In our efforts to reach out to independent filmmakers across the globe, we got an opportunity to talk to Betty and Claudio who are exploring experimental cinema. Their venture Minimal Cinema is adding value to indie cinema at large. Here is an interesting interview -
1. Dear Betty and Claudio, welcome to www.thereelmag.in. Can you please elaborate Minimal Cinema to our audience?
A: We are a couple of Italian filmmakers, respectively, director and screenwriter. We are freelancers whom blindly believe in their work, trying to pursue it with humility and dedication. Our cinematic approach was drawn from famous concept by minimalist architect Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe: “less is more".
2. What kind of subjects are you undertaking?
A: In the last two years we have been working very hard in our first feature film's screenplay. It's a very hard movie to realize because filmmaking has a huge moral responsibility. We're hoping on getting money and means to start filming pretty soon, gaining the necessary support to realize this form of art, it is far from easy in our country. Italian producers like to play it safe and end up financing the most likely to commercially succeed projects, our movie isn't one of them. Rare exceptions exist, but it is very hard to get the right attention. It's easier overseas; some production companies listened to us with great pleasure. This is very sad; it'll be a real shame if our first movie was produced in a foreign country.
3. Tell us something about Projects you have undertaken till date. Especially the one you are personally proud of.
A: Two projects in particular, we are very fond of. First is a documentary titled "In the fabulous underground" that explores Croatian artist Anton Perich's art: Letterist in Paris and photographer, filmmaker, painter in New York in the 70's, member of Andy Warhol's Factory and digital Art pioneer, the one who revolutionized cable TV through his subversive and provocative movies. In his work, he documented punk's arrival in New York and afterwards disco. Last year this film was presented at the New Orleans Film Festival, out of the competition, and participated in Paris at the 2013's ECU (European Independent Film Festival). We have no official distribution yet, therefore we were thinking about screening it in galleries, art exhibitions and everywhere else we can possibly get some exposure.
Second project, still a work in progress for the next few years, it’s a series of short films titled "Human Beings”. We've realized about twenty of them till now (we counted on making at least a hundred). Every short film presents a single individual, randomly chosen and unknowingly filmed in the streets, with very cheap video cameras or cellphones. An individual's extended observation provides very interesting clues. First of all, it is incredible to see how different people from different countries can, after a prolonged observation, be so fascinating and interesting. Man was created in the image of God and its spirit bursts out strongly through its face. We are all equal, everyone with its problems, anxieties, its lives. Filming a perfect stranger is very fascinating, capturing him during a time fragment of his life.
Invariably, you ask yourselves countless questions: who is this person? Where does he come from? Where is he going? What is he thinking? Why is he dressed like that? What does he do for living? What are his passions?
In a world dominated by technology and progress, where people are more and more far from each other, we want to use technology to get closer to human beings, to connect with him. It is, really, a therapeutic work. We are very excited about this project! This project was also screened at CACCNO (Contemporary Art Center New Orleans).
4. Europe has excelled in exploring in minimalism. German expressionism and Italian neo-realism were somewhat minimalism in classical cinema mould. How cinema in Europe manages to remain so detached from global influences and innovate so brilliantly?
A: We don't think making qualitative distinctions, based on geographical matter is correct. Let’s not forget, for example, that the Hollywood industry was founded by European authors like Ernst Lubitsch or Eric Von Stroheim. There are good or bad movies for us. Connected to them we have the authors; some care about more economic success, others try to understand cinema's nature and its applications. We love the latest, cinema is ethics and as other art its goal is to elevate human thought. By observing our world, cinema is the way to elevate awareness and tell the course of history, present, past and future of the human being. Sometimes, for example, as far as the German expressionism goes, it assumes prophetic functions. Those genius authors already knew what was going to happen in Europe in a few years to come, the Nazi’s madness and horror, they prefigured horror through their movies. Italian neorealism though it's a whole other story. Here, minimalism (if we want to call it this way) was dictated by productive and ethics problems. Italy was fascist's censure victim, the, as it was called, "White telephone films", or "Telefoni Bianchi" showed a reality that totally resulted in propaganda, unreal (as it happened in Germany during the Nazi regiment) social debacle generated by fascism was never brought on screen before. In those years, cinecittà, Italian’s movie production temple, was occupied by homeless people; therefore all kind of productions had the necessity to move to the streets. Going in the streets was also a necessary ethic question. This way a group of brave authors decided that was the moment to tell with absolute honesty our country's social reality. It resulted in a series of films, brought to life with very few money and no professional actors taken from the streets. Without Italian neorealism, which influenced hundreds of authors from every part of the world, French Nouvelle Vague, wouldn't have existed, for example, or Czech's Nova Vlna and English’s Free Cinema. As Otto Premiger said about Roberto Rossellini: "cinema's history is divided by two eras: one before and one after "Open City (Roma città aperta)". It is so true!
Similar phenomenon are always happening, and will continue to happen for social or stylistic reasons. Our world changes and so does cinema. It Happened in Brazil with Cinema Novo, USA’s New Hollywood and New American Cinema and in the 70s in Hungary with the students from the Balazs school. It's happening today in Greece and China, just to mention a few cases where social reality keeps changing.
5. In the current scenario, what kind of films inspire you?
A: Those of high moral and spiritual sense. Cinematographic art had to question itself on human nature, on its relations with spirituality. It never has to stop on asking itself, sincere and honest questions. On this note, there are fundamental movies, just think about Lav Diaz's work, Tsai Ming-liang, Béla Tarr, Carlos Reygadas, Bruno Dumont, Werner Herzog, Sharunas Bartas, Aleksandr Sokurov, Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Pedro Costa: only a few authors that highly inspire us. Each and every one of these authors has his own take: sincere. This is the matter!! This image has to upset, always endure on a reflection through its provocative powers' essence. It shouldn't be calming, consoling or immediately explicable. Cinema isn't mad to give explanations, it is for moral and existential questions. It has to plant its seed in the viewer's soul, unsettle. A movie is just the first step though human nature's development, everything else is on the spectator. All movies that place this necessity can really be defined as true work of art.
6. Any piece of advice for budding filmmakers.
A: We don't feel in the position to give advice, we are young and haven't had the chance to full express ourselves yet. The only thing that we feel to emphasize on is the importance of humility. Like Tarkovskij, a director as to consider himself as humanity slave. He puts at man's disposition, his views, his poetics and he must not consider himself above the people. Those who think they live on pedestals and try to indoctrinate others with their own ideas haven't understood what cinema is. Be honest, intact, true to your ideas; guard them as the most important thing in the world.
Team TRM wish them best for their forthcoming projects. Cheers!
In a last note, we would like to remember one of the finest actors of Indian Cinema –Pran. We lost him recently. He was 93. As a person, he will be remembered as a generous and strong willed personality, much like his character of Sher Khan. His diction and voice will be rated at par with Raj Kumar, another legend. Some of his characters, bad and good, will be remembered for long till there is someone to talk about the Hindi classics. Body dies, art survives.
