessons about directing and how to control a set, the kind of stuff that you would never get in film school.
This movie was a lot of firsts for everyone involved. Look at David Kross who wanted to approach a straight dramatic role for the firs time. That was just really exciting and thrilling and I hope that energy made it on to the screen.
Aguilar: Did you want the film to focus on the love triangle between the characters or about Ginsberg’s development as a poet?
Bunn: I don’t think those two things are so distinct actually. John taught me that a script really has to be, at core, about the theme being developed and explore. You can’t just make a film about beautiful visuals or interesting scenes; it has to have a thematic idea. So, what we came upon was this notion that there is an emotional violence that comes with the birth of the self, we see a lot of movies the liberationist feeling about how amazing it is to become yourself, but this is a film about the darker edges of that. For us the sexuality and the love story was the wedge that opened Allen.
Krokidas: When we look at this relationship between Allen and Lucien, and then thought about some the relationships in our life, the more I talk about it the ore universal I find it is. We feel that there is that person that you meet at college or once you leave home, or whatever you do with your life, and you meet somebody that is more charismatic and confident , perhaps even better looking and charming than you. But that person sees something gin you, and see possibilities that you dint even excited in yourself, and they take you under their wing and they help you start to grow. The irony with these relationships is that they want you to grow but only so high and never as high as themselves.
In writing class they often tell you that you need to metaphorically kill your parents in order to really liberate yourself and find your own voice, the biggest irony is that these kind of first-love-transformational-friendship-relationships is that ultimately in order for you to really grow and claim your own voice you have to somehow surpass that person, and cut them out of your life. The love story and the birth of an artist story are incredibly intertwined in out opinion, and that was the intention. It is not a story of a first mutual love, is the story about falling in love with that beautiful tortured poet, musician, that we all fell in love with in college, and when you try so hard to be the person that you think that they want to fall in love with. It is not until the end of that relationship, the break-up, the ashes that we really get the strength to finally realize is about being ourselves. That’s what we wanted to capture.
Aguilar: The title, out of all the things that you could have titled the film, why did you choose Kill Your Darlings? Was it something literally or as you were implying before, metaphorical?
Bunn: I went to graduate school a the writers workshop at the university of Iowa, and that phrase is one of those core principles you heard a lot in writers’ workshops. You have to take your before little moment in whatever you’ve written is probably the weakest and you have to cut it. As we were thinking about different titles, let me tell you there were some other ones that weren’t nearly as good, we landed on this concept because it has so many resonances that were so powerful for the story. On one level it’s a writer’s story, is about deciding what belongs in a story and what doesn’t, on the other hand is about choosing your favorite most beloved thing and deciding that it needs to go away, or it needs to be killed, and when you look at this murder story is hard not see the connections there.
Aguilar: Does this film come full circle for you as a first film John? Is there anything you would have done differently?
Krokidas: I’ve been living with this one for ten years, there is no way I would have picked a different story. I’m so in the middle of it now that is hard for me to look back and see the lesson I’ve learned from it. All I can say is that it feels like a really honest outpouring of my relationship with Austin, working with the cast and the crew to tell this story.
- 10/11/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Following her debut feature Nora's Will, Mexican director Mariana Chenillo presents her sophomore effort Paraiso (Paradise) a love story that defies physical appearances and has plenty of heart. Read our review Here
The film screened at this year's Tiff, and not surprisingly has been well-received by audiences and critics. Chenillo has clearly developed an original voice in the crowded field of modern Mexican cinema that has expanded in recent year, opening spaces for more original stories. Supported by production company Canana, now Mexico's premier advocate for new auteurs, the director infuses her work with a distinctive female perspective and a peculiar vision of Mexican society. Her latest narrative deals with obesity, insecurities, the quest for the perfect self, and finding fulfillment beyond the superficial. She talked to us about developing the story, finding the right actress, and being a female director in Mexico.
Carlos Aguilar: I think Paraiso is a different love story, it’s interesting to see everyday people being the protagonist, people that don’t adhere by the beauty standards we are used to see in Romantic Comedies, what inspired you to write this film?
Mariana Chenillo: The original idea came from a short story also titled Paraiso, this story was read for the first time by producer Pablo Cruz many years ago. His interest in the story has a lot of to do with the context of the Mexico City suburbs where the story takes place, and where he grew up, then he gave me the story to read. I believe it was an interesting mix because I think what we each liked about the story wasn’t necessarily the same thing. His urge to think “This cool be a good movie” is not necessarily the same as mine, because the premise is about a couple of overweight people who move from the suburbs to the city, which is what happens in the story.
In the story the protagonist is him, the husband, when I started working on the screenplay, of which we thought could a much more literal adaptation, I realized that the protagonist had to be her, Carmen. It was a process that turned the movie as personal as if it hadn’t been an adaptation but an original idea, because when I decided to make her the protagonist I thought a lot about which are those ideas of women about their bodies, because I believe there is a lot of pressure. There is always this sensation that we must first follow certain tenets and then everything else in life will follow secondarily, then tied to this there is the process of discovering what do you want to do in life, and when, and also give yourself the chance to change your mind and say “What I really like is this , not what I thought I liked before”
I feel like throughout the time we were writing this film it picked up personal stories of many people, then the actress came along, who is an actress who is overweight and who has been like that her entire life, and who also had her own story of having lived situations like that with her partner. The mix of all the very individual attachments that each person had with the story, gave it the chance to exist and be original.
Aguilar: The film focuses on the issue of obesity, do you think this is a real social problem in Mexico or are the unrealistic beauty standards placed by the media what turn into a problem?
