Cinema Papers No.99 June 1994 by UOW Library

P R IN T E D

POST

A P P R O V E D jjPPj

Introducing the Agfa Diamond Award. The Agfa Diamond Award is granted to the Director of Photography of a feature production, photographed completely or predominantly on AGFA XT colour negative film and distinguished by one of the following awards: - Oscar for Best Picture, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - Oscar for Cinematography, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - “ Palme d’Or” , the Cannes International Film Festival - “ Meilleure Contribution Artistique” for cinematography, the Cannes International Film Festival. The Agfa Diamond Award represents a diamond, cut in the shape of the AGFA rhombus, encrusted in a kimberlite rock and highlighted by a strip of film of 20 g, 18 carat gold. The priceless diamond sym bolizes the unsurpassed quality of AGFA XT colour negative film.

AGFA ^ Motion Picture Division 875 Pacific Highway Pymble NSW 2073 Phone (02) 391 6611 Fax (02) 391 6699

C o n t e n t s 2

BRIEFLY

‘TRAPS’:

OBITUARY: KEN G. HALL

PAULINE CHAN, JIM M cELROY, ROBERT CA RTER Interviews by Sue Adler Neil McDonald

AUSTRALIAN FILMS AT CANNES

Compiled by Pat Gillespie

THREE COLOURS: KIESLOWSKI AND FRIENDS

Interviews by Serge Mensonge

Te c h n i c a l i t i e s s u p p l e m e n t THE CRAFT OF CINEMATOGRAPHY special

CINEMATOGRAPHY: AN ART(?) AND ITS (DlS)CONTENTS Leilàni Hannah and Raffaele Caputo

GEOFFREY BURTON: CINEMATOGRAPHER

VISIONS OF LIGHT

TAKING STOCK OF THE SITUATION

A CHECKLIST OF AUSTRALIAN CINEMATOGRAPHERS

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST FILMS: ‘SOLDIERS OF THE CROSS’

Interview by Leilani Hannah and Raffaelé Caputo

Article and interview by Lindsay Amos Report by Dominic Case Compiled by Scott Murray

Part 8 of a continuing historical feature by Chris Long and Clive Sowry

FILM REVIEWS Lightning Jack Emma Coller, Raffaele Caputo; Abissinia (Abyssinia), Jona Che Visse Nella Belena (Jonah Who Lived in a Whale) and La Scorta (The Bodyguards) Peter Malone; Wittgenstein Raymond Younis; Pedro Almodovar Retrospective Lorraine Mortimer

BOOK REVIEWS

SOUNDTRACKS

PRODUCTION SURVEY

EIDETIC EIGHT

The Films of Vincente Minnelli Reviewed by Tom Ryan; Moran’s Guide to Australian TV Series Reviewed by Ken Berryman; and Australian Cinema Ivan Hutchinson including Film Financé Corporation funding

Eight Critics' best and worst

C o n t r i b u t o r s is a Rome-based translator and media commentator; LINDSAY AMOS is a freelance writer on film with a particular interest in cinematography; KEN BERRYMAN is manager of the Melbourne office of the National Film & Sound Archive; DOMINIC CASE is a motion picture technical consultant; EMMA COLLER is a film student who sometimes questions her sense of humour; PAT GILLESPIE is a freelance writer; LEILANI HANNÀH is a freelance writer on film and a camera assistant to Geoffrey Burton; IVAN HUTCHINSON is film critic for the Herald-Sun and a presenter on the Seven Network; CHRIS LONG is a Melbourne film historian; PETER MALONE is Editor of Compass Theology Review; NEIL MCDONALD is the author of War Cameraman: The Story of Damien Parer; LORRAINE MORTIMER is a Lecturer in Cinema Studies at La Trobe University; TOM RYAN is a Senior Lecturer at Swinburne University's School of Média, Literature & Film, and film critic for The Sunday Age; CLIVE SOWRY is a New Zealand film historian; RAYMOND YOUNIS is a lecturer at the University of Sydney and a passionate lover of films. SUE ADLER

Editor: Scott Murray; Assistant Editor: Raffaele Caputo; Technical Editor: Dominic Case; Administrative Manager: J. Brodie Hanns; Advertising: Barry Telfer; Subscriptions: Raffaele Caputo; MTV Board of Directors: Chris Stewart (Chairman), Patricia Amad, Ross Dimsey, Diana Gribble, Natalie Miller; Legal Adviser: Dan Pearce, Holding Redlich, Solicitors; Design: Ian Robertson; Bromide Output: Witchtype P/L; Printing: Jenkin Buxton; Distribution: Network Distribution. © Copyright 1994, MTV Publishing Limited A.C.N. 006 258 699. Signed articles represent the views of the authors and not necessarily that of the editor and publisher. While every care is taken with manuscripts and materials supplied to the magazine, neither the editor nor the publisher can accept liability for any loss or damage which may arise. This magazine may not be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the copyright owners. C inem a P ap e rs is published every two months by MTV Publishing Limited, 43 Charles Street Abbotsford, Victoria, Australia 3067 Telephone (03) 429 5511. Fax (03) 427 9255. Cinema Papers is published with financial assistance from the Australian Film Commission and Film Victoria.

Cinema Papers turns 20! FFC appoints new investment manager John Morris, chief executive of the Film Finance Corporation, announced that producer Peter Beilby has been appointed as the FFC’s Melbourne-based investment manager. Beilby has more than 20 years experience in the film industry as a producer, journalist and technician. For the last 10 years he has been associated with partners Robert Le Tet and Fred Schepisi in the Melbourne film and television pro duction house, Entertainment Media. Beilby’s production credits during this time in clude producing Bushfire Moon and John Ruane’s forthcoming film, That Eye the Sky, as well as television series such as Gillies and Company, Boys From the Bush (as executive producer) and its sequel. Beilby was also post-production super visor on Fred Schepisi’s Evil Angels. In 1967, Beilby co-founded Cinema Papers, which he co-published and -edited from 1973 to 1983. He has also edited numerous books and journals on the Australian film industry and has worked as a freelance film editor and sound re cordist. From 1989 to 1991, he served on the board of Film Victoria. TOP: MELBOURNE: SCOTT M URRAY, IVAN HUTCHINSON, JOCELYN MOORHOUSE, GENEVIEVE PICOT, SIMON WINCER. AND SYDNEY: MARGARET POMERANZ, CLAUDIA KARVAN, JIM McELROY, M URRAY, BEN MENDELSOHN, GEOFF BURTON. BOTTOM: CUTTING THE CAKE: DAVID PARKER, JENIFER HOOKS, PAUL COX, M URRAY, MOORHOUSE, PICOT. AND, WINCER AND M URRAY.

“We are particularly pleased to have such a well-known and respected Melbourne-based prac titioner as Peter Beilby working at the FFC”, Morris said. “This is a key position with the FFC that

On 23 March, Cinema Papers officially celebrated

are the first of on-going events which will bring

20 years of publication in its present format, with the release of the special double April issue (No. 97-8).

involves liaising with film and documentary pro

members of the film industry together with Cinema

ducers from Victoria, South Australia and Western

Papers readers and contributors, and help celebrate

Australia, as well as management of our Mel bourne office.”

The first magazine issue was dated January 1974, but if people continue to express as much

the magazine’s love of and commitment to cinema. Cinema Papers would like to thank all those who contributed to the various events and espe

“I believe the FFC is vital to the future of the

interest as they did in the single 1967 roneoed

cially Frank Cox (NewVision Films), the Kino and

issue, and the 11 tabloid issues of 1970-71, then

Australia film industry and I am pleased to be able to play a part through the organization”, Beilby

Academy cinemas, Rosati’s and Mr Goodbar, and the volunteer helpers.

added. “I am a longtime supporter of Melbourne’s vibrant film culture and look forward to being in

perhaps Cinema Papers should be celebrating 27 years of publication instead. In Melbourne, a press conference was held at Rosati’s restaurant. A panel of top industry per sonnel-including Paul Cox (writer-director), Jenifer Hooks (Film Victoria), Ivan Hutchinson (film critic), Jocelyn Moorhouse (director-producer), Scott

volved in its further development, as well as in the

The Price After holding the price of Cinema Papers static for more than five years, a decision has been made to increase the cover price to $6.95.

Murray, David Parker (DOP-producer-writer),

The major benefit of the rise for the reader is that

Genevieve Picot (actress and unionist) and Simon Wincer (director) - discussed their impressions of

Cinema Papers will be able to run, on average, more pages per issue than it has for nearly a

Cinema Papers and film industry issues in general in front of the print and radio press.

coverage of Australian and world cinema. We trust

In Sydney, two days later, a similar event was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art. The panel comprised Geoff Burton (DOP-director), Claudia Karvan (actress), Jim McElroy (producer), Ben Mendelsohn (actor), Tracey Moffatt, Scott Murray and Margaret Pomeranz (SBS’ Movie Show). Un fortunately, both producer Jan Chapman, who re turned from the Oscars only the night before, and actor Jack Thompson were unable at the last mo ment to attend. On 30 March, the 20th anniversary celebrations

decade, giving a far wider and more extensive readers of the magazine will find the decision an appropriate one. Naturally, the cover price increase means a corresponding increase in the annual subscription rate. However, the old rate is being held during the course of this issue, so get in while the going’s good!

New Board member Cinema Papers welcomes to the Board of MTV Publishing Limited publisher Diana Gribble.

Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Trois Couleurs: Bleu at the Kino in Melbourne and the Academy Twin in Sydney. Parties followed at Rosati’s and Mr Goodbar. These

lishing house McPhee Gribble, Diana Gribble is now

PAPERS

The appointment became effective from 9 May. Beilby replaced Kim Dalton, who resigned recently to work with the Australian Children’s Television Foundation.

New deal for documentary at Film Victoria The Board of Film Victoria recently announced changes to two programmes at Film Victoria which will enhance support to the documentary sector. Independent documentaries will be handled through the Project Division with a Documentary Manager devoted solely to documentary develop ment and project investment applications. Governmentfilm and video production, for which

continued with special premiere screenings of

2 • CINEMA

exciting potential of South Australia and Western Australia’s film communities.”

After co-founding and -running the acclaimed pub a partner of the highly-successful Text Publishing.

Film Victoria is responsible under Section 15 of its Act, will be streamlined through a separate unit with a greater emphasis placed on effective liaison with government departments.

C O N T I N U E S

P A G E

i f youdem a n d today's b rillia n t newtechnoloaies and m ind-stretching innovations, then you need people toois as non-iinear picture ed itin g systems. d ig ita l audio w ork stations, as w e ll as film 's tra d itio n a l post-prqductian skills,

The essential tim e to get everything rig h t is rig h t a t the s ta rt That's why w e're equipped to quote, advisé, package and supervise the '/ m o síf^é rtive É jco st-e fñ cié n t and successful post-production path fo r everything from R o tu ré film s to soaps.

ations arc for the unlc^slring. Never-befi^rc^tcchnologics ;

Just make^ure you take the experts along

169 Bank Street, South Melbourne VIC 3205. Tel (03) 690 8488 Fax (03) 696 4864 • 101 Eton Road, Lindfield NSW 2070. Tel (02) 416 9533 Fax (02) 416 9560

MAIN PIC: LOUISE fSASKIA REEVES). PAULINE CHAN'S TRAPS. LEFT: DIRECTOR PAULINE CHAN.

Traps is the story of a young and troubled couple, Louise (Saskia O Reeves) and Michael (Robert Reynolds), who travel from Eng land to French-occupied Indochina in 1950. They arrive at a rubber plantation run by a enigmatic Frenchman, Daniel (Sami Frey), who lives-with his teenage daughter, Viola (Jacqueline McKenzie). Louise and Michael find themselves and their mar riage faltering on the shifting ground of a country on thè brink of civil war. ' Trepsis; “based on characters” from Kate Grenville’s novel, Dream house, and was scripted by Robert Carter, who is an awarded writer of stories and novels, as well as the short film Flitters, and director Pauline Chan. Chan,% refugee from Vietnam and a graduate of the Austral ian Film Television & Radio School, came to critical attention, here and overseas, with a series of startling shorts, including Hangup and The Space Between the D oor and the Floor.1Traps, which Chan co-wrote with Robert-Carter, is her first feature. In an industry where first-time directors often riskily work with first-time producers, Traps is different. The producer is JimMcElroy, one of Australia’s most experienced, whose careerbegan, along with brother Hal’s, oh The Cars That Ate Paris in ~ 1973. Traps represents a significant renewal for McElroy as an ' independent producer. * ■ r '

CINEMA PAPERS 99 * 5

Traps

Mc e l r o y T h is is the first tim e I have done a film com pletely on

my ow n, w hich m eans I didn’t have the resources o f a co rp o ra tio n to lean o n .21 found this as m uch refreshing as it w as hard. H ow did the p ro ject begin? M cE L R O Y

I had bought D r e a m h o u s e by Kate Grenville, and a

w riter, R ob ert Carter, did three drafts o f the script. It reached a stage where clearly a director needed to be involved. It was then I decided a w om an should deal with this story, as I felt feminine sensibilities were required. I wanted a person who was n ot frightened to deal w ith m atters that were sensual and erotic in nature. H ad you seen P aulin e’s oth er film s? McELROY

N o , but I ’d heard a lot abou t them . W e had a chance

m eeting, so then I m ade it my business to see her film s. And as soon as I had, I knew she had the skills necessary to do a feature film. T h ere is all this talk ab ou t a “ first film ” . But the fa ct is th at Pauline has done at least four film s. W h ilst they are only sh ort film s, they have a beginning and a m iddle and an end. So, the leap isn ’t as big as it is for som e people. W h y was the b o o k ’s lo ca tio n o f T u sca n y changed to V ietnam ? McELROY Pauline cam e to me w ith tw o fundam ental issues. First,

she w anted to take it b ack to the 1 9 5 0 period. Second, she proposed A sia as the lo catio n . M y reactio n at the tim e w as, “W ell, if it ’s A sia, it m ust be V ie tn a m .” W h y did you feel that?

