Q&A: Rusudan Chkonia, Director of Keep Smiling

• October 15, 2012
• Article

15.10.2012 - Keep Smiling, Georgian filmmaker Rusudan Chkonia's narrative feature debut, screens this week in ADFF's New Horizons Competition. A memorable blend of comedy and melancholy farce, the film is about women who enter a beauty contest for mothers, only to discover the show is a farce that exploits their misery for entertainment. Chkonia, who is a guest of the Festival this week, took some time to answer our questions.

Keep Smilingis inspired by true stories. What were the most touching aspects of the stories you encountered that led you to make this film?

I always find it interesting to observe how people behave in extreme situations - when they have to do things they would never have imagined doing normally. Some years ago, when I was shooting a documentary about homeless children, I visited a shelter called Bediani. It was a shelter for families who, due to difficult social conditions, found themselves out on the street. In Bediani, I met Tamar, a very intelligent, beautiful mother of seven, who told me about her struggle for survival in Tbilisi and how she even took part in a beauty contest for mothers to win a cash prize. This beauty contest was a deeply humiliating and disappointing experience for her. It was a tragic story, but at the same time, it was so absurd that I could hardly restrain myself from laughing. That's how I decided to make this film. I also want to mention that all the stories and characters in the film are invented, with no resemblance to Tamar.

What were the challenges you faced when making Keep Smiling?

It took me seven years to develop the script, mainly due to lack of funding. During that time, I won several awards including one from the Berlinale Co-production Market. Despite the awards, getting funding in Georgia was still difficult, so I started shooting with little money. I can't describe my joy when I finally received financing from Georgia. I would have been unable to make the film without the assistance of the Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection of Georgia. I was also very fortunate to get a brilliant French co-producer like Nicolas Blanc on board.

Another challenge was the casting of actresses, which took eight months to complete. Initially, I looked for actresses that would resemble the women I had imagined. I later realised that I would never find such women. I think a director should be adaptable to circumstances and actors. Good actors should be given some freedom, and the right impulse is sure to come.

When developing the characters, how did you deal with the issue of creating and/or avoiding stereotypes?

The script is very important for me; and in order to avoid the issues relating to stereotypes, one should simply work a lot on the script. As for the characters, I wanted each of them to represent a different social layer. Their motivation to participate in the beauty contest is also diverse. I think I succeeded: for Irina, the main motivation is the apartment and her children; for Gvantsa, it was to play the violin in public; and for Tamuna, it was to prove to her young lover that, despite her age, she is still beautiful.

You have a special connection to Abu Dhabi - you lived and worked here a few years ago. Can you tell us about your experience in the UAE?

Yes, that's true - I have a special connection to Abu Dhabi. In 2007, I won a Pearl Grant at the Middle East Film Festival and in 2008 I studied at the New York Film Academy in Abu Dhabi. It was my first experience in the Middle East and I have great memories of the city. This is a place I always want to come back to.

What are the stories from Georgia that you feel should be told in cinema?

Here in Georgia everything is a source of inspiration. My country is going through a very interesting period, following two revolutions, a civil war, a war, several ethnic conflicts, and an economic crisis. Georgia today is certainly a great place for documentaries.

What are your thoughts on Georgia today?

Just a month ago we had elections. For the first time since independence in 1991, the power has been transferred through an election rather than a revolution. During the last 15 years my country experienced all kinds of ups and downs that one could imagine. We have experienced wars, a civil war, and we have half a million refugees right now. Political life in Georgia is never calm and easy. Georgia, a pint-sized Caucasian country of 4.5 million people, has a strategic importance for Russia - its former colonial master that involuntarily relinquished control in 1991 - and the US as well as Europe, and now the country is searching for a political stability.

Are there any new projects you're already working on? 

I'm developing three feature-film scripts right now. Two of them are black comedies and one is a drama. They are very different from Keep Smiling.

Keep Smiling screens at ADFF on October 18 at 7:00 PM and October 20 at 6:30 PM at VOX 6.

Özge Calafato