CANNES 2016: WHO'S WHO IN THE OFFICIAL COMPETITION JURY

Under the stewardship of Jury President George Miller, the films competing for the 2016 Festival de Cannes Palme d’Or will be judged by a jury of eight – four men and four women – each with their own highly-regarded status in world cinema. 

Some will be known by many; others, only by the most fervent followers of international film. So who are the 8 and what have they done to deserve their place on the Croisette…?

DONALD SUTHERLAND
Who? One of world cinema’s most respected actors, the 80 year-old Canadian’s career has encompassed star-making early roles (The Dirty Dozen; Kelly’s Heroes) iconic leading man turns (Klute; Don’t Look Now; Invasion of The Body Snatchers) and memorable support parts (Backdraft; JFK; The Hunger Games).
Cannes cred: Starred in Robert Altman’s 1970 Palme d’Or winner, MASH; in 2012, became a Commander of The Order of Arts and Letters, bestowed by French Minister of Culture for "significant contribution to the enrichment of the French cultural inheritance."

ARNAUD DESPLECHIN
Who? A leading light in contemporary French cinema since his lauded 1991 debut, La vie des morts, the 55 year-old auteur has found unshakeable critical favour and commercial success both domestically (14 Cesar nominations, capped by a Best Director win in 2015 for his latest, My Golden Days) and abroad (official selection and trophy wins in Venice, Chicago, Munich, Lisbon and Avignon).
Cannes cred: Featured in the Official Competition line-up on five occasions - his debut feature, 1992’s The Sentinel; My Sex Life…or How I Got into an Apartment; Esther Kahn; A Christmas Tale (for which his leading lady, Catherine Deneuve, earned a Best Actress trophy); and, Jimmy P. In 2015, secured the Director’s Fortnight SACD Honour for My Golden Days.

Above: Arnaud Desplechin accepts his 2015 Best Director Cesar for My Golden Days.

LASZLO NEMES
Who? Mentored by the great Bela Tarr, the young Hungarian emerged triumphantly in 2015 with his debut feature, Son of Saul. The harrowing Holocaust drama scored 45 international film honours including the Best Foreign Film trophies at the Academy Awards, Golden Globes, Independent Spirit and National Board of Review (US) ceremonies, as well as festival prizes at Zagreb, Stockholm, Seattle, Sarajevo and Santa Barbara, to name just a few.
Cannes cred: Son of Saul earned five nominations at last years’ event, eventually winning the FIPRESCI Critics Award, the coveted Francois Chalais Prize (awarded to a work steeped in affirmative life value, named after the revered French journalist and film historian) and the Grand Jury prize.

VANESSA PARADIS
Who? The headline-grabbing French multi-hyphenate parlayed early career success as a ‘supermodel’ into the fields of pop-music and acting; following a Cesar-winning debut in Claude de Brisseau’s Noce blanche in 1989, her presence enlivened such works as Patrice Leconte’s The Girl on The Bridge, Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker and Jean-Marc Vallee’s Café de Flore (for which she won a Best Actress Genie). In 2011, she also supplied her vocal talent to the French-language version of Bibo Bergeron’s animated hit, A Monster in Paris.
Cannes cred: French industry status and A-list, red-carpet glamour.

MADS MIKKELSEN
Who? Mikkelsen’s status as arguably Europe’s #1 star began soon after his breakout role in Nicholas Winding Refn’s Pusher trilogy. A decade of hits followed, including Anders Thomas Jensen’s Flickering Lights, Lone Scherfig’s Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself, Susanne Bier’s Open Hearts and After the Wedding, Ole Christian Madsen’s Flame & Citroen and Nikolaj Arcel’s A Royal Affair. Off continent, Mikkelsen made his mark in commercial properties like King Arthur, Casino Royale, The Three Musketeers and Clash of the Titans; his biggest Stateside hit has been the title role in the hit TV series, Hannibal.
Cannes cred: Won the 2012 Best Actor award for Thomas Vinterberg’s The Hunt; his starring turn in Arnaud Des Pallières’s Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas premiered in the 2013 Official Competition.

Above: Trailer for The Hunt, with Mads Mikkelsen.