ABOVE: VIOLA (JACQUELINE McKENZIE). RIGHT: LOUISE WITH HER HUSBAND MICHAEL (ROBERT

McELROY Because o f P aulin e’s n ation ality . T h e fact is th at Pauline

REYNOLDS). BELOW: LOUISE AND VIOLA WITH SOME

fled th a t cou ntry as a refugee. It was very u nderstandable for her to have con cern s, b oth personally and

FRENCH SOLDIERS. TRAPS.

artistically , ab ou t going b ack to V ie t nam . I felt here was an opp ortunity that had to be grabbed . So, from th at m o m ent, I was absolutely determ ined that n o t only w ould this film be set there, but it w ould be sh ot there. Pauline eventually em braced the idea and it becam e a personal jou rney. CHAN

I had w anted to do a m ovie in

V ietnam for some tim e, but it was like an unreachable dream . A fter I read the screenplay and the b ook , I thought that for the film to w ork I needed a new direction, a different story. So, I just to o k the characters, setting them in a different time, and maintained the theme, w hich is abou t truth and honesty with on e’s self and the w orld outside. By setting it in the 1 9 5 Os, we put a lot o f restriction and social exp ectation s on the ch aracters, p articu larly L ou ise, so th a t they w ould fight against th at. E ith er Louise w ould succum b to the pressure and becom e a victim o f social 6 • CINEMA

PAPERS

exp ectation s and a role-play ing situ ation , or she w ould have the

CHAN

Initially we had some problem s convincing the funding

courage to break ou t and find som ething th at is totally truthful

bodies ab ou t the film ’s A ustralianness. W e were arguing th at this

to herself and the b o o k . In to d a y ’s society, role playing and social

is from an A ustralian b ook by an A ustralian au th or.

exp ectation s are m uch less obvious than in the ’5 0 s. B u t specifically w hy did you w an t to do it in V ietnam ? CHAN I w as b orn there and I grew up in the ’5 0 s. T h a t’s an era

In a m eeting about funding, one m an said, “W ell, you shouldn’t have touched a b o o k like th at in the first place. It’s kind o f crazy. ” W h at did he m ean by that?

that has a very strong influence on my life. I like the look o f the

McELROY W ell, it fell outside the guidelines they’d im posed.

tim e, and the issues o f the p o litical and m oral exp ectation s are very pow erful for m e. Som etim es, I still struggle w ith my up

CHAN If it w asn ’t set in Redfern and was n ot to do w ith A ustralian

bringing and my trad itio n s, as well as w ith the openness and the frankness o f the W estern w orld. I also w anted to introd u ce the p olitical backd rop to L ou ise’s

issues as such, then the film shouldn’t be m ade. McELROY W h at was exposed was a sort o f illogical exten sion o f

the argum ent. If one obeyed the dictum s o f those guidelines precisely, then h e’s absolutely right, and w e’d have to burn lots of books w ritten by A ustralians. W e ’d have to set up a bonfire and chuck them on it because they aren ’t ethnically pure. I t’s ludicrous. H ow ever, I do think th at th ere’s been some re-evaluation recently, and I think th at som e o f the governm ent departm ents responsible now see the issue in a w ider co n tex t. If the agenda o f one governm ent organ ization , nam ely the A ustralian Film C om m ission, is to encourage and look tow ard Asia and the P acific, and you have an oth er governm ent d epart m ent saying, “Y es, but you ca n ’t m ake films ab ou t th em ” , it m akes things very difficult. For exam ple, there is a great obsession w ith the C annes Film Festival. But I ’m n ot sure th at the C annes Festival, apart from it being a m arketplace, is th at relevant to A ustralia. I think T o k y o , D ja k a rta and K uala Lum pur are m ore relevant. W h at sort o f audience is T r a p s going to have? McELROY

T ra p s is a film im m ediately relevant to an audience

because it is talking ab ou t the single m ost im p ortant relationship o f your life, outside o f fam ily. Th e com m itm ent to m arriage is the biggest em otional com m itm ent you m ake, and this film is ex am ining the nature o f that relationship w ith one couple, and the stress and strain that events can force on a m arriage. T h is is as relevant in A ustralia as it is in Buenos Aires or R om e or London. I think the film will travel because the em otional core story because for m any years I ’ve been seeing A m erican films ab ou t V ietn am and it’s a different perspective. All those

an oth er titillation to the audience and also th ere’s the interest in

A m erican film s are bigger-than-life situ ation s, sort o f “cow

an exam in atio n o f sexual m atters.

boys and In d ia n s” stories, and p olitically very A m erican. Th e French w ere there before the A m ericans, and th a t’s another era. Jim , this isn ’t your first foray in to an ex o tic place w ith a d ram atic story. McELROY I d o n ’t kn ow ; it ’s com pletely u nconscious. I suppose

I am m ore fam iliar and co m fo rta b le w ith A sia and the P acific than I am in A m erica or E urope. I like this part o f the w orld. But it has com e a b o u t by osm osis rath er than by deliberate steps.

o f the movie transcends borders. Its ex o tic nature will provide

CHAN I d on ’t really know if T ra p s is w hat you can call an “art

film ” or a “com m ercial film ” . I hope it has artistic values as well as its story appealing sufficiently to draw in a broad audience. Any good film will be com m ercial, if the budget is right. Pauline, how difficult was it doing a feature, structuring a story th at is m uch longer and m ore intertw ined than your shorts? CHAN

O h, it ’s a lot m ore dem anding than m aking a sh ort film.

It’s the hardest film I ’ve ever m ade. T h ere w as the logistical problem s o f shooting in V ietn am , w here things are n ot really established in the film m aking sense. A lso, w hen I was there, I was

W h at I ’m w ondering ab ou t is the m uch-raised b u t still unre

going through this em otional journey o f com ing to term s w ith my

solved issue o f a film ’s “ A u stralian n ess” .

past, my childhood, and w orking w ith my ow n people, the CINEMA

PAPERS

99 • 7

Traps

V ietn am ese. T h ere w ere a lo t o f things happening w hich w ere kind o f d ifficu lt and stressful at tim es.

Being seen as an ethnic film m aker is a handicap. If you have an ethnic background, people don’t

H o w old w ere you w hen you cam e to A u stralia? CHAN

I w as in my m id -2 0 s.

W h a t type o f m ovies did you see grow ing up in V ietn am ? CHAN I saw m ostly C hinese film s w hen I w as young, follow ed by

Ja p a n ese film s. I saw a lo t o f K u ro sa w a ’s film s, o f w hich I am a fan , and Fren ch film s. A lo t o f film s in the 1 9 5 0 s and even in the

assume that you can do anything m ainstream or commercial. People try to pigeonhole you to make ethnic film s only, and that’s something I w as quite aw are of.

p a u l i n e

c h a n

1 9 7 0 s w ere b lack -an d -w h ite and su btitled in E nglish and V ie t nam ese w ith Fren ch dialogue. I never saw H ollyw ood film s at th at age, because they w ere to o expensive fo r im p o rtatio n to V ietn am . M a y b e I am kind o f left behind in a tim e-w arp. I thin k earlier film m aking is m uch purer. It d oesn ’t have so m any cam era and tech n ical tricks or m od ern tech niqu es, so the storytelling is absolutely essential. Y o u have n oth in g to hide in, n oth in g to cover up. If the p erform ances are n o t there, if the story is w eak , then you h aven ’t g ot a film .

this free sp irit, she could be squashed and crip pled in those circu m stances. M ich a e l is an o th er w ho could go eith er w ay. CHAN

T h e idea is th a t they b o th learn a lo t in this jou rn ey.

Som ething trau m atic happens to M ich a e l. A ll his values are challenged and fall ap art, so he has to co llect the pieces. H e has n oth in g m ore to hide behind. H aving to co n fro n t the pressure o f

Perhaps one in terp reta tio n o f the film is th a t it is a story o f

life and death situ ation s is such a sh o ck to you r system th a t you

V ietn am seen through an in tim ate glance.

have to take sto ck o f w h a t’s im p o rtan t to you.

CHAN I didn’t w an t to tell a p o litica l story ab o u t the w ar itself,

L ou ise is such a stron g ch a ra cte r and M ich a e l is p erhaps too

because this story is n ot a b o u t the w ar. I invented the w ar as a

m uch o f a stereotyped putz. Is th a t on purpose?

back d rop fo r this story. I like stru ctu rin g stories along m any d ifferen t levels, along m any lines and su btexts. V ietn am w as struggling to gain independence and identity, because fo r 1 0 0 years it w as under Fren ch rule. T h ere w ere w hole gen eration s o f V ietn am ese w ho w ere very confused, thin kin g of them selves as F ren ch , because they grew up w ith French culture, and yet in their ro o ts and their essence being V ietn am ese. O u r key ch aracters L ouise and M ich a el are undergoing a

CHAN I th in k it ’s kind o f exp ected . H e is a certain type o f m ale,

especially from the 1 9 5 0 s . H e sees h im self as the bread w in n er, h e’s the head o f the fam ily, h e’s the p ro tecto r. A t the beginning, he is playing a rôle and he com prom ises to service th a t rôle. T h a t is w h at so ciety exp ects o f him . W hen Louise and V iola think they’re going to die, and V io la sings a little lullaby w hich her Vietnam ese nanny taught her, there is an

search fo r them selves. W h a t is m eaningful for them is the

element o f m agic brought into the film . T h ere is the sam e in T h e

m etap h or o f the Fren ch being caug ht in V ietn am by the traps they

S p a c e B e tw e e n th e D o o r a n d th e F lo o r . In spite o f all the dark tones,

m ade fo r them selves. T h ey needed to get free, but they didn ’t

it’s ultim ately m agic w hich resolves the ch aracters’ conditions.

kn ow h ow to. Louise and M ich a el are also trapped in the so cial ex p ectatio n s o f them selves.

CHAN Y es. I believe in m yths. In the film , you d o n ’t kn ow w hether

it’s m agical or n ot. It is ex p lain ab le to a p oin t, but I like to have

Y o u ’re also dealing w ith the p ro blem o f co m m u n icatio n betw een

things th at are am bigu ous and in terestin g fo r au diences to relate

L ou ise and M ich a e l, and b etw een V io la and T u a n (K iet L am ),

to in their ow n w ay, to w ork ou t their ow n m eanings. T h ere is an

w ho can and do com m u n icate, b u t ca n n o t be togeth er. CHAN Y es, th a t’s the tragedy o f it, and also the reality. V io la ’s a

very confused ch a ra cter. She w as b rou g ht up w ith a V ietn am ese

open ending. W h a t does th at m ean? W h ere are they going to go? W h a t is the jou rn ey like on the w ay b ack ? L o o k in g at A u stralian film s as an ou tsid er3, one is stru ck b y the

n anny and the T u a n ch a ra cter is like a b ro th er to her. She loves

u n selfcon sciou s w ay w om en are takin g over stron ger rôles.

the V ietn am ese, she loves V ietn am , it’s her hom e, but because of

T h e re is also a stron g gen eration o f w om en film m akers.

the co lo u r o f her skin she w ill never be accepted as V ietn am ese. And yet, she has rejected the Fren ch culture and her ow n origin. She d oesn ’t k n ow w hich cam p she belongs to . In a w ay, she is a victim o f th a t situ atio n . Sh e’s trapped unless she gets out. W h ich she does, at the end o f the film , half-d ead w ith fever. CHAN S h e’s quite fragile. Sh e’s only 1 6 , so w here can she go? I t’s

n o t like W estern society w here a 1 6 year old can run aw ay from hom e and get so cial security to live on. T h ere isn ’t th at kind o f stru ctu re. I w an t the audience to feel fo r her. A lthou gh she has all 8 • CINEMA

PAPERS

CHAN Becau se I am a w om an , I ’m interested in tellin g a w o m a n ’s

story from a w o m an ’s perspective. McELROY It seem s strange th a t in a cou n try th a t’s so rt o f kn ow n

fo r its chauvinism - we read headlines all the tim e a b o u t sexu al h arassm ent cases in our defence forces and so on - the film industry seems never to be really ch au v in istic in its ap p ro ach . CHAN T h e film industry is n o t ch au v in istic? McELROY

Y es.

•

A gfa

gave

very

X T I O O , X T R 2 5 0 , X T S 4 0 0 C o l o u r N e g a t i v e Films

consistent

beautiful

results

—

I have just finished the negative grading of TH E BATTLERS a four hour mini-series produced in Adelaide by The SAFC for the Seven Network. As D O P on this Series, George Ogilvie Director and I were looking for a more subtle co lo u r result to fit the period of the Series. After several film tests, we chose to shoot on A G FA

100 and 400

16mm stocks. Shooting in the middle of an Adelaide winter is not the tim e to take chances with a new film stock, but the Agfa gave us very consistent beau tiful results. The 100 ASA emulsion gave some of the best flesh tones I have seen. It was amazing how at first light and towards the end of the day this sto ck

handled

such

extremes. Also from my tests I found the Agfa to have a w a rm e r base look,

C i n e m at o g ra p h e r

which I find beautiful for drama work (you don’t have to load extra filters to enhance skin tones). A fte r grading the four hour m ini-series I am very pleased with the (look) and the decision to shoot A G FA colour.

w e

r e f l e c t

t h e

b e s t

o f

y o u

AGFA 4^

AG3

Motion Picture Division 875 Pacific Highway Pymble N SW 2073 Phone (02) 391 6 61 1 Fax (02) 391 6699

Traps

CHAN I th in k it used to be. I feel it is only in the past few years

Y o u m ould the a cto r tech n ically to brin g th a t q uality

th at w om en film d irectors have been tak en seriously.

throu gh . If the a cto r has th at q u ality, y o u ’re h alfw ay

I suppose I ’m com parin g A u stralia, w here w om en

McELROY

film m akers seem quite n orm al, to oth er cou ntries. O ne raises o n e’s eyebrow s in A m erica, fo r in stan ce, over the sm all num ber o f w om en film directors w ho get to w ork . Y o u can cou n t them on one hand. CHAN I th in k A u stralia is pretty unique. T h ere are strong w om en

there. Y o u r w ork as a d irecto r is less dem anding and you can allow the a cto r m ore ro o m . D o you feel you w ere allow ed co n tro l? CHAN

Yes. I would say we had alm ost total creative

freedom during the development o f the script, though budget and other restrictions were always there. W e

d irectors here and people are accepting o f it. B ut as a d irecto r, I

had disagreements every now and then. T h a t’s im por

still feel a lo t o f tim es you are challenged on the set tech nically,

tant because we were both thinking o f the film ’s best

especially by the guys, because they feel th at a w om an is n ot

interests. T h e film is very, very im portant to both o f us.

tech nically -m in ded . T h ey th row tech nical term s at you to see h ow sharp you are at defending yourself. I t’s ju st insecurity som etim es, and oth er tim es it ’s like the old-tim er testing the

D o you have any fu rth er p ro jects tog eth er, o r in d e pendently?

new com er to see if you know your stu ff before you can be given respect. People d on ’t give you respect im m ediately. I thin k w ith m ale d irec tors th a t is less o f a problem . Pauline, you first attracted in terest as an ethnic film m aker. N ow th a t y ou ’ve m ade you r first feature, do you feel th a t y ou ’re an ethnic film m ak er or sim ply a film m aker? CHAN

Being seen as an ethnic film m aker is a

handicap. If you have an ethnic back grou nd , people d on ’t assum e th a t you can do anything m ain stream or com m ercial. People try to pi geonhole you to m ake eth nic film s only, and th a t’s som ething I was quite aw are of. If I told som eone w ho didn’t kn ow me I was a film m aker, th ey ’d say, “ O h, you w ork for SBS. Y o u m ake A sian d o cu m en taries.” T h a t’s the im m ediate assum ption, and I ’m n ot sure if people a ren ’t ju st interested in me because of my ethnic back grou nd . I hope th at they w ould be interested in my film s first, and then realize th a t I have a d ifferent back grou nd . As a d irecto r-p rod u cer team , w ere there any m a jo r points o f co n ten tio n th a t cam e up?

CHAN W e ’re lo okin g arou nd. McELROY It all depends on w hether we can find a story th at works

N o t really. It is ab ou t com plete freedom w ithin

fo r b oth o f us. I thin k b o th o f us enjoyed the relation sh ip . It is

param eters th at have been agreed to. T h ere are things that

bloody hard finding som ebody w h om you like and respect, and w hose w ork is good.

McELROY

Pauline did th a t m aybe I w ou ld n ’t have chosen to do, but sh e’s the d irector and it all form s a picture th a t you b oth u ltim ately

CHAN B efo re T r a p s , and because o f the success o f my sh ort film s,

agree on.

I had som e offers from oth er producers to do a featu re. B ut for C astin g , fo r exam ple?

me it is alw ays the p ro je ct th a t com es first. I see it as selfish, but

CHAN W e had a b it o f a disagreem ent on the casting.

as a d irecto r, unless I ’m to tally in love w ith the p ro je ct, th e re’s no p oin t my w ork in g on it.

McELROY

C asting is a b o u t a b alan ce betw een the com m ercial

p rofile o f an acto r versus the su itab ility for the role, and we did have a disagreem ent. I w as w anting one person and Pauline was

ROBERT CARTER

s c r i p t w r i t e r

w anting an oth er and we co u ld n ’t agree so we w ent for a third a cto r ... [Laughs.] Saskia w ill be thrilled to read this.

N eith er Pauline n o r m yself w as to o con cern ed a b o u t the setting

H ow do you cast?

o f the novel. I k n ow V ietn am w as p erson al to P auline in a

CHAN I like to cast the quality o f the a cto r first and the technique

im p o rtan t to us w as the spiritu al jo u rn ey . W e con n ected pretty

second. U n like th eatre, film s captures the quality o f th at person.

quickly and w h at happened to the c h a ra cte rs, and w ho they were

different sense, but, in term s o f m akin g a film , w h at was

10 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

Jim , it’s really ab ou t fou r nasty people w ho are all h om osexu al. Are you sure this is the film you w an t to m ake? ” And on a closer read o f the b o o k , th a t’s exactly w h at it is. I ’m n ot sure th at this is everybody’s reading, but on everybody’s second reading th at is the situ a tion. So th at was a p roblem ; these ch aracters were very unlikeable. W h en Pauline and I w ere w riting, we changed from “based on the n o v el” to finally “ based on ch aracters from the n o v el” , w hich I think is the m ost h onest thing to say. It’s n ot fair to the novelist to say this is an ad ap tation o f her w ork w hen so m uch o f it has been changed. W as K ate G renville involved at all? I talked to K ate in the beginning. T h en we asked her to com m ent. She w as very generous - flatterin g, in fact. O ne o f the things she thought was th at som e aspects were even stronger than in the novel. W e w ere very happy. I ’m a novelist, originally, and to please a novelist w ith a film script is quite a feat. She is a very gracious lady. O bviously you ’re happy w ith the experience, because you w ere taken on as the w riter and then you b ecam e a co-w riter fo r the second p art o f the w ork . D o you w ork w ith oth er people m uch? N o , this is the first tim e and I never thought I could survive it. I ’m n o t a person w ho w orks well w ith oth er people. I ’m very dem anding and difficult. Fortu n ately, Pauline is m uch the sam e. W e b oth looked for the best solutions for the p ro ject. Notes

1 2

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP. VIOLA AND LOUISE. VIOLA WITH HER FATHER, A FRENCH LANDOWNER,

See “Further Reading” for details of article on Chan’s short films. Jim McElroy produced with Hal for many years. Till There was You Jim McElroy produced alone (Hal was concentrating on television production), but he did so within the McElroy & McElroy corporate structure. McElroy & McElroy is now part of Southern Star, run by Errol Sullivan. Interviewer Sue Adler, though a frequent contributor to Cinema Papers in the 1970s, has been living in Italy for more than a decade. She recorded this interview on a brief visit home.

