Author: Dreamate Demo

-Who is Christopher Coppola?

I am asked this question a lot.  Most people want me to just say I am the nephew of, brother of, cousin of.  No need, the people asking me this question will do that for me anyway, whether I like it or not. The best way for me to answer this question is to imagine me standing in front of the Great Wizard of Oz, hearing the booming voice of the almighty Wizard asking me “WHO ARE YOU?” and I calmly respond, “who are you?”  I became a composer and filmmaker to distract myself from an incredibly dark and painful childhood.  My early student work was very original, poetic, and philosophical. Then, I did something that truly wasn’t me. I tried my hand at “Hollywood.”  I made the film “Deadfall” with big-name actors which ended up destroying my “Hollywood” career.  I was called the “the Ed Wood (I like Ed Wood) of the Coppola family” and other creative names like “The Coppola who made Dreadfall.”  I thought that was a cute one: “Dreadfall” instead of “Deadfall.” It was a blessing in disguise in the end though.  After Deadfall I raised money through my own film company Plaster City Production/Post-Production with zero famous family help and made 13 more films with my own mixed genre, “Sacred and Profane, funny but serious” signature films. I was labelled “The Rebel/Pirate of the Coppola family.”  That suited me just fine.  Later, I also became a film teacher. I traveled the world using my 33 years of filmmaking experience to show underserved non-filmmakers how to use cinema syntax so they can share their stories with the rest of the world in a visually articulate manner. This way more people will understand their movies even without dialogue.   For me, there are far better silent movies than talkies made in terms of percentage.  I remember a young boy in Punto Gorda, Belize came up to me when I was doing one of my Christopher Coppola: Think It, Shoot It, Share It workshops.  He wanted to participate but didn’t think he could.  I asked him why not.  He said he wasn’t a filmmaker but would like to be.  I said who says you’re not a filmmaker.  Do you dream, do you remember moments in your life, do you see people and things you love or hate?  He said yes. I said then that’s where you begin as a storyteller, never mind filmmaking.  That is only a medium.   I gave him the theme “What is Beauty?”  with an assignment to make a one-minute film about what the theme “What is Beauty?” meant to him. The three rules were no-talking, no editing/all-in-camera and exactly one minute.  I gave him a Flip pocket camera, showed how to use and told him to bring it back to me tomorrow morning at 9:00am sharp. When he came back to show me his film I was amazed. His one-minute film started with a medium shot that pushes in towards a beautiful leaf on the ground, then a little hand turns it over revealing a close-up of crushed beer can. I looked at him and thought this boy was better than most professional filmmakers I knew using visual symbols to share his thoughts. I asked him why this is beauty to him. He said he loved nature but also loved to play kick the can event though it was with ugly trash. That was the only soccer ball he had.  He thanked me for letting him be a filmmaker.  I thanked him for participating, truly blown away by his pure, innocent, humble filmmaking. He won the one-minute film contest having the online public votes, partly because it was a nice, steady moving shot but also because of the clarity of what he thought beauty was to him.  The audience understood. I then became the Director of the film department and an Associate Professor of film at the San Francisco Art Institute rebel art school founded in 1871.   I became more like a “Rebel Filmmaker with a Cause.”  That answers the question “Who is Christopher Coppola?” the best. 

-Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I would say it was when I was a young boy in Long Beach, California.  There was a children’s TV show called “Kukla, Fran, and Ollie.”  A nice lady and her hand puppets would help you feel good about yourself, then they would introduce and screen a movie sometimes great films like “The Red Balloon” and “The Little Fugitive.  Once, they showed the 1962 independent movie called “Tiko and the Shark.”  I am going by memory because I was only ten and have never seen it again. It’s about an island boy, Tiko, who saves a baby tiger shark and feeds it until it gets stronger.  When he let the shark go, it kept coming back to him. They had made an animal and human spiritual bond.  I loved that a dangerous animal could love a boy and vice-versa.  As the shark got bigger it often disappeared but the boy would tap the water at the shore and wait. Soon, his brother Shark would hear it and swim over to him.  Tiko would tell his brother Shark about his day.  He wanted to introduce him to his new girlfriend, Diana.  The three of them swam together under the water. It was so beautiful. Two humans and a dangerous tiger shark swimming together under the sea as good friends. (I just discovered this was a real shark too, not like the obviously fake shark in Jaws much later).  Other islanders were worried about the large sharks around the island.  Kiko and Diana thought their shark would be killed.  Tiko told his brother Shark he needed to be careful.  He attached a white kite with twine to his friends’ tail, saying now they will know you are Tiko’s bother Shark.  They watched their brother Shark swim away, the white kite soaring above him.  This hooked me on film. Soon after with the help of my father I eagerly moved on to Fellini, Welles, Kurosawa, Dreyer, Ford, Huston, etc. 

