When I first started screenwriting in 2013, “Virulence” was only the second screenplay I’d ever written and my first attempt at horror with the idea to write a low budget movie set in one isolated location. In 2021 after a six year break from writing I decided to go back and revisit Virulence, re-writing dialogue & changing certain scenes until I was fully satisfied with it.
-What goal do you dream of achieving?
Ultimately I’d love to find a home for the screenplay with a production company that can see its value and potential in the horror market, and with this being one of seven screenplays I’ve written it would allow me to focus on other projects.
-Who inspired you to create your project?
The biggest inspiration for Virulence was John Carpenter’s 1982 masterpiece, The Thing. Being one of my favourite films of all time I loved the concept of people being trapped in a hostile environment with no help from the outside world as they fight for their lives against something they both can’t control nor understand.
-Which awards has your project won?
I’ve been very fortunate to win a number of awards for Virulence, these include: Best Action Screenplay – THE THING IN THE BASEMENT HORROR FEST Best Action Screenplay – ADBHOOTURE FILM FESTIVAL Best Feature Script – LIT SCARES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Best Feature Script – 8 & A HALFILM AWARDS Best Feature Script – INTERNATIONAL GOLD AWARDS Best Action Screenplay – FRIDA FILM FESTIVAL Best Feature Script – INDEPENDANT HORROR MOVIE AWARDS Best Unproduced Action Screenplay – LA SCI-FI FILM FESTIVAL Nosferatu Prize for Horror – Best Unproduced Screenplay – LOS ANGELES MOTION PICTURE FESTIVAL Jury Award Winner – Scariest Script – HYSTERIA FEST Best Feature Script – RUSSIAN INSTITUTE OF CINEMA & PERFORMING ARTS AWARDS Best Feature Script (OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD) – CALCUTTA INTERNATIONAL CULT FILM FESTIVAL Best Feature Script – SEVEN WONDERS INTERNATIONAL FILM FEST Best Feature Script – BOX OFFICE CINE AWARDS Best Feature Script – SWEDISH ACADEMY OF MOTION PICTURE AWARDS Best Feature Screenplay – HORROR UNDERGROUND FILM & SCREENPLAY FESTIVAL Best Original & Feature Script – IF INDIE FESTIVAL
Lazar Karov is a Macedonian writer and actor. From poetry to short stories and plays, novels and screenplays, he keeps his readers attached to his suspense stories where always the moral and the universal love win over ego and wickedness.
-What inspired you to become a Filmmaker?
Not just for entertainment but encouraging the individuals to come out from the daily affairs that shape the super ego and engage with various aspects of life.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Stories in general are always inspiring that evoke emotions and imagination.
–What would you change in the world?
Nothing. It’s a perfect world.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Nothing we come up with, make and build, is able to surpass over our comprehension.
I am a filmmaker and creative director from Toronto who is obsessed with the art of film and keen on developing my skills as a storyteller to creatively and culturally enhance the cinematic experience. I made a breakthrough in the film industry without any formal film education by becoming the founder and CEO of NinetyFour Productions Inc. in 2020.
This is a Toronto based production company dedicated to filmmaking, videography, photography, marketing, and social media distribution. Over the years, I collaborated with independent filmmakers, professionals in the field and assisted in various film and music video productions across Toronto and LA. My obsession with movies have led me to work for the Toronto International Film Festival as a marketing distributor, Warner Bros. Canada as a publicity and promotions coordinator, and Entertainment One as a theatrical film marketing coordinator. I am currently working as a creative producer for a YouTube food travel series called BEYOND THE BLADE under the cutting edge culinary company called Dalstrong. My innate philosophy has been to leave behind a legacy no matter what it is you choose to do in life. Filmmaking has consistently allowed me the opportunities to explore my imagination and creatively tell the stories that have the potential to inspire lives.
– What inspired you to become a Filmmaker?