DANIEL (SAMI FREY). DANIEL AND MICHAEL. TRAPS.

Further reading

and w here they w ere, becam e less im p o rtan t to our ex p lo ratio n o f our m oral philosophy , our spiritual beliefs, our values, a tti tudes and h ow we con stru cted m eaning. W e ju st talked ab ou t ten hours a day! So you rew rote the b o o k . W e m ade a film . O ne o f the first things I said to Jim w hen he asked me to read this b o o k and com m en t on its p ossibilities as a script w as, “W ell,

“Views”, Jim McElroy, Cinema Papers, No. 90, October 1992, pp. 36-7. “Pauline Chan”, a profile of the director, including an interview, by Pat Gillespie, Cinema Papers, No. 80, August 1990, pp. 20-3. “Hal and Jim McElroy”, an interview by Scott Murray, Cinema Papers, No. 79, May 1990, pp. 12-7, 68-70. “Hal and Jim McElroy: Producers”, an interview by Scott Murray, Cinema Papers, No. 14, October 1977, pp. 148-50, 183. “Jim McElroy”, an interview by Gordon Glenn and Scott Murray as part of “Production Report: T he Cars That Ate P aris”, No. 1, January 1974, pp. 127, 68-70.

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 11

Neil

Mc Do n a l d

The first time I met Ken G. Hall he told me

T h ro u g h o u t the n ex t tw elve years, w hen I discussed w artim e

he had included a fake shot in the Oscar-winning

w ith K en G . H all, I never cau g ht him ou t in a con scio u s

new sreels, con tem p orary A u stralian film s and his ow n career falseh ood . H e could be w ron g, o f cou rse - by the 1 9 8 0 s his

newsreel Kokoda Frontline . He was not in the least

m em ory w as at tim es u ncertain - but never deceptive. F re quently, H all u nderestim ated his ow n achievem ents. A ccord in g

apologetic. “We needed the action”, he said. This exchange was entirely typical. I had gone to him early in 1982 seeking information for a project that eventually became a biography of w ar camera

to G rah am Shirley, the veteran d irecto r told him th a t in the w artim e shorts “W e w ent right over the t o p .” Shirley later discovered th at the film s are anything but. R a th e r, they are deftly understated w ith genuine feeling fo r the w aste and fu tility o f b attle —no m ean achievem ent fo r a w artim e p rop agan d ist. H all also w ent out o f his w ay to acknow ledge the rôle o f his co lla b o ra to rs. I once ran g to co n g ratu late him on the w ay he had

man Damien Parer. What was to become a fam iliar ritual followed: morning or afternoon tea on his back verandah while Hall sat at a small table answering questions with an often devastating frankness.

used Steele R u d d ’s preface fo r the “plain m a n ” speech at the end o f D a d R u d d , M .P . (1 9 4 0 ). “N o, I didn’t ”, Hall said. “Look, you must have”, I responded. “I’ll read it to you .” “W ell, it had to have come from there”, he replied after I finished. “But I never read the short stories. Bert [Bailey] must have suggested it.” As a result o f this kind o f fran kn ess, n o t only w as H all a valu able sou rce, he also co llab o rated w ith a h o st o f other research ers on m any d ifferen t p ro jects. A t m y in stig ation , H all recalled fo r jo u r n alist and h isto rian Ivan C hap m an his reason s fo r hiring C harles C ousens for a cam eo in S m ith y (1 9 4 6 ), w hen he was facin g a charge o f high treaso n fo r alleg edly b road castin g Jap an ese prop agan d a. “W h o can blam e him in the circum stances ? I heard som e o f the b ro ad casts. I though t he m ust have had a gun to his b a c k ” , H all said. C hap m an used all this in his C ousens biograp hy, T o k y o C allin g . By the tim e I m et him , H all had settled co m fo rta b ly in to his rôle as the grand old

FACING PAGE: KEN G. HALL NOT LONG BEFORE HIS DEATH. ABOVE: THE DIRECTOR'S CREDIT FOR GRANDAD RUDD (1 9 3 5 ).

m an o f the A u stralian industry. H is a u to biograp hy had gone in to tw o editions and w as still selling w ell, he had received an A u stralian Film In stitu te aw ard and w as being regularly consu lted by the younger film m akers. Phil N o y ce, for one, gives H all the credit fo r show ing him how to film the flo od sequence in N e w s fr o n t (1 9 7 8 ). By the very end o f his life, H all w ould insist th a t A u stralian film s had to be based on com m ercial realities. H e did n o t m uch like G eorge M ille r’s M a d M a x (1 9 7 9 ), but praised b o th M ille r

12 ■ C I N E M A

PAPERS

é tm

when the late V ito R u sso , au th or o f the groundbreaking T h e C e llu lo id C lo s e t, discov ered D a d a n d D a v e C o m e to T o w n (1 9 3 8 ). In his b o o k , R usso had observed th at the “sissy” ch aracters in H ollyw ood film s, when played by actors like Eric B lore, were usually ice cold. But Alec K ellaw ay’s Entw istle in the D a d a n d D a v e film s was both a sissy or “p an sy” and w arm ly likeable. Predictably, R usso praised K ellaw ay’s w ork and H a ll’s direction at both an A FI lecture and later in a gay jou rn al in N ew Y o rk . W hen I told K. G. ab ou t all this, he rose to the occasion , “W ell, I ’m glad they like the film , but I had no idea I was doing anything like th at at the tim e .” H all, as he was often at pains to rem ind us, was n ot alw ays the relaxed, assured figure we encountered in the 1 9 7 0 s and ’80s. Jo u rn a list Lin Endean recalled in 1 9 3 3 Ken H all sh o o t and the m ovie for correctly judging the m arket. “ Y ou have got to

ing the studio scenes for his first feature, O n O u r S e le c tio n : “A

have the tech nician s, you have got to have the perform ers [...] and

vision o f a cram ped, hellishly h ot studio, a w orried m an hoping for the best . ..”

they are n ot going to be any good if they are n ot in regular em ploym ent” , H all w ould insist. O n o ccasion , even his greatest

H all had com e into the industry through jou rn alism and

admirers w ould find this unabashed com m ercialism infuriating.

publicity. He was born on 2 2 February 1 9 0 1 and saw his first

N evertheless, at a tim e when a great m any ill-conceived projects

m ovies sitting on the grass at N orth Sydney oval. Educated at

were being m ade for often quite ludicrous reasons, H all becam e

N orth Sydney B oys’ H igh, he left school in 1 9 1 6 to becom e a

a voice o f sanity in a som etim es crazy industry.

cadet rep orter for Sydney’s E v en in g N ew s. A year later, he joined

All o f us knew th at the benign old m an we visited regularly had

the publicity departm ent o f U nion T h eatres and A ustralasian

been pretty ruthless in reaching the top in the A u stralian indus

Film s. In 1 9 2 7 , H all shot his first film . H is boss, Jo h n C. Jo n e s,

try. I first encountered this when I cam e across correspondence

had bought the G erm an film T h e E x p lo its o f th e E m d e n (1 9 2 9 ),

in A u stralian A rchives w here H all torpedoes an attem pt by the

w hich had as its clim ax the engagem ent w ith the FIM A S Sydney.

young R o n M asly n W illiam s to set up a recruiting film for the

H all was needed to re-sh o ot the Sydney sequences.

D epartm ent o f In fo rm ation - the new ly-form ed body responsible for w artim e censorship and propaganda. W hen I read him my acco u n t o f this incid ent, the fam iliar voice grow led. “Y ou ’re being a bit hard on m e.” “Am I being unfair?” “N o, let me tell you why I did it.” W h at follow ed m ade H all appear even m ore ruthless than I

Early in 1 9 3 1 , as H all tells it in his au tobiography, stage actor Bert Bailey w alked in to H a ll’s office and said, “I hear we are going to m ake a film to g eth er.” “T h a t’s g rea t” , H all replied. “But I wish som ebody had told me ab ou t it .” U nknow n to H all, U nion T h eatres m anager Stu art F. D oyle planned to start m oving picture prod uction . T h e result w as a series o f film s nearly all directed by H all, beginning w ith O n O u r S e le c tio n in 1 9 3 2 and finishing w ith D a d R u d d , M .P . in 1 9 4 0 , and the form atio n o f C inesound P rodu ction s, a subsidiary co m

had portrayed him . M o st o f us cam e to trea t K en or “ K. G .” as one o f ourselves.

pany o f G reater U nion headed by H all.

So it w as a sh ock to discover th a t like m any o f his con tem poraries

sim ply w ent ou t and copied the best A m erican film s because they

he w as m ildly h o m o p h o b ic. T h is becam e som ething o f a problem

w ere “the M a ste rs” . And indeed he did break aw ay from the

In his m any interview s, H all gives the im pression th at he

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 13

Ken G Hall

ABOVE. LEFT TO RIGHT: ENTWISTLE (ALEC KELLAWAY) AND DAD RUDD (BERT BAILEY) IN HALL'S DAD AND DAVE COME TO TOW « (1 9 3 8 ). DAD RUDD (BERT BAILEY) IN THE FINAL IMAGE OF HALL'S DAD RUDD, M .P . (1 9 4 0 ). CHARLES KINGSFORD SMITH (RON RANDELL), SECOND FROM LEFT, AND P. G. TAYLOR (GRANT TAYLOR) IN HALL'S S M IT H Y (1 9 4 6 ). KEN HALL VISITS THE CADDIE SET AT THE OLD BALMAIN CINESOUND STUDIO.

“h a rd ” , sharp focus o f A ustralian silents and early sound film s

w ood and later presented to him by the M in ister o f In fo rm atio n ,

and encouraged G eorge H eath to give him the “s o ft” lo o k

A rthur C aldw ell.

favoured by A m erican cam eram en o f the 1 9 3 0 s . H e also im

In spite o f statem ents to the con trary sourced to T o m G u rr and

ported fading overseas stars Lloyd H ughes and H elen Tw elvetrees,

Bill C arty in T h e S y d n ey M o r n in g H e r a ld fou r days after H a ll’s

publicized their co n trib u tio n s to the hilt and encouraged them to

funeral, the D ep artm en t o f In fo rm a tio n w as n e v e r entitled to the

give som e o f the best p erform ances o f their careers.

aw ard. T h is is m ade abun d an tly clear in the letter o f co n g ra tu la

N evertheless, w hile the D a d a n d D a v e film s in creasingly cam e

tion to H all by D avid O . Selznick (a copy o f w h ich I had found

to lo o k A m erican, their them es rem ained distinctively A u stral

in the files o f the A cadem y o f M o tio n P icture A rts and Sciences

ian. M o reo v er, a so cial com edy like I t I s n ’t D o n e (1 9 3 7 ) tells us

in Los A ngeles). H all alw ays recognized P a rer’s m o ral right to the

far m ore ab ou t the love-h ate relation sh ip betw een A ustralia and

statuette. As he said in his au to b io g rap h y , “T h e O sca r [...] w ould

G reat B rita in than any novel o f the period, and, even though T h e

have been D am ien ’s had he liv ed .”

B r o k e n M e lo d y (1 9 3 8 ) is unabashed m elod ram a, it’s w orth

H all’s w artim e newsreels w ere im p ortant for an oth er reason.

n otin g th a t for his clim a x H all uses an original A u stralian opera

After G eneral M acA rth u r had com e to A u stralia, the rôle o f our

by A lfred H ill sung in E nglish, w hile the “ o p e ra ” in M G M ’s

tro o p s w as s y s te m a tic a lly d o w n p la y ed in th e A m e rica n

M a y tim e (released the sam e year) is sung in French w ith m usic

com m uniqués. H all used P arer’s footage to em phasize the A u stral

based on them es from T ch a ik o v sk y ’s 5 th Sym phony. In 1 9 3 7 , D oyle had been replaced by N o rm an Rydge, w ho had

ian contribution and even to sarcastically criticize the com m uniqués, all w ithout a w ord o f criticism from the governm ent.

long been hostile to the C inesound op eration . Rydge used the

After the w ar, H all com pleted one m ore film , S m ith y , before

o u tb reak o f w ar as an excuse to close dow n featu re-film p ro d u c

N orm an Rydge closed down Cinesound feature film production

tio n for the d uration . All H all was left w ith w ere the new sreels

for good. T h e passages in his au tobiography in w hich H all

and propaganda sh orts. H all gave the new sreels a stron g editorial

describes how N orm an Rydge collab orated w ith J . A rthur R a n k ’s

(and intensely p atrio tic) line and, in the process, produced som e

Jo h n Davis (a m uch hated figure in the British industry) to frustrate

o f the best propagan d a to em erge in the w orld.

plans for future production at C inesound, and any co-p rod u ction

In 1 9 4 3 , it was announced that C in esoun d ’s new sreel, K o k o d a

with R an k itself, are the bitterest he ever w rote. T h ey stand as a

F r o n tlin e , had w on the O scar for best d ocu m entary o f 1 9 4 2 .

perm anent indictm ent of the cultural cringe th at has so often

M o re than fifty film s had been nom in ated for con sid eration by

turned gifted A ustralians into expatriates and crippled creative

a panel headed by D avid O . Selznick and including Sam W o o d ,

endeavour in this country. A fter years o f fru stration , H all finally

R o sa lin d R ussell and cam eram an Jo se p h R u tten b erg . Jo in t w in

left Cinesound in 1 9 5 6 to m anage C hannel N ine for F ran k Packer.

ners w ere Jo h n F o rd ’s T h e B a ttle o f M id w a y , F ran k C a p ra ’s T h e

P acker’s idea o f running a television station w as, in H a ll’s w ords,

N a z i S tr ik e , and the R u ssian film M o sco w S trik es B a c k .

“to buy as m uch overseas film as possible and bung it o n ” .

K o k o d a F r o n tlin e had been the fru it o f a co lla b o ra tio n b e

In spite o f this, H all did m anage to get som e A u stralian co n ten t

tw een H all and b rillian t D ep artm en t o f In fo rm atio n cam eram an

on the air by putting on variety show s. In 1 9 5 7 , he invited B o b b y

D am ien Parer. W h en Parer b rou g ht his negative b ack from the

Lim b to star in a 90-m in u te special fo r C han n el N in e ’s first

K o k o d a T ra il, H all and his team shaped the footage into one o f

birthday. Sh ortly after, K. G. signed L im b fo r a series o f Friday

the great new sreels o f the w ar. Introd u ced by the gaunt, intense

night variety show s th at w ere to ru n from 1 9 5 7 to 1 9 7 0 . Lim b

P arer him self, K o k o d a F r o n tlin e im parted vital in fo rm atio n

w ho had com e straig h t from the th eatre to television rem em bers

ab o u t the natu re o f ju ng le w arfare itself and the cam paign being

H a ll telling him , “Y o u are n o t playing to a m illio n people b u t to

w aged less th an a hundred m iles from A u stralia’s coastlin e.

three people in a r o o m .” A lth ou gh H all loved b ro ad com edy, he

In a cco rd an ce w ith the A cadem y rules th at give such aw ards

w as ad am an t there w as to be “no filth ” . It w as H a ll, to o , w ho

to the prod ucer, the O sca r w as accepted on H a ll’s b eh alf by

built up N in e ’s “ sta rs” . H all told L im b , “A statio n w ith o u t p erson alities has no p erso n a lity .”

