Cut to Cut

This year,the IFFI spotlight is on Kolski along with Greek director Michael Cacoyannis and American Jim Jarmusch. Of them,only Kolski is in Goa to experience the celebration of his work. Six of his directorial works — The History of Cinema in the Village of Popielawy,Johnie the Aquarius,A Miraculous Place,Happy Aphonya,Keep Away from the Window and Venice — are on the schedule. However,it is the latter three,with their stories set in the backdrop of war,that are the most-talked about films of this bouquet. “Strangely,oppression creates an environment for creative works. The Polish films on the Communist regime are even better,” he says. Kolski belongs to the group of Polish filmmakers,including Andrzej Wajda,who have often revisited the war-ravaged Poland through their movies.

Though the 1956-born director has not experienced war,he admits to being affected by it. “My grandfather was a prisoner at a concentration camp and I have seen my father trying to cope with war-related trauma,” Kolski says. The present doesn’t interest him. “If you want to make personal movies,you have to respond to personal needs,” he says,explaining his fascination with the past. He takes it forward in his latest movie Venice,which is based on a short story. This story is narrated from the perspective of an 11-year-old boy,after the war breaks out in 1939. With this film,which was screened on

Sunday,the director shows why he is known as the founder of magic realism trend in Polish cinema.

However,his secret ingredient for this effect is apparently quite simple. “It requires sensitivity,not ability. A director can take a movie to any level with the right kind of sensitivity required to handle a subject,” he says. In a lighter vein,he reveals that another trick for it lies in spectrum physics. While most movie makers operate in visible light,Kolski believes in tapping the effects of infrared and ultraviolet light. This aspect of his cinematic craft makes it easier to believe his claim — that he takes “inspiration from air”; or,from his “osmotic experiences” since according to him,culture is something one inhales.

Kolski,a teacher at Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing,in Warsaw,believes in working on two projects at the same time. Interestingly,one of his next is going to be a contemporary love story. The movie,he says will be made under the same constraints his students face. “I want to show that it’s possible to make a good film without a big budget,” he says.

New Comer
The Cannes Kaleidoscope is a new initiative that has been introduced at the IFFI this year. “The Cannes Film Festival attracts the best of cinema every year. So this package has been introduced with the aim of showcasing the current best of world cinema at IFFI,” says Shankar Mohan,Joint Director,Directorate of Film Festivals. Under this new feature,the festival will be screening Jean Paul Civeyrac’s Young Girls In Black,Jean-Luc Godard’s Film Socialism on November 30,Ken Loach’s Route Irish on December 1,Takeshi Kitano’s Outrage,and Kiarostami’s Certified Copy.

Interestingly,the copy of Film Socialism with the IFFI officials is without sub-titles. However,Mohan hopes that the screening,which will be preceded by a detailed introduction,will not leave any scope for Godard fans to complain. Another prominent film in this section is Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives by Apichatpong Weerasethakul,which will also be screened on December 1. This film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes festival this year.