Remy Tezier: Au delá des Cimes

Catherine Destivelle is the name and after numerous films (at the Trento Film Festival) about people dying in the mountains, and about heroes who save people, or fight the mountains – it was such a relief to meet a female alpinist, a charming person, smilingly taking her sister and a friend up and up and up, in sunshine, for a picnic, while you hear their conversation on the way, and while you watch the most beautiful shot images of her routes, plus some archives, plus some interviews.

Alpinism can be a Pleasure!  And alpinist films can convey presence in the good old observational style. An informational film it is as well, with narration, not too much (a French actor narrates, not a good choice) 

She is a winner but behaves with modesty always with a lowered voice and a non-competitive esprit .

The sweet ending – also without any drama – is a trip up with two older male friends, on the same route where she years ago fell 35 meters down.

France, 2008, 75 mins.

http://www.destivelle.com/en/profile.aspx

http://www.trentofestival.it/

Jiska Rickels: 4 Elements

Normally you say that something must be wrong if you leave the cinema to say that the cinematography was excellent, but the rest of the film… You do say so with this ambitious film but it is justified because it also has an idea and does not only tell about air, water, earth and fire, but link the elements to people, who work in hard and harsh conditions. Reminds you of Glawogger’s film ”Working Man’s Death” but has its own distant approach to the characters and is a visual formidable interpretation of a forest being cleaned, a fishing boat in high sea, a mine deeep down and an astronaut training venue.

The montage keeps you watching this our world, fascinating and scary at the same time, no eco-preaching, see for yourself, reflect, an essay maybe, some overall (biblical?) texts linking the chapters one after the other, and the sound design second to none.

What a pleasure to watch a film that insists on the image.

Holland, 2006, 85 mins.

http://www.fuworks.com/4elements/

http://www.idfa.nl/en/programme/festival-2007/film.aspx?id=34046

http://www.trentofestival.it/

Trento Diary 5 – Awards

Here are the results of the jury work. 4 of the films will be reviewed in the coming 3 days. Plus one that did not get a prize: Stranded.

Gran Premio “Città di Trento” – Gold Gentian and 5000 Euro for the best film of all, possessing high artistic qualities, that corresponds to the cultural aims pursued by the Festival.
4 ELEMENTS by Jiska Rickels (Holland, 2006 / 85′)

Italian Alpine Club Prize Gold Gentian and 3000 Euro for the best film on mountains and mountaineering.
AU DELÀ DES CIMES by Rémy Tezier (France, 2008 / 75′ )

City of Bolzano Prize – Gold Gentian and 3000 Euro for the best film on Alpine culture.
HEIMATKLÄNGE by Stefan Schwietert (Switzerland, 2007 / 81′)

Silver Gentian and 1500 Euro for the best short film.
IL NEIGE À MARRAKECH by Hicham Alhayat (Switzerland, 2006 / 15′)

Silver Gentian and 1500 Euro for the best television production.
JOURNEY OF A RED FRIDGE by Lucian Muntean e Nataša Stankovi? (Serbia, 2007 / 52′)

Silver Gentian and 1500 Euro for the best artistic technical contribution.
SCHAFSKÄLTE by August Pflugfelder (Germany, 2007 / 44′)

Jury Prize
DAUGHTERS OF WISDOM by Bari Pearlman (USA, 2007 / 68′)

The Jury was comprised of film director Maurizio Zaccaro (President), Danish documentary consultant Tue Steen Müller, Swiss film director Sylviane Neuenschwander, Italian mountaineer Elio Orlandi and by the Iranian film director and writer Siba Shakib.

http://www.trentofestival.it/  

Distribution: Jon Bang Carlsen

Jeg gik så på bibliotek.dk i går og bestilte løs af Bang Carlsens værk. Og allerede i dag kunne mit dejlige bibliotek her i byen meddele, at jeg kan hente kopier af Zuma the Puma og Min afrikanske dagbog. Men Næste stop paradis og Time out er der ikke noget bibliotek der har, skønt de altså er opført i bibliotek.dk. Imidlertid er der også fra mit dejlige bibliotek kommet besked om, at disse titler nu er reserveret til mig: En fisker i Hanstholm, Fugl Fønix, Jeg ville først finde sandheden, Livet vil leves, Min afrikanske dagbog, Min irske dagbog, Smalfilmerens søn!!

Så filminstituttet har ikke fået biblioteksudlånet til private helt destrueret. Endnu.. Og der var flere Bang Carlsen film på lsten i bibliotek.dk. Så det kan være kopierne bliver der, til box serien er ude – og bibliotekerne selvfølgelig køber dem. Allesammen, allesammen.

Nu venter jeg spændt på, om reserveringerne fører til, at jeg kan hente kopierne. Det er ikke sikkert, ved jeg. Swedenborgs Om kloderne i vort solsystem som kaldes planeter.. har jeg haft reserveret siden 7. juli sidste år. Men jeg er en tålmodig mand, og det ER et dejligt bibliotek.

Foto: Jon Bang Carlsen: En fisker i Hanstholm.

Trento Diary 4

Time for banalities. My own ones and examples from the films I have seen. Word banalities.

My own first: Wow, how much the viewing situation means for your evaluation of a film. Being in a jury you will always watch a lot of s… and therefore some good films may become better than they are, when they get to you. An oasis in a desert.

That is one thing, another is that some films you watch differently the second time, when your head is fresh and you concentrate as you are supposed to do as a member of a jury. Second time I watched the idfa winner ”Stranded”, I could see its qualities of filmmaking, especially of the reconstructions. The same goes for the Dutch ”4 Elements”, that I had watched on my computer. Now it was on the big screen and that demonstrated fully its cinematic brilliance.

