Against the odds

Ruwini JAYAWARDANA

Multitasking is his strength. With many award winning scripts, documentaries, social awareness campaigns, advertisements, teledramas, short films, a feature film and theatre production to his name Sudath Mahadivulwewa had taken a less travelled path to come up trumps in multiple sectors of the artistic field.

His latest triumph is bagging four Signis awards: Best Commercial Advertisement (Auruddata Game Awith), Best Short Film (Batten Change), Best Documentary (Wellata Deviyo Awith) and Best Feature Documentary (Maadu Ganga).

“Theatre was my objective during schooldays. I sent some applications to Rupavahini Corporation but things did not work out. So I had give way to my elder’s decision and take up commerce as a subject for my A\Ls because they believe that there are more job opportunities in that sector,” the seasoned artiste and director recalled the origins of his artistic stint.

He had returned to his creative roots by completing studies in Mass Communication, Image Art, Drama and Theatre in Colombo. His first employment was as a creative copywriter at a leading advertising agency.

The uniqueness and competitive nature of the profession fascinated him and he was chosen out of around 100 applicants. During this course he clinched two awards for Best Film Script and Best Documentary Script presented by the Sri Lanka National Youth Council Services in 1989. Taking this as a trump card he decided to pursue a career as a filmmaker. Since then, there was no turning back. Controversy and accolades littered his path.

Shooting in progress

Wellata Deviyo Awith

Sudu Kalu Saha Alu

Awareness campaign

Q: You work in a variety of media. Which sector is your forte?

A: I am mostly known as a film and television personality. Advertising had been my bread and butter since I have earned my living making more than 500 commercials. However I believe that my heart lies in social awareness campaigns. I took the mechanism of the commercial and instead of selling a product I instilled a social message into the sequences. This aspect was put into practice and provided to be very successful.

Q: Since documentaries deal with real life, is there much scope for creativity?

A:There are many categories in documentary making. You can make it more like a real life incident, collect data and present it in visuals or you can create a supernatural element and bring real life into it. A documentary is like water. It takes the shape of whatever container you pour it in. You can shape it according to the way you want.

Q: Your first teledrama Dawala Rathriya (A Night Soaked in White) broke the stereotyped version of a teledrama.

A: When I first began making teledramas there was a belief that it should be more towards the gospel angle and similar to radio dramas. I managed to break free of these theories. Dawala Rathriya was more towards the cinematic aspect. It had fewer dialogues. The visuals conveyed ideas to the audience. It deals with a personal story. It is intriguing and confusing much like a detective story. It plays on human emotions.

I got a lot of feedback once the teledrama began telecasting. Out of those one particular comment is carved in my mind. It was uttered by Prof Ariyaratne Athugala or Piyasiri Kularatne. He said, ‘you possess a very powerful gun, you know how to shoot and you have the techniques but you do not have a bullet to use for that purpose. Therefore think about your bullets.’ These words had a great impact on me. I began to think seriously about the content of my creations. It turned a new leaf in my career.

Q: You introduced docudrama to Sri Lanka with Dande Lu Gini (Blazing Sticks). What exactly is a docudrama?

A: It is a very serious documentary in a drama form. Tilak Jayaratne and I managed to overcome the soap opera structure in Dande Lu Gini. One way of explaining a docudrama is comparing it to a sugar coated pill. The dramatic essence is the sugar while the knowledge and real life incidents are the medicine. You swallow the medication which is good for you because of its outer appearance and taste. A docudrama works miracles in sending a message across to masses.

Q: Why do your creations mainly revolve around socio-political issues?

A: I am a politically charged person though I am not politically biased or working for a particular party. Politics are involved in my work and I believe that it makes way for a better society. I have every right to point out if something goes wrong within the system since I do not belong to any camp.

Q: You and directors like Vimukthi Jayasundara, Asoka Handagama and Prasanna Vithanage have been heavily criticized for portraying incidents in the conflict in an unfavorable light. Do you see this as a barrier to the artistes’ freedom of expression?