-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?

Sincere cinema, from the heart to the heart cinema, honest cinema, with something to say, absolutely.  Typical cotton candy Hollywood fair, though occasionally fun, no.    It’s all about the dollar and the business.

-When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project?

That’s a tough question because many of my student experimental music and film works still resonate with me today like my opera “Plato’s Cave” and my poetic philosophical film “Plato’s Cave.”  They were deep in my mind and heart, and I wanted to share Plato’s philosophy my way.  You had to think, participate and feel to understand.  I was proud that I brought these ideas to life as romantic San Francisco bohemian.   I don’t think I have made my personal “Opus One” film yet. Oddly, Deadfall was a film that stewed inside me as well, then became a screenplay, then a film. At first, it was called “Nothing’s Sacred.”  Nick Vallelonga and I were close friends back then just trying to write something together that made sense for me to use all my famous contacts and to direct.  Nick was a great writer, obviously still is, and I respected him.  He also loved a screenplay I wrote for my Aunt Talia Shire called “Juliana Pastrana,” the true story about a woman who danced and sang but looked like a gorilla. The respect was mutual.  Nick,  close non-famous family, and many other close friends and collaborators, could see how intense it was for me to be part of a famous family, for better or worse, I had no choice to be part of the Coppola family because of family blood whether I wanted to be or not.  I mean the name Coppola meant absolutely nothing to anybody when I was a boy but when the masterpiece The Godfather came out everything changed.  I didn’t know who my real friends were anymore and who was just using me to get to my uncle, my brother, and my more famous cousins. Deadfall was a story that centered around how I felt being a Coppola in Hollywood.  The period before writing Deadfall I was filled with self-doubt. Even had a nervous breakdown.  I was already criticized for the film I made for Dino DeLaurentis; the 2 million dollars budgeted “Dracula’s Widow.” I was 25 years old fresh out of art school. It was recently rediscovered and complimented on how I made a color noir film with my use of primary colors and stylized shots.  “Dracula’s Widow” is a far better film than “Deadfall.”  Partly because both films were made on a similar budget but one without big name stars and other with big-name stars who still had to be paid their large fees.  Take note: never make a low-budget film with big-name stars. They will just use your film as a playground.  Yet, the Deadfall film that was in my head was important to me. Cathartic to me. Nothing’s Sacred, trust no one including your own family. In an operatic way (I love tragic opera), it was a story of a son/nephew trying to understand the father/uncle complex.  They were both big parts of my life both good and bad.  In some ways, it became a blur.  After consuming many Jim Thompson pulp novels, I told Nick we should use the noir grifter genre. We wrote it quickly and added homages like the cigar moment in “Papillion,” How did you know it wasn’t contagious I didn’t” moment. I love doing homages.  Nick and I looked at a lot of great movies together.  Nick and I are very knowledgeable about film history.   Big-name actors became curious, including Val Kilmer.  I was going to make my first Hollywood film with a real budget. But in the end, it didn’t have a budget after Val Kilmore walked and Deadfall became a no-budget “bargain basement” film trying to be a Hollywood film.  It would have been far better with no famous actors being an ensemble.  One very nice moment for me though was I received a message on my answering machine from Clint Eastwood. It was a few hours before “Deadfall’s” disastrous Hollywood premiere.  Mr. Eastwood said he was sorry he couldn’t make it but wished me good luck.  I am a huge Sergio Leone fan, especially his Spaghetti Western classics starring Eastwood, the man with no name.  It was like a western film God leaving me a message.  I am so thankful he didn’t come.  What started in the mind, the distrust, and the sadness inside, became a good script but ended up a terrible film.   “Deadfall” is now a successful cult flick mainly because of Nick Cage’s over-the-top crazy performance. The punk rock  band “Snot” even wrote a song called “Deadfall.” I have many battle stories about all my films and how I finished them regardless of obstacles.  My long-time film producer, respected writer on film genres Alain Silver and I are currently working on a book about cinema with baggage.  “Deadfall” has a big chapter.  It will be very entertaining. 

-What would you change in the world?