Chenillo: There are tow things; I do believe that in Mexico and many other countries this is a health issue, but I also think that movies are not necessarily the best platforms to launch health campaigns. Particularly in Mexico, people are very prone to diabetes, which affects the overweight population to a greater degree, which turns into a huge health problem for our society. However, I think that what I intended with the film wasn’t to launch a health campaign, because I believe that being happy is equally as important as being healthy. The social pressure affects the character from many angles, but it is more important for her to figure where is the right place for her to be in life, than losing weight. Even though it is a health issue, the standards of beauty force many women to feel eternally unfulfilled with who they are, what they represent, and their bodies.
Aguilar: In recent years it seems like Mexican cinema has taken two roads, it either focuses on the freighting violence and cartel warfare or it puts out very commercial, generic, films. It feels like your film is in between, it is original, has social commentary, it is smart, and still very entertaining. Did you have this in mind while working on the film?
Chenillo: I think that all these films dealing with social issues are very necessary and very important, because societies question themselves when they make films about this reality. But I also think there are other things happening, there are other stories that are also Mexico, that also represent it. In the case of this film that is based on a short story, and also in my first film, I’m more interested in what I have closer to me, I’m interested in what I can observe in my life, in the people I know, and I feel that also represents us [Mexico]. These are also important stories to which the audience can relate.
Aguilar: Your lead actress, Daniel Rincon, she is fantastic in the film, as a director how did you work with her to create such an organic, and honest, performance?
Chenillo: The hardest thing was to fin her. In this case we needed someone that had as many similarities with the character as possible, and half of the work was done because of what she is in real life. She is a girl that studied acting, she was very talented, and that in her life story had experienced many of the things the character goes through in the film. We launched a massive casting call, there were around 1000 actresses and non-actresses, we were lucky to find Daniela, there was no one better than her for this role. The work while filming had to do a lot with the actor playing her husband, Andres, there had to be chemistry between them so that the love between the characters would be the cause for everything that happens to them. Choosing him in relation to her, so that the chemistry would give the impression that these are two people that have known each other for a long time and that they love each other was the other half of the work.
Aguilar: The title, Paraiso (Paradise), you mentioned it came from the original short story, how do you interpret this, as a metaphorical state in which the characters find happiness or the physical location they leave?
Chenillo: The title refers to Satelite, the suburb where they are from, that’s their “paradise”. The part of the film that takes place there had to be very brief, we couldn’t spend a half hour in their lives in Satelite, we had to take the characters out of there soon, which leaves the “paradise” sort of underdeveloped. However, we did want them to plant their roots there, they plant a tree in the park there, to which they return at the end. These roots represent what preceded their expulsion from the perfect life they had there.
Aguilar: Another interesting thing is the fact that the film focuses on the Mexican middle class, which is something rarely seen in Mexican films internationally. The stories associated with Mexico are often about people fighting to survive. Do you feel your film will portray a different image of Mexico in other countries?
Chenillo: It represents the middle class. Of course Mexico is a country with enormous inequalities, but it is also a country with a big middle class, who also have problems, and who also have stories. I think it is great to see and to show that side of Mexico, because that is the side of the country many us have closer to us.
Aguilar: Being a female director in Mexico, how difficult is it to bring attention to your projects or to tell the stories you want to tell?
Chenillo: Seeing the numbers of how many women directors there are in comparison to how many men, I think there is still a long way to go since there are way less female directors. There is the issue of investors trusting you with a budget for your film, luckily in the last decade things have started to change. In my particular case it has been a process of which I cant complaint because in Canana there is no machismo. My baby was born a few months before we started pre-production, but when we had raised the total money I was a week away from giving birth, and the shooting and editing process I did it while taking care of the baby. I feel like that is something that couldn’t have happened a decade ago, it would have been unimaginable, it would have been like “You have a baby, take care of him and then later come back to work”, but now it is just a matter of organization and willingness. It means that we can have a family and still work just like men do, and I think that is a good sign.
The film screened at this year's Tiff, and not surprisingly has been well-received by audiences and critics. Chenillo has clearly developed an original voice in the crowded field of modern Mexican cinema that has expanded in recent year, opening spaces for more original stories. Supported by production company Canana, now Mexico's premier advocate for new auteurs, the director infuses her work with a distinctive female perspective and a peculiar vision of Mexican society. Her latest narrative deals with obesity, insecurities, the quest for the perfect self, and finding fulfillment beyond the superficial. She talked to us about developing the story, finding the right actress, and being a female director in Mexico.
Carlos Aguilar: I think Paraiso is a different love story, it’s interesting to see everyday people being the protagonist, people that don’t adhere by the beauty standards we are used to see in Romantic Comedies, what inspired you to write this film?
Mariana Chenillo: The original idea came from a short story also titled Paraiso, this story was read for the first time by producer Pablo Cruz many years ago. His interest in the story has a lot of to do with the context of the Mexico City suburbs where the story takes place, and where he grew up, then he gave me the story to read. I believe it was an interesting mix because I think what we each liked about the story wasn’t necessarily the same thing. His urge to think “This cool be a good movie” is not necessarily the same as mine, because the premise is about a couple of overweight people who move from the suburbs to the city, which is what happens in the story.
In the story the protagonist is him, the husband, when I started working on the screenplay, of which we thought could a much more literal adaptation, I realized that the protagonist had to be her, Carmen. It was a process that turned the movie as personal as if it hadn’t been an adaptation but an original idea, because when I decided to make her the protagonist I thought a lot about which are those ideas of women about their bodies, because I believe there is a lot of pressure. There is always this sensation that we must first follow certain tenets and then everything else in life will follow secondarily, then tied to this there is the process of discovering what do you want to do in life, and when, and also give yourself the chance to change your mind and say “What I really like is this , not what I thought I liked before”
I feel like throughout the time we were writing this film it picked up personal stories of many people, then the actress came along, who is an actress who is overweight and who has been like that her entire life, and who also had her own story of having lived situations like that with her partner. The mix of all the very individual attachments that each person had with the story, gave it the chance to exist and be original.