For many years, I was enamoured with the idea of leaving behind a legacy with the passion I chose to pursue. Since the day I was born, cinema has very much been a part of my life, which I owe greatly to both my parents who originally introduced it to me. Every Saturday night as a new born child, my mother and father would ritually include me in their movie going experience by sitting me on the couch and letting me watch some of the most dramatic, entertaining, and memorable movies I’d ever seen. I began developing a relentless obsession with watching films, that I noticed it was consuming my entire life. I’d see the world through the lens of the camera and the perspective of a potential story. Upon learning about my new obsession, I decided to further explore the people who were responsible for making the films that I love. This is when I discovered a proud film aficionado that changed the whole trajectory of my life from studying marketing in business school to becoming a professional film director – Quentin Tarantino. Once I laid my eyes on his captivating films, I knew where my heart truly belonged – the cinema. And after learning that he never went to film school and became a director on his own merit through incredible tenacity, I knew it was possible for me.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in society?
I believe cinema is a poignant artistic medium that allows society to collectively explore and crucially understand the human condition. Experiencing this visually captivating art form carries a unique capability apart from other expressions that can significantly Daniel Calderone 2 of 2 address and influence societal values. While music, art, and theatre possess the same capabilities of societal change for those who consume it, cinema gives the audience a unique perspective by offering all of them at once. Using the power of storytelling supported by striking visuals, melodic music, and emotional performative art, it is truly an unforgettable experience if done authentically and correctly. My argument for this strong conviction is cinematic films have the potential to evoke certain resounding feelings through their unique qualities that can give an audience different perspectives on their life, their purpose, and even themselves. Understanding such a provocative notion will make people see that cinema DOES have the power to bring a change in society, yet only in the matter to which it presents a story and tells it truthfully. Only then will society witness that spark for change when a film dares them to question their own reality.
– What would you change in the world?
A very interesting question to answer as I could think of many different aspects that I’d like to have change in the world. Personally, I’d prefer for the world to return to the traditional values that made our society more respectable in the past. I’m not saying that people’s freedom and empowerment should be limited or removed, but I do wish our society would uphold the values of family, integrity and, respect. I strongly feel our world is devolving into a value system that prides success over fulfillment and materialism over gratitude. I grew up in a fairly conservative household so maybe my desire for change can be argued as biased, however, these inherit values I champion for society are the ones I believe that make for a more fruitful life. Be grateful for your friends and family, never disregard your integrity for anyone, and pursue something of meaning rather than of monetary pleasure.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Even though the general public may push the narrative of streaming services taking over the theatrical experience, I believe the film industry as a whole will ADAPT in the next 100 years. Like in the last 100 years, the film industry adapted to new venues and new technologies. But the movie going experience and the art of telling stories proved to remain. I say this with great conviction because despite the cynicism of film being dead or there are no new great ideas, there will always be someone like myself ready to tell a compelling story. The beauty of film does not rely on its entertainment value to be successful, rather on its potential to become timeless. People will always remember how certain films in history made them feel, not by just the visuals or quotable lines, but the message it served them and the influence it had on their own life. There is no perfect story to tell. There is no limit to telling stories. There is only the art of storytelling, which will eternally belong to the film industry.
Michelangelo and Me (novel version titled Heaven’s Rogue) came to life during millennium fever in 1999. I had written three single title releases, all lead titles, for Dorchester’s fairy tale imprint and my editor liked them all so she asked me to write a millennium book and when I pitched her my first concept she wanted a trilogy. I was on a family trip west with my sons and husband and while he drove, I looked at the beautiful scenery and wondered what it meant to live to see a new millennium. Very few people in human history live to see that change. The last one, in the year 1000, was also a time of turmoil: the dark ages, famine, pestilence, war everywhere. But if I wanted to tell a moving, uplifting story about such a rare human experience it had to be meaningful in scope. Who were we, who are we, and where are we going? So what was the best example of humanity through the ages? Michelangelo’s David. Who was he, why did Michelangelo pick him for the model (historians don’t know who he was) and manage to capture so much vitality, nobility, yet human struggle too at an insurmountable task ahead? I tried to visualize what Michelangelo thought of while he worked. That’s the way I always create my characters, trying to walk a mile in their moccasins as they would if they really lived. Michelangelo was both gay and very religious– he used to self flagellate. So what if he had a childhood best friend, virtually perfect physically, who was also rather arrogant and unruly, a bastard without title or money yet so charismatic everyone loved him, especially his best friend. What if he commits an unforgivable sin and gets turned to stone? So everything came from that. The famous ‘what if?’ every fiction writer faces as worst challenge and best inspiration….whether script or novel.
