Into the battlefield

Ruwini JAYAWARDANA

His is a record that many would find hard to beat. 31 awards at some of the most prestigious film festivals including those for the Best Film and Best Director titles spell his success. This he did with his maiden feature film Sihina Deshayen (Veils of Maya) in 1993.

He followed this up with the critically acclaimed Mille Soya (Buongiorno Italia) which comprised a crew from eight countries. The movie was shot in Sri Lanka and Italy. The benchmark movie was screened at 16 festivals and won 15 awards. After a solitary stint in which he worked under wraps in his psychological thriller, Nimnayaka Hudakalawa (Alone in a Valley), Vishwanath Buddhika Keerthisena aka Boodee returns to the wide screen with Matha, a film based on the largest humanitarian

rescue in recent world history. The movie is slotted for release at the CEL circuit in January, 2012.

Q: Your work is influenced by John Cassavetes’ ‘cinema-verite’ element. Why did you employ this technique?

A: George Lucas and Steven Spielberg engage in cinema genres in which you need to plan and shoot. Their projects are very well planned and I have a high regard for them.

I also admire free cinema. Cassavete’s technique is to grab a bunch of friends and announce the desire to make a movie. Some are not even professionals in the field. Sometimes he shot episodes while the shooting schedule was ongoing. I believe that is a part of what art is all about.

Q: Does Matha uphold the motherland concept?

A: The title of the movie was suggested by Prof Ariyaratne Athugala. I agree with his idea because the film deals with a mother and also because the movie reflected the biggest event of our times - the elimination of terrorism. Therefore it covers both aspects – the physical mother as well as our motherland.

Q: Judging from the theatrical trailer Matha seems to be a movie based on the conflict from the LTTE point of view.

A: That trailer was not cut by me but another director. This was done according to the producers’ request. If I had gotten the opportunity to cut the trailer, I wouldn’t have cut it in that manner.

I wanted to make a movie which people from all communities can go and enjoy. I actually raised the question and made suggestions but the director was not pleased with my comments. Maybe he was looking at the angle of marketing it so I can’t really blame him for his effort. It would have been great if he had consulted me but, hey, such things happen.

I have made a 140-second trailer for Matha. It is available on http://vimeo.com/25776459.

Scenes from Matha

Q: Where does Matha stand before the cluster of pre and post war movies made after the elimination of terrorism?

A: The viewers are the best judges in conceptualizing the film. There is a certain style in pre war films which is different from the styles employed in the post war movies. I would call Matha a very ‘cool’ war film. There are a lot of directors in the world who would love to do war movies but very few get a chance to realize their dream. I was one of the few who was offered the chance to do a war movie. I was determined to give it my best shot. I wanted to make an entertaining production which plays upon the audience’s emotions.

Q: Is it good to dwell in the past especially since the conflict is a traumatic experience for many people in the country?

A: I think that is ok especially if the film-maker wants to bring out certain aspects of the time such as trying to project unusual circumstances. Even Saving Private Ryan was made about four decades after World War II. Different directors have different interpretations of the incident because they all see it in their own angles.

We have placed a lot of true incidents in Matha but most directors do the same when they try to make a movie of this nature. It all depends on their choice. If you want to make a larger-than-life production, you enhance it. Directors are permitted to use these techniques in cinema because you are not making a documentary. It is a work of art.

Q: You have touched upon terrorism in some of your past productions. How different was it for you to take that aspect into the battle field?

A: I love battle scenes in science fiction and historical movies. From the 1940s up-to-date I enjoy them. The Thin Red Line by Terrence Malick was fantastic. Matha gave me a chance to move into the battle and see things from the inside. Sihina Deshayen and Mille Soya or even the upcoming Nimnayaka Hudakalawa are all looking at the aspect from outside. The film-making concept is exciting because you are going into a territory which you are exploring then and there.

I was lucky to experience it with some Hollywood cinematographers and technicians who have worked with directors like Spielberg, Kevin Costner and John Woo. We worked under harsh conditions because there was no infrastructure just after the battle. I wanted to shoot in the areas where the action had taken place to capture its aura.

Q: You have worked in many art streams from painting, music, documentary making, TV commercial-making to film-making. Why didn’t you venture onto stage dramas?

A: I heard that Tom Stoppard is going to come to town and I am one of his fans. I would really like to produce one of his plays.

Q: You shot Nimnayaka Hudakalawa before Matha. Why have you put the project in the backburner?

A: I’m being a little greedy here (Smiles). I wanted to do Vijayaba Kollaya. Dr Tissa Abeysekara had even finished the screenplay for me. While I was reading the book Prof Athugala saw me and asked me to do the film with Rupavahini. A week later he proposed a contemporary project. I was game. Since nobody in Sri Lanka has done an actual physical war movie a lot of things were difficult for us and took a little more time that we expected.