Who am I to change anything?  I can say I wish people would understand there’s room at the table for everyone if we treat each other with respect, compassion, and dignity.  If not, everyone slips through the cracks regardless of who you are.

-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?

When film was an art form it’s early days, the silent era, they were experimenting with close-ups, moving shots, dissolves, color tinting, and visual magic tricks.  The classic theater world laughed and said it would never take off.  And it was a disgrace that theater actors and directors would even mess around with this creative inferior upstart, soon to be the most powerful, art medium in the world.  Later, the same happened. When digital, new media, 360, volumetric, etc was being experimented film purists were angry. The concept of cinema is ever changing and if older filmmakers don’t change with it, we are not going to be able to share our stories with younger generations and be left behind.  We need to evolve, we need to share our stories to our younger generations, so you can pass down your own stories and wisdom. Younger generations will decide where cinema is going, not us.  We need to remember the video game business is far bigger than the film industry and music industry combined and makes a ton more money. That’s why so many Hollywood films are just teasers for the soon-to-be-released video games.   I was the one who said film is dead 30 years ago when I as speaking at the Los Angeles HD Expo. Even though I was laughed at for suggesting there will be a new electronic cinema, I was obviously right. Where will cinema be in hundred years?  Maybe they will be tactile, you can taste and smell, even live in and interact with characters, become one the characters, plugged-in cinema. In the end though, you still must have an honest, meaningful story and be able to tell it at the campfire, digital or not.

-Do you remember the exact moment you feel in love with cinema?

My father introduced me to films as a young child, and we spent many days together in a darkened
theatre. I was in awe of what I was seeing up on the screen. Afterwards, I would play with my model
cars, setting them up like a scene out of film. This led to making hundreds of Super 8 films.
From the age of about 8 I would sneak out of bed late at night and watch the old the horror/Sci-fi
films on the television. In Australia we had a wonderful program called ‘Creature Feature’ which
showcased all the old horror/sci-fi classics from the 1950’s and 60’s. I was fascinated.
When I was about 13 years of age, my father and I did a film appreciation course together at Sydney
University. Watching such films as the Russian masterpiece, Battleship Potemkin, and Fritz Lang’s
Metropolis – I was definitely hooked!
But I think the first film that left a major impact on me was when I was nine years old, and I saw
2001: A Space Odyssey on the big screen. I knew then I wanted to make films.

-When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project?

I’ve always had a passion for telling stories. The original idea for REMNANT was conceived as a short
story called “After Grace” in 2014. I wrote the original draft and then realised that I couldn’t do
justice to the story and the characters in that format, so I had to expand the scope in all areas. It
took me five years, but I had to honour the characters I had written. There were still rewrites up
until we started filming in 2022. With each rewrite, the characters became more three dimensional,
the story became richer and more atmospheric.

-Is there a person you would like to thank for helping you bring your project to life?

Firstly, I would have to say my wonderful wife Sandie, who has been my greatest supporter
throughout the making of REMNANT.
And, secondly, I would like to thank Andrew Davis my producing partner, who has been there since
the beginning of this long journey to the screen. His support and dedication to REMNANT have been
integral to the completion and success of this production.
Finally, the film wouldn’t have come together without Mason Grady, my Director of Photography,
and Visual Effects guru, whose incredible work on the film brought my vision to life.

-Do you think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping to turn your dream into a reality?

The Wild Filmmaker Community has been amazing! I’ve entered a lot of Festival’s through other
platforms, but I would have to say, that the impact my film REMNANT has achieved through the Wild
Filmmaker community has elevated my film to another level.
The encouragement and support of the Wild Filmmaker platform is pivotal for independent
filmmaker’s trying to gain exposure throughout the world. They have a lifelong loves the history of
cinema, and this translates to their amazing support of independent film makers like myself.

– Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

My passion for cinema didn’t happen at a single moment. It was built up over many remarkable experiences. I was born in Presidente Prudente, in the country side of São Paulo, but spent part of my childhood in Paraná, where my father, a farmer, settled on a farm. When I was seven years old, I went to live with my father’s friends in Londrina, where I saw a television for the first time. It was 1964, and I was most struck by the Disney series “Zorro”, which premiered in the very year I was born. Those adventures enchanted me deeply.

A year later, I went back to school in my hometown and, next to the school, there was a movie theater. On Sundays, there were matinees, and I became a regular. Since then, images of endless frames have circulated in my mind. As a teenager, I continued to go to the cinemas, being enchanted by the spaghetti westerns with Giuliano Gemma and Bud Spencer and, of course, Chaplin, whose work inspired me to become a mime.