-What goal do you dream of achieving?
Preferably getting Michelangelo and Me produced and distributed world wide as the first in a possible extended story, either film or pilot and streaming though this story is so visually interesting it’s probably best on the big screen. Also to start being involved in producing of some type.
Why I think I’m ready: I know I’m older than most people who attempt this, but I started young as a novelist (at 26 sold myself to Berkeley Putnam the first full length book I ever wrote before it was finished). It was followed by five more single title releases for them, 10 for Dorchester, and most recently three for Kensington. They’ve all been cross genre books as are my scripts because I only find rich stories with characters I care about in worlds that interest me compelling, and it shows in both my scripts and novels, I think. They’re different because I think differently. I used to have NYT romance novelists at conventions etc. tell me I wrote ‘above the genre.’ I have fan mail from all over the world. I’ve never self published though I may consider it if this doesn’t pan out. I’ll hire a publicist and write under two different names for romance and thrillers. I know I still have a readership because my first Ranger book, Foster Justice, hit #1 on Amazon Kindle’s Western Romance list when it came out. Not an easy feat even in genre fiction and it had been many years since my last historical because I didn’t write when I was working as a VP in development in Los Angeles. People reading this should be aware I’m willing to move back if financially motivated. My sons are grown with families so it’s just me and I still have friends in LA .
In addition, I expect to be writing to the day I die and there is much longevity in my genetics. Women in my family tend to battle our weight but are healthy into our nineties. If I choose to I could go back to real estate development right now, but storytelling is my first love. My story telling and characterization seem to transfer well to film (see the Hal Ackerman letter, posted at FF) . I decided to try screenwriting one last time when I saw more of the stories I like to see coming out on the big screen (like Shape of Water) and some streaming films/series. I loved Damsel and would write it with probably a happy ending romance. I love female empowerment movies but I think the best stories combine male and female characters and our natural likes and differences, typically in romance, but they can be other types: Skyfall is my favorite Bond movie because the end of the relationship between Bond and M is the story lodestone, a proper exit of one of the best secondary characters ever. Honestly, I think most screenwriters and directors too for that matter, have a hard time getting into the heads of both genders. It comes easily to me precisely because I’ve written so much romance from both PoVs. Honestly I saw the reason for it, and I understand why Barbie has become such a worldwide sensation, but I think it was over the top in its portrayal of Ken and his friends. Yes it’s Barbie’s story, but it would have been a better film with a better, more multi faceted, role for Ken. I love writing buddy movies and huge action sequences as well as romance. Full Circle, at its core, is a buddy movie, though a screenwriter I know called it a romance instead, between uncle and nephew, not just Lily and Rob. And the action sequences are complex. Three of my scripts are based on my own books: Michelangelo and Me, its sequel in progress now, da Vinci and Me, and Foster Justice. Full Circle is a totally original idea, and two of my rough drafts, The Gentle Beast, and Time Will Tell, have completed novel versions. I also have two treatments, plenty of material, I think, for interested parties to gauge my ability. My other unusual characteristic is I’m very savvy in business, have even written one of my own contracts and sold half my books myself. I was only ever late on one book deadline and that was during the birth of one of my sons. Hence I honestly think I could produce as development is similar in task management and I think both logically and creatively.
-Who inspired you to create your project?
In its original form, Heaven’s Rogue, it was inspired by my Dorchester editor who worked with me on my three fairy tale books. I sold to her on proposal but when she got the final version of the Beauty and the Beast tale, The Gentle Beast, she made it the launch book for their fairy tale imprint, with dumps and special promotion and my most beautiful cover ever. Very expensive, step back with embossed gold foil lettering and two different cover images, the hero with and without his mask. Now most covers are digital. I loved working with her, she was very flexible in what she liked and I gave her many unusual ideas, according to her. So when millennium fever hit and they decided to do a millennium imprint, she liked my work and asked me to write a millennium book. I pitched Heaven’s Rogue to her over the phone and she bought it from the pitch, with approval rights, of course. I also suggested the cover idea with the David coming to life, marble to flesh. For once, art and marketing took my idea, a miracle, appropriately enough lol. She wanted another trilogy, so my idea had to loosely link multiple stories. The way I got the inspiration is in the first paragraph of this interview. I never have a problem with ideas; only time to write them. But my most frequent negative feedback on this story has been too much story. Coverage often recommends I need to divide it up between the three heros. That’s Hollywood formula, of course, but question: why does the most lucrative franchise ever made break formula and combine genres so beautifully?