Prof Athugala introduced me to Ruwan Jayasinghe. He brought along two other producers, Sanath Lanka Ranaweera and Vijaya Ratnayake. Jayasinghe has produced some teledramas. One is Jayantha Chandrasiri’s Sathera Denek Senpathiyo.

Nimnayaka Hudakalawa is produced by my father and me. I was editing it when Matha came along. Nimnayaka Hudakalawa is very complicated because it is a psychological subconscious thriller. It is an editor’s nightmare but I love the challenge.

Q: You have taught cinema at a variety of institutes in the past but now it seems to have come to a halt. Why is that?

A: I have taught at Vibhavi, Peradenitya University, the National Film Corporation and Heywood. I thought I would not teach any more because students were getting up and leaving in the middle of the classes. I was very offended but they say it is a normal process in Sri Lanka. If you have three absences, you are handed an F in where I was taught in New York.

Sri Lankan students say that they can get notes from other friends. It is better if they buy textbooks rather than go for classes. This is not a subject which you can learn from somebody else’s notes.

Though I have decided not to teach people have been inviting me for certain lectures and I do take part but not as per teaching.

Q: What are you working on at ‘Elephant and the Mouse’?

A: We are finishing off the special effects for Kusa Paba and Nimnayaka Hudakalawa. Visual effect interests me. I have been a great fan of Spielberg. The reason I went to film school was because I was trying to do a film with some school friends about UFOs. We could not get the project on the road because we did not know how to handle special effects then.

‘Elephant and the Mouse’ was created to do special effects. Matha has about 340 shots comprising visual effects. Hollywood movies like Transformers has about 350 to 400 shots of special effects. The ‘Elephant and the Mouse’ team is interested in taking on more films with visual effects.

Majestic turns Cineplex

Majestic cinema, Bambalapitiya, has turned Cineplex after its recent renovations. The cinema complex now comprises three cinema halls with 150, 50 and 170 seating capacities.

The cinema theatres are named Ultra, Gold and Superior. All of them are equipped with a 35mm single projector along with Xenon lamp house, 3 Deck Platter system, latest CP 650 XO Dolby Digital/DTS Processors, Crown Amplifiers, JBL Speakers and sub Woofers with the acoustically treated walls. This enables the team to screen the same film in all three cinemas.

The Cineplex also has a 35mm ‘Barco’ 3D projector for 3D movie screenings in its fully carpeted premises. P U leather push back chairs imported from India will adorn the theatre.

Operating under the distribution circuit of Cinema Entertainment’s (Private) Ltd, the Cineplex is on the fifth level of Majestic Shopping Mall. Some of the most sought after Hollywood movies of the coming months will be brought to the theatres soon. The Three Musketeers, a 3D movie, began unspooling at the Superior from December 2. Gold screens Hugo while Ultra projects Tower Heist. M:I:4 starring Tom Cruise, Hindi film Don 2 starring Shahrukh Khan and Puss in Boots are coming up.

RJ

Jackson to direct Tintin Part 2

Visionary filmmakers Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson bring the iconic character to the big screen in 3D. With over 200 million books in print-and two million sold each year-The Adventures of Tintin has a global fan base unlike anything else in contemporary pop culture.

George “Hergé” Remi’s adventure tales have plunged the intrepid young reporter, his scrappy dog Snowy and his array of friends and nemeses to far-flung locales in Africa, South America, the Far East, Russia, even the Moon. Beginning as a newspaper comic strip in 1920s Belgium and spanning the next half-century, The Adventures of Tintin was adapted into 23 albums that have become global best sellers, and now, for the first time, Tintin is being made into a major motion picture, by two avowed fans-director Spielberg and producer Jackson.

The Spielberg-Jackson produced film The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn will have a trilogy. Part II will be made by Peter Jackson, who is most remembered for his blockbuster The Lords of the Rings.

Speaking to a leading newspaper, 50-year-old Peter Jackson said, “We literally flipped a coin as to who would direct the first film. Eventually Steven became the director of the first one and then I’m set to direct the second one. We’re hoping to make as many as we can.”

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn is adapted from Herge’s 11th album, The Secret of the Unicorn, in which Tintin does battle with the descendant of a pirate to find a lost ancient treasure. The film was released in Belgium and a few other countries recently. It will hit the American screen in December.

One India Entertainment

Iranian films in Colombo

Ruzaik Farook

Due to the popular demand for Iranian films among the Sri Lankan audience, the Cultural Section of the Islamic Republic of Iran has decided to screen films by award winning Iranian artistes in its auditorium on first and last Wednesday of every month.

The inaugural show will be screened on December 7 at the auditorium of the Cultural Section of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, at No 6, Sir Earnest de Silva Mawatha, Colombo 7.

The shows will be sub titled in English for the benefit of local viewers. On first and last Wednesday of every month, the shows will commence at 5.30 pm.

For the inaugural session, the Cultural Section of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran has invited artistes of the film industry and journalists in Sri Lanka. The Cultural Section said admission to these film shows will be free.