KIRSTEN DUNST
Who? Her breakthrough role at age 12 as a bloodsucking seductress opposite Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in Neil Jordan’s 1994 hit Interview With a Vampire ensured Kirsten Dunst fame and notoriety in equal measure. Rarely out of the public spotlight, the New Jersey-native weathered the awkward teenage years with high-profile studio projects (Jumanji; Small Soldiers; Bring It On; Spiderman) and well-chosen indie projects (Wag the Dog; The Virgin Suicides; Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind). Recently, Dunst bounced back from critical duds (Wimbledown; Elizabethtown; an ill-advised third Spiderman film) with Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette, Walter Salles' On The Road, Hossein Amini’s The Two Faces of January and Jeff Nichol’s Midnight Special, as well as an acclaimed guest stint on the TV series Fargo.  
Cannes cred: The Best Actress Award at the 2011 festival for her performance in Lars von Trier's Melancholia.

KATAYOON SHAHABI
Who? The immeasurable contribution made by the 47 year-old Iranian to the international acceptance of her nation’s film output is remarkable. Having spent her formative years as a ‘film promoter’ with the industry support body Farabi Cinema Foundation, in 2001 she established Scheherazade Media International, an initiative to produce and distribute homegrown content that gave creative freedom to auteurs like Mohammad Rasoulof, Mania Akbari and Saman Salour. In 2012, launched Noori Pictures and found instant acclaim with Rakhshan Bani-Etemad’s Tales and Vahid Jalilvand’s Wednesday May 9.
Cannes cred: In 2015, her production of Ida Panahandeh’s Nahid won the Un Certain Regard strand’s Avenir Prize honour.

VALERIA GOLINA
Who? After a run of critically acclaimed films in her homeland (Little Flames; A Tale of Love; Three Sisters), the Italian model-turned-actress followed the ‘European ingenue’ route paved by the likes of Nastassja Kinski and Joanna Pacula and headed for LA. Following her debut in Randall Kleiser’s Big Top Pee Wee, she found high-profile work in Barry Levinson’s Rain Man, Sean Penn’s The Indian Runner, Jim Abraham’s Hot Shots! and Mike Figgis’ Leaving Las Vegas. Golina never forgot her continental roots, returning home frequently to star in such works as Giacomo Campiotti’s Like Two Crocodiles, Emanuele Crialese’s Respiro and Silvio Soldini’s The Acrobat.
Cannes cred: Her directorial debut, Miele, screened in the 2013 Un Certain Regard selection and received the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury.

Above: Valeria Golino discusses her film Miele at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, 2013

WORKING CLASS MAN: THE HEATH DAVIS INTERVIEW

The burden of past glories and the crippling impact of addiction are dissected in Broke, a new Australian film from writer/director Heath Davis. Featuring a typically intense turn from the great Steve Le Marquand, the working class drama tells the story of Ben ‘BK’ Kelly, a once-great rugby league star whose gambling and self-medication through booze has led to desperate times; Claire van der Boom, as Terri, and Max Cullen as Cec are the strugglers who never lose faith in their fallen hero. In his narrative feature debut, Davis nails a hard-edged realism tinged with real heart. Ahead of the film’s theatrical season, Davis spoke with SCREEN-SPACE about his small-scale, intrinsically ‘Aussie’ story that feels universally human… 

SCREEN-SPACE: There is a strong 'cinematic' feel to the characters, but more resonant is the 'blue collar' authenticity, the 'real people' that are BK and Cec and Terri. How did that dynamic emerge in the writing? Are these people from your background?

Davis: There's definitely a ‘real’ DNA, as I like to put it that runs through these characters. It was imperative that they and the movie ring true for identification purposes. BK for instance is a hybrid of people, ex-league players, I knew growing up in western Sydney. His character was pretty fleshed out on the page and then Steve made it his own. I encouraged that. He's been around these types of folk so it wasn't a big stretch for him. (Pictured, top; Davis on-set, with actors Claire van der Boom and Steve Le Marquand)

SCREEN-SPACE: Steve Le Marquand is that rare performer; an intense character-actor persona wrapped in a leading-man package. He must be an enormous asset in pre-production/rehearsal and then on-set. Describe what he brought to the character of BK and the relationship you, as his director, forged with him...