Star Wars. I know what I’m attempting is very difficult, so I sat with a stopwatch and Star Wars New Hope, which is what inspired me to the power of film so long ago, to test my story instincts . It’s over fifteen minutes into the film before you meet Luke and over thirty before you meet Han Solo. Yet they all have their own roles and own lives that blend well with plot and story arcs first as a stand alone then with tantalizing hints of a sequel (Vader spinning into space and the new alliance between the guys and Leia). My throughline in the books is it’s always heaven’s plan to bring David/Dom back to life to give him a chance to redeem himself because his actions will impact humanity in the third millennium. Visually I had to come up with a way to portray that, hence The Sistine Chapel. However, Michelangelo and Me also works as a single film. My first scene in the second story, da Vinci and Me. opens in the chapel with God depressed because he’s not a good comic and a very famous one whirling in to show him how. Not in the books….but I just read a couple lines to the five people in my critique group and they all laughed. But I do have synopses for the next two stories I wrote for Dorchester I can supply if anyone is interested. Heaven’s Hero will be da Vinci and Me (Nick and Isabella) and Heaven’s Warrior will be Rafael and Me (Rafe and Omani, an empath human descendant in the third millennium after we’ve moved to the stars with the last of the human race). All of this sprang from the idea of the world’s best example of humanity, flaws and virtues, coming to life in a new millennium. Why? Who sent him? Who is he? Why is he soimportant? What is his mission and will he succeed or turn back to stone? I always reason through every idea mentally before I start writing, though I don’t outline.
-Which awards has your project won?
The Gentle Beast won Romantic Time’s best British Isles romance for the year and it features Samuel Johnson as a character. It’s far more than just a romance, having history, action, art and suspense as well. I’ve won many other industry awards and made numerous bestseller lists, though never the NYT. Michelangelo and Me, which started as Heaven’s Rogue, has almost an 80% selection rate at FF with five or so festivals still undecided and has been selected in all five continents with many invitations for me to submit in Australia, which would make six. There has to be international interest. As for its original version Heaven’s Rogue, I’m not aware of any awards it won except its place in my ranking: my favorite, again with those cross genre elements mentioned above. I know my editor told me she’d never seen another book like it and she’d been editing romance a long time, and I know the Amazon Romance editor at the time picked it as her favorite fairy tale romance. The book and film versions are quite different, showing I think I understand the differences between both arts. And to me they are arts, not crafts. I’m still learning. I never send out a rough draft, only something rewritten many times. I don’t know if anyone else can see my dashboard but if 8 And A Half and Film Freeway approve I’m happy to share it. I’m very proud of my gold award for best feature script from the Florence Film Festival in particular. There is no better source to gauge my research, obviously, than the place where he was created, has lived for five hundred years and will probably always live. Note I say ‘he’ lol not ‘it’.
I am 44 years old, I am Italian, born and raised in Naples, but resident in Bologna for 19 years. I deal with art. Specifically visual arts. I try through art to know myself, navigating in a simple way, building slowly and constantly analyzing my work. In art I find the shelter that social life doesn’t give me. I don’t run away, but I resist. Here, in artistic practice there are no cuddles or reassurances; artists know this well. I was born as a painter, then an illustrator. I then began and completed a three-year course in Nautropathy (holistic disciplines), and later specialized in photography, graphics and video art. With photography I work both purely and with photomontage. In photomontage I let drawing, painting and sometimes writing come together, combined with photography. In video art I have more space, as the narrative elements that are added are dictated by the vocal instruments and the music. Giving rhythm by also using still images, such as drawings or photographs, greatly broadens my spectrum of creative action. I really like to experiment and in graphic post-production and video effects software I have found a vast world from which to draw for my inspiration. I prefer to work in a simple and natural way, even if I can sometimes appear radical in my almost sparse use of elements. But this is part of my personality and holistic studies. I believe in the use of poor materials because I believe that in this way we can reach the intimate nature of things with greater sincerity. In my artistic research, my personal condition and the human condition occupy a central position of interest, where the intention is to reveal the nature of a life that is beyond and above humanity. My artistic works, whether video art, photomontages or documentary photography, are always accompanied by descriptive texts that speak of my way of understanding life. The interest I carry forward in Eastern philosophies fills my research. I try, with the support of these studies and through the simple experiences of a human being, to give voice to my considerations and my experiences, through art. My vision includes a universal feeling of things, where the succession of human experiences are imbued with the desire to discover the original spiritual nature.