A: One of my friends did a documentary research work in Sri Lanka for her studies. I was her coordinator. I visited many places with her for around a month. After the research was done, the dialogs of the people haunted me for many weeks. My escapism technique was to note down some of these serious incidents.

Once I finished the job I noticed that I have a social discourse on paper. One of my friends saw this and asked if there is no possible manner in which I could project the scattered information before the society. As a result my plans of making a documentary ended with a feature film, Sudu Kalu Saha Alu (Shades of Ash).

The film does not involve a main character or storyline. It is fragments of information with no particular time and space. I did not want to script the incidents in this manner but it happened naturally.

I and a few other filmmakers who dealt with such topics were dubbed ‘movie terrorists’. My movie was taken off theatres after a few days. However I believe that I made way for a social dialogue which I feel should be present in my productions.

Q: Sudu Kalu Saha Alu is themed ‘what is terrifying is not war, but the hour that dawns when it ends’. Sri Lanka recently passed that stage.

A: This film portrays what I heard and saw in real life. I still believe that war is not the dangerous element. The hour after war is more frightening. You know war is either living or dead but you are living with reminiscence in the hour after war.

In Sri Lanka there are so many ways to measure things but what is the measuring tool for disturbed human relationships? This is the area which I discuss in the film. I believe that this film is more relevant today because we overcame the conflict era. Certain things still happen following the LTTE leader’s elimination. I have brought these aspects to light in the film.

Q: You have won many awards. Where would you place your recent achievement?

A: An award and an artiste is like a painting and a frame. A painting cannot survive without a frame and vice versa. A person will be motivated to do a better job if his work is honoured.

The OCIC awards are very personal to me because the Sri Lankan branch of the World Catholic Association for Communication quenched my thirst for knowledge since I started my career in the creative sector. There was no proper film school to train me. This is also the first time that they introduced awards for certain sections and I was the first to win those awards.

Q: What are your upcoming projects?

A: Podi Hamuduruwo (Little Monk) is feature film which I scripted after an unpleasant experience in life. I wanted to infuse a very hardcore Buddhist philosophic idea into a light storytelling mode. The film is about a child who gives up his lay life for the robe. I am still negotiating with producers. A short film, The Red Letter, embodying a political theme, is also waiting to take shape.

Q: You have stressed that your dream is to win the Best Director Award at the Oscars. Do you see this as a possibility?

A: As a schoolboy I dreamt of being a film director. Now I have conquered that dream. I never thought I would have so many awards under my belt. So yes, I believe that I will definitely bring the ‘Oscar’ honour to Sri Lanka someday.

‘Majestic’ makeover

Majestic City cinema, Bambalapitiya, recently opened doors to movie buffs after a two-week revamping process.

The new hues, lighting systems, seating facilities, screen, A/C and sound upgrades wowed movie buffs who walked into the premises which is well known for screening some of the most sought after blockbuster Hindi and Hollywood movies of the era.

The auditorium dons shades of blue and black with red cushioned seats imported from India while the canteen sports shades of blue and purple. The lobby is tiled while the auditorium is carpeted. A 3D high gain silver screen imported from the US will project the movies. It is like visiting a new cinema as previous visitors will be knocked out by its facelift.

The cinema is currently screening India’s 3D movie Shahrukh Khan starrer Ra. One. It is said to be the most expensive movie ever to be produced in the country. Upcoming films include The Three Musketeers and Don 2. These will be displayed on the walls for film enthusiast with the screening dates.

RJ

Algerian film wins top award

Qatar’s annual film festival gave its top award to filmmaker Merzak Allouache’s production of “Normal”, a movie that follows disillusioned Algerian youth in the wake of the “Arab Spring” revolutions.