Davis: The obvious physicality and his unique bravado aside, Steve brought his life experience to the table. He's lived a rough-and-tumble existence and knows only too well the world these characters inhabit, so I knew we'd definitely have a believable lead character. He's really respected by his peers so when he came on board I knew he would draw other quality actors to the project. He's a very generous actor to not only his fellow cast but also crew. He made sure that there was no place for ego on set for anyone and that was crucial in creating the realism we were going for. (Pictured, right; Marquand with co-star Claire van der Boom)

SCREEN-SPACE: The National Rugby League (NRL) contributed to the funding of Broke. How and why did they become involved?

Davis: The NRL Education and Welfare Team came on board just before pre-production with some financial support. It was by no means a large sum but it was a lot to us. More importantly, we wanted their endorsement. And I think they realised it would be a good education tool to use for their players, especially juniors. (Pictured, left; Davis, left, on-set with actors William Zappa, Steve Le Marquand and Justin Rosniak)

SCREEN-SPACE: Thematically, Broke pits the facade of hero adulation against the reality of an addict’s self-destruction. Is it a celebration of hero worship or a warning of the dangers of fawning over false idols?

Davis: I've always been fascinated by the facade of celebrity. What you see is not always what you get. It's a human construct that simply isn't real yet we are so celebrity driven as a culture. I remember having troubles growing up understanding the context of how a footy player on a Sunday afternoon could be so adored yet so broken and lonely playing the pokies on a Tuesday night at the local. That juxtaposition makes for great drama. In the end I wanted to show that heroes in life are human and just because they have a specific skill set that doesn't necessarily equip them for life or make them role models.

SCREEN-SPACE: The final images in the film convey a beautifully complex, ambiguous future. Do you have hope for your characters?

Davis: Oh yes, I do. I see it as a bittersweet but honest conclusion. Without spoiling anything, I think BK gets what he needs and not what he wants, perhaps for the first time in his life, and he realises and accepts that. I think there's definitely good times ahead for this motley crew.

Following acclaim on the festival circuit, BROKE has its Sydney premiere on Wednesday, April 13 with other screenings to follow. Ticket and venue information can be found at the film's official website. 

Photographs by MK Creative Studios; Copyright Scope Red 2014

AUSSIE AUTEUR PUTS 'FILM' BACK INTO SHORT FILM PRODUCTION.

For a moment, imagine that the arduous slog undertaken by the next-no-budget short film auteur is not already daunting enough. How could a filmmaker make the thankless journey exponentially more difficult? For Chris Elena, the answer was clear – forego all the burden-easing advancements made in digital camera tech and embrace every production problem presented by shooting on film. The result - a 15-minute contemporary drama called The Limited – is a testament to the drive and commitment synonymous with the origins of the art form…

“Film's aesthetic is warm and cinematic, which we wanted and needed for a film mostly set in small places with cold individuals,” says Elena, a respected voice and popular personality amongst the young turks of Sydney’s film-writing community. His vocal passion for the works of Paul Thomas Anderson fuels his own directorial flair for ‘pure cinema’; The Limited is a small-scale examination of the impact of schoolyard stories and macho posturing that soars emotionally and thematically through the use of Kodak 16mm stock. (Pictured, top; Elena, centre, with crew during the shoot).

“We needed to tell this story on 16mm, which has its own unique cinematic language,” say Elena, his script drawing upon his own experiences at an all-boy Catholic high school in the 2000s. “We shot on one location, with very little coverage, a narrative that is essentially four people telling each other lies that will impact their lives. We knew film (would) elevate that simplicity.”

With a ready-to-go script, Elena also knew that timing was crucial if he was to realise his ambitious production; once-giant film supplier Fujifilm had shuttered its film stock division in March 2013, with rumours circulating that Kodak were poised to do the same. “This was the medium I had learned about, had believed in the magic of since deciding to be a director at the age of 9,” he confides. “I wanted The Limited to be greater than the script I had written and for that, for me to be a better director and do this story and everyone who believed in it some justice, I needed film.” (Pictured, right; the young cast of The Limited)

Mentored into production by industry veteran, the late J. Harkness and employing an experienced DOP in Kym Vaitiekus, Elena realised a dream when he called ‘action’ on a tight 2-day shoot in 2014. “We had eight 400-foot reels, 3,200 feet of 16mm film,” he recalls. “As soon as you start rolling, you have 9½ minutes, or one standard roll of film, to get it perfect. We would shoot each take, change reels, place the film in a black bag and have it sent to be processed at the lab, all at once.” The process made for a focussed, energised set, with cast and crew fully aware of the limitations of film. “Each take has to be better,” says Elena. “When you're shooting on film, you allow yourself to trust whoever is looking at that monitor; they trust your word as they know this footage is precious.” 