-What inspired you to become a Filmmaker?
One afternoon at home I was on the computer watching music videos, short films and cartoons, as I did every day. I realized at that moment that the vast majority of things I was watching with interest were videos. And I had been doing it for years. So I thought: why not learn how to make them? It could be inspiring! It was like this that I began to study the art of cinema in a completely simple way. I attended both videomaking and postproduction courses and the video effects tools certainly involved me a lot. What the video gives me is the possibility of creating a temporal narrative that goes well with my lyrics and music, which I love. At the moment I am tending towards the creation of music videos and short films which include lyrics written by me and also music created by me. In these videos writing, painting, drawing, photography, voice, music, video and video effects come together. The latter, video effects, is certainly the one that stimulates me the most at the moment. Here I try to develop animations starting from simple geometric shapes or by manipulating images and video clips with well-finished but elementary effects. It reflects my thoughts, my way of life. The attempt is to give shape to what I feel inside.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
I believe in art. And I believe in cinema as a form of art that can be enjoyed immediately. It involves a temporal narrative that requires constant attention. Through a film we can learn social, historical, scientific notions and we can learn about the thoughts of a director, which can awaken something within ourselves. Having touched the soul of an individual is already the beginning of a potential social change.
-What would you change in the world?
Today we see a very trivial world, grappling with old systems of social control taking on new forms, and with truly sad results. The wars and false democracies of the dominant countries suggest an increasingly poorer future both economically and culturally. Personally, I am for a more sensitive and human approach to life. So I look at the things closest to me. What happens in the city I live in and what happens in my country. I believe that paying attention to the reality closest to us can be very helpful on a social and global level. A state that loves you is concerned with committing its economic resources to health, culture, racial integration, the real implementation of strategies implemented on gender equality, the commitment to guaranteeing a home for its citizens, and in interventions to support the environment.
A state that does not give to the citizen is a state that does not love you. My point of view is not simply linked to the sphere of sensitivity and empathy, but I find that altruism is an intelligent tool for creating solid and changing relationships between individuals. An attitude aimed at caring for people can create a healthy feeling of affection towards one’s land, one’s nation, and would certainly lead to making people stronger.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
I believe in cinema as an artistic genre. So I’m not worried about new technologies, since they won’t bury cinema as an art form. What I hope is that artists do not allow themselves to be overwhelmed by increasingly powerful technologies, which can lead to a reduction in human commitment through a reduction in workload. Therefore I believe it is important to point out that the ease and speed with which some technologies allow us to create must be carefully examined when we realize that our personal creative capacity is being reduced. In the descriptive text of the video “Segno – Ti aspetto” I also talk about this. Specifically, I am interested in seeing how much human there is in an artistic work. I therefore believe that the further time goes, the more powerful the technologies will be and the more the artist will have to ask of himself. The artist, as always in history, is personally responsible for what he creates. He is responsible for himself and others. Cinema, which was born as a new artistic frontier linked to a great scientific innovation, should in my opinion take on board the experiences of the past and take into account the fact that without human beings there is no art. Two human components that I find important for an artist are sensitivity and courage.
It sad and odd that I wrote the basis for this screenplay when the Soviet Union was still in power. Originally titled THE DANSEUSE, my thinking then that it was commercial in the vein of THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR. It is even more amazing that this story of a renegade ballet dancer and her young husband who defect to the West is currently more immediate than ever, especially in light of Ukraine and latest “elections” in Mother Country. The goal is to make a classic statement about voter suppression, ideologues, and most chilling, the power of money and drugs over Justice and Equity! Adding “Ragzi” to the title I hope adds mystery and the sense of an innocent young, celebrity poet with a conscience who dresses in rags in recognition of less fortunate. I love the idea of a Poet/Protagonist in an action/thriller.