And banalities from mountain films: The more commercial of them pour out one-liners expressed by their protagonists. Read for yourself:

”Extreme sport is a way of life. It was my way to become a man”. ”You are discovering yourself”. ”There is a thin line between success and disaster, between life and death”. ”On vit comme un mouton ou on vit comme un lion”. ”This is the biggest thing I have done in my life”. ”You have to know what the mountains are saying to you. You have to read them”.

Awards have been decided. Will inform you in some days accompanied by some short reviews.

http://www.trentofestival.it/en/ Still: 4 Elements.

Anja Dalhoff: Når månen er sort

“Anja Dalhoff har modtaget Europas Kvinders Pris for sit engagement og arbejde i kampen mod menneskehandel. Anja Dalhoffs film fra 2007, “Når månen er sort”, dokumenterer for første gang, med levende billeder, problemet med trafficking af nigerianske kvinder til Danmark.

Filmen er siden marts sidste år blevet vist på utallige konferencer i både ind- og udland. Herhjemme er den blevet vist med foredrag på landets folkebiblioteker, ved Amnesty Internationals arrangementer, i kvindeorganisationer, på sygehuse og på Politiskolen.”

Dette redigerede DFI-presseklip kan kun glæde undertegnede, som i sine 20 år ved Statens Filmcentral hver dag konstaterede, at film kan bruges i oplysningens tjeneste. Det var akkurat, hvad John Grierson i Canada og fremsynede danske politikere så i 1939, da de to landes filmcentraler blev stiftet.

Lang indledning og jeg ved godt, at jeg er i færd med at skrive mig udenom. Min store respekt for Anja Dalhoff, for hendes stædighed og menneskelige engagement er usvækket, men kunne der dog ikke komme nogle bedre film ud af det? Det var meget bedre tidligere, nu svinger Dalhoffs filmiske stil over imod det kulørte og sensationsrettede og der pladres musik på fra start til slut. I håbet om at få flere i tale? Jo. Filmen kom på CNN og der blev sat fokus på problemet, men alligevel – det kan gøres meget bedre. Hvorfor skal jeg høre på og føres rundt af en utålelig, journalist-agtig “presenter” Michelle Mildwater i stedet for at få en visuel værdig fortolkning af de nigerianske pigers skæbne?

Det går så helt galt, når Anja Dalhoff får til opgave at skildre unge piger i fare for menneskehandel i Moldava, i den dramadokumentariske “Natasha is not for Sale”, “based on true stories”, med skuespillere i rollerne. Det er ikke en stil, der passer til emnet og til Anja Dalhoffs talent for indlevelse

“Når månen er sort” distribueres til skoler og biblioteker gennem Filmstriben: www.filmstriben.dk og på DVD via DFI-Kataloget
Private kan købe på filmen på DVD gennem: www.danishdoc.dk

Trento Diary 3

Last day of watching. I write this while another commercially thought tv documentary is running on the screen. Makes me think about this genre where you can argue that the scenography – the mountains with or without snow – is dramatic in itself, and that the relationship man and or maybe man against nature is what it is about. That leaves space for a strong narrative:  Men who fight for their lives, on camera, pain, and meant for us as entertainment, helped by visual and sound effects that are second to none.

This film is about a brother who climb the mountains to bring back his brother’s corpse to be buried back home. Pure tabloid!

Wonder if there in this very well established festival that include conferences on alpinism are discussions on ethics in mountain documentaries?

http://www.trentofestival.it/en/

Trento Diary 2

The jury has seen 25 films in 3 days. Diversity is the word that applies to the selection. But also quality in most of the films, in very different formats and storytelling traditions.

Diversity because there are several films for the big thematically interested audience, about mountain climbing – alpinist films they call it – and skiing, hero stories about all these skilled and courageous men (and a couple of women), who go up and down climbing or skiing, and about extreme sport disciplines. But also about people, who live in the mountains, about nature and man, or about the four elements earth, wind, air and water – we can not say there is a lack of drama. And we can not complain about lack of words.

Gosh, how many wall-to-wall narrations there are! And how much music there is being used. The fear of silence and pauses is evident. And I have got a lesson in how different the use of talking faces can be.

What concerns organisation this festival works perfect, I can say as a jury member, who is being taken care of and spoilt by attention and care. I am here to watch films! 9 more to go and at the end of the week I can deliver some reviews of films that I think you should see as well.

http://www.trentofestival.it/en/  

Juraj Lehotsky: Blind Loves 2

… have to break the news that “Blind Loves” made it to Cannes! As expected and as so well deserved. Juraj Lehotsky is in the Director´s Fortnight section with names as Jerzy Skolimowski and Claire Simon. Congratulations and may this result in theatrical releases in France and other countries that appreciate a real “auteur”!

http://www.quinzaine-realisateurs.com/download/Selection_40_quinzaine.pdf

http://www.filmkommentaren.dk/default.asp?page_id=2

– see also the comment of Susanne Guggenberger to the right under “bemærkninger” 

Trento Diary 1

I am in Trento, in the jury of the Trento Film Festival that has the thematic subtitle: Montagna. Esplorazione. Avventura. The festival starts today and goes on until May 4. 34 films are in competition, short and long. It is edition 56 of this festival that has a strong reputation for quality, and that I know from my time at the Statens Filmcentral (National Film Board of Denmark), where we had difficulties in finding mountain films from a country, Denmark, that is flat as a pancake! Furthermore it is quite weird for a person like me, who do not really like to look down from heights, including from airplane windows – to sit here and watch people climb with enthusiasm.

As a jury member I can not reveal what we saw, liked and disliked so far, but reviews will follow after the festival of some strong films. And a bit of small talk will come in the following days from this fine, sunny town.

http://www.trentofestival.it/en/index.htm