Aguilar: The film focuses on the issue of obesity, do you think this is a real social problem in Mexico or are the unrealistic beauty standards placed by the media what turn into a problem?
Chenillo: There are tow things; I do believe that in Mexico and many other countries this is a health issue, but I also think that movies are not necessarily the best platforms to launch health campaigns. Particularly in Mexico, people are very prone to diabetes, which affects the overweight population to a greater degree, which turns into a huge health problem for our society. However, I think that what I intended with the film wasn’t to launch a health campaign, because I believe that being happy is equally as important as being healthy. The social pressure affects the character from many angles, but it is more important for her to figure where is the right place for her to be in life, than losing weight. Even though it is a health issue, the standards of beauty force many women to feel eternally unfulfilled with who they are, what they represent, and their bodies.
Aguilar: In recent years it seems like Mexican cinema has taken two roads, it either focuses on the freighting violence and cartel warfare or it puts out very commercial, generic, films. It feels like your film is in between, it is original, has social commentary, it is smart, and still very entertaining. Did you have this in mind while working on the film?
Chenillo: I think that all these films dealing with social issues are very necessary and very important, because societies question themselves when they make films about this reality. But I also think there are other things happening, there are other stories that are also Mexico, that also represent it. In the case of this film that is based on a short story, and also in my first film, I’m more interested in what I have closer to me, I’m interested in what I can observe in my life, in the people I know, and I feel that also represents us [Mexico]. These are also important stories to which the audience can relate.
Aguilar: Your lead actress, Daniel Rincon, she is fantastic in the film, as a director how did you work with her to create such an organic, and honest, performance?
Chenillo: The hardest thing was to fin her. In this case we needed someone that had as many similarities with the character as possible, and half of the work was done because of what she is in real life. She is a girl that studied acting, she was very talented, and that in her life story had experienced many of the things the character goes through in the film. We launched a massive casting call, there were around 1000 actresses and non-actresses, we were lucky to find Daniela, there was no one better than her for this role. The work while filming had to do a lot with the actor playing her husband, Andres, there had to be chemistry between them so that the love between the characters would be the cause for everything that happens to them. Choosing him in relation to her, so that the chemistry would give the impression that these are two people that have known each other for a long time and that they love each other was the other half of the work.
Aguilar: The title, Paraiso (Paradise), you mentioned it came from the original short story, how do you interpret this, as a metaphorical state in which the characters find happiness or the physical location they leave?
Chenillo: The title refers to Satelite, the suburb where they are from, that’s their “paradise”. The part of the film that takes place there had to be very brief, we couldn’t spend a half hour in their lives in Satelite, we had to take the characters out of there soon, which leaves the “paradise” sort of underdeveloped. However, we did want them to plant their roots there, they plant a tree in the park there, to which they return at the end. These roots represent what preceded their expulsion from the perfect life they had there.
Aguilar: Another interesting thing is the fact that the film focuses on the Mexican middle class, which is something rarely seen in Mexican films internationally. The stories associated with Mexico are often about people fighting to survive. Do you feel your film will portray a different image of Mexico in other countries?
Chenillo: It represents the middle class. Of course Mexico is a country with enormous inequalities, but it is also a country with a big middle class, who also have problems, and who also have stories. I think it is great to see and to show that side of Mexico, because that is the side of the country many us have closer to us.
Aguilar: Being a female director in Mexico, how difficult is it to bring attention to your projects or to tell the stories you want to tell?
Chenillo: Seeing the numbers of how many women directors there are in comparison to how many men, I think there is still a long way to go since there are way less female directors. There is the issue of investors trusting you with a budget for your film, luckily in the last decade things have started to change. In my particular case it has been a process of which I cant complaint because in Canana there is no machismo. My baby was born a few months before we started pre-production, but when we had raised the total money I was a week away from giving birth, and the shooting and editing process I did it while taking care of the baby. I feel like that is something that couldn’t have happened a decade ago, it would have been unimaginable, it would have been like “You have a baby, take care of him and then later come back to work”, but now it is just a matter of organization and willingness. It means that we can have a family and still work just like men do, and I think that is a good sign.
- 10/4/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
The son of Vicente Fernandez, one of Mexico’s most beloved music personalities, Alejandro Fernandez has become an icon on his own merits. His musical career crosses borders as well as genres, and has also taken him to try his luck as an actor, most notably in the biopic Zapata, where he starred as the legendary Mexican hero. Alejandro Fernandez’s career expands over twenty years, in which he has become the poster child for Regional Mexican Music and has popularized the genre not only in Mexico, but also across Latin America and Spain.
His new album ‘Confidencias’ is his most successful release yet debuting at #1 in 19 countries. The singer will go on a U.S Tour from now until the end of the year, to then embark into his most ambitious World Tour to date.Recently at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, Alejandro left his mark by making a donation to the museum, during the ceremony the Councilman for the City Los Angeles, Curren D. Price Jr., declared Septmeber 12th as Alejandro Fernandez Day.
Undoubtedly, Alejandro Fernandez is one of the most recognizable Mexican figures in the U.S, and is proof of the growing presence of Latino talent in the American market. Mr. Fernandez talked to LatinoBuzz about what it means for him to be Mexican, his favorite track in the album, and his latest tour.