But movies like ‘Papillon’, directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, struck me in a different way; I watched it more than ten times. The acting of Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman, the photography and Dalton Trumbo’s script continue to intrigue me to this day. Another movie that had a big impact on me was “The Bridges of Madison County”, especially for the performances of Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood. Clint, by the way, has always been a great inspiration, especially because of his work philosophy: the decision to produce, write, direct and play his own films because he knew that no other director would give him the characters he wanted to play. And more recently, his answer to the secret of maintaining so much energy to keep working at over 90: “Be busy and never let the old man in the house”. It’s a philosophy I’ve also adopted as a life motto.

– When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project?

The COVID-19 pandemic left deep scars on my soul and, above all, on my heart. It was a time of intense challenges, where I found myself plunged into a deep depression. This moment of internal conflict forced me into a necessary introspection, to look inside myself and understand the complexity of the human soul. This process of self-knowledge became essential for my reinvention, helping me to discover new ways of expressing my creativity and transforming pain into art.

Creativity became my anchor, which kept me alive, active and haughty, especially when exploring the contrasts between the beautiful and the ugly, the normal and the absurd. During this period, “Doctor Hypotheses” was born, a film that I consider almost prophetic about the atrocities of the pandemic. It brings a current, poignant, thought-provoking and innovative narrative language, exploring the trajectory of a man who calls himself Doctor and creates a clinic with dolls to serve him.

The movie gave me the opportunity to immerse myself in an inspired performance, surrendering myself to the passionate imbalance of this character in a game of possession, love, hate and seduction. “Doctor Hypotheses” was born out of my desire to give voice to these intense emotions that the pandemic has aroused in all of us and to reflect on the psychological and emotional impact of this challenging period. By turning this story into a script and then into a movie, I found a way to deal with my own emotions and, at the same time, connect with the audience through a powerful and meaningful narrative.

– Is there a person you would like to thank for helping you bring your project to life?

I don’t have a single person to thank, but an infinite list of people and professionals who have helped me bring my projects to life: Giustino Marzano, a great master, founder of Piccolo Teatro in São Paulo. I studied under him and his teachings formed the foundation of my career, forming the basis of my understanding of the craft and art of storytelling. I am also grateful to Walter Avancini, the wizard of Brazilian television, whose innovations and creative approaches to audiovisual storytelling have deeply inspired me. Domingos de Oliveira, another master who inspired me in the art of exploring the nuances of the human soul in my work. Clint Eastwood is an international reference I greatly admire, especially for his work philosophy and continuous energy, which encourage me to always seek out new challenges and projects. Finally, my father, José Vicentini, a farmer who always faced adversity with courage and determination. He taught me the importance of renewing oneself every day, always seeking new horizons, no matter how difficult the journey. His willingness and resilience are daily inspirations, both in life and in art. I would also like to thank my friends, collaborators and partners who, with their energy and support, make the process of creating and realizing my projects possible.

– Do you think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping to turn your dream into a reality?

The Wild Filmmaker Community is a channel for communicating and spreading the dreams of independent filmmakers, offering a vital platform for giving visibility to projects and creating spaces where our voices can be heard and valued. For those who often face challenges such as lack of resources and restricted access to major media outlets, this visibility is essential, allowing for a rich exchange of ideas, experiences and collaborations, celebrating the diversity of stories and perspectives that is fundamental to the growth and innovation of independent cinema, connecting us to a global network of passionate professionals, creating opportunities for collaboration and exchange, allowing us to showcase our authentic and meaningful stories, keeping passion and creativity alive in cinema.

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-What and who has inspired you most in your artistic career?

I, Andrea Natale, as a filmmaker draw inspiration from my surroundings, from everyday life. In particular, what interests me most are people, their direct testimonies, the stories of their experiences, especially if they are unusual. I try to show them at their best through new moving images.
This is probably why I feel closer to documentary cinema than fiction.

-Every true artist is also a revolutionary against power. Do you think there is still room today
to express one’s revolution through art?

Yes, I think that art can still be revolutionary today, for example, if even one person who watches a film is impressed by it and is convinced to go deeper into a subject they do not know or a culture different from their own, this is already a small revolution.
Giuseppe Sciarra and I used irony to tell a sensitive topic, going against prejudice and showing naturally that this is already part of our lives. Art remains one of the strongest means to support a revolution, which must be above all cultural, a peaceful revolution, capable of reaching minds giving rise to an increasingly necessary social change.