A u stralian -b o rn d irector Jo h n F a rro w at the cerem ony in H o lly 14 ■ C I N E M A

PAPERS

H all had n o t fo rg o tten the A u stralian film industry. W h en no one else w ould show C ecil H o lm e s’ T h r e e in O n e , he bough t it fo r three tran sm ission s in 1 9 5 9 . L a ter, N in e w as the only station to ru n B ru ce B eresfo rd ’s student film , T h e D e v il to P ay . “T h e ratin gs w ere a w fu l” , H all told m e. K . G . also stopped the p ra ctice o f cu ttin g feature film s to 9 0 m inu te tim eslots, m ak in g N in e one o f the first com m ercial statio n s in the w orld to run film s uncut. H e w as, how ever, carefu l to rem ove any excessive violen ce - even th a t m issed by the cen sors. F o r all N in e ’s successes, H a ll’s clashes w ith P acker becam e in creasin g ly b itter. In 1 9 6 3 , w hen P ack er w anted to ban the sta tio n ’s stars from going to the L ogies on C han n el 7, H all sim ply told them to “ F o rg et it and g o .” Fin ally , a fter one to o m any row s, H a ll retired in 1 9 6 5 . H a ll’s real influ ence on the N ew W ave o f A u stralian film s began in 1 9 7 1 w hen the A B C ran ten o f his features in a series called C lic k G o t h e Y ea rs. F o r the first tim e in 3 0 years, we w ere ab le to see a distinctively A u stralian body o f w ork th a t was genuinely en tertain in g . C ertain ly there w ere som e rou gh edges H a ll’s budgets w ere m inuscule. B ut the D a d a n d D a v e film s were as fresh as ever and in n ew ly -stru ck prints the w o rk o f cam era m en F ran k H u rley and G eorge H eath look ed sum ptuous. O ver the n e x t 2 3 years, H a ll con tin u ed to com m en t, w arn and advise. F o r a b rief tim e in the early 1 9 7 0 s , it seemed he m ight prod uce again w hen he co lla b o ra ted w ith T o n y M o rp h ett on a

FILMOGRAPHY 1932 O n O u r S electio n - co-writer 19 3 3 T h e S q u a tter’s D a u g h ter - also producer 1934 T h e S ilen ce o f D ean M aitlan d - also producer 1 9 3 4 S trike M e L u c k y 1935 G ra n d a d R u d d [aka: R u lin g th e R o o s t (UK)] - also a producer 1936 T h o r o u g h b r e d - also producer 1936 O rp h a n o f the W ildern ess [aka: Chut, O rp h a n o f th e W ildern ess (UK); W ild In n o c e n c e (U.S.)] - also producer 1 9 3 7 It I s n ’t D o n e - also producer 1 9 3 7 T all T im b ers - also producer 1 9 3 7 L o v ers a n d L u g g ers [aka: V en g ean ce o f th e D eep (U.S.)] - also producer 1938 T h e B r o k e n M elo d y [aka: T h e V a g a b o n d V iolinist (UK)] - also producer 193 8 L e t G eo r g e D o l t [aka: In th e N ick o f T im e (UK)] - also producer 19 3 8 D a d a n d D av e C o m e to T ow n [aka: T h e R u d d F am ily G o e s to T ow n (UK)] - also producer, original story 19 3 9 M r C h ed w o rth S teps O u t - also producer 1939 G o n e to th e D o g s - also producer 1939 C o m e Up S m iling [aka: A nts in H is Pants] - also writer (under pseudonym of John Addison Chandler), producer 1 9 4 0 D a d R u d d , M .P. - also producer 1 9 4 6 S m ithy [aka: S ou th ern C ross (UK); P acific A d v en tu re (U.S.)] also co-writer (under pseudonym of John Chandler) As Director (Other)

1929

and gave the sequence an energy th a t w as in m arked co n tra st to

1934 1942 1942 1943 1952 1953 1957 1983

the ra th er leth arg ic p ace o f the rest o f the series. N oyce told me

Also

a t the tim e, “ A t 8 2 , K en is still tech n ically superior to m ost

1946

scrip t fo r a film a b o u t Ben H all. B u t a few w eeks before sh ooting w as a b o u t to com m en ce, the b ack in g collapsed . N evertheless, as M o rp h e tt puts it, “I learned so m u c h .” In 1 9 8 3 , H a ll did fin ally d irect one last tim e. Phil N oyce invited him to w o rk on a c o n fro n ta tio n scene in the m ini-series C o iv r a B r e a k o u t . H all com p leted a d ay’s sh oo tin g in a m orning

d irecto rs w ork in g at p re sen t” - a fittin g epitaph fo r a m an w ho alw ays prided h im self on his p ro fessio n alism and w as arguably the g reatest o f the A u stralian film in d u stry ’s pion eers. For an extensive interview with Hall, the longest Cinema Papers has ever published, see Phillip Taylor’s “Ken G. Hall”. No. 1, January 1974, pp 71-91. [Ed.]

1954 1954 1954

E x p lo it s o f th e E m d e n (docu m entary) - co -d irecto r, also w riter, ed itor, p roducer C in e s o u n d V a rieties (short) - also producer 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 C o b b e r s (docu m entary) - also producer A n z a c s in O v e r a lls (docu m entary) - also producer S o u th W est P a c ific (docum entary) B u s h la n d S y m p h o n y (docum entary) S o u th P a c ific P la y g r o u n d (docu m entary) - also producer T h e K u r n e ll S to ry - also producer C o w r a B r e a k o u t (m ini-series) - directed one sequence A u s tr a lia ’s B u s h la n d S y m p h o n y (docu m entary) - producer T o u g h A s s ig n m e n t (docu m entary) - co-p ro d u cer O v e r la n d A d v e n tu r e (docu m entary) - prod ucer H a v e n o n th e H ill - prod ucer

NB: Hall directed hundreds of short films, the titles mostly unknown. He also produced Cinesound newsreels, including K o k o d a F ron tlin e.

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 15

W e n o w have t w o Avid no nlinear offl in e

in b o th PAL and NTSC w i t h no t e c h n ic a l t r a d e

e d i t i n g s y s t e m s at M i g h t y M o v i e s , b u t o u r

o f f in e i t h e r f o r m a t .

A v i d s c o m e w i t h m o r e th an m o s t.

Then th e r e 's our relaxing h a rb o u rs id e

They come w it h Stuart Armstrong and Louis

l o c a t i o n . Th e O l y m p i c Pool. Lu na Park. T h e

B y r n e - S m i t h ' s c o m b i n e d 40 y e a r s o f e d i t i n g

ease

e x p e r i e n c e on f e a t u r e s , c o m m e r c i a l s , m u s i c

a t t r a c t iv e rates.

v i d e o s and j u s t a b o u t e v e r y t h i n g in b e t w e e n .

p a rk in g .

Not

m e n tio n

our

Phone S tuart

You may, of co ur se, p r e f e r to drive one

or Louis a b o u t y o u r

of ou r A v i d s y o u r s e l f . Unlike m o s t, ours e d it

n e x t p r o j e c t now.

M ig h ty M o v ie s , 3 N o r th c liff S tr e e t M ils o n s P o in t N S W A u s tra lia 2 0 6 1 . P h o n e 61 2 9 5 9 3 0 6 4 . Fax 61 2 92 2 1238.

cinesure

Level 1, 33 Berry Street, North Sydney 2060

Telephone (02) 954 1477 Facsimile (02) 954 1585 P. O. Box 1155 North Sydney 2059

A u s tra lia ’s leading Film and TV In su ran ce U n d erw ritin g A gency We ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

S p e c ia lis e in In s u ra n c e for: Film Producers Indemnity (Cast) Negatives and Videotapes Errors and Omissions Additional Expenses Props, Cameras, Lighting, Sound Equipment

team John H en n in g s G ra h am B u tt M ic h a e l W o o d w ard M e g a n O 'R ile y ACN: 007 698 062

16 . C I N E M A

PAPERS

At the time of going to press, the following Australian films were those thought most likely to be at Cannes, either in an official selec

THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT Latent Image-Specific Films. Director: Stephan Elliott. Producers: A1 Clark, Michael Hamlyn. Executive producer: Rebel Penfold-Russell.

tion or represented at the Marché.

Scriptwriter: Stephan Elliott. Director of pho

As some films may not be

tography: Brian J. Breheny. Production de

completed in time, show reels

signer: Owen Paterson. Editor: Sue Blainey.

may be screened instead.

Sound recordist: Guntis Sics. Composer: Guy Gross. Cast Terence Stamp, Hugo Weaving,

Information is incomplete given

Guy Pearce, Bill Hunter. Cannes contact Sales

the greater than usual producer

agent: Polygram Film International (ex M ani

uncertainty about whether to attend Cannes this year.

festo Film Sales).

Hammerstein’s “My Favourite Things”, from T he Sou n d o f M usic. It was “one of the worst and most hilarious performances I had ever seen. And I realized that I was watching all that was left of the great Hollywood movie musicals. Then a thought hit me: Where is the last place on earth you’d find these ‘girls’ performing?” A homage to the Hollywood musical, T he A dventures o f P riscilla took more than seven weeks to shoot in and around Sydney, Broken

A dventures o f P riscilla, Q u een o f the D esert

Springs.

any omissions, but did all it

a transsexual who journey in a bus affection

reclusive producers.

in Sydney camp and lipsync to Rodgers Sc

Hill, Coober Pedy, Kings Canyon and Alice

features the escapades of two drag queens and

sometimes reticent and

years ago after he watched three drag queens

Described as a glamorous “road movie”, T he

C inema P apers apologizes for

could to coax information from

The seed for the film came to Elliott a few

ately dubbed “Priscilla” from Sydney to cen tral Australia to stage a drag-show extra vaganza. The comedy-musical boasts a swag of pres tigious Australian and English talents including director and writer Stephan Elliott (Frauds, The Agreement, Fast), executive producer Rebel Penfold-Russell (Frauds, U nfinished Business), co-producers A1 Clark (Aria, Ninety EightyFour, A bsolute Beginners, Gothic) and Michael

COUNTRY LIFE Dalton Films. Director: Michael Blakemore. Producer: Robin D alton. Line producer: A drienne R ead . S crip tw riter: M ich a e l Blakemore. Director of photography: Steve W in d o n .

P ro d u ctio n

d esig n er:

L arry

Eastwood. Editor: Nicholas Beauman. Sound recordist: Ben Osmo. Composer: Peter Best. C ast Greta Scacchi, Sam Neill, John H ar

greaves, Kerry Fox.

Hamlyn (172 R attle & H u m , The Secret P olice

C ountry L ife is the story of European sensi

m an ’s O ther Ball) and actors Terence Stamp,

bilities colliding in the harsh beauty of the

Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce.

Australian landscape. It deals with a young CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 17

Englishwoman who comes to live at an Aus

Director of photography: Nino Martinetti.

As Cox outlined, “basically our society is out

tralian country property where her beauty

Production designer: Neil Angwin. Editor: Paul

of tune with nature and, because of that, it is

and poise cause turmoil in the household.

Cox. Sound recordist: Jim Currie. Cast Aden

out of tune with itself [...] It is a story of true

The film is directed by Michael Blakemore,

Young (Peter Costello), Beth Champion

individualism, of true survival and some sort

a highly successful international theatre di

(Mary), Claudia Karvan (Jean), David Field

of purity of heart that you don’t seem to find

rector. He has made the acclaimed autobio

(Timothy Dullach), Norman Kaye (Priest/

anymore [...] E x ile is about saving the indi

graphical short, A P erson al H istory o f the

Ghost), Tony Llewellyn-Jones (Jean’s Father),

vidual.” E x ile premiered in Competition at

A ustralian Surf: B ein g the C on fession s o f a

Nicholas Hope (MacKenzie), Barry Otto (Sher

Berlin this year.

Straight P oofter, and the British feature P ri

iff Hamilton), Hugo Weaving (Innes), Chris

vates on P arad e.

Haywood (Priest (Mainland)). Cannes contact

[No further information supplied.]

Gary Hamilton (general manager - Beyond

See interview with director Paul Cox by Andrew L. Urban and Raffaele Caputo in Cinema P apers, No. 94, August 1993, pp. 4-10, 60-1.

Films), John Thornhill (marketing manager -

DALLAS DOLL

Beyond Films), Maximilian Weiner (sales ex

Dallas D oll Productions. D irector: Ann

ecutive - London based); Suite 101, Noga

Turner. Producer: Ross Matthews. Co-pro

Hilton 50, Bd de La Croisette 06414 Cannes.

Film side P ro d u ctio n s. D ire cto r: Jackie

ducers: Ann Turner, Tatiana Kennedy. Line

Telephone: 92 99 70 00. Fax: 92 99 70 11.

McKimmie. Producer: Ross Matthews. Asso

producer: Barbara Gibbs. Executive producer:

Paul C ox’s pensive love story, E xile, loosely

Penny Chapman. Associate producer: Ray

based on a true story, deals with the themes of

Brown. Scriptwriter: Ann Turner. Director of

isolation and survival.

photography: Paul Murphy. Production de

The film, adapted for the screen from a

signer: Marcus North. Editor: Mike Honey.

novel, P riest Islan d, by E. L. Grant Watson, is

Sound recordist: Nick Wood. Cast Sandra

an exercise in what Cox calls “minimal cin

Bernhard, Victoria Longley, Jake Blundell,

ema” - where landscape dominates the narra

Frank Gallacher.

tive and becomes a metaphor for purity;

Ann Turner, the former head of the script

exploring the concept “there is no point in

division of the Australian Film Commission,

civilisation unless it allows individuality to

has directed three features: C elia, H am m ers

flourish.”

GINO

ciate producer: Sally Ayre-Smith. Scriptwriters: Vince Sorrenti, Larry Butrose. Director of photography: Ellery Ryan. Production de signer: Chris Kennedy. Editor: Emma Hay. Sound recordist: Ben Osmo. Composer: Roger Mason. Cast Nick Bufalo (Gino Pallazetti), Zoe Carides (Lucia Petri), Bruno Lawrence (Jo e P a lla z e tti), R o se C lem en te (Rosa Pallazetti), Nico Lathouris (Rocco Petri), Fiona Martinelli (Maria), Lucky Fordali (Nonno), John Poison (Stan), Giordano Gangl (Vince), David Wenham (Trevor).

O ver the A nvil and D allas D oll. D allas D oll

A young man is exiled from society after he

had its world premiere at the Berlin Film

steals sheep, suffers a breakdown and is forced

Gino Pallazetti’s life is simple. He is in love

Festival this year.

to reassess his beliefs. A young woman from

with Lucia, and his career as a stand-up come

the mainland learns of his suffering, and com

dian is about to take off. But throw in the

pelled by her own loneliness and romantic

expectations of the Italian family, Lucia’s fa

EXILE

ideals crosses the seas to join him. They fall in

ther, Rocco, an ambitious manager and an

Illumination Films. Director: Paul Cox. Co-

love and have a child, much to the disap

unplanned pregnancy, and life becomes comi

producers: Paul Cox, Santhana Naidu, Paul

proval of the mainlanders who live in a mate

cally complicated.

Ammitzboll. Executive producer: William

rialistic, emotionally bereft society.

[No information supplied.]

Marshall. Scriptwriter: Paul Cox. Based on the

Although set in the last century, the film's

novel Priest Islan d by E. L. Grant Watson.

spiritual themes have contemporary relevance.

Gino is the third feature of Jackie McKimmie, following A ustralian D ream and Waiting. [No information supplied.]

LEFT TO RIGHT: STEPHAN ELLIOTT'S THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT. PETER COSTELLO (ADEN YOUNG) AND JEAN (CLAUDIA KARVAN). PAUL COX'S EXILE. NJCK (ALEX DIMITRIADES) AND CHRISTINA (CLAUDIA KARVAN). MICHAEL JENKIN S' THE HEARTBREAK KID. SOPHIE (GIA CARIDES). BEN LEWIN'S LUCKY BREAK.