-What goal do you dream of achieving?
“Awareness” stitched to “supreme entertainment” has always been my goal. All worthy projects touch the world in one, inscrutable way, like CASABLANCA. While RAGZI & THE DANSEUSE is in its infancy, it reaches the goal of international cinema to speak to as many as possible.
-Who inspired you to create your project?
Having lived in Europe, it was eye-opening for this American to see and try to understand how other countries deal with their own sins and redemption – for Americans certainly have ours! But, we are one humanity and should find one voice among Chaos. That is RAGZI’s message which gets him in lots of trouble.
-Which awards has your project won?
RAGZI & THE DANSEUSE has won numerous awards including Best Feature Script 8&Halfilm Awards/Cinema Paradiso, London Movie Awards, Paris Film Awards, Cannes World Art Festival, Sweet Democracy Film Awards, Frida Film Awards (Mexico), San Diego Arthouse Fest, Accolade Global Film Awards/Award of Excellence, Finalist Wiki: The World’s Fastest Screenplay Festival, Santa Barbara International Film Festival, Grand Prize/New York International Screenwriting Competition, and others. Please see Film Freeway for citations.
Cosmic Light – my project is about Sun life and evolution as well as the need for peaceful coexistence in the cosmos with beings from other galaxies. With the solar flashes, the evolution and transformation of Earth today, the idea took shape for this project.
-What goal do you dream of achieving?
In these troubled times we live in, there is a real need for taking the listener above the common vibrations, which helps them to rise up to their full potential and “Transcendence“ is a wonderful way to do that. This soundtrack and video continually come back with the transcendence subject, to elevate your vibrations, to hold your Soul in Love, offering it up for your enjoyment and solace. A series of experiences with the moon, the sun and the cosmic light are bringing awareness and transcendence to this world, a new 5th dimension of the universe.
-Who inspired you to create your project?
all comes from my Inner Being and my Soul. And I have a wonderful team that translates my dreams. I compose the soundtrack, and do a draft for images and Pedro Tavares works with me in sound design and Marcio Alves works with me in image design. I do a lot of filming also.And I have a very critical consultant that gives her insights about the project:Suzanne Doucet.
-Which awards has your project won?
Award winner for Best Original music, best composer, best score soundtrack, best woman filmmaker, best producer, best music video, best original poetic song, best music video and best original score. All my projects are now available in 33 countries, spreading love and the 5th Dimension vibrations.
Lois Banks is a mother to Charlton, Candace, Michael, and Ashley. She is a grandmother, and recently a great grandmother. Lois is a licensed nurse of 30 years in the state of Michigan. She owns a health company called, CCMA Caring Hands Home Care Agency where she teaches the world how to take excellent care of their health.
–What inspired you to become a Filmmaker?
Gifted in writing and sharing stories filled with true life lessons, Lois, authored four books and wrote her first movie entitled, Walking With God, where she directed, and executive produced her movie in the state of Michigan.
–Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
The vision in film is to educate people, bring healing to the world, and to entertain in the movie industry. For many years, Ms. Banks kept powerful stories about her relationship with God to herself until she was challenged to be transparent, come out of her comfort zone, and share her wealth of knowledge with the world. The topic of the movie was written in book format first and then the book was made into a movie.
–What would you change in the world?
Helping people is the motivation behind everything that Lois does. And she lives a full life of serving humanity in every area of life. Ms. Banks definitely believes that the cinema can be a tool to bring a positive change to society and she purposed in her heart to send a message of love and hope to the world with her film. Walking With God is already making positive changes in society, receiving positive responses globally and winning awards in many countries globally. Dubai, India, Europe, Israel, and many film festivals globally shared positive feedback about the movie, Walking With God, and sent awards to express how the film captivated audiences globally and in a positive manner.
–Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
I hope the film industry will be used as a positive tool to educate, heal, and to entertain globally in the next 100 years.
-How was your project “The Victims of Sundarbans born”?