-We live in a world where, unfortunately, war still exists. Do you think that if there were more dissemination of art through media and social networks, the world would be more peaceful?

The most effective enjoyment should be a collective experience in homes, halls or outdoor spaces, these opportunities for exchange between people could perhaps foster a more peaceful climate. In contrast in social media, where content is enjoyed individually there is much more friction, envy, misunderstanding.
Art could be the right path if the work made maintains its own intellectual honesty by not allowing itself to be corrupted too much by the rules of the market.

-Are you working on a new project? If so, can you give us a sneak peek?  

After completing the short film “Canovaccio” I have been directing another short film soon to be released, titled “Charm of yesteryear.”
Giuseppe Sciarra, on the other hand, will soon be engaged in an educational and social project to raise awareness of the issue of bullying in schools.

– Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I was about 11 years old. Cinema has always attracted me especially when I was able to see the first films on the big screen. I have always been intrigued by the work that could go into a film, the creativity of a mind for a fantastic story and the technic al genius of special effects. That world captivated me, thinking about how the filming could take place or how a director could feel directing the film and receiving awards for a good job done. In the 80s and 90s there were no great technologies yet and fo r this reason

I was intrigued by the ingenuity of creating special effects. I really liked seeing the extra content of a film. Then certainly films like “Bram Stocker’s Dracula” by Francis Ford Coppola, “Titanic” by James Cameron, “The Neverendig Story” by Wolfgang Petersen and many others were the exact moments in which cinema entered me and in which my gender was revealed.

– When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project?

There are many stories in my heart. My mind is a well of ideas and stories. I have no difficulty inventing new stories and often the night brings me ideas. Obviously, like all writers, some stories remain closest to my heart. Everything I write contains a small part of me. There may be emotions experienced, hidden dreams, the desire to get to do something that not everyone believes in, sad or happy moments in life… so many things about me. For this reason, I feel some screenplay projects in a particular way. For example, my latest screenplay “WAVE MAN” despite being a science fiction and extremely futuristic writing with special effects, contains my dream of being able to change the world and the desire to see more values in people’s hearts, but also the desire to leave a mark on this world by doing something useful and great that, in writing, has become the figure of a New Hero and his actions. Then there is my first film project “CYBERNETI GENESIS – THE WAR BETWEEN TWO WORLDS” which became a feature film and was released in theaters in November 2022. A sold -out success that became reality. When I wrote it, my imagination navigated the most hidden places of my self, in intense dark or beautiful emotions, creating fantastic figures and engaging scenes. I wanted to reevaluate locations and areas of Tuscany and create an inclusive film for people and animals within a story that told of something bigger than us that goes beyond the earthly life we live and the ephemeral things that surround us. A large project that involved a cast of over 60 people and professionals. A difficult, tiring undertaking, hindered by COVID -19 and important family bereavements, but I understood that it had to be completed because I felt the support of actors, crews and sponsors who believed in me, I saw their enthusiasm in imagining this film, I saw entire organizations and associations eagerly joining this project and I saw the esteem of people even through the media. Thousands believed in me and I could only give them a beautiful film to watch. This gave me a huge push to continue this work.

– Is there a person you would like to thank for helping you bring your project to life?

There are many people who have supported my projects and to whom I owe thanks. First of all my family and my mother who passed away during the recording of my first film, to whom I dedicated it. Then my partner who has always supported my work. I also than k my faithful collaborators who have followed me for years. My heartfelt thanks go to all of them and many others but, sincerely and without self ishness, I especially thank Anna, my being so different, complex, tenacious, ambitious, dreamy … . Characteristics that make my life difficult but also extremely interesting and intense.

– Do you think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping to turn your dream into a reality?

I think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping me make my career known to the world. I think it is helping to make people talk about me, my scripts and films and I believe it can help to reach new horizons and producers. I am a dreamer and I have big ambitions that require a lot of work but for what I said above, I hope that this Community can help me reach my most ambitious goals: to have my scripts produced by the best international producers. The love I have for cinema knows no limits. The limits are only in our minds.

– Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I was lying on a sheep skin rug on the living room floor, watching television. Ingmar Bergman’s masterpiece Wild strawberries was on. The film made a strong impression on me, and it has accompanied me throughout my whole career as a filmmaker. It describes a journey through time and space, where we get to accompany the elderly professor Isak Borg as he approaches death. Wild Strawberries touches upon the the most important existential questions of life and death. I clearly remember a scene where a young actor Bibi Andersson (Sara) puts a mirror in front the old man as if in a dream. He doesn’t want to look, but she insists and says: ” “Have you looked in the mirror, Isak? You’re an anxious old man who’s soon going to die.” The mirror here is a painful vehicle of self awareness: the glass mercilessly reflects the aspects of the self that the person reflected wishes to ignore.

 The film makes a journey through life where darkness and light are painted in beautiful black and white. Maybe this is why I often make my films in black and white?

– When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project? 

My film project Not without gloves was born out of boredom and isolation during the covid pandemic. My thoughts went back in time to the place I was born. I am like Ingmar Bergman in this respect: it starts with an image in my head. Not without gloves problematizes the romantic approach to nature through distortions, and asks questions about the original place. We get to go into a magical world where I poetically treat the covid pandemic and the changes to the environment of today.

Originally, I am an artist. I started art school early and got my master’s degree at a young age. I was doing paintings but much to the dismay of my teachers I took up photography and film. Still I consider myself a painter, painting my stories and try to push the limits of what film and art can be. When I created Not without gloves I was supposed to have been curating a large exhibition of art from the 90’s, but because of covid the exhibition had to be moved forward to a later time, and I got time to experiment with a project of my own, poetically framing the pandemic. I don’t work with a script in the traditional sense but rather make my way forward through experimenting with pictures and sounds. Eventually a script emerges and I know exactly what I want to express. I paint the story rather than tell it in a traditional, linear fashion.

– Is there a person you would like to thank for helping you bring your project to life?

For many years I have worked with the philosopher, art critic and musician Conny C-A Malmqvist. He makes new compositions for me that I can use however I want to. I am very greatful for this cooperation and it is very artistically advantageous to me that I am able to decide on my own how the story gets to evolve in a visual and aural respect, since I do all the editing myself. I put down a lot of effort and energy into the process of editing the film. It is a central part of my artistry. I love everything about the process of film making, from meeting the actors, who often influence the films, to the shooting and finally, my big passion, cutting and honing the final shape and form of the film. I work with film in many different ways, as sculptural works or part of the public space, or more traditionally. There are no limits.

– Do you think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping to turn your dream into a reality?

Yes, definitely. Through the collaboration my film has gained a completely different impact internationally, which I am very happy and grateful for. I have met several like-minded film makers that I can discuss life, art, poetry, literature and film history with through Wild Filmmaker Community. These topics are very close to my heart. As a film maker and artist I want to erase the boundaries between different art forms and genres. Maybe we can only do that together.

Blind Truth

BEST THRILLER SCRIPT & BEST AMERICAN DIRECTOR

The Vieil

BEST ORIGINAL SUPER SHORT FILM

Flint&Ema

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Omnipotent Resolution

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Artists & Aliens

BEST SOUNDTRACK

Baby in the Basement

BEST INDIE NARRATIVE SHORT

Roses are Blind

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The Sea of Hope

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

Appointment With The Plague Doctor, Lester Haywood

BEST INTERNATIONAL HORROR FILM

Arménia(s), Time for Artists

BEST INDIE DOCUMENTARY FEATURE & BEST DIRECTOR (Category: Documentary)

The Dead Ringer

BEST INTERNATIONAL ORIGINAL SCREENWRITER

What a Match

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But I Want to Leave the Party

BEST ACTRESS, BEST ORIGINAL NARRATIVE SHORT & BEST SCREENPLAY SHORT

Two Stoners

BEST DIRECTOR (Category: Super Short Film)

Atlas of Uncertainty

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The Geranium Deaths

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Albuquerque Mosaic

BEST INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Brothers of Babylon

BEST FEATURE SCRIPT OF THE YEAR

Precious the Baby Dragon

BEST ORIGINAL INDIE WRITER

The Horror Filmmaker’s Handbook Creating Terrifying Cinema

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Soul

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Halloween (Rabbit Well Episode 6)