THE HEARTBREAK KID A Ben Gannon Production. Director: Michael Jenkins. Producer: Ben Gannon. Scriptwriters: Richard Barrett, Michael Jenkins. Based on the play by Richard Barrett. Director of pho tography: Nino Martinetti. Production de signer: Paddy Reardon. Editor: Peter Carrodus. Sound recordist: John Phillips. Composer: John C liffo rd W h ite. C a s t C lau dia K arvan (Christina), Alex Dimitriades (Nick), Nico Lathouris (George), Steve Bastoni (Dimitri), Doris Younane (Evdokia), George Vidalis (Vasili), Louise Mandylor (Eleni), William Mclnnes (Southgate), Jasper Bagg (Graham), Fonda Goniadis (Con). Cannes contact Gary Hamilton (general manager - Beyond Films), John Thornhill (marketing manager - Beyond Films), Maximilian Weiner (sales executive -

Karvan), who ditches her fiancé and escapes

Wrightman), Lynda Gibson (Carole), Michael

smothering family ties, it means escaping con

Edward-Stevens (Benny), Russell Fletcher

ditional love and starting a new life; for Nick

(Tyrone), Steady Eddy (Nicholas). Sales agent

(Alex Dimitriades), it means applying himself

Pandora Cinema (all territories excluding

to his studies and second love, soccer, in order

Australia and the U.S.).

to win back his father’s love and respect. Jenkins was quoted in a recent Cinem a Papers interview (No. 94, August 1993) as saying the film “is about danger and promise danger because the young kid and the teacher become involved in something which crosses social barriers of duty and obligation, about what is right and proper in our community [...] The promise aspect is that it is not a dead-end street. There is the promise of sexual excite ment and personal exploration for both.” The film has since inspired a television series called H eartbreak H igh.

Sophie gets off on pretending. Eddie gets off on fabulous jewels. When Sophie breaks her leg, the chance to live out one of her fantasies is irresistible. Carefully hiding the secrets of her past, Sophie goes in pursuit of Eddie. The meddling of the passionate Russian detective, together with Eddie’s wounded fiancée, bring Sophie’s runaway romance to a climax, in every sense of the word. L u cky B reak is produced by Bob Weis (G eorg ia, T he R aggedy R aw ney, T he C old R oom ) and directed by Ben Lewin {The F a vour, the W atch a n d the Very B ig Fish), who

London based); Suite 10 1, NogaHilton 50, Bd

See interviews with director Michael Jenkins

also wrote the screenplay. It was filmed in

de La Croisette 06414 Cannes. Telephone: 92

and producer Ben Gannon by Pat Gillespie in

Melbourne over nine weeks, starting early

99 70 00. Fax: 92 99 70 11.

C in em a Papers, No. 94, August 1993, pp. 18-

December last year. It was part funded by the

21. Also, see appraisal of it and related films

Australian Film Finance Corporation.

The H eartb rea k K id is a coming-of-age love story and/or “feel good” film which deals with the theme of breaking away from family

in Raffaele Caputo’s “Coming of Age: Notes Towards a Re-appraisal”, C in em a Papers, op cit, pp. 12-7.

and cultural ties to pursue independence. Based on the stage play of the same name and directed and co-adapted for the screen by

LUCKY BREAK

The idea came, “as many do”, says Lewin, “from a drunken and debauched evening, this particular one with Bob Hoskins during T he D unera B o y s” (a mini-series directed by Lewin). “We were sitting around one evening,

Michael Jenkins (S cales o f Ju stice, T he L ea v

Generation Films-Lewin Films. Director: Ben

talking about film characters. Bob suddenly

in g o f L iv e r p o o l, S w e e t T a lk e r , D a v id

Lewin. Producer: Bob Weis. Co-producer:

said, ‘But I really want to play Y O U .’ The

W illiam son ’s E m era ld City), T h eH ea rtb rea k

Judi Lewin. Scriptwriter: Ben Lewin. Director

next day, a few ideas started jangling around

K id explores the relationship between a stu

of photography: Vince Monton. Production

my head and I could see that my own experi

dent and his teacher both caught up in cul

designer: Peta Lawson. Editor: Peter Carrodus.

ences in life might well be commercially ex

tural crossfire.

Sound recordist: Gary Wilkins. Composer:

ploitable.”

Paul Grabowsky. Cast Gia Carides (Sophie),

Lewin fell victim to polio as a child and

both characters learn that in breaking away

Anthony La Paglia (Eddie), Sioban Tuke

walks with the aid of crutches. The central

they must both come to terms with new risks

(Kate), Jacek Roman (Yuri), David Watson

character of L u cky B reak has a similar dis

and challenges. F or C hristina (Claudia

(Professor Type), Rebecca Gibney (Gloria

ability, although, says Lewin, “this does not

No love can exist without heartbreak and

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 19

LEFT: BILL (BILL HUNTER) AND MURIEL (TONI COLLETTE). PAUL J . HOGAN'S M URIEL'S WEDDING. RIGHT: DIRK TRENT (PAUL CHUBB) AND SANDRA (SUSAN LYONS). BILL YOUNG'S THE ROLY POLY M AN.

handicap the character. In fact, her disability

producer on this with P r o o fs Lynda House.

tion designer: Robert “M oxy” Thompson.

becomes very much a catalyst for motivating

(House was also associate producer on John

Editor: Neil Thumpston. Sound recordist:

the plot.

Ruane’s D eath in Brunsw ick.)

Guntis Sics. Composer: David Skinner. Cast

“I made the protagonist a woman because

Principal photography for M uriel's W ed

Paul Chubb (Dirk Trent), Susan Lyons (Sandra),

the thought of Bob, or anyone else, playing

din g was wrapped in mid December, follow

Les Foxcroft (Mickey), Zoe Bertram (Laurel),

me was just intolerable. I was able to deper

ing a two-month shoot that included location

Frank Whitten (Henderson), Rowan Woods

sonalize the story this way.”

work on the Gold Coast and Sydney. The film

(Professor Wauchop), Peter Braunstein (Det.

re-united many members of the technical team

McKenzie), Deborah Kennedy (Chantal), John

responsible for P roof, which also screened in

Batchelor (Axel), Roy Billing (Sidebottom).

the Director’s Fortnight.

Cannes contactlntemational sales: Phil Gerlach,

See interview with Ben Lewin by Andrew L. Urban in an upcoming issue.

M uriel's W edding is a House & Moorhouse

Liz Story; Residence Palais D ’Orsay “A”, 62

Films production with financing from Film

La Croisette, 06400 Cannes. Telephone: 93 43

House & Moorhouse Films. Director: Paul J.

Victoria, the Australian Film Finance Corpo

53 41

Hogan. Producers: Lynda House, Jocelyn

ration and Village Roadshow.

MURIEL’S WEDDING

M oorhouse. A ssociate producers: Tony Mahood, Michael D. Aglion. Scriptwriter: Paul J . Hogan. Director of photography: Martin McGrath. Production designer: Patrick Reardon. Editor: Jill Bilcock. Sound record ist: David Lee. Cast Toni Collette (Muriel), Rachel Griffiths (Rhonda), Bill Hunter (Bill), Jean n ie Drynan (Betty), Daniel Lapaine (David), M att Day (Brice), Sophie Lee (Tania), Chris Haywood (Ken).

ONLY THE BRAVE Kokkinos. Producer: Fiona Eagger. Consult

videotapes what appears to be a violent mur

ant producer: Chris Warner. Associate pro

der. Someone or something, or perhaps a

ducer: R in a R eiss. Scrip tw riters: Ana

combination of both, is making people’s heads

Kokkinos, M ira Robertson. Director of pho

explode all over town and Dirk is determined

tography: Jaems Grant. Production designer:

to find out why. Th at is the first mistake ...

Georgina Campbell. Editor: M ark Atkin. Sound recordist: Phillip Healy. Composer:

Le Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors’ Fort

Dora Kaskanis (Vicki Stanton), Maude Davey

night), is the story of “ a contem porary

(Miss Kate Groves), Bob Bright (Reg), Helen

Cinderella”, played by newcomer Toni Collette.

Athanasiadis (Maria), Tina Zerelia (Sylvie),

wonderland of shopping malls, marine parks and holiday homes, where the excessive ex pectations of her friends and family cause her to take refuge in a dream world of ABBA songs - and the search for the Prince Charm ing who will rescue her from anonymity. M uriel's W ed d in g is the first theatrical feature of Paul J . Hogan, who made quite a splash with a short film, G ettin g W et, and then directed a tele-feature, H um pty D um pty

side of the tracks, is thrown headlong into a murder investigation after he accidentally

Philip Brophy. Cast Elena Mandalis (Alex),

seaside resort of Porpoise Spit, a suburban

low-rent private investigator from the wrong

P ickpocket P rodu ction s. D irecto r: Ana

M uriel's W edding, which has been selected for

Muriel is a shy young woman living in the

Dirk Trent, a chain-smoking, hard-drinking,

Peta Brady (Tammy).

T he R oly P oly M an is a macabre black comedy and a self-described “salute to the dark, brooding, film noir detective and the flash, trash tack of director Roger Corman”. Says scriptwriter Kym Goldsworthy, “Trent’s no great shakes in the sleuth department or for that matter in any department. He’s no

This is the story about friendship and betrayal,

Tom Cruise, but he doesn’t see it that way.

about choices made and the way some people’s

With just a touch of irony, he likes to call

choices are stolen from them. It is a story about

himself the king of his own little castle, his

migrant working-class girls who battle the

domain: the seedy back streets of Sydney.”

odds even when the odds are stacked up against them. A story about dreams and reality; survi vors and casualties. See article on film in next issue by Anna Dzenis.

THE ROLY POLY MAN

T h e R oly P oly M an is the first feature of Bill Young, an actor and writer in theatre, film and television. Ditto for scriptwriter Kym Goldsworthy, who is best known for the weekly sitcom, H ey D ad , a m ajor commercial success of Australian television.

Rough Nut Productions. Director: Bill Young.

The lead actor is Paul Chubb, who has

Jocelyn Moorhouse, who directed P r o o f

Producer: Peter Green. Line producer: John

appeared in many Australian comedies, and is

and is reportedly developing projects with

Winter. Scriptwriter: Kym Goldsworthy. Di

often seen in quirky films made by idiosyn

Sydney Pollack and Steven Speilberg, is joint

rector of photography: Brian Deheny. Produc

cratic directors, such as Brian McKenzie’s

M an .

The 43rd Melbourne International Film Festival

T H IR D B R IS B A N E IN T E R N A T IO N A L F IL M F E S T IV A L 4 -1 3 A U G U ST 1994

June 3rd-19th

Entries are invited in the categories of: World Cinema •Asia Pacific Cinema

Australia's oldest & largest film event, incorporating the 32nd year o f the International Short Film Com petition.

Short Films •Documentary •Experimental Animation

. «The Is to r Theatre •The State Film Theatre »Kino Cinemas «Valhalla Cinema

E N T R Y D E A D L IN E : 1 JU N E 1 9 9 4

E n try form s are available from the. Brisbane In tern atio n al Film Festival, Level 3, Hoyts Regent Building, 167 Q ueen Street M all, Brisbane Q 4000, or by w riting to G PO B ox 909, Brisbane Q 4001. Telephone + 6 17 220 0333 Fax + 6 17 220 0400

W hat hom e cinema format can offer ful) aspect-ratio ^w idescreen image, restored scenes & never deteriorates? %

The answer is Laserdisc, the best way to watch movies at home.

See films the way they were intended... Director's Cuts... Special Editions... Additional audio tracks with commentary by director, historians, critics & crew... Razor sharp picture quality... CD Digital Surround Sound audio...

LASERDISC IS THE ULTIMATE IN QUALITY ¡ lif e , HO M E CINEMA!

LASER'S EDGE offers: The lowest prices, starting at $40 a title... Free catalogue with over 10,000 titles & new release service... Prompt delivery. Place an order before June & receive ,, a 5% discount, plus entry in our competition^to win a copy of the Star Wars Trilogy Limited Edition Box Set (worth $430).

•New Australian Cinema Showcase •New International Features & Documentaries •Contemporary Animation Special •Thai Cinema Focus •Retrospectives •The Kino Awards for Short Film •The Youth Festival Tickets from just $10! For a mail booking form, more inform ation or inclusion on our mailing lists c o n ta c t the Festival O ffice by p h o n e : (61 3) 417 2011

fax: (61 3) 417 3804

The M elbourne International Film Festival gratefully acknow ledges th e continuing support of:

•The Australian Film Commission • The City Of Melbourne • KINO Cinemas •The Age • The Paper House • Holding Redlich •Novotel Bayside • Poppy •Orlando Wyndham M ajor Festival Sponsors:

n m e 1-800-063-444 Freecall 1-800-063-666 Freefax

r t

Ring us to enquire about our special Art/Cinema packages for educational institutions, soundtracks on CD & hardware suppliers in your area. Dealer enquiries also welcome.

V ic H e a lth

Film Victoria

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 21

C E N T R E OF AUSTRALIAN

Fi l m V i c t o r i a ecognising the cultural significance uf filmbysupportingorganisations, projects andevents which foster the appreciation of filmandtelevision anddevelopan audience andinfrastructure for Australianproduction. Me l b o u r n e I n t e r n a t i o n a l F ilm F e s t i v a l

Proudly supported by

Mo d e r n I mage Ma k e r s A s s o c i a t i o n Open C hannel • E xperim enta S t K i l d a F ilm F e s t i v a l • C i n e m a P a p e r s Me t r o Ma g a z i n e • A T O M Aw a r d s M e l b o u r n e Q u e e r F ilm and

Film Victoria

V ideo F es t iv a l

A W G I E Aw a r d s

4th Floor, 49 Spring Street Melbourne, 3000 Telephone (03) 651 4089 Facsimile (03) 651 4090

LEFT: CHRISSIE BRIGHT (ANGIE M ILUKEN) AND MIKE TYRRELL (JASON DONOVAN). DONALD CROMBIE'S ROUGH DIAMONDS. RIGHT: SPIDER (SIMON BOSSELL) AND ROSE (RUTH CRACKNELL). BILL BENNETT'S SPIDER & ROSE.

Stan a n d G eo rg e’s N ew L ife . Bill Young says,

hearthrob Jason Donovan, who makes his

never accept your lot in life; people will al

“The script was written with Paul Chubb in

feature film debut as a leading man, Mike

ways try to put you down; they will always try

mind. W ith his exquisite sense of comedy and

Tyrrell, and Australian thespian Angie M ill

to shackle you. This is a film that says that you

understanding of what works and what

iken as the love interest, Chrissie Bright, R ough

must follow your heart. You must never lose

doesn’t, he was contributing right from the

D iam on d s is aimed at the family market.

the life force that’s within us all, because that

beginning.”

ROUGH DIAMONDS Director: Donald Crombie. Producer: Damien Parer. Executive producers: Damien Parer, Jonathan Shteinman. Scriptwriters: Donald

“The comedy in the film is the comedy of

life force is going to enable us to overcome

observation, rather than that of situation or

most things”, Bennett was quoted as saying.

dialogue. It’s a film that observes characters

See production report by Raffaele Caputo

in situations quite closely [...] very truthful

and John Conomos in upcoming issue of

and uniquely A ustralian”, Crombie was

C in em a Papers.

quoted as saying.

Crombie, Christopher Lee. Director of pho

See interviews with director Donald Crombie

THE SUM OF US

tography: John Stokes. Production designer:

and star Jason Donovan by Andrew L. Urban

Quicksilver Films. Directors: Kevin Dowling,

Georgina Greenhill. Editor: Wayne Le Clos.

in C in em a Papers, No. 96, December 1993,

Geoff Burton. Producer: Hal McElroy. Execu

Sound recordist: John Schiefelbein. Music su

pp. 10-5, 58.

tive producer: Errol Sullivan. Line producer:

pervision: John McDonald, Bright Sparks Songs Pty Ltd. Cast Jason Donovan (Mike Tyrrell),

SPIDER & ROSE

Rod Allen. Scriptwriter: David Stevens. Based on the play by David Stevens. Director of

Angie Milliken (Chrissie Bright), Peter Phelps

Dendy Films. Director: Bill Bennett. Producer:

photography: Geoff Burton. Production de

(Dozer Brennan), M ax Cullen (Magistrate

Lyn M cCarthy, Graeme Tubbenhauer. Line

signer: Graham (Grace) Walker. Editor: Frans

Roy), Hayley Toomey (Sam), Jocelyn Gabriel

producer: Julia Overton. Scriptwriter: Bill

Vandenburg. Sound recordist: Leo Sullivan.

(Lisa), Kit Taylor (Les Finnigan), Lee James

Bennett. Director of photography: Andrew

Cast Jack Thompson (Harry), Russell Crowe

(C raig M cK eegan), R og er W ard (M erv

Lesnie. Production designer: Ross M ajor.

(Jeff), John Poison (Greg), Deborah Kennedy

Drysdale), Maurice Hughes (Jimmy Rawlins).