Carlos Aguilar: As Mexican artist working in diverse mediums (music/film) how important is for you to be as equally successful in the U.S?
Alejandro Fernandez: It is important for me to be successful wherever my fans are. In the United States there are many Latinos, and non-Latinos, who like Mexican music.
Aguilar: Would you ever like to try your luck in acting again, we haven’t seen you in the big screen since the film Zapata, is that something you would consider?
Fernandez: Yes, it is something I would consider, but at the moment I’m focused on my musical career. I’m completely booked with my new album and tour.
Aguilar: The film Hecho en Mexico, of which you were a part of, tried to highlight the richness of Mexican culture through its music. How do you think your music fits into that spectrum?
Fernandez : I have always sung our Mexican music. I’m very proud of being Mexican and I love our music.
Aguilar: On that same note, what would you say, for you, is the greatest quality of Mexicans as a people? Is it special in any way for you to perform here in the U.S for Mexican Independence Day?
Fernandez: Mexico has many beautiful qualities that it is hard for me to choose. The culture, the music, the food, the landscape….To celebrate Mexican Independence Day in Las Vegas is a huge honor. I always keep in mind that I’m representing Mexico and Mexican culture, and it is something I take very seriously, and which makes me feel very proud. It is something I look forward to every year.
Aguilar:Your latest release “Confidencias”, what secrets or unheard things about love and romanticism does it have to tell the audience? Given that the title hints at things one only confides on a loved one.
Fernandez: The song “Me Olvide de Vivir” (I Forgot to Live) on this album is very meaningful to me. I relate a lot to the lyrics of the song, and I know my father does too. When we were recording it, it was something very emotional, because we both felt what the song says, which is that sometimes we are so busy or doing our own things and you forget about living and enjoying life’s moments. It is also very meaningful to me because it had been over 20 years, since my first album, that I had been in the recording studio with my father. It was a very fulfilling experience personally, artistically, and about family. I really enjoyed it in every aspect. The song turned out incredible.
Aguilar: You have been successful in both the Regional Mexican Music and Pop genres, how do these affect or influence each other? Which one gives more satisfaction?
Fernandez: My roots and biggest influences come from Mexican music. Neither gives me more satisfaction, I enjoy both of them.
Aguilar: Lastly, what new places will this World Tour take you to? Are there any new countries you are visiting? How do you feel to be an iconic representation of Mexico around the world?
Fernandez: We are getting started in the U.S, and next year we will be in Central and South America, and Spain. I hope to visit many new cities and also reconnect with my audience.
His new album ‘Confidencias’ is his most successful release yet debuting at #1 in 19 countries. The singer will go on a U.S Tour from now until the end of the year, to then embark into his most ambitious World Tour to date.Recently at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, Alejandro left his mark by making a donation to the museum, during the ceremony the Councilman for the City Los Angeles, Curren D. Price Jr., declared Septmeber 12th as Alejandro Fernandez Day.
Undoubtedly, Alejandro Fernandez is one of the most recognizable Mexican figures in the U.S, and is proof of the growing presence of Latino talent in the American market. Mr. Fernandez talked to LatinoBuzz about what it means for him to be Mexican, his favorite track in the album, and his latest tour.
Carlos Aguilar: As Mexican artist working in diverse mediums (music/film) how important is for you to be as equally successful in the U.S?
Alejandro Fernandez: It is important for me to be successful wherever my fans are. In the United States there are many Latinos, and non-Latinos, who like Mexican music.
Aguilar: Would you ever like to try your luck in acting again, we haven’t seen you in the big screen since the film Zapata, is that something you would consider?
Fernandez: Yes, it is something I would consider, but at the moment I’m focused on my musical career. I’m completely booked with my new album and tour.
Aguilar: The film Hecho en Mexico, of which you were a part of, tried to highlight the richness of Mexican culture through its music. How do you think your music fits into that spectrum?
Fernandez : I have always sung our Mexican music. I’m very proud of being Mexican and I love our music.
Aguilar: On that same note, what would you say, for you, is the greatest quality of Mexicans as a people? Is it special in any way for you to perform here in the U.S for Mexican Independence Day?
Fernandez: Mexico has many beautiful qualities that it is hard for me to choose. The culture, the music, the food, the landscape….To celebrate Mexican Independence Day in Las Vegas is a huge honor. I always keep in mind that I’m representing Mexico and Mexican culture, and it is something I take very seriously, and which makes me feel very proud. It is something I look forward to every year.
Aguilar:Your latest release “Confidencias”, what secrets or unheard things about love and romanticism does it have to tell the audience? Given that the title hints at things one only confides on a loved one.
Fernandez: The song “Me Olvide de Vivir” (I Forgot to Live) on this album is very meaningful to me. I relate a lot to the lyrics of the song, and I know my father does too. When we were recording it, it was something very emotional, because we both felt what the song says, which is that sometimes we are so busy or doing our own things and you forget about living and enjoying life’s moments. It is also very meaningful to me because it had been over 20 years, since my first album, that I had been in the recording studio with my father. It was a very fulfilling experience personally, artistically, and about family. I really enjoyed it in every aspect. The song turned out incredible.
Aguilar: You have been successful in both the Regional Mexican Music and Pop genres, how do these affect or influence each other? Which one gives more satisfaction?
Fernandez: My roots and biggest influences come from Mexican music. Neither gives me more satisfaction, I enjoy both of them.
Aguilar: Lastly, what new places will this World Tour take you to? Are there any new countries you are visiting? How do you feel to be an iconic representation of Mexico around the world?
Fernandez: We are getting started in the U.S, and next year we will be in Central and South America, and Spain. I hope to visit many new cities and also reconnect with my audience.