Throughout the shoot and well into post-production, the young filmmaker was reminded of why film had fallen out of favour in the face of the digital revolution. “It’s horribly expensive,” Elena bemoans, despite an end-to-end budget of just in excess of A$5000 and made without any grant assistance. “Then the lab could get it wrong, the dallies don't look like what you saw in the monitor, sound editing and mixing is a nightmare with the noise from the camera making an appearance in every take.”

Having spent the best part of 2015 in the edit suite with Vaitiekus and cutter Leslie Heldzingen crafting his vision, Chris Elena is now in a position to consider the end product of his obsession with traditional celluloid. “We didn’t get the amount of coverage we wanted, but we made it work in the end,” he concludes. “We could've created this on digital but it never would have looked and felt this way. The raw dallies - without a colour grade, with minor scratches and dust on the frame - looked like what I always imagined films to look like. Every take we got, the work and effort was on display.” (Pictured, left; the director preparing a shot on the set of The Limited)

And, no, the director is not finished crusading for the existence of film stock. “I'll try to shoot on film until there's not a single reel left that Kodak can give me,” he declares. “The effort and potential for magic that comes with it is worth it in every way imaginable.”

SAVE THE LAST DANCE: THE GERMAN KRAL INTERVIEW.

Drawing from his homeland’s rhythmic soul, German Kral has crafted vivid cinematic representations of South American music and dance over the last 20 years (Tango Berlin, 1997; Musica Cubana, 2004; The Last Applause, 2009). His latest is Our Last Tango, a portrait through passion and dance of Argentina’s tango superstars, María Nieves Rego and Juan Carlos Copes, the ‘Fred and Ginger’ of Latin America whose iconic stature has remained intact through decades of desire, heartbreak and estrangement. From his home in Munich, the 47 year-old expat Argentine chatted with SCREEN-SPACE about dealing with the showbusiness legends, representing their romantic and cultural legacy with integrity and capturing the pulsating essence of his national dance…

SCREEN-SPACE: When did you first become aware of the legend that is 'Juan Carlos and Maria'?

Kral: They were the most famous couple in Argentina from when I was a kid, so I just got used to seeing them on TV and in newspapers and magazines. Juan Carlos Copes and María Nieves Rego were the tango couple since before I can remember so there was no time when I wasn’t aware of them.

SCREEN-SPACE: That is exactly as the film portrays them; an ingrained part of not just Argentinian show business but of the very culture itself.

Kral: Oh, absolutely. As María says in the film, and as she said to me many times, “I am part of Buenos Aires.” And it’s true.

SCREEN-SPACE: When you presented your concept – that they should be reunited for your cameras – were they both immediately open to the idea?

Kral: That was very difficult, I have to say (laughs). To make a film with them together…well, that’s actually impossible. I don’t know how we managed to get what we got. I worked very hard, was insistent, to get them involved. María said yes from the very start. She was very happy that we wanted to make a film about her life. Juan Carlos also said yes and was happy until I told him that María would also be involved. Then he was not that happy anymore. The real problem came when I had to convince Juan Carlos’ new wife that María must be in the film. At one point, he said he would not be in the film anymore, which would have been a tragedy. That would have been like trying to tell the story of Romeo and Juliet without having a Romeo. But he finally said yes again, and the film was saved. (Pictured, above; director German Kral)

SCREEN-SPACE: Do those complications partly explain the seven years between your last film, The Last Applause, and Our Last Tango? Prior to 2009, you were very prolific, delivering a film every couple of years.

Kral: No, not really. It was very difficult to secure financing for this film. I had been working on two other projects which we couldn’t finance, so…you know, it’s very tough to make films when you are not famous. I ultimately worked for about four years on Our Last Tango.