Editor: Henry Dangar. Sound recordist: Syd

(Joyce), Mitch Matthews (Gran), Julie Herbert

Cannes Contact Gary Hamilton (general man

Butterworth. Cast Ruth Cracknell (Rose),

(Mary), Rebekah Elmalogolou (Jenny), Bob

ager - Beyond Films), John Thornhill (market

Simon Bossell (Spider), M ax Cullen (Jack),

Baines (Greg’s Father), Jan Adele (Gertie),

ing manager, Beyond Films), M aximilian

Lewis Fitz-Gerald (Robert), Jennifer Cluff

Barry Crocker (Salvation Army Captain).

Weiner (sales executive - London based); Suite

(Helen).

David Stevens directed one of the finest pieces

S p id er & R ose has been described by director

of Australian television drama, A T ow n L ik e

Bill Bennett as a “pastoral” story shot in “a

A lice, and several films, including the highly-

very urban, gritty confrontational style”.

regarded comedy, T he C linic. He is also the

101, Noga Hilton 50, Bd de La Croisette 0 6 4 1 4 Cannes. Telephone: 92 99 70 00. Fax: 92 99 70 11. Set in the Queensland outback and described

Spider M cCall is an ambulance driver with

author of a play that ran for more than a year

by director Donald Crombie as a film about

“attitude”. H e’s resigned, but has final orders

off Broadway. That play, T he Sum o f Us, has

“romance, music and cattletheft”, R ou gh

to drive an elderly patient from a Sydney

now been adapted for the screen by Stevens

D iam on d s offers city slickers an inside look at

hospital to her son’s farm. Rose Dougherty is

and directed by Kevin Dowling, a theatre

rural debt and, in particular, one man’s deter

a well-preserved 70 year old who’s as spirited

director, and Geoff Burton, one of Australia’s

mination to beat the odds and in the process

and wilful as her driver. They embark on a

finest cinematographers.

find love and adventure.

journey that changes both their lives.

Says Burton, “David wrote this play set in

A romantic comedy, the idea for the film

“This film is about the foolishness of mak

Footscray about a family situation between a

came to Crombie in 1 9 7 7 whilst he was work

ing assumptions about people. It’s a very

father and a gay son, and how they both

ing on the film, T h e Irishm an . Starring pop

positive film about the fact that you must

handle it. Essentially, it’s a love story between CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 23

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: PUBLICITY SHOT OF JEFF (RUSSELL CROWE) AND HARRY (JACK THOMPSON). KEVIN DOWLING AND GEOFF BURTON'S THE SUM OF US. STEPHANIE (ANGIE MILLIKEN) AND JULIA (VICTORIA LONGLEY). SUSAN LAMBERT'S TALK. VIOLA (JACQUELINE McKENZIE) AND LOUISE (SASKIA REEVES) WITH TUAN (KIET LAM). PAULINE CHAN'S TRAPS.

the father and the son. There are autobio

See interview with DOP and co-director Geoff

and there’s a lot of catching up to do. So work

graphical elements in it: characters who are

Burton (about cinematography) by Raffaele

is endlessly deferred as they embark on a

like characters David grew up with, and also

Caputo and Leilani Hannah in this issue, page

series of conversations, small errands and

a lot of situations that occur in the film come

43. Also, see production report by Raffaele

unexpected encounters that will lead each of

from his experience as a young gay man living

Caputo in the next issue of C in em a Papers.

them to make crucial changes in their lives at

and growing up in Footscray, Melbourne. But the actual story is not David’s story p e r se. “When producer Hal McElroy was at tempting to set the project up as a feature film and he was negotiating with David Stevens about adapting it, David said, ‘You must get Kevin Dowling to direct it. He has just di rected this fantastic version of it on stage and it really works.’ “One of the reasons Hal set it up as a co directing event is because Kevin had no film experience. Hal was looking for someone like me who has enormous film experience but very little experience of working with actors. T h at’s not exactly true, I’ve worked with actors for more than thirty years, but not on a level of generating and assessing perform ance.”

the end of the day.

TALK

Director Susan Lambert says: “I think their

A Suitcase Films Production in association

friendship is based on a shared relationship to

with the Australian Film Commission. Direc

creativity. Stephanie has a very creative way

to r: Susan L am bert. Producer: M egan

of viewing the world, and of expressing it, and

McMurchy. Scriptwriter: Jan Cornall. Direc

she’s somebody who is not particularly inter

tor of photography: Ron Hagen. Production

ested in the way the world may judge her.

designer: Lissa Coote. Editor: Henry Dangar.

She’s on a quest to experience love and rela

Sound design: John Dennison, Tony Vaccher.

tionships, and in the course of that quest she

Composer: John Clifford White. Cast Victo

has to incorporate a whole history of loss and

ria Longley (Julia/Detective Julia), Angie

disappointment.

M illiken (Stephanie/Detective Stephanie), Richard Roxburgh (Jack/Detective Hartry), John Jarratt (Mac), Jacqueline McKenzie (The Girl); Ella-Mei Wong, Tenzing Tsewang, Kee Chan (Witnesses); Kerry Walker (Voice of the Witnesses), Aaron James (Detective).

“Julia, similarly, is on a quest. She doesn’t know what she’s searching for but she knows she just has to keep searching. She’s also a very creative person and uses her creativity to pave the way for her quest to find self-comple tion or happiness or whatever.”

The film stars Jack Thompson, one of

Stephanie and Julia are friends who work

The film is also unusual for its two levels of

Australia’s most internationally known and

together, writing and illustrating adult comic

“reality”. Lambert: “The idea evolved be

respected actors, and Russell Crowe, a New

books. The film begins as Stephanie and Julia

cause we found always that the desire in each

Zealand-born actor who is the m ajor new

meet to spend the day with each other. They’re

of these women was to do things that you’re

acting talent working in Australia and over

supposed to be working on a new comic book,

not supposed to do. Now we could have made

seas.

but they haven’t seen each other for a while

a film all in one reality and let them do that,

24 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

but the point is we weren’t saying that that’s

Films), Maximilian Weiner (sales executive -

what these characters actu ally needed to do

London based); Suite 101, Noga Hilton 50, Bd

in real life. W hat we were saying is that these

de La Croisette 06414 Cannes. Telephone: 92

characters needed to explore some of their

99 70 00. Fax: 92 99 70 11.

own demons. So it’s like what you do in therapy in a way and it’s what creativity allows us to do. It doesn’t mean one has to act out in the real world one’s deepest and most repressed feelings. But one certainly has to acknowledge them .”

THAT EYE THE SKY Entertainment Media. Director: John Ruane. Producer: Peter Beilby. Executive producers: Robert Le Tet, Fred Schepisi, Tim Bevan. Scriptwriters: Tim Barton, John Ruane. Based on the novel by Tim Winton. Director of photography: Ellery Ryan. Production designer: Chris Kennedy. Editor: Ken Sallows. Sound recordist: Lloyd Carrick. Cast Peter Coyote (Henry Warburton), Lisa Harrow (Alice Flack), Jamie Croft (Ort), M ark Fairall (Sam Flack), Amanda Douge (Tegwyn Flack), Louise Siversen (Mrs Cherry), Paul Sonkkila (Mr Cherry), Jeremy Dridan (Fat Cherry), Alelthea McGrath (Grammar). Cannes Contact Gary

TRAPS Ayer Productions. Director: Pauline Chan. Producer: Jim M cElroy. Line producer: Tim Sanders. Scriptwriters: Robert Carter, Pauline

Faith and the power of love are the key themes

Chan. Based on characters in D ream h ou se by

in director and co-writer John Ruane’s tear-

Kate Grenville. Director of photography:

jerker drama, T h a t E ye T he Sky.

Kevin Hayward. Production designer: Michael

Based on a novel by Australian author,

Philips. Editor: Nicholas Beauman. Sound

Tim Winton, T h at E y e T he Sky tells the story

recordist: Joh n Schiefelbein. Com poser:

of a 12-year-old boy, Ort Flack, who has an

Stephen Rae. Cast Saskia Reeves (Louise),

unshakeable belief that his father, Sam, lost in

Robert Reynolds (Michael), Sami Frey (Dan

a deep coma, will regain consciousness.

iel), Jacqueline McKenzie (Viola), Kiet Lam

T h a t E ye T he Sky, which has been com

(Tuan), Hoa Ngo (Tatie Chi). Cannes Contact

pared with F ield o f D ream s, is described by

International sales: Phil Gerlach, Liz Story;

Ruane as having “no identifiable time scale

Residence Palais D ’Orsay “A”, 62 La Croisette

and defies typecasting”. One of the interest

06400 Cannes. Telephone: 93 43 53 41

ing aspects of the film is its use of 1950s lighting effects - using mattes and opticals to simulate the film’s key narrative icon - a cloud of light. As Ruane outlined, “One person described the film as having a mystical realism. It is open

Synopsis Louise and Michael Duffield travel

to Indochina on a journalistic assignment, but the orderly surface of Vietnam, its people and the couple’s relationship is challenged by dis ruptions.

to many interpretations. Is the cloud of light

See interview with director Pauline Chan,

God? Is it a mass of energy? Is the energy force

producer Jim McElroy and co-writer Robert

the soul of the father? Is it a cloud of hope?”

Carter on pp. 4-11 of this issue.

Hamilton (general manager - Beyond Films),

See interview with John Ruane by Shane McNeill

John Thornhill (marketing manager - Beyond

in an upcoming issue of C inem a Papers.

HUGH GRANT

ANDIE MACDOWELL

NaMP ^ 5 lly a y

1NTELOGEMT,

THE STORY O F S FRIENDS,

' >s\ .

CHARMING, WONDERFULLY

5 PRIESTS, 11 W EDDING

FUNNY.

DRESSES, 16 PARENTS-IN-LAW,

A ROMANTIC COM EDY YOU WILL FALL IN LOVE W ITH , AN EARLY

2000 CHAMPAGNE GLASSES AND TW O PEOPLE

CONTENDER FOR

W H O BELONG TOGETHER

O N E O F THE YEAR'S BEST

~ PERHAPS!

lo # Slegef, (Sooti Morning America •

(M)l5+ RECOMMENDEDFOR MATURE

AUDIENCES 15 YEARS AND CW Eft MEDIUM LEVEL COARSE LANGUAGE

POLYGRAM RLV m tNttSTAlNMtNT aw CHANN&fOUR fllMS preset a WOfcflNC HUE fsgwcwn a MIKE NSV&Lplm HUGH GRANT ANDlEMACDOWEtl ‘FOURWEDDINGSAND A FUNERAL' KRBflN SCOTT THOMAS SIMON CALLOW JAMES FEET CHAWim COLEMAN JOHN HANNAH DAVID BOWS* CORIN RLDCRAVE & ROWAN ATWNSON asm c dkktoh MKmLE GUISH us c*shkc DAVID RUBIN production ttSKXfR MACGE GRM com»« DESIGNS!. EIM3Y IftJvfl^NG BXK*i0NC£EGQRY Dtano* orpHOTorawwMICHAEL CQULTERiSC o«qnalmusic w RICHARD RODNEY BENt&TT co-ettamvE produce*«CHARD CURT15 aascOTV* propucos TM SEVAN ERfCFSLU'£R ^ vatffTO l* IBCHAKB CURTIS PRflOOtED sy DUNCAN KENWORTHY DtffiCTtD K MIKE NEWELL 0 POtfCSAMrued production a«n Mcvetos soundtmc* m io m on phonooia« « cqsos

PolyGram

BV I A NC E

R O C t-iA S

!TNTHRFLOHA«

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 25

â&#x2013; B H B i

KRZYSZTOF

KlESLOWSl

T r o is C o u le u r s , o f w hich the first part, B le u , has been released in A u stralia, is shaping as one o f the m ajo r film achievem ents o f the 1 9 9 0 s . It is an audacious attem pt to film the French tri-colou r:

LEFT: JULIE (JULIETTE BINOCHE). KRZYSZTOF KIESLOWSKI'S TROIS COULEURS: BLEU. ABOVE: CO-WRITER AND DIRECTOR KRZYSZTOF KIESLOWSKI.

“ L ib erté, E galité, F ra tern ité” . B lu e (liberty) con cern s Ju lie (Juliette B in och e), w hose daugh ter and husband, an acclaim ed Polish com poser, are killed in a car crash. Ju lie is faced w ith starting life anew - and tries to do so alo n e, n ot bound to others or n otion s o f love and com m itm ent. B lu e is her struggle to find a balance betw een need and freedom . B la n c (equality) is the story o f K arol (Zbigniew Z am achow ski), a successful P olish hairdresser, w hose beautiful French wife, D om in ique (Julie D elpy), divorces him . Losing everything, he runs aw ay to P oland ju st as everyone else seems to be leaving E astern Europe fo r the W est. R o u g e (fraternity) tells o f V alentin e (Irène Ja c o b ), a young Swiss m odel and student, w ho m eets a retired judge (Jean Louis T rin tig n an t) w hen she hits his dog w ith her car. V alen tin e’s neigh bou r, A uguste, is a young judge, w hose career is a reflection o f the older m an ’s. H e and V alentin e take a ferry to England ... T h e separate p arts o f T ro is C o u leu rs w ere shot b ack -to -b ack . B lu e w as film ed from Septem ber to N ovem ber 1 9 9 2 . O n the last day, K ieslow ski started W h ite , because in B lu e's cou rtroom scene one sees ch aracters from b oth film s together (such as D om inique). “As it is very difficult to sh oo t in a cou rtroom in P a ris,” says K ieslow ski, “and since we had the perm it, we to o k advantage o f it and sh ot ab ou t 3 0 % o f W h ite. T h en he left for Poland to finish it .” A fter ten days o f rest, the crew w ent to Geneva to start R e d , w hich was film ed in Sw itzerland from M a rch to M ay 1 9 9 3 . T h e editing, w hich began a w eek after film ing began, has seen the film s being progressively released: B lu e at V en ice in Septem ber 1 9 9 3 , W h ite at Berlin in February 1 9 9 4 and R e d at C annes in M ay . T h e very fact th at the three parts prem iered at the three m ajo r E uropean festivals is very m uch indicative o f aspirations o f this m ost European production.

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 27

Three Colours

KRZYSZTOF KIESLOWSKI

record the reflectio n o f som eon e passing by. I also used it to show one sole n ote on a m usical score. See, it ’s th an k s to a physicist that

W h y w ere you interested in the F ren ch m o tto o f “ L iberty,

I w as able to film th o se shots.

E q u ality , F ra te rn ity ” ?

Love takes on a d om in an t m eaning in the fin ale o f B lu e . Is love

Precisely for the sam e reason th at I w as interested in D e k a lo g {T h e

the p ro m in en t m essage, and freed om the underlying one?

D e c a lo g u e ). In ten phrases, the ten com m andm ents express the

In a w ay, love is co n tra d icto ry w ith freedom . If one loves, one

essential o f life. And these three w ords do ju st as m uch. M illion s

stops being free. Y o u becom e dependent on the p erson you love,

o f people have died for those ideals. W e decided to see how these

w hom ever it m ight be. W h en you love a w om an , you live your life

ideals are realized practically and w hat they m ean today.

and see your values differen tly. Y o u can tak e the exam p le o f a

H o w did you con ceive the trilog y in rela tio n to each other?

dog, a car, television: they are trap s to freedom . Y o u stop being

W e lo o k ed very closely at the three ideas, and how they fu n c tioned in everyday life, but from an ind ivid ual’s p oin t o f view. T h ese ideas are co n tra d icto ry w ith hum an natu re. W h en you deal w ith them p ractically , you do n ot k n ow how to live w ith them . D o people really w an t liberty, equ ality, fratern ity? Is it n ot som e m anner o f speaking? Y o u turned to fictio n , yet you stick very close to real life. I th in k life is m ore intelligent than literatu re. And w orkin g so long in docu m entaries becam e b oth a blessing and an ob stacle in my w ork . In a d ocu m entary, the script is ju st to p oin t you in a certain direction . O ne never know s how a story is going to u nfold. And during the sh o o t, the p oin t is to get as m uch m aterial as possible. I t ’s in the editing th a t a docu m entary takes shape. T o d a y , I still w ork in the sam e w ay. W h a t I sh o o t isn ’t really the story: the footag e ju st con tain s the elem ents th at will m ake up the story. W h ile sh oo tin g , details w hich w eren ’t in the script are often throw n in. And during the editing process, a lo t is cut out. I f you to o k this w ay o f thin kin g far enough, d on ’t you th in k you m ight end up using scripts m erely as p retexts ? N o , absolutely n ot. F o r me the script is key because it ’s the m eans

free, you

to com m u nicating w ith the people I w ork w ith. It m ay n ot be the

do w h at you w an t. I do n ot

skeleton , but it is the indispensable fou n d ation . L ater, m any

w an t to p hilosophize, but w ith

things can be changed - certain ideas m ay be elim inated, the end

co n crete exam p les you can

m ay becom e the beginning - but w h a t’s betw een the lines, all the

start to w onder ab ou t this feel

ideas, stays the sam e.

ing o f freedom : th a t’s the story

W as the screenplay o f the three parts fully w ritten b efo re film ing

we w anted to tell.

started?