- 9/25/2013
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Europa Report, a feature film by Ecuadorian director, Sebastián Cordero, was so impressive. On a personal note (not to brag…), my niece is exploring alien life in the form of starfish at the Stanford Marine Station in Monterey as the subject of her Nasa- funded PhD program, so this movie about exploring alien life in a watery environment touches close to home for me. In addition, I am very interested in Ecuador as a filmmaking country (or a non-filmmaking country) whose revenues from homegrown cinema has grown 300% in 2012, so I did something I rarely undertake, I interviewed the filmmaker.
Sebastián Cordero was in L.A. for ten days after attending Comic-Con and stayed through last night's Kcrw Special L.A. Screening at the Landmark Theater on Pico Blvd. Today he left for NYC. Magnet Releasing will release the film theatrically on August 2 and it is available now on VOD.
Europa Report opens this Friday, August 2, 2013 in Los Angeles at the Sundance Sunset in West Hollywood, D.C. at the E Street Cinema in Washington, and New York at the Cinema Village this Friday and will be followed by a national roll-out. See playdates here.
Attending Comic-Con was a great experience for Sebastián. He says that the L.A. Times coverage describes the experience very well and definitely gave the film a boost in fandom. The panel at Comic-Con's largest venue was unique for Sebastián, an Ecuadorian whose two films, the 2004 Cronicas produced by Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo del Toro, Isabel Dávalos, and Bertha Navarro, and Rabia have created their own exclusive cult fan clubs. Rabia (Isa:Wild Bunch), a Spanish-Colombian coproduction premiered in 2009 at the Toronto Film Festival. The 2004 film Cronicas caused quite a stir among the acquisitions community and the cognoscenti of genre-art house films. It won the Sundance/ Nhk International Filmmakers Award in 2002, premiered in Cannes' Un Certain Regard, played Toronto, San Sebastian, Sundance and Rotterdam, sold worldwide and was picked up for U.S. by Chris Blackwell's Palm Pictures, thus confirming its cult status. His earlier film Ratas, Ratones, Rateros premiered in Venice in 1999, received over 12 international awards and played in more than 50 film festivals and Pescador, a Colombian-Ecuadorian coproduction won acting and directing awards at the Guadalajara Film Festival in 2012.
The Europa Report team's Comic-Con presentation included scientists from Jpl which lent real-life credentials to the film as they discussed the movie in front of 6,000 interested people who knew very little about the film until then. The mythology of Europa is well known to sci–fi fans from its prominence in Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001: A Space Odyssey and its sequel 2010: Odyssey Two, but the general public is not aware of it. The movie in fact seems poised somewhere between Nasa and Star Trek.
The dreamy calmness of professionals in an extraordinary mix of talents in the movie itself mirrors the mix of talents that went into the making of this piece of cinema. No wonder it was previewed at Comic-Com. It seemed incongruous to the mega-size this event has become. It would be nice to know that it was the sleeper hit of Comic-Con and of the summer season. We shall see as it opens this week. Even if it proves too intellectual for the masses, its credit to Team Sebastian Cordero will stand the test of time. It takes a filmmaker from Eucador to probe our collective curiosity about life on Europa, the moon of Jupiter most likely to contain life.
While I do not agree 100% with the review by Carlos Aguilar in Filmophilia today, I find his review the most intelligent of all I have read to date.
Europa Report could be called a Latino film which illustrates the draw Hollywood independent filmmaking holds on filmmakers from our South American continent. Reading the bios of the production team and the bios of the cast further illuminates this luminescent film, put together primarily by men but casting both the main interlocutor and the chief of the mission as women: Embeth Daviitz who plays Dr. Unger, the chief of the mission was the Jewish maid who survives both the abuse and attraction of Ralph Fiennes' sadistic commander 'Goeth' in Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List and costars with Gabriele Byrne in In Treatment, was in Mad Men and Californication.
How did producer Ben Browning find you after he developed the script?Ben had seen Rabia and Cronicas…both were very different from this, dealing with social issues, told as social realism, but Rabia is 90% told while the protagonist is hiding in a house, where the claustrophobia and tension might be points of reference for this film.
You usually make films about social issues, what was it about this film that attracted you? I am an actor's director. I need a good story and a good script but one major aspect of this film for me was its six characters. It was a challenge to put together a great cast and give them one space in which to act. I liked the story and the real science behind it. There have been no significant manned explorations of space since the Apollo expeditions in the 70s. I did lots of research, and we had great science advisors.
I was an unusual choice, but I felt an immediate connection to the project.
You seem to have gathered an award winning production team for casting, cinematography, production design, music and sound design.I had a great team. It is my first English language film in Hollywood. My cinematographer, Enrique Chediak, and production designer, Eugenio Caballero, have worked with me on three of my films.
The production designer was excited to design a realistic space ship. Enrique liked the found footage idea which was still high tech, it did not have the degraded handheld effect you see in the current run of horror films. I had been unsure of his reactions to such limitations in the project, but he actually liked them. He built a 360 degree set with eight cameras shooting continuously. It was very immersive. The cinematographer also liked the challenge.
(Editor: Production designer, Eugenio Caballero, won the Academy Award for his work on Pan's Labyrinth. Enrique Chediak was named on Daily Variety's "10 Cinemagraphers to Watch" in 1999 and has not disappointed with his credits which include Danny Boyle's 127 Hours.)
What about the cast of international actors?Casting international actors was also exciting. They are not not huge stars but they are the top thespians in their countries.
(Sydney, the blogger here: Wednesday's news that casting directors will get their own branch in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, puts this film's casting director, Avy Kaufman, in line for an Oscar for sure.)