Olivia Dunlop is an Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Business Woman, Script Writer, Poet (Blank Verse) is her forte. My team and I have been working for the tiger victim widows and the fatherless children of Sundarbans for the last 8 years and counting. We provide these people with all the necessities of life like food, clothing, shelter, education, rations, drinking water, healthcare and many more day to day materials, also few of the widowed women are self-sufficient now taking care of their families. I wanted to make a documentary movie so I have written the original script and its an original story of the tiger victim widows and their children, their lives and livelihood in the villages of Sundarbans where they live in hut houses and go into the dense forest to catch fishes, crabs and collect honey that is when the Royal Bengal Tigers in the forest of Sundarbans attack the humans especially the menfolk who go out into the vast rivers, riverines and backwaters to get food for the family. When the tigers attack the menfolk, the tigers kill them and that’s how over and above 3,500 widows along with children live in the villages of Sundarbans but have no one to take care of them and they too go back to the forest to earn a living. Sundarbans is the largest mangrove forest in the world and protected by the UNESCO World Heritage Site. We are trying to raise awareness through this movie that the only ray of hope for the children of these tiger affected families is EDUCATION and we have constructed an English Medium school to educate these children free of cost. Thus, the title of the documentary movie is “The Victims of Sundarbans”.
-What goal do you dream of achieving?
My dream is to achieve that this documentary movie is on NETFLIX for the viewership of all the people who care to work for society at large and help these tiger victim widows and their children by bringing education free of cost to these children then only they will not enter the forests of Sundarbans.
-Who inspired you to create your project?
I got the inspiration to write their story from the strong widowed women who are fighting day in and day out to earn a livelihood. It was my dream to make this movie so I wrote the script, produced it along with 2 other producers and sent it to all the film festivals. I want the story to be streamed on NETFLIX as then only there will be a change in the societal structure and more people will come forward to help these children and their mothers. Awareness has to be created then only change will happen via the medium of Education. Education is the only RAY OF HOPE which we want to give to the widowed mothers and the children of Sundarbans.
I am 63 years old and I live in France in Passy near Chamonix. I grew up in an artistic environment. My father is an architect and my mother an engraver and sculptor. We saw a lot of visual artist friends but none in the cinema world. My parents, especially my mother, took me to the movies a lot. We sometimes made quite long journeys to see films, some of which were by authors such as the Taviani brothers, Eisenstein, etc. I loved cinema. I cut out the articles on westerns and classified them by director. At the time my classmates were all talking about the moped they would get for their 14th birthday. I dreamed of a Super 8 camera. I collected the catalogs of the CAMARA photo store chain which had a nice section and so I told my parents that for my 14th birthday I didn’t want a moped but a camera. Obviously they didn’t plan to buy me a moped so no camera either. I bought the first one, a Bauer C14 with a projector and the mounting kit, with my first paycheck and quickly after a Beaulieu 5008S which allowed me to record sound. Then, I studied graphics at ENSAD where I took the animated cinema video option. Thanks to a professor Gérard Bellanger, I discovered film analysis.
It’s a universe that opened up suddenly. I loved cinema but there I discovered all the logic of its writing and its possibilities. I owe a lot of my profession to Gérard Bellanger. For the major end-of-study project, with another student, we decided to make a medium-length film in 16mm entitled “Kohl”. I bought Beaulieu R16. We also had access to the school’s title bench. We used it for the special effects we were passionate about. It was the time of Star Wars, Alien, Blade Runner, Outland… I devoured the magazines dedicated to understanding the principles of special effects. At the same time, I made a lot of music, mainly with synthesizers. I had a recording studio and so I did the entire soundtrack for the film. At the end of my studies, I had to choose a profession, I chose that of graphic designer, then composer and years later, when HD video arrived, I was finally able to become a director. Currently I make a lot of commissioned films which allows me to produce my own feature films.
-WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO BECOME A FILMMAKER?
