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Journalism of Courage
Israeli filmmaker Dan Wolman is no stranger to Indian cinema. Having been on the jury for Indian film festivals,he rattles off names of films,which we have never heard of. His familiarity becomes even more apparent when he corrects us on the exact dates for a particular film festival in India. There is something about India that attracts me, he says,There is something very modest and humane about this place. He is currently in India as a jury member for the Delhi International Film festival (DIFF),which closes on December 27. Last year,he was on the jury for the International Film Festival of India,Goa,the Kochi International Film festival and the International Childrens Film Festival in Lucknow.
The 72-year-old filmmaker is a veteran in the world of Israeli cinema,having lapped up many acclaimed awards in his country. In 1999,he was given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Jerusalem Film festival. He received critical acclaim for his 1972 film Hide and Seek,which was about the homosexual relations between a teacher and his pupil. I came to India around 10 years ago for the Osians Film Festival with Bens Biography (2004). Ever since I have been travelling through Asia and looking at subjects from respective countries, says Wolman,who is premiering his latest film,The New Voice at DIFF. The film,which was written in Hebrew and translated into Chinese (with English subtitles),deals with a Chinese family of opera singers who pool in their strengths for a performance.This was a departure from Wolmans usual style of cinema and his first movie out of Israel. I wanted to make a film that would draw Israelis to China, he says.
Besides,he is also supervising a project by an Israeli company that wants to make a film adaptation of a spiritual novel titled The Lotus Enigma by Israeli author Nissim Amon. I have written the script. The story is based on foreigners coming to India and solving a mystery, he says.
Wolman is also keen on the new wave cinema being made in India and Israel. When one thinks of Israel,one immediately associates it with conflict. So films such as Waltz with Bashir (2008) and Lebanon (2009) become more popular outside Israel. But young and new Israeli filmmakers on the contrary are saying we do not want to make films dealing with conflict anymore, he says,proposing the setting up of a network of independent filmmakers,which allows for film screenings at non-theatre venues. Though Wolman has not tried this anywhere,he feels the time is right for it.
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