January 25, 2013
HOTEL INTERVIEW with Emma Gray
SUBJECT: The subject is new filmmaking technology in general, but the context for the interview is going to be HOTEL.
QUESTIONS:
1) While the Dogme 95 crew used DV as a sort of tool for minimalist filmmaking, you seemed more interested in pushing the envelope, splittingthe screen and depicting multiple moving images simultaneously, and even manipulating the sound mix in real time at screenings. What have your experiences making TIMECODE and HOTEL taught you about filmmaking?
That there is life in the beast yet. New technology can in itself be a source of inspiration because it changes the structure of filmmaking – less crew, more improvisation, more control of the image in house etc. It’s also easier to design and modify ewuuipment based on a personal need for a film – everything becomes more personal.
2) What are your thoughts on the eventual legacy of DV filmmaking? Have you seen anyone else’s DV films that you found particularly groundbreaking, evocative or inspiring? And how do you expect the DV-shot feature to evolve from here?
I don’t see so much cinema myself – sometimes at festivals if I am on the jury, at film schools as well. I see a lot of sloppy camerawork and lazy work and realize that film making is just as difficult on DVCAM as it was on 35mm. More difficult in some ways because the filmmaker has to do so much more herself or himmself
3) HOTEL was completed in 2001 and made the festival circuit, but it took some time for it to get a North American release in theaters and on DVD. Do you think the current theatrical distribution system is adequate to ensure that unconventional, formally adventurous works reach the audience that might be interested in them? And how do you see the nature of distribution changing?
The circuit of distribution as it is now is useless for the new generation of films shot on video. It is too inextricably linked to the economic structure of the studios and big budgets and huge budets for P and A. We need a good indie alternative that utilises the portability of projectors and sound systems and recognizes that a cinema is a space that can be used for a period of time and then the cinema moves on to another space. It desn’t have to be permenanat.
4) The “Fig Rig,” which is seen on screen in HOTEL, seemed to be a hit with DV camera operators at NAB. How did that tool evolve as part of your own kit?
DV CAMERAS are too small for good operating and I realized that I would have to design some kind of base for them to sit within – so for HOTEL I worked with a young designer from the Royal College of Art and together we made 4 prototypes – they were used all the way through HOTEL and then further refined afterwards before being commercially available.
5) Do you like to operate your own camera?
Not only do I like to – it’s become essential to me
6) LEAVING LAS VEGAS is remembered for many reasons, but it’s one of the first films that demonstrated exactly how good Super 16 could look. Have you considered a return to 16mm filmmaking?
Absolutely – I have hung on to my Aaton super 16 kit and plan to use it on a feature shot in New York – GOING DOWN (never got made)
7) What about high-end digital cinema cameras like the Sony CineAlta and the Thomson Viper? Have you used them at all? And do they appeal to you?
They’re interesting of course – but the technology is evolving so fast that I prefer to stick with a couple of older types of camera – the SONY PD100 and the Panasonics. I know them well and they do pretty much what I ask of them. I think this familiarity is important as in still camera work
8) Your resume includes work in television and on at least one music video. Do those offer any special challenges or opportunities compared to your usual slate of features?
Not really – I save the challenges for my own work. I see the other stuff as a different kind of challenge – doing a job well within the conventions of that particular genre
9) You’re an accomplished composer. Do you find that writing your own film scores gives you a greater degree of control over the way your films speak to audiences?
Without a doubt – more than any other aspect of the filmmaking process
10) Your documentary Coma shows what happened when you taught a class on filmmaking in Slovenia. Why do you think it’s important to be so active in educating young filmmakers? And what are the most important lessons you think aspiring filmmakers need to learn?
Well it’s important to inspire and to pass on information and knowledge. The hardest lesson to pass on seems to be that filmmaking is really hard work and that there are no short cuts and that if you are not driven to make a film it will never happen
11) What are you working on now?
Trying to straighten and bend my left leg – I smashed it up in an accident 4 months ago and it has become the centre of my existence. I see it as going through the final stages of post production right now and I am looking at film as a possibility for next. Possibly a very small feature on DV.