A t the sam e tim e, you show

Y es, six m onths b efore. Y o u ca n n o t forget th at scou ting for

th a t love saves Ju lie . A re you

lo catio n s tak es tim e. Y o u have to th in k in term s o f 1 0 0 se

suggesting th a t freed om is im

quences, three cou ntries and three different directors o f p h o to g

possible?

raphy. Y o u have to organize and prepare in order to arrive at

O f course freedom is im p ossi

w h at w as agreed w as the product.

ble. Y o u long fo r freedom but

T h e m ore con crete and tan g ib le you r film s are, the m ore m eta

you do n ot attain it. It is the

physical they seem to b ecom e. W h a t is it y o u ’re trying to capture?

su bject o f the film .

Perhaps the soul. In any case, a truth w hich I m yself haven’t found.

Y o u also suggest th a t it is

M ay b e tim e th at flees and can never be caught. Physicists do the

through art - m usic - th a t she retu rns to taste life.

sam e. T h ey try and get closer and closer to a reality w hich becom es

First she u nderstands th a t she ca n n o t live accord in g to h er beliefs:

sm aller and sm aller. N ow physicists are starting to lo ok for the

it is im possible. A t the beginning, she decides to be alo n e, but this

relationship betw een m icroscopic elem ents to try and explain life’s

solitude becom es u n b earab le fo r sim ple and stupid reason s, even

m ysteries. Perhaps in my film s I ’m trying to do the same.

though m em ories are im p o rtan t. She ca n n o t find a solution,

R ecen tly a new lens - 2 0 0 m m - has been invented. I t’s w ith

m em ories keep com in g b ack . In oth er film s, she w ou ld g o t o the

this lens th a t I film ed Ju lie ’s eye so closely and th a t I w as able to

cem etery, w ould lo o k a t p h otograp h s o f h er h u sban d and child,

28 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: JULIE AND HER LOVER, OLIVIER {BENOIT RÉGENT). JULIE ALONE. JULIE AND THE FLUTE PLAYER (JACEK OSTCSZEWSKI). SANDRINE (FLORENCE PERNEL), THE MISTRESS, AND JULIE. TROIS COULEURS: BLEU.

In W h it e , V alen tin e know s the price o f fratern ity and Ju lie in B lu e w ill learn to love again. T h e sam e can be said fo r K a ro l and D o m in iq u e in R e d . Even w hen you ’re talking ab o u t liberty and fratern ity , love has the fin al w ord. T o tell you the tru th , in my w ork love is alw ays in op p osition to the elem ents. It creates dilem m as. It brings in suffering. W e ca n ’t live w ith it, and we ca n ’t live w ith ou t it. Y o u ’ll rarely find a happy ending in my w ork. Y e t the screenplay fo r R e d seems to say th at you believe in fraternity. And the end o f B lu e is optim istic since Ju lie is able to cry. Y o u think so? F o r me optim ism is tw o lovers w alking in to the sunset arm in arm - or m aybe into a sunrise. W h atever appeals to you. But if you find B lu e o p ti m istic, then why n ot. P arad o x ically , I thin k the real happy ending is in W h ite w hich is, nevertheless, a b lack com edy. A m an takes his w ife, w ho is in p rison , a fru it pie. Y o u call th at a happy ending? B ut they love each other! W ou ld you rath er have the story finish w ith him in W arsaw and her in Paris, w ith b oth o f them free but n ot in love? T h e them e o f equality is not, at first glance, very obvious in W h ite. It can be found in different areas: between husband and w ife; at the level o f am bitions; in the realm o f finance. W h ite is m ore abou t inequality than equality. but th a t she refuses to do. N o t

In Poland we say, “Everyone w ants to be m ore equal than

once do we see her at the cem

everyone else.” I t ’s p ractically a proverb. And it show s th at

etery. B u t m em ories are there:

equality is im possible: it’s con trad ictory to hum an natu re. H en ce,

the blue ch and elier, the m u

the failure o f C om m unism . B ut it’s a pretty w ord and every effo rt

sic. T h ese breaks in tim e pre

m ust be m ade to help bring equality ab o u t - keeping in m ind th a t

vent her from living as she

we w o n ’t achieve it, fortu nately. G enuine equ ality leads to set

w ould like.

ups like co n cen tratio n cam ps.

D o es the scene w ith the old

D u ring an interview ab ou t L a D o u b le V ie d e V é r o n iq u e , you said

w om an trying to put the b o t

th a t you kn ow n oth in g ab ou t m usic. H ow ever, m usic is throu gh

tle in the trash can in B lu e

ou t m ost o f B lu e .

suggest to you a society in

It is true th at I kn ow noth in g ab ou t m usic and so I depend very

w h ich it ’s d ifficu lt to be old?

closely on my com p oser, Z bign iew Preisner. H e is 1 0 0 per cent

N o . I d o n ’t w an t my film s to

the au th or o f this m usic. M ay b e he should be added as c o lla b o

have any type o f social or so

ra to r to the script.

ciological d im ension. I m erely th o u g h t th a t old age aw aits all of

T h e m usic w as ready before we started shooting. A ll the scenes

us and th a t one day we w o n ’t have enough strength left to put a

w ith m usic were sh ot w ith m usic playing on the set, as in the final

bottle in a co n tain er. M o reo v er, in B lu e , to avoid having this scene seems m o ralis

film . In a w ay, the film w as sh ot as an illu stration o f the m usic. C an you exp lain the co n certo at the end o f B l u e ?

tic, I ov er-exp osed the im age. I figured th a t this w ay Ju lie doesn t see the w o m a n , and d oesn ’t realize w h at lies ahead fo r herself. She’s to o young; she d oesn ’t k n o w th a t one day sh e’s going to need so m eo n e’s help.

It is a w arning. T h is co n certo m ust be ready fo r the in au gu ration o f a unified Europe. Y et so m any unp leasant things are takin g p lace, such as the C ro atian s and the Serbs killing each other.

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 29

Three Colours

W ith o u t love, there w ill be no E urope, m aybe even no w orld . I believe th a t it is w h at the com p oser P atrick de C ou rcy had in m ind w hen he w rote the “ C o n c e rto ” , ju st as Preisner and I did. T h e co lo u r blu e is only used in splashes: the lollipop at the beginning, the chand e lier, the b ed room . T h e d om inan t co lo u r is actu ally am ber or gold, as a co n trast. Y es, but th at is why blue w orks, because of the con trast betw een the tw o. B lu e is a cold colou r so we needed to find a w arm colour so th at the blue w ould stand out. T h e blue chandelier, the television, the p ool, the lo l lipop w rapper - 1 try to m ake it so that the association exists. D oes one discover this association? T h a t’s som ething else. But each tim e som eone m entions such details, I am happy. Y o u also lik e to p lan t signs all over the place. O f course. And I like it w hen people p ick up on them . B ut I d o n ’t

In a way, love is contradictory

alw ays p lan t them con sciously. T h e D e c a lo g u e w as full o f chance m eetings: som e o f them

with freedom. If one loves, one stops

failures and som e successful. And in T h r e e C o lo u r s , from one film to an oth er, people seem to run into each other. I like chance m eetings; life is full o f them . Everyday, w ithout realizing it, I pass people w hom I should know . At this m om ent, in this café, w e’re sitting n ext to strangers. Everyone will get up,

being free. You become dependent on the person you love, whom ever

leave, and go on their own w ay. And then they’ll never m eet again. And if they do, they w o n ’t realize that it’s n ot for the first time.

it might be. — Krzysztof Kieslow ski

In the trilogy, these encounters have less im portance than in A S h o r t F ilm A b o u t K illin g , in w hich the fact that the future killer and the law yer fail to m eet each other is key. In the trilogy, they’re included m ainly for the pleasure of some cinephiles w ho like to find points o f reference from one film to another. It’s like a game for them . T h e re is a rem ark ab le w orld o f the senses in the film as show n through colou rs, m usic and ex trao rd in ary sounds. T h e scale o f sounds is rem ark ab le.

her because I w as w orkin g in P oland w ith P olish acto rs. W h ile preparing T h e D o u b le L i f e o f V é r o n iq u e , I th o u gh t ab ou t her, but she w as sh oo tin g L e s A m a n ts d u P o n t-N e u f. Th u s it w as im possible. W h en I started w ork in g on B lu e , I had Ju liette B in och e in m ind, but I w as trou bled by her age. I w ent to see her in L on d on , w here she w as sh oo tin g D a m a g e , and I told her I found her to o

T h e entire crew w ork in g on the sound w as terrific, am ongst them

young. She answ ered th a t she did n o t th in k so, but th at I w as the

Je a n C laude L au reu x, the on -set sound engineer. H e is sensitive

one to decide. She gave me an envelope. B ack at the h otel, I

to everything and very intelligent. W illiam F lag eollet, the sound

opened the envelope and inside w ere tw o p h otograp hs w here she

m ixer, also understands m usic, silence, effects. T h ey w orked

easily looked 3 5 . It w as a very subtle w ay o f show ing m e th a t she

tog eth er a long tim e on this.

could play som eone older.

In this film , there are several scenes w here sound is very

W h a t we see on screen is believable, th at she can be m arried

im p o rtan t because visually you do n ot see m uch besides Ju liette

to a fam ous com p oser. Y o u can see her stren gth , how purposeful

B in och e. It is through sound th a t we understand w h at is going on

she is, how she can w rite m usic. She w orked very hard to achieve

around her. T h ey have done an incredible jo b . I am extrem ely

all this. She w ent to P oland fo r 4 or 5 days w hile we w ere

happy w ith this c o lla b o ra tio n o f the sound team .

record in g the m usic, to listen w ith us. She very quickly learn t how

Ju lie tte B in o ch e is a rem ark ab le actress. W h a t w as it like w orking

to w rite m usic. Y o u ’ve lived in F ran ce fo r a year n ow . H as the exp erien ce

w ith her? In general, I think she is a very good actress. I had w anted to w ork

m odified you r n o tio n o f liberty, and hence the ten o r o f B l u e ?

w ith her for a long tim e. She had im pressed me in T h e U n b e a r a b le

N o , because this film , like the oth er tw o, has n oth in g to do w ith

L ig h tn e s s o f B e in g . A t the tim e, it w as im possible for me to hire

p olitics. I ’m talkin g ab o u t an in terio r liberty. If I had w an ted to

30 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

ta lk ab o u t ex terio r lib

ZBIGNIEW PREISNER c o m p o s e r

erty - liberty o f m ov e m ent - I w ould have

I m et K ieslow ski in 1 9 8 2 w hen I w rote the m usic for N o E n d and

ch o sen P olan d since

since then we h aven ’t stopped w ork in g togeth er. H e offered m e

things obviously have

b lan k spaces and told me to fill them as I w ished. H e understood

n ’t changed there.

very quickly th at m usic could take over w here the im age left off.

L e t’s take som e stu

K rzysztof and I never talk ab ou t the tech n ical side o f m usic.

pid exam ples. W ith a

W e prefer to try and evoke the m ood and the feelings th a t it

F ren ch p assp ort, you

should inspire: this is w h at we ex p ect from m usic.

can go to A m erica. I

Betw een K rzysztof and m yself, th e re’s only one thing: V an den

c a n ’t. W ith a French

B ud en m ayer! For D e c a lo g u e 1, K rzysztof w anted to use m usic by

salary, you can buy a

M ah ler. B ut it’s im possible to find good recordings o f M a h le r in

plane tick et to P oland,

P oland. I offered to com pose som ething ro m an tic. W e invented

bu t this w ould be im

the nam e V an den Budenm ayer because we b o th love T h e

possible vice Versa, But

N etherlan d s. Encycloped ia and d ictio n aries have since con tacted

in terio r liberty is uni

us to o b tain in fo rm atio n on V an den Budenm ayer. So we

versal.

decided: let him live on! T o d ay , in P olan d , it ’s said th a t Preisner

E a ch co lo u r is sh ot in

will end up in co u rt if he keeps stealing V an den B u d enm ayer’s

a d iffe re n t co u n try .

m usic!

W as this ou t o f duty to the E u ro p ean film industry? T h e idea o f a E u ro p ean film industry is com pletely artificial. T h ere are g oo d and bad film s; th a t’s it. T a k e R e d , w hich we film ed in Sw itzerland fo r eco n o m ic reason s - Sw itzerland is c o producing. B u t it w as n o t only th a t. W e started thin kin g, “W here w ould a story like R e d tak e p lace ? ” W e thou g h t o f England, then Italy. T h en we decided th a t Sw itzerland w as p erfect, m ainly because it’s a cou n try th a t w ants to stay a bit o ff-cen tre. T h e p ro o f is the referend um co n cern in g its co n n ectio n to Europe. Sw itzerland leans tow ard s iso la tio n . I t’s an island in the m iddle o f E u rop e. And R e d is a story o f iso latio n . Is it d ifficu lt to sh o o t in F ra n ce w ith o u t speaking the language? O f course, but I have no ch oice. H ere I get financing; in other places I don’t. A t the sam e tim e, it’s m ore interesting than w orking somewhere I k n ow too w ell. It enriches my perspective. I ’m discovering a w orld th a t’s so different, a language th a t’s so com plicated and rich! T h is is show n w hen I suggest - in Polish o f course - a slight change in the dialogue. Everyone com es b ack at

JULIETTE BINOCHE a c t r e s s In B lu e , my ch aracter Ju lie learns to live again. Letting go, trying n ot to hold on: th a t’s life’s biggest challenge. From the m om en t she understands this, Ju lie lets herself be loved and accepts h erself as a w om an and as a m usician. She d oesn ’t really com p ose; she edits. But m aybe one day ... I d on ’t believe in chance. Life is strew n w ith signs and sym bols. T u n in g into these signs should be separated from superstition th a t com es from fear - a fear o f m aking decisions on living. O n the co n trary , know ing how to tune in and listen to these signs is to kn ow how to evolve. If we listen closely, we can find all kinds o f answ ers to life’s questions. I t’s a m atter o f faith . It ca n ’t be explained. For m e, the su bject o f B lu e was m ade to order. I told m yself: “H ow is it possible th at K rzysztof had a p rem o n ition , or at least an incredible in stin ct?”

MARIN KARMITZ

producer

me, in Fren ch , w ith suggestions fo r tw enty ways to change it. T h ere is an old H assidic trad itio n w hich says th at m eetings D o you feel E u rop ean ?

should be m iracu lou s. D oes n o t a m iracle often con sist in

N o, I feel P olish . M o re sp ecifically , I feel like I ’m from the tiny

w anting som ething very badly? T h e first m eeting w ith K ieslow ski

village in the n o rth -ea st o f Poland w here I have a house and

was like this. H e spoke to me right o ff o f T h r e e C o lo u r s . T h is is

where I love to spend tim e. B u t I d o n ’t w ork there; I cut w ood.

w h at m ade the m eeting m iracu lou s. In tw o hours we had gone to the h eart o f everything I had been dream ing ab o u t for ten years. I told him o f my interest in the su b ject, exp lain in g h ow it

Krzysztof Kieslowski

feature f il m o g r a p h y

affected me person ally as a R o m an ian ém igré, as a Je w saved by

P e r s o n e l (P e r s o n n e l, tele-featu re, 1 9 7 6 ) ,B liz n a {T h e S car, 1 9 7 6 ),

F ran ce. I said th at I w as ready to follow him . In oth er w ords, in

A m a t o r ( C a m e r a B u ff, 1 9 7 9 ) , K r ô t k i d z ie n P r a c y (A S h o r t D a y s

tw o hours flat I had in effect m ade a F F 1 2 0 m illion com m itm en t!