SCREEN-SPACE: The device of filming the young actors, who portray María and Juan Carlos in flashback, meeting with María proves fascinating. It also conveys the impact of María and Juan Carlos across generations of Argentinians…

Kral: Making a film is a process in development. It is not like you wake up one day and say, ‘We are going to make the film this way’. That device was not always intended but serves the film very well. I don’t think we would have had a feature-length film without it. So much of María and Juan Carlos’ story only exists as archive footage; we couldn’t have just had that cut together with them today. I recall a meeting in Berlin with Wim Wenders where I showed him a 3D trailer for the film that I had cut; it was the first time he came into contact with the material. He said to me, “German, María’s story is strong but not strong enough to fill 90 minutes, so get some actors to expand the love story into something bigger than life.” At first, the advice scared me, because I thought he meant that the way we wanted to do the film would not work! But as his words filled my head and my heart, I realised that giving the dancers the space to be part of the story was so right. (Pictured, above left; actresses Alejandra Gutty and Ayelan Alvarez Muno, alongside Maria Nieves Rego).

SCREEN-SPACE: Given that the tango is a dance that requires masterful control in every part of the body, you capture it's essence by rarely cutting away to mid-shots or close-ups. Modern dance films tend to ‘over-edit’…

Kral: I’m so happy to hear this. A friend of mine, a scriptwriter from Buenos Aires, told me to have a look at the old musical films. They are all shot in wide shots, not close-ups. I began to notice that in the big Hollywood movies of the 50s, they rarely cut away and just let the people dance. We tried to be very respectful of our dancers, too.

SCREEN-SPACE: In broader terms, how would you define the relationship between cinema and the world of music and dance? Are there beats and rhythms in the dancing and the music that you allow to infuse your filming style?

Kral: Music and dance in film allows you find the heart of your story more easily; to connect with your audience in a more human, more essential way. If you make films about things that you care deeply about and things that are very close to your life, like I have done with Tango Berlin and Musica Cubana and now Our Last Tango, that passion will become evident. I have lived in Germany for 25 years now and tango has become very important in my life because it is a bridge to my moods, my memories, my family and my origins. (Pictured, above; Juan Carlos Copes)

SCREEN-SPACE: It is that connection to the subject matter that comes through in the film.

Kral: And the film is not about the tango! It is a love story set against the background of dance. Tango just happens to be one of the tools we use to tell this incredible story.

SCREEN-SPACE: Finally, perhaps most importantly…did you get to dance the tango with María at any point?

Kral: (Laughs) Oh my, no, no, no, no. She is such a star and I was too scared to dance with María. I wanted to! I dreamt of dancing with her on the opening night of the film but didn’t dare. I went with her once to a milonga, a place the tango is taught, and she saw me dancing. She took me aside and said, “Listen, German, you dance so awfully, it’s incredible.” (Laughs).

Our Last Tango begins its Australian season on March 24 via Sharmill Films.

FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS: THE MAIKE BROCHHAUS INTERVIEW.

For Maike Brochhaus, sexuality in cinema is due for some redefining. An advocate of pro-sex feminism who lectures on the role of pornography in art history, the German filmmaker has directed a contemporary sex comedy called Schnick Schnack Schnuck (the title a Teutonic variation of ‘Scissors Paper Rock’). In the frank and fearless film, a group of 20-something friends deal with life and love while frequently indulging in what 20-somethings do best; the sex is full penetration, the scenarios designed to convey character and drive plot but also question the nature of audience reaction. Brochhaus seems to have tapped into a groundswell of like-minded support for real-world/real-people sex within a conventional narrative. In 2015, she won the prestigious Best Director honour at Berlin’s PornFilmFestival; last week, Schnick Schnack Schnuck won the Audience Award at the Kinky Film Festival in New York City. From her base in the city district of Kalk in Cologne, Maike Brochhaus spoke to SCREEN-SPACE about the daunting mission she faces in changing the contemporary view of sex on film….

(Pictured, above; front row - producer Sören Störung and Brochhaus, with cast members)

SCREEN-SPACE: What did you set out to achieve with Schnick Schnack Schnuck?