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In a Whole New Way

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Thankful

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Lacrime di Vento

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Sinestesìa

BEST INDIE MUSIC VIDEO & BEST ORIGINAL SONG

A Pilgrimage Into Tibet

BEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT DOCUMENTARY & HUMAN RIGHTS DOCUMENTARY

Spike Game

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The Lost Village

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The Stones of Rome

BEST ACTOR & BEST INSPIRATIONAL DIRECTOR

The Pathos of Hamlet

BEST EXPERIMENTAL NARRATIVE SHORT & BEST INDIE FILMMAKER

2020: life and death of a virus

BEST EUROPEAN ARTHOUSE SHORT FILM

From Afar

BEST ARTHOUSE FEATURE SCRIPT

Bat Sheva (The Daughter of 7even)

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Routine

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The Assassin’s Apprentice 2: Silbadores of the Canary Islands

BEST ORIGINAL DIRECTOR & BEST EDITING

The Great Animal Escape

BEST INDIE BOOK & BEST WRITER

Remnant

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE, BEST CAST & BEST ORIGINAL DIRECTOR

Dragul and Forbes

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE SCRIPT

THE BLANKET -Die schwarze Decke

BEST INTERNATIONAL SUPER SHORT FILM & BEST ARTHOUSE EUROPEAN FILMMAKER

Monument to Love

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE & BEST INTERNATIONAL PRODUCER

Luzinete

BEST SCREENWRITER, BEST INTERNATIONAL INDIE SHORT FILM & BEST FILMMAKER

 Bagel Dog

BEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT SCRIPT & BEST AMERICAN WRITER

Dojo

BEST ORIGINAL ACTION MOVIE, BEST DIRECTOR, BEST EDINTING & BEST THRILLER SCIPT

Not Without Gloves

BEST ORIGINAL EUROPEAN SHORT FILM & BEST EXPERIMENTAL CINEMATOGRAPHY

Pirandello’s Wife

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE SCRIPT

Alta California

BEST ORIGINAL IDEA & BEST INDIE SCREENWRITER

Ye Ole Glorya

BEST ARTHOUSE COMEDY

Big Momma Earth

BEST DIRECTOR & BEST SCREENPLAY (Category: Comedy)

The Addends

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BLIND FAITH: Moments of Missed Understanding

BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM

Walking In Memphis

BEST TELEVISION SCRIPT

The Priory of Sion

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L’Amour est temps de reflets

BEST POETRY SHORT FILM

Eye of the Storm

BEST AMERICAN DOCUMENTARY & BEST ORIGINAL DIRECTOR

Greta Gar Bitch

BEST ARTHOUSE BOOK

I Waited for You

BEST INSPIRATIONAL FILM

Change The World

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Roses are Blind

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Drag Queens Of Emeralis

BEST COMEDY SCRIPT

Déjà Vu On The Ledge

BEST EUROPEAN EXPERIMENTAL FILM

Out of State-A Gothic Romance

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE, BEST INTERNATIONAL INDIE FILM, BEST CAST & BEST AMERICAN DIRECTOR

4 Estações

BEST DIRECTOR, BEST SCREENWRITER & BEST EUROPEAN PRODUCER

Blood Run

BEST CASTING DIRECTOR

In a Whole New Way

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Not Without Gloves

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Eye of the Storm

BEST PROJECT based on a True Story & BEST PRODUCER (Category: Documentary)

The ADDENDS – Numeri Ardenti

BEST EUROPEAN INDIE PRODUCER

Emergency Musical Response: Part 1 – Journey to Netherworld

BEST INDIE NARRATIVE SHORT, BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY SHORT & BEST CINEMATOGRAPHER

Alta California

BEST INTERNATIONAL WRITER

Borderline Justice

BEST FEATURE SCRIPT

Corelli – Trio Sonata, op.3 no.5 (v. 2)

BEST INTERNATIONAL EXPERIMENTAL FILM

Wild Music

BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC VIDEO

A Reflection of Life

BEST INDIE DOCUMENTARY

Brothers of Babylon

BEST AMERICAN WRITER

The Blanket

BEST ANIMATION & BEST ARTHOUSE FILMMAKER

Omnipotent Resolution

BEST INSPIRATIONAL SHORT FILM, BEST DANCE SHORT FILM, BEST SOUNDTRACK & BEST FILMMAKER (Category: Music Video)

Monument to Love

BEST PRODUCTION COMPANY, BEST EDITING & BEST INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Luzinete

BEST INDIE DIRECTOR & BEST MAKE-UP ARTIST

The Lost Village

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKER & BEST PRODUCER

A Love Like This

BEST INTERNATIONAL SONG & BEST ARTHOUSE SINGER

Soul

BEST INDIE ARTHOUSE DIRECTOR & BEST ORIGINAL IDEA

Halloween (Rabbit Well Episode 6)

