Danis Tanović: Masterclass at the ADFF
Bosnian
director Danis Tanović is at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival to present
his latest film, Cirkus
Columbia. During the masterclass that preceded the
screening, Tanović spoke at length about his beginnings as a
filmmaker, and more specifically about the making of No Man's Land, and the
doors that have been opened thanks to the film's
success.
When
the Balkan war broke out, Tanović took refuge in Belgium and
studied there. He was active in the documentary world before moving
on to fiction. The script for No Man's Land was written
in Belgium, but it wasn't until the director moved to France that
he was able to find financing for the film. "Don't get me wrong, I
love it over there in Belgium, but I was so bored! I left the day
after I graduated, and moved to France, where I made No Man's Land."
The
film went on to win an Academy Award and a Grammy Award, and
inspired a major rebirth in Bosnia's film industry. "No Man's Land changed
things. I tried to put my Oscar Award to good use, and to help my
colleagues back home in creating their own films."
Tanović
followed up on No Man's
Land with something of a departure: L'enfer was made in
France with French actors. The film is based on an original script
by Polish director Krzysztof Kieślowski. "I love Kieślowski; I have
seen all of his films several times. I read his trilogy, Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory, and decided to
adapt Purgatory. This
was when I first arrived in France. A few years later, I re-read
the script, and did not like it so much anymore. Tom Tykwer had
already adapted Heaven, so I chose to do
Hell."
Tanović
was asked why he participated in the reconstruction of a film
theater in Kabul, Afghanistan. He recalled Susan Sontag's visit to
Sarajevo. "I was grateful to Susan Sontag, this famous philosopher
who lives in New York, when she came to Sarajevo to present Waiting for Godot. This
is what inspired me to help in the rebuilding of this beautiful
film theater in Kabul, a Dolby Digital theater, a fantastic
venue."
Tanović
also recalled attending a film festival in Sarajevo in 1993, as the
war raged outside. On the opening day of the festival, despite the
shelling and the snipers, the cinema was full. "I couldn't believe
it; people did not care about the war outside, they came anyway.
The film was The
Bodyguard… yes, the one with Kevin Costner. At some point, in
the middle of the film, I started crying. I couldn't help it. I was
crying over this stupid film. Me, an army soldier, crying… I looked
around the theater, and I noticed that everyone was crying as well!
If anything, this shows how powerful a film can be, what a strong
medium cinema is."
Ziad
Nawfal