Brochhaus: Sören (Störung, producer) and I always liked those classic 70s porn flicks. They are fun to watch, with great music, a little naive and silly but still kind of hot and honest. After watching a lot of them, with Sören or a couple of girlfriends or at the PornFilmFestival in Berlin, we started asking ourselves, ‘Why don't they make 'em like that anymore?’ So we decided to do something about it. Most of the 70s humour was plain sexist, which can be fun if you look at it now because it's so old, but we didn't want that in our film. So we tried to find a way to capture the spirit but with a fresh, modern feel to it.

SCREEN-SPACE: There is a compelling honesty about the sex your camera captures. Why do you think the sensation of watching your actors have sex is very different from the reaction one experiences with ‘mainstream’ pornography?

Brochhaus (pictured, right): Back in 2013, I crowd-funded a documentary called häppchenweise, in which six real people around the age of 30 get drunk and play spin-the-bottle. I wanted to see if they would have sex in front of the camera without forcing them. I called it a "post-pornographic experiment". We ended up with one shy and very harmless sex-scene, which I really liked. It was so honest! Schnick Schnack Schnuck is the first scripted film we’ve made, and I wanted to have amateur actors in unscripted sex scenes as well. The situations leading to sex were of course scripted, but not the actual sex. We just let them do whatever they liked for how long they wanted. This comes with some risks, because you never know what's going to happen, but I'm very happy with the result.

SCREEN-SPACE: Another point of difference is the range of sexual acts that your cast presented you with. Is the willingness to experiment with the sexual experience common to the generation represented in the film?

Brochhaus: I know women and men who live deliberately adventurous and/or promiscuous lives. They talk openly about their desires, experiences and problems, which is a very healthy thing. I wanted to show a little of that in a happy and relaxed way. But there are also friends of mine feeling very insecure about themselves, their bodies and sex in general. And I feel like mainstream porn is not helping at all. In fact, it can lead to a lot of pressure. So in Schnick Schnack Schnuck, you don't get to see muscular androids working out, just some slightly hairy people having fun.

SCREEN-SPACE: What exactly is the director’s role when staging such intimate moments? What techniques do you apply when shooting sex scenes?

Brochhaus: We essentially came up with three simple rules - show individuals rather than just interacting bodies; show real female pleasure; and, don't be afraid of a flaccid penis. We shot the sex scenes with two cameras, a sound guy, the performers and I. We talked about what they would and would not like to do during the shoot and I asked them if I'm allowed to give them some simple directives, like move an arm a little or stuff like that. (Pictured, above; Brochhaus on-set, with Störung)

SCREEN-SPACE: I love the film's notion of ‘Pornotopia’! A world in which sex exists unburdened by any negative connotations or social stigma; where it just ‘is’, like in a porn film. Can such a state of being ever really exist?

Brochhaus: Unfortunately, I don't think so. That's why I want to remind the viewers that they are still watching a porn flick. In Pornotopia, sex is always an answer and able to solve all kinds of complex problems. In reality you have to deal with so many more things. It couldn't hurt if we ease up a little, though.

SCREEN-SPACE: In broader terms, why is there not a film genre that allows for the frank portrayal of real sex within a conventional narrative? Why do you think that, despite films like Shortbus and 9 Songs, actual sex in mainstream plots remains a taboo?

Brochhaus: This is a question I could talk about for hours. I think part of it comes from our Christian background, which always tabooed sex for pleasure. Its influence is getting weaker, but it's still powerful. Sex remains something a lot of people don't like to watch, especially with other people in a cinema. I always find it strange that fighting and killing seems to make people much less uncomfortable than sex and dealing with emotions. Another big thing is obviously sexism. Over centuries there were men trying to restrict female sexual development because they were afraid of it. Pornography was created by men for men; women were only tools for their pleasure. Nowadays, there are even women who have adapted to this all-male view on sex, and that needs to be changed. And I'm happy it is changing right now! You can feel enormous fear if you read anonymous men commenting online on feminism and women commenting on pornography. There is part of men who are deeply afraid of dealing with female pleasure but there's no need to be afraid. Men and women think a lot about sex, that's a fact, and I think we should talk about it. I don't think it's healthy for an individual nor for society to suppress it or let mainstream-porn and advertising tell us how we have to do it. So let's put real sex back into film and enjoy it! (Pictured, above; leads Jana Sue Zuckerberg, as Emmi, and Felix Anderson, as Felix)

Watch the trailer here (NSFW Warning - Explicit Sexual Content)