The award, which carries a bonus of $100,000 dollars, was announced at the third annual Doha Tribeca Film Festival awards ceremony Saturday, alongside seven other prizes, including, best Arab documentary film, best Arab short film, and best performance by an Arab actor.

The winners were chosen by a five-member panel of judges headed by award winning Syrian director Mohammed Malas, well-known throughout the Arab world for his movies.

Allouache dedicated his award to the “Syrian people’s struggle”, referencing the eight-month uprising against President Bashar Al-Assad, who has spearheaded a brutal crackdown on protesters that according to UN figures, has claimed more than 3,000 lives.

A highlight of the festival was the Moroccan-French production “Omar Killed Me”, a true story about a Moroccan immigrant to France who was convicted of murdering his wealthy French employer and pardoned by French President Jacques Chirac seven years later.

The movie’s director, Moroccan Roschdy Zem, was awarded the “Best Arab Narrative Filmmaker” prize, which carries a bonus of $50,000 dollars. The only Arab woman to be recognised by the panel of judges was the Lebanese documentary producer Rania Stephan, who was awarded the “Best Arab Documentary Filmmaker” prize for her portrayal of the life of Souad Hosni, a famous Egyptian actress who died in London in 2001.

AFP

Donald bags award

Renowned assistant director Donald Jayantha who had assistant directed 43 films was presented with a special award at the Signis Awards this year.

“An assistant director functions as the backbone of the creation. His job is to make sure that all the sectors of the film unit are functioning according to plan. He is active on the sets ever since the team plans to make the film till it is screened at theatres. However I also take hand in making sure that the publicity campaigns go well. I am truly bonded to the productions that I take part in. I give all that I have into making things run smoothly for the production team,” Donald said.

With a career spanning over three decades Donald has many well known movies to his name. Dehena, One Shot, Parliament Jokes, Vimukthi, Hiripoda Vessa, Anjalika, Asai Mang Piyambanna, Rosa Kele, Paya Enna Hiru Se, Mago Digo Dai, Suwanda Danuna Jeevithe and Super Six are some of the movies he had worked on.

“This is the first time that I have been awarded for my service. I believe that assistant directors need to be recognized for their contribution to productions. More assistant directors need to be felicitated for their profession. It is no walk in the park for them once they take on a production,” he opined.

Hailing form the outskirts of Matara, Donald had taken to acting on stage ever since he was 12 while still a student at Deniyaya Kotapola Maha Vidyalaya. After taking up employment as a journalist, he took on roles in some stage plays and teledramas as his ambition had ten been to proceed as an actor in the celebrity scene. He says that films starring yesteryear stars Gamini Fonseka and Malini Fonseka had inspired him.

However it was veteran filmmaker Dharmasiri Gamage who brought Donald’s skills in directing to the spotlight as he employed him as the assistant director for Yasa Isuru.

He is currently working on Sadesh Kumar’s production Pravegaya which is a Sri Lanka – India co-production. The movie is directed by an Indian director and is being shot in locations around Colombo.

“After assistant directing 50 films I hope to venture into directing. It is a dream which I had possessed for many years and one which I hope to make into a reality in the future,” he said.

RJ

NFC programmes for Dayata Kirula

The National Film Corporation will be hosting a few programmes to run in parallel with Dayata Kirula. Film screenings, seminars, discussions and workshops will be held at the following places on the following dates.

November 2 – Cinema entertainment programmes for school children at Kekirawa Central College (8.30 am), cinema entertainment programmes for school teachers at Kekirawa Central College (1 pm) and film screenings at Sunatha Army Headquarters (7 pm)

November 3 – Cinema entertainment programmes for school children at Kebithigollewa Central College (8.30 am) and cinema entertainment programmes for school teachers at Kebithigollewa Central College (1 pm)

November 4 - Cinema entertainment programmes for school children at Kahatagaslanda Central College (8.30 am) and cinema entertainment programmes for school teachers at Kahatagaslanda Central College (1 pm)