BEST ANIMATED PROJECT & BEST ORIGINAL COMEDY SHORT

Malibu Sunset

BEST ORIGINAL FEATURE SCRIPT

The Stones of Rome

BEST ACTOR & BEST ORIGINAL DIRECTOR

The Pathos of Hamlet

BEST EXPERIMENTAL NARRATIVE SHORT & BEST AMERICAN INDIE FILMMAKER

Anything You Lose

BEST ARTHOUSE DIRECTOR & BEST ORIGINAL CINEMATOGRAPHY

But I Want to Leave the Party

BEST ACTRESS, BEST ORIGINAL NARRATIVE SHORT & BEST SCREENPLAY SHORT

The Dead Ringer

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENWRITER & BEST INTERNATIONAL ARTHOUSE FEATURE SCRIPT

Routine

BEST AMERICAN NARRATIVE SHORT, BEST PRODUCER & BEST FILMMAKER

The Assassin’s Apprentice 2: Silbadores of the Canary Islands

BEST ORIGINAL DIRECTOR & BEST EDITING

Bat Sheva (The Daughter of 7even)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Lacrime di Vento

BEST EDUCATIONAL FILM & BEST EUROPEAN INDIE DIRECTOR

Wave Man

BEST EUROPEAN SCREENPLAY

– Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I did not fall in love with cinema. As a person with a visual anomaly (I see two dimensional images), I had difficulties watching movies as a young child. The experience was overwhelming visually. Also the viewing conditions of movies where I grew up were always difficult. In the gym of the school, Tarzan films were shown with Hebrew subtitles handwritten on a stripe on the side of the screen. A small sports hall over overcrowded with hundreds of sweaty children. The movies in the theaters were for adults. But I remember some films like Bambi, the red balloon, Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy and the Russian classic the stone which I remember struggling to watch all the way with my troubled vision. So Films were a mixed experience. Intense, demanding cognitively and entertaining. 

As a teenager I was always drawn to comedy and humor. I was close to my father with whom we used to joke and make up jokes and think of visual short funny stories.  After studying a year of History and a year of social studies I decided that what I wanted was to learn how to make films and I wanted to learn “hands on”. I got a job as an assistant in a biblical film and for 5 years I worked in different departments on the set of 25 feature films and many documentaries and other film shoots. I also went to the university for a couple of years until I felt I needed to move on and do films rather than study film. 

And since 1980 I have been making independent films, self funded, low and no-budget films. First I was concentrated on comedy, but when my father passed away I realized I do not care to make other people laugh anymore and I concentrated in teaching myself to do documentary films and  I also have developed methodologies for Applied Educational Media which is using educational media in non traditional viewing environments and spaces, like individualizing the visitor’s experience in the museum space.   

Part of the methodologies involve learning to be a non intrusive observer, to become a “fly on the wall” able to observe and film events without influencing them. Other approaches were developed as an interviewer – to empower storytelling of interviewees – to be the best possible audience so they can be the best storytellers they can. Refining a minimalist approaches to dealing with visual history and historical films where the personal and the global are interwoven. 

All these are part of the process of growing up and understanding what to do how to be purist and how to be ethical and how to do so that whatever I do is done to serve the content and no choices are random, but are part of a very long and exhausting critical process.

– When did you realize that the story living in your heart had to be turned into a screenplay and then into a film project?

My community’s unique history and also the inspiring survival story during WWII has captured my interest. I have done 3 films about the subject, wrote a book, organized a conference and am working on 2 exhibitions. I do not write scripts for my documentary films. I work with what I collect, what I researched and what I documented and interviewed. It’s a long process of weaving testimonies, archival footage, home videos or private photos, documents and other visual objects into a sequence of events that reconstruct a certain time. 

– Is there a person you would like to thank for helping you bring your project to life?

My parents were supportive, inspiring and very creative. They were role models and they brought the unique story to my attention and helped me with my first steps of my career. 

– Do you think the Wild Filmmaker Community is helping to turn your dream into a reality?

I believe the Wild filmmaker Community has a promising role in bringing independent filmmakers and their audiences in contact. It is also important for filmmakers to be able to distribute their work and get revenue that will help and encourage more independent work. As a person who has done self funded independent films for over 40 years – I hope to share some of my experiences and advice to encourage young filmmakers to go the way they choose and overcome all the hurdles along the way.