Producer Tod Browning interjects here that casting actors from all over the world was also a key part of the film's financing plan. "Each of these actors brought value in territories we were able to pre-sell based on their involvement. Michael [Nyqvist] and Anamaria [Marinca] are very popular in Europe and Daniel Wu is a major star in Asia which allowed us to secure Chinese distribution up front", Browning says. (The international sales agent is Nick Meyers' Sierra Affinity.)
Back to Sebastian: When Michael Nyqvist (who played Andrei Blok) came on board, that made the project attractive to others. I wanted him, not just because of his work in the Millennium series, but because of his other work with Lukas Moodyson (Together).
Anamaria Marinca (who played Rosa Dasque), the actress from Romania's 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, (which won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival) was not an obvious choice and I was unsure of what her reaction would be, but she said, Are you kidding? She said she loved having such an offer. No one ever offered her a role in a science fiction film before.
What about you? Do you like the lure of Hollywood? Do you want to make more films here?I am torn between two worlds.
I want to continue in both places. I enjoy Hollywood but I know, during the time of Cronicas there was a moment when I was being offered projects but in the end, nothing happened, and I understand the process now. Here when a project falls apart, all the work you have put into it is for nothing - it might waste six months of intense work. In Ecuador I have confidence that any film I am working on will eventually be made.
But I am also interested in working in the U.S. There are a lot more resources here, but it must be good project. I am looking for projects here, but I generate my own material in Ecuador. Here, when a project falls apart here all the work is for nothing.
I am now working on a film to shoot early next year in Ecuador, Sin muertos, no hay carnaval, which literally means Without the Dead, There is No Carnival. However, its English language working title is Such is Life in the Tropics. It is about property management, and more specifically about a squater as told from many perspectives. Its strong script is written by the actor in Cronicas who is also a producer in another film.
Thank you Sebastian. I wish you great success with this film and with your career. And I thank Ben Browning for undertaking this exciting project and bringing it to life.
Sebastian Cordero spent his childhood in Ecuador where he was born, his teenage years in Paris and his college years in Los Angeles, where he studied at USC's Filmic Writing program. He seems to be building a team much the way Clint Eastwood has. And like Clint Eastwood, the lure of Hollywood with its ease of procuring resources and the necessary filmmaking tools is tempered by the continuous lower budgeted filmmaking using international Iberoamerican coproductions to finance the films.
About Wayfare Entertainment:
In May 2013 New York-based Wayfare Entertainment announced its rebranding as Start Motion Pictures. Parent company Start Media LLC is unifying its branding and operations as its portfolio of entertainment and media holdings grows. Wayfare Entertainment was set up five years ago by Ben Browning and Start Media CEO Michael Maher and has produced and fully financed films that have grossed over $130 million worldwide. Wayfare’s past films include Universal’s Sanctum produced with James Cameron, the Focus Features’ drama It's Kind Of A Funny Story, Neil Jordan’s Ondine, and Sebastian Cordero's space thriller Europa Report to be released by Magnolia Pictures in summer 2013 and being sold internationally by Nicolas Meyer's Sierra Affinity.
Upcoming Wayfare projects include an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book for Disney; the recently announced Passengers, to star Keanu Reeves and Reese Witherspoon; and a development slate including Josh Zetumer’s Villain, an adaptation of Matt Westrup’s award winning creature short The Gate and the Princess Diana conspiracy thriller Inquest. With a slate like this, it is no wonder Comic-Con was interested in showcasing Europa Report.
Start Media is a privately held media company with interests in exhibition, publishing, and technology. Start Media is acquiring and building content-driven companies well positioned to capitalize on value dislocations emerging from the rapid evolution of media and media consumption. In late 2012 Start Media partnered with exhibitor Digiplex Destinations, an industry pioneer and champion of digital conversion and alternative cinema content, to aggressively grow the Digiplex footprint to 1000 screens in the top 100 markets. The acquisition of UltraStar Cinemas earlier this year was the first acquisition of the partnership. Wayfare’s staff, upcoming film slate and film library will be folded into Start Motion Pictures, which will continue normal business operations producing and financing feature films. Browning will be the President of Start Motion Pictures.
Sebastián Cordero was in L.A. for ten days after attending Comic-Con and stayed through last night's Kcrw Special L.A. Screening at the Landmark Theater on Pico Blvd. Today he left for NYC. Magnet Releasing will release the film theatrically on August 2 and it is available now on VOD.
Europa Report opens this Friday, August 2, 2013 in Los Angeles at the Sundance Sunset in West Hollywood, D.C. at the E Street Cinema in Washington, and New York at the Cinema Village this Friday and will be followed by a national roll-out. See playdates here.
Attending Comic-Con was a great experience for Sebastián. He says that the L.A. Times coverage describes the experience very well and definitely gave the film a boost in fandom. The panel at Comic-Con's largest venue was unique for Sebastián, an Ecuadorian whose two films, the 2004 Cronicas produced by Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo del Toro, Isabel Dávalos, and Bertha Navarro, and Rabia have created their own exclusive cult fan clubs. Rabia (Isa:Wild Bunch), a Spanish-Colombian coproduction premiered in 2009 at the Toronto Film Festival. The 2004 film Cronicas caused quite a stir among the acquisitions community and the cognoscenti of genre-art house films. It won the Sundance/ Nhk International Filmmakers Award in 2002, premiered in Cannes' Un Certain Regard, played Toronto, San Sebastian, Sundance and Rotterdam, sold worldwide and was picked up for U.S. by Chris Blackwell's Palm Pictures, thus confirming its cult status. His earlier film Ratas, Ratones, Rateros premiered in Venice in 1999, received over 12 international awards and played in more than 50 film festivals and Pescador, a Colombian-Ecuadorian coproduction won acting and directing awards at the Guadalajara Film Festival in 2012.