A passion for cinema since I was very young. The first director who fascinated me was Sergio Leone with his sense of framing, of direction, the music of Ennio Morricone used as a story element, his talent as a storyteller, his characters with real depth. Once Upon a Time in the West was a real beacon for me. The film was prohibited for children under 13 and I was 8 when it came out. I had to wait to see it. I only had images and the music of Ennio Morricone that I listened to. Jill’s America or the Man with the Harmonica upset me (and still upsets me). I asked my parents, as a birthday present for my 13th birthday, to take me to see the film. It was possible because at the time, successful films were replayed all the time. So we found a cinema that was showing it and my father took me there. This film has never left me. I have seen it countless times (like many other films since). There have of course been many other directors: Ridley Scott, Werner Herzog, Giuseppe Tornatore, Hirokazu Kore-Eda, Clint Eastwood, Carl Dreyer, Thomas Vinterberg, Stephen Daldry, Phillipe Lioret, Denis Villeneuve, Cédric Klapisch, Tomas Alfredson… impossible to list them all, there are hundreds of them. I have seen and still see thousands of films with admiration for the talent, the personality and the way in which, after all the history of cinema, directors still manage to create, to innovate. We still manage to be surprised, moved and passionate by new works, new directors. It’s extraordinary. What I love about cinema, more than any other means of expression, is that it brings them all together: image, sound, writing… It’s total art for me and we live in a time where , thanks to the arrival of IT, it is possible to experiment and master it yourself, even without a budget. This allows you to focus on creation. It’s a golden age for independent filmmaking.
-DO YOU THINK THE CINEMA CAN BRING A CHANGE IN THE SOCIETY?
Yes obviously because the film allows us to identify with and experience the story it tells us. We begin to live each other’s lives. It opens our eyes and makes us more tolerant of it. It also allows us to understand complex situations that we would have dismissed out of simplification. It is said that a successful film takes the viewer from point A to point B. Point A is what he was thinking before seeing the film. Point B is his new vision of the subject after having the film. As such, a striking example is Clint Eastwood’s double film Letters from Iwo Jima and Memory of Our Fathers which offers us both points of view. This refusal of Manichaeism is also present in all of Clint Eastwood’s work. Art offers us a new look at the world around us and, in this sense, allows us to live better together. At a time when we see people easily turning to populism, rejecting others and turning inward, this seems even more important to me. The film has a political role to play, political in the broad sense, not to defend a party, but to help people not give in to the ease of the base instincts that every human being has hidden deep within them. Cinema can help protect the foundations of democracy. Some films have also had a direct role, such as The Thin Blue Line by Eroll Morris, which saved an innocent person from the death penalty.
-WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE IN THE WORLD?
I think what matters most to me is showing that we can have different perspectives on events or places. Encourage spectators to look at the world differently, to find poetry and beauty in it but also to become more human, more rational in the face of events by trying to understand different points of view, by trusting professional people and the scientific research. What I like is to bring out the human element that is in every character, in every story, whether small or big.
-WHERE DO YOU SEE THE FILM INDUSTRY GOING IN THE NEXT 100 YEARS?
It’s a bit difficult to get that far, but a few years ago I saw research on the brain that allows us to transcribe a person’s dreams into images. Of course it was very, very basic, but when we look at the progress of the generative image, I think that we can achieve, on a technical level, a great purification of the process to produce all or part of a film by thought, assisted by one or more software which would transcribe this thought into an image. The Apple Vision pro is, for example, a new small step towards this approach by allowing you to edit a film with your eyes and fingers, eliminating the need for a mouse and keyboard. This will not change the strength and depth of the films because what will remain most important in any case: the content, what we want to tell, and the way of telling it, the choice of shots, angles, editing, implication of sound, text… It’s just a change of interface, a simplification of it. We use a lot of them today to achieve the desired result, even if the arrival of computing has greatly reduced the number of necessary tools, but direct access to the brain, without intermediaries such as the keyboard, the hand, hardware settings… will allow greater efficiency and remove all limitations and problems associated with these interfaces. For example, if I think of a night scene, it immediately comes out perfectly lit, without video noise, without extraneous sounds, in the desired setting… I can even include the missing actors who I miss terribly like Max von Sydow or Bruno Ganz (provided that this is authorized by the rights holders of course) or invent some. We will then only have the problem of the blank page. The film will reveal exactly what we thought. We will no longer have a limit to our projects other than that of our imagination. But, just as some directors currently still shoot on film, we will certainly have a cohabitation between the different filming techniques. It is also this diversity that makes our profession so rich.