The Europa Report team's Comic-Con presentation included scientists from Jpl which lent real-life credentials to the film as they discussed the movie in front of 6,000 interested people who knew very little about the film until then. The mythology of Europa is well known to sci–fi fans from its prominence in Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001: A Space Odyssey and its sequel 2010: Odyssey Two, but the general public is not aware of it. The movie in fact seems poised somewhere between Nasa and Star Trek.
The dreamy calmness of professionals in an extraordinary mix of talents in the movie itself mirrors the mix of talents that went into the making of this piece of cinema. No wonder it was previewed at Comic-Com. It seemed incongruous to the mega-size this event has become. It would be nice to know that it was the sleeper hit of Comic-Con and of the summer season. We shall see as it opens this week. Even if it proves too intellectual for the masses, its credit to Team Sebastian Cordero will stand the test of time. It takes a filmmaker from Eucador to probe our collective curiosity about life on Europa, the moon of Jupiter most likely to contain life.
While I do not agree 100% with the review by Carlos Aguilar in Filmophilia today, I find his review the most intelligent of all I have read to date.
Europa Report could be called a Latino film which illustrates the draw Hollywood independent filmmaking holds on filmmakers from our South American continent. Reading the bios of the production team and the bios of the cast further illuminates this luminescent film, put together primarily by men but casting both the main interlocutor and the chief of the mission as women: Embeth Daviitz who plays Dr. Unger, the chief of the mission was the Jewish maid who survives both the abuse and attraction of Ralph Fiennes' sadistic commander 'Goeth' in Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List and costars with Gabriele Byrne in In Treatment, was in Mad Men and Californication.
How did producer Ben Browning find you after he developed the script?Ben had seen Rabia and Cronicas…both were very different from this, dealing with social issues, told as social realism, but Rabia is 90% told while the protagonist is hiding in a house, where the claustrophobia and tension might be points of reference for this film.
You usually make films about social issues, what was it about this film that attracted you? I am an actor's director. I need a good story and a good script but one major aspect of this film for me was its six characters. It was a challenge to put together a great cast and give them one space in which to act. I liked the story and the real science behind it. There have been no significant manned explorations of space since the Apollo expeditions in the 70s. I did lots of research, and we had great science advisors.
I was an unusual choice, but I felt an immediate connection to the project.
You seem to have gathered an award winning production team for casting, cinematography, production design, music and sound design.I had a great team. It is my first English language film in Hollywood. My cinematographer, Enrique Chediak, and production designer, Eugenio Caballero, have worked with me on three of my films.
The production designer was excited to design a realistic space ship. Enrique liked the found footage idea which was still high tech, it did not have the degraded handheld effect you see in the current run of horror films. I had been unsure of his reactions to such limitations in the project, but he actually liked them. He built a 360 degree set with eight cameras shooting continuously. It was very immersive. The cinematographer also liked the challenge.
(Editor: Production designer, Eugenio Caballero, won the Academy Award for his work on Pan's Labyrinth. Enrique Chediak was named on Daily Variety's "10 Cinemagraphers to Watch" in 1999 and has not disappointed with his credits which include Danny Boyle's 127 Hours.)
What about the cast of international actors?Casting international actors was also exciting. They are not not huge stars but they are the top thespians in their countries.
(Sydney, the blogger here: Wednesday's news that casting directors will get their own branch in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, puts this film's casting director, Avy Kaufman, in line for an Oscar for sure.)
Producer Tod Browning interjects here that casting actors from all over the world was also a key part of the film's financing plan. "Each of these actors brought value in territories we were able to pre-sell based on their involvement. Michael [Nyqvist] and Anamaria [Marinca] are very popular in Europe and Daniel Wu is a major star in Asia which allowed us to secure Chinese distribution up front", Browning says. (The international sales agent is Nick Meyers' Sierra Affinity.)
Back to Sebastian: When Michael Nyqvist (who played Andrei Blok) came on board, that made the project attractive to others. I wanted him, not just because of his work in the Millennium series, but because of his other work with Lukas Moodyson (Together).
Anamaria Marinca (who played Rosa Dasque), the actress from Romania's 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, (which won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival) was not an obvious choice and I was unsure of what her reaction would be, but she said, Are you kidding? She said she loved having such an offer. No one ever offered her a role in a science fiction film before.
What about you? Do you like the lure of Hollywood? Do you want to make more films here?I am torn between two worlds.
I want to continue in both places. I enjoy Hollywood but I know, during the time of Cronicas there was a moment when I was being offered projects but in the end, nothing happened, and I understand the process now. Here when a project falls apart, all the work you have put into it is for nothing - it might waste six months of intense work. In Ecuador I have confidence that any film I am working on will eventually be made.
But I am also interested in working in the U.S. There are a lot more resources here, but it must be good project. I am looking for projects here, but I generate my own material in Ecuador. Here, when a project falls apart here all the work is for nothing.
I am now working on a film to shoot early next year in Ecuador, Sin muertos, no hay carnaval, which literally means Without the Dead, There is No Carnival. However, its English language working title is Such is Life in the Tropics. It is about property management, and more specifically about a squater as told from many perspectives. Its strong script is written by the actor in Cronicas who is also a producer in another film.
Thank you Sebastian. I wish you great success with this film and with your career. And I thank Ben Browning for undertaking this exciting project and bringing it to life.
Sebastian Cordero spent his childhood in Ecuador where he was born, his teenage years in Paris and his college years in Los Angeles, where he studied at USC's Filmic Writing program. He seems to be building a team much the way Clint Eastwood has. And like Clint Eastwood, the lure of Hollywood with its ease of procuring resources and the necessary filmmaking tools is tempered by the continuous lower budgeted filmmaking using international Iberoamerican coproductions to finance the films.
About Wayfare Entertainment:
In May 2013 New York-based Wayfare Entertainment announced its rebranding as Start Motion Pictures. Parent company Start Media LLC is unifying its branding and operations as its portfolio of entertainment and media holdings grows. Wayfare Entertainment was set up five years ago by Ben Browning and Start Media CEO Michael Maher and has produced and fully financed films that have grossed over $130 million worldwide. Wayfare’s past films include Universal’s Sanctum produced with James Cameron, the Focus Features’ drama It's Kind Of A Funny Story, Neil Jordan’s Ondine, and Sebastian Cordero's space thriller Europa Report to be released by Magnolia Pictures in summer 2013 and being sold internationally by Nicolas Meyer's Sierra Affinity.
Upcoming Wayfare projects include an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book for Disney; the recently announced Passengers, to star Keanu Reeves and Reese Witherspoon; and a development slate including Josh Zetumer’s Villain, an adaptation of Matt Westrup’s award winning creature short The Gate and the Princess Diana conspiracy thriller Inquest. With a slate like this, it is no wonder Comic-Con was interested in showcasing Europa Report.
Start Media is a privately held media company with interests in exhibition, publishing, and technology. Start Media is acquiring and building content-driven companies well positioned to capitalize on value dislocations emerging from the rapid evolution of media and media consumption. In late 2012 Start Media partnered with exhibitor Digiplex Destinations, an industry pioneer and champion of digital conversion and alternative cinema content, to aggressively grow the Digiplex footprint to 1000 screens in the top 100 markets. The acquisition of UltraStar Cinemas earlier this year was the first acquisition of the partnership. Wayfare’s staff, upcoming film slate and film library will be folded into Start Motion Pictures, which will continue normal business operations producing and financing feature films. Browning will be the President of Start Motion Pictures.
- 7/31/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Eugenio MARTÍN: Un Autor Para Todos Los GÉNEROS
By Carlos Aguilar & Anita Haas
Retroback & Séptimo Vicio
143 pages
€15.00, plus p&p
By John Exshaw
Following their excellent John Phillip Law: Diabolik Angel (see review here), authors Carlos Aguilar and Anita Haas have turned their attention to an interesting, if rather less well-known, figure of Sixties’ and Seventies’ European popular cinema, the Spanish director Eugenio Martín. Best known abroad for two stupendously awful Euro Westerns, Bad Man’s River and Pancho Villa (both 1971) and that perennial late-night favourite, Horror Express (1972), Martín may seem rather unlikely material for a book-length study, but, as suggested by its title, Eugenio Martín: un autor para todos los géneros (roughly, ‘Eugenio Martín: An Author for Every Genre’), it is his work in a wide variety of genres, and particularly his career as a gun-for-hire throughout Spain’s peak years as a low-cost location for international co-productions,...
By Carlos Aguilar & Anita Haas
Retroback & Séptimo Vicio
143 pages
€15.00, plus p&p
By John Exshaw
Following their excellent John Phillip Law: Diabolik Angel (see review here), authors Carlos Aguilar and Anita Haas have turned their attention to an interesting, if rather less well-known, figure of Sixties’ and Seventies’ European popular cinema, the Spanish director Eugenio Martín. Best known abroad for two stupendously awful Euro Westerns, Bad Man’s River and Pancho Villa (both 1971) and that perennial late-night favourite, Horror Express (1972), Martín may seem rather unlikely material for a book-length study, but, as suggested by its title, Eugenio Martín: un autor para todos los géneros (roughly, ‘Eugenio Martín: An Author for Every Genre’), it is his work in a wide variety of genres, and particularly his career as a gun-for-hire throughout Spain’s peak years as a low-cost location for international co-productions,...
- 1/12/2011
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
John Philip Law: Diabolik Angel
By Carlos Aguilar & Anita Hass
Foreword by Ray Harryhausen
Scifiworld/Quatermass 240 pages Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none €35.00
Review by John Exshaw
Towards the end of John Phillip Law: Diabolik Angel, authors Carlos Aguilar and Anita Haas describe their book as “an unfinished work”, anticipating, as they did, further films in the strange career of an actor best remembered for playing the black-clad super-criminal in Mario Bava’s Danger: Diabolik (1968), the blind angel, Pygar, in Roger Vadim’s Barbarella (1968), and the turbaned hero of The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973). Sadly, as it turned out, Diabolik Angel will stand instead as the last word on Law, who died of cancer at the age of 70 in May of last year, during the final stages of the book’s preparation.
Due,...
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
John Philip Law: Diabolik Angel
By Carlos Aguilar & Anita Hass
Foreword by Ray Harryhausen
Scifiworld/Quatermass 240 pages Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none €35.00
Review by John Exshaw
Towards the end of John Phillip Law: Diabolik Angel, authors Carlos Aguilar and Anita Haas describe their book as “an unfinished work”, anticipating, as they did, further films in the strange career of an actor best remembered for playing the black-clad super-criminal in Mario Bava’s Danger: Diabolik (1968), the blind angel, Pygar, in Roger Vadim’s Barbarella (1968), and the turbaned hero of The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973). Sadly, as it turned out, Diabolik Angel will stand instead as the last word on Law, who died of cancer at the age of 70 in May of last year, during the final stages of the book’s preparation.
Due,...
- 1/17/2009
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
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