Work, tele-fea tu re, 1 9 8 1 ), P r z y p a d e k (B lin d C h a n c e , 1 9 8 2 ), B e z

So the adventure started a very long tim e ago. It has lasted fou r

K o n v a (N o E n d , 1 9 8 4 ) ,D e k a l o g , 1 9 8 8 ), K r ô t k i F ilm O Z a b ija n iu

to five years o f tw o p eo p le’s lives.

(A S h o r t F ilm a b o u t Killing-, 1 9 8 8 ) , A S h o r t F ilm a b o u t L o v e

F rom the start, K ieslow ski w anted to involve m e w ith the

(1 9 8 8 ), L a D o u b l e V ie d e V é r o n iq u e ( 1 9 9 1 ), T r o is C o u le u r s :

w riting o f the script. W h a t should be pruned and trim m ed. H ow

B lu e ( 1 9 9 3 ) , T r o is C o u le u r s : B la n c (1 9 9 4 ) ; T r o is C o u le u r s :

to ex it from the an ecd ote and get to the essential p oin t, to the very

R o u g e (1 9 9 4 ).

a b stra ctio n , so th a t understanding becom es irrefu tab le and u ni versal.

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 31

Three Colours

bols. T h an k s to video, people are ready fo r this type o f language, especially fo r dialogue th a t is su ccin ct, synthesized, and pared

K ieslow sk i and I have a shared und erstand ing o f m orality. H is

dow n. D u rin g the editing, K ieslow ski cu t ou t h a lf o f w h at he had

ap p ro ach to m etaphysics is C h ristian w hile m ine is Jew ish , so in

origin ally envisioned and kep t only the essential. W e are left w ith

th a t sense w e’re very d ifferen t. B u t we have som ething essential

a system o f signs w h ich m akes our pu rpose clearer. All this requires an en orm ous effo rt, physical as w ell as

in com m on : a respect fo r m ankind . T h e prod uction to o k shape gradually w ith the idea o f gathering

in tellectu al. I d o n ’t w an t to seem p reten tio u s, but it ’s really a

European financing around this p ro ject. T h ere are governm ent

creative suffering. And this is w hy I try to keep my feet on the

subsidies and I felt th at it was im portant that governm ents get

ground by still w ork in g as a law yer. I t ’s a qu estion o f h on esty. I

involved. T h e Centre N ation ale de la C iném atographe got in

d o n ’t w an t to talk ab o u t the w orld w ith o u t having a real

volved via advances on incom e for B lu e and Berne assisted R ed .

co n n ectio n to it. I t ’s the only w ay to be aw are o f p eo p le’s reality

T h e Poles, w ho, obviously, have few resources, made their co n tri

and to also reach the sp ectato r in the co n te x t o f th eir ow n reality.

bution via the E E C ’s Eurim ages fund w hich lent alm ost F F 1 0

O u r m ethods o f w ork in g a re n ’t very o rth o d o x . W e ask

m illion on the three film s. And pre-sales started tw o years ago in

ourselves question s: W h a t are w e trying to say? W h a t do people

C annes. T h e p ro ject caught the im agination o f the entire w orld. H ow ever, we did com e up against n ation alism and c o rp o ra t ism . T h ere w as a p etitio n o f Swiss film m akers dem anding to kn ow w hy B erne had given assistan ce to a P olish film m aker to

breathe today? T h en , we try ou t ch aracters and try to live w ith them . M o re th an tell a story, we d escribe ch a ra cte rs, alth ou gh our d ram atic co n stru ctio n s rem ain very classical. K ieslow ski and I are w ork in g on an o th er trilogy: three stories

produce a F ren ch film . T h e Fren ch also started to ask me

closely tied to the end o f the 2 0 th C entury. W e k n ow h ow we

questions.

w an t to tell them , but we d o n ’t k n ow if w e’ll have the energy to

W h ile it is n ot alw ays p ossib le, I tried to follow the rules and

do it. I w ould love to be able to carry it th rou gh ; it w ould be a so rt

I succeeded. T h ere is an exem plary b alan ce in the three film s

o f con clu sio n to D e c a lo g u e , T h e D o u b le L i f e o f V e r o n iq u e , and

betw een n ation alities. T h e first film , w hich w as sh ot in Fran ce,

T h r e e C o lo u r s . I w ill stop w ork in g in film w henever I feel th at

had a m a jo rity o f Fren ch tech n ician s and actors.

people a re n ’t interested in w h at I have to say any m ore. A nd if I

In the second film , w h ich w as sh o t in Polan d , there w ere Polish actors and a c ertain num ber o f French tech n ician s. All three film s

no longer in terest them , it w ill m ean th a t I am no longer able to tell them ab o u t w h at is deepest inside them .

had the involvem ent o f Sw iss electrician s. Fou r languages w ere

T h e m ore tim e I spend w ith K ieslow ski, the m ore I becom e a

spoken on the set - P olish, E nglish, Fren ch and G erm an - w ith

pessim ist. T h a t’s w hy I w an t to m ake film s w h ich .becom e clearer

perm an en t sim ultaneou s tran slatio n . I w as afraid th at m utually-

and clearer, in order to fight again st this feeling. T o figh t again st

an tag o n istic cliques w ould form , th a t we w ould have n ation al

it in m yself, in itially, and then in the view er.

struggles in this little com m u nity, but this did n ot happen. T h e co n ten t w as stron ger than everything else, and we w ere driven by an o b jectiv e. T h is in spite o f very difficu lt w orking con d itions: we

SLAWOMIR IDZIAK

w ork ed six days a w eek, tw elve hours a day, som etim es m ore. At

DIRECTOR

OF P H O T O G R A P H Y

( ‘ BLUE’)

the very beginning on B lu e , we had to w ork for over tw en ty-four hours at a stretch w ith no break.

K ieslow ski and I talk ab o u t everything! T e ch n ica l m atters, o f

Fil m o g r a p h y

im pressions and feelings w ith him . K rzysztof never steps behind

M a rin K a rm itz ’s prod ucer credits include S a lto N e l V u o to (L e a p

the cam era because o f his exp erien ce, u ndoubtedly, but also

in to th e V o id , M a rc o B ello cch io , 1 9 8 0 ), S a u v e Q u i P eu t (L a Vie)

than ks to the tru st there is betw een us.

cou rse, but also ab o u t the a cto rs, the staging. I sh are my

(E v er y M a n f o r H im s e lf, Je a n F u c G od ard , 1 9 8 0 ), P o u le t au

It com es from our style o f w ork in g in the E ast. O ur trad itio n

V in a ig re (C laude C h a b ro l, 1 9 8 4 ), I n s p e c t e u r L a v a d in (C h ab rol,

is different. In P olan d , the d irecto r o f p h otograp h y isn ’t m erely

1 9 8 6 ), A u R e v o ir les E n fa n ts (Fou is M a lle , 1 9 8 7 ),

a tech n ician . H e w orks very closely w ith the d irecto r; he m ay

M asqu es

(C h a b ro l, 1 9 8 7 ), L ’H is t o ir e d e s F e m m e s (S to ry o f W o m e n ,

even co lla b o ra te in the w riting o f the screenplay.

C h ab ro l, 1 9 8 8 ), T a x i B lu e s (Pavel Fou n guine, 1 9 9 0 ), M a d a m e

F o r B lu e , K rzysztof gave me three versions o f the scrip t to

B o v a r y (C h a b ro l, 1 9 9 1 ) , M a z z e p p a (B a rta b as, 1 9 9 2 ), B etty

read. I told him I preferred the first. F rom th a t poin t on, we began

(C hab rol, 1 9 9 3 ), L ’E n fe r (C hab rol, 1 9 9 4 ), L a V ie e t les A v en tu res

discussing it and we revised it togeth er. I th in k th a t a lo t o f the

E x tr a o r d in a ir e s d u S o ld a t Iv a n T c h o n k in e (Jiri M en zel, 1 9 9 4 ),

film ’s ideas w ill be m ine. B ut this is n ot ou t o f the ord inary in

L a S a la d e (F u cian P intilie, 1 9 9 4 ).

Poland. In Poland, future directors and d irectors o f p h otograp h y study togeth er at the sam e sch ools w ith the sam e p ro fesso rs. T h a t’s

KRZYSZTOF PIESIEWICZ

c o

writer

K ieslow ski and I shared a w orld vision: he as a film m aker, and

how they pair off, start out togeth er, and con tin u e co lla b o ra tin g in a w ay th at is in creasingly fruitful. K ieslow ski stands ap art in this sense. H e changes his d irecto r

I as a law yer. W h a t interests us is the in tim ate details o f peo p le’s

o f p h otograp h y on p ractically every film . T h e result is th a t each

daily lives.

cam eram an shares his w orld w ith K ieslow ski.

O ur only p roblem has been keeping the sam e eye on the w orld

T h ere are tw o co n stan ts in m y w ork : the cam era on my

around us. W e alw ays k n ow w h at w e w an t to tell and h ow , but

shou lder, and the use o f filters. F ro m th a t p o in t on, anything

som etim es we d o n ’t have the strength.

goes. I especially try to find a co lo u r w h ich seem s to corresp on d to the m ov ie’s tone.

In itially , even if we k n ow ex a ctly w h at w e w an t to say, we m ust be carefu l to n o t be to o off-cen tre, to o rem oved from life.

K ieslow ski only does one or tw o takes p er sh ot. Every d irecto r

T h e m ost im p o rta n t things are p eo p le’s su ffering an d . their

has his tem p eram en t and style. T h ese are p erson al m ysteries. I

dream s. I t ’s up to us to identify the causes; up to us to have the

accep t K rzy szto f’s style and try to m ake the m o st o f it fo r the

cam era lo o k inside the individual c h a ra cte r. M o reo v er * w e thin k

m ovie. B u t I realize th a t it m ay be p ro b lem atic fo r an actress like

th a t we can convey the m o st com p licated things by using sym

Ju lie tte B in o ch e. H er w o rk is so fragile and co m p licated !

32 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

■

*»saI A

This supplement is the first of several

SPECIAL

g g

SUPPLEMENT

P A R T ONE

The C raft of

to examine the work of directors of photo graphy (and other key film technicians). A future instalment will concentrate on the work done overseas by Australian cinematographers.

and

Raffaele

Caputo Artist, technician, collaborator: there is still a

establishing the director as the principal crea

good deal of mystery surrounding the rôle and

tive source to the extent that it overshadows

function of the director of photography (DOP)

other principal functions and figures of respon

within the filmmaking process. A DOP is capa

sibility.

ble of creating images that transport the audi

This is not meant as a diatribe against

ence into different places and tim es with

auteurism - auteurism at its best has been a

apparent seamless ease and subtlety. DOPs

major force in valorizing film as an art form

are a powerful force in the creation of the “look”

worthy of critical study. But, with its basis in

of a film and, hence, in determining the dra

literary criticism, auteurist practice has often

matic mood and tone of a film and, to a lesser

placed undue emphasis on them atics at the

degree, determining a film ’s structure in terms

expense of the diverse visual and aural tech

of coverage. In these times of media explosion,

niques and forms that come to express a theme.

more seems to be understood of the process of

While many would be immediately fam iliar with

filmmaking than ever before. But there is still a

phrases like a “Brian De Palma film ” , “ Michael

general misunderstanding of the rôle and func

Powell film ” , or “John Duigan film ” , even if

tion of the cinematographer.

randomly brought up in conversation among

Last year’s Cinematographers’ Conference

34 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

film enthusiasts, not many would know what is

hosted by the Australian Film Television & Ra

meant with such terms as a “John Alonzo”,

dio School, and the recent documentary, Vi

“Otto Heller” or “Geoff Burton film ” . Indeed,

sions o f Light: The A rt o f Cinematography, have

such wording would be freakish if not com

whetted considerable critical and public inter

pletely out of the question in the usual practices

est in the craft of the cinematographer. Through

of film criticism. Yet, it is the director of photog

the years - apart from specialist trade publica

raphy who is in large part responsible for the

tions - recognition and appreciation of the di

images we actually see on screen, and thus

rector of photography has been intermittent.

contributes much to a film ’s outcome - to its

The reason is largely due to the fact that the

success or failure at the box-office, joys or

prevalent paradigm of film criticism for the past

sorrows experienced by an audience, and to

30 years or more is auteurist; and if not auteurist

the favour or invective expressed by critics.

in the strictest sense, then heavily bent on

Events like the AFTRS conference and Visions

and its (Dis)contents of Light have been long overdue and come at a

of auteurs than a greater understanding of the

ABOVE: DOP STEVE MASON, CENTRE, DISCUSSES A

time when there is dire need to re-evaluate

integration of cinematography with other levels

COMPOSITION WITH DIRECTOR LAURIE MdNNES DURING THE

critical perspectives on the filmmaking craft in

and issues of the filmmaking process.

this country.

FILMING OF BROKEN HIG HW AY (1 9 9 3 ).

This article is not intended for the specialist

But hopeful signs can also signal particular

reader looking to add to an inventory of personal

ble for a large and immediate part of the crew,

traps. Just as director-oriented criticism holds sway over the interpretation of films, there is

lighting styles and techniques. On the contrary, it is meant for the cursp.ry reader with a view to

and next to the director is the most influential

easy danger of over-fetishizing the rôle of the

understanding cinematography primarily as a

thing is achieved by constant referral between

DOP. Visions o f Light, for instance, can be seen

job. What follows is a practical survey of the role

the director and the DOP. The DOP is also a link

to be partly at fault in this regard. The film ’s

of the cinematographer whilst on set or in prepa

between all of the other departments, and al

emphasis on strong visual styles through ex

ration for a shoot - if you will, some hard-and-

most every department needs to confer with the

amples from the German cinema of the 1920s,

fast, home-spun truths. The article is peppered

DOP on a daily basis. Hence, a DOP must be

or American film noir of the ’40s, impresses

with excerpts from original interviews with three

able to make fast decisions and be a good

upon the audience the DOP as a superstar,

DOPs: Russell Boyd, Denis Lenoir and Steve

communicator. These abilities can be as impor

which does not give much leeway for exploring

Mason. Boyd is a veteran Australian cinematog

tant as technical and aesthetic understanding,

modest personal styles whose strength is the

rapher with an extensive list of credits (see

work’s appearing incidental.

“Australian Cinematographers’ Checklist” , p. 58);

especially with regard to meeting a film ’s budget and shooting schedule.

person on the set. In any shooting day, every

To use a phrase like “a Geoff Burton film ” is

Lenoir is a foreign (French) DOP, who has shot

But it is not only a matter of pulling in a film

another case in point. Its freakishness is not only

one feature (Dingo) in Australia; and Mason is a

on time and on budget, it is also a question of

indicative of the neglect of thé rôle of the cinema

‘young turk’ with Broken Highway and Strictly

doing a film well and true to the story. Most

tographer, it also points to the fact that our

Ballroom, among others, to his credit.

cinematographers would agree - indeed, film

critical vocabulary is highly inappropriate in deal

A cinematographer needs to have a compre

ing with the cinematographer’s contributions.

hensive understanding of both the visual arts

utmost importance. Perhaps James Wong Howe

What is needed is less a rush to exult a new set

and technical information. He or she is responsi-

expressed it best many years ago with the view

makers in general - that telling a story is of the

TECHNICALITIES_________

cinematography

that all cameramen are “subservient to the

On the other hand, the DOP has to be able

the way to light in a certain way to evoke a

story” , by which he meant that to photograph

to relate to, or tap into, the artistic, visual de

certain mood: these are very important parts

each different story in like manner is analogous

sires of the director. In this sense, the DOP can

of the cinem atographer’s function.

to working with “a rubber stamp.”

be in a very rewarding position. Often, this

Thus subservience appears to be the name

involves treading uncharted ground, pushing

of the game, and part of this subservience is

the techniques in different ways in order to

determined by the relationship between the

create new images. This is particularly true

director and the DOP. Somewhat analogous to

when it comes to an understanding of film

a mystic, the director of photography is a tech

stocks. Because the film emulsion itself is where

nical medium, the link between the creative,

the image is formed, a DOP must be aware of

abstract desires of the director and the means

how different film stocks will react when ex

to achieving those desires.

posed. If the DOP does not have a very strong

RUSSELL

My feeling is that a cine

BOYD

matographer has to interpret a director’s view of a scene in a visual way, to help the director put the story on the screen. I believe very strongly that the cinematographer’s role is to be subservient to the director, is there to help and work for the director - basically to achieve technically what the director is doing emotionally.

understanding of the chemical make-up of the film - what characteristics it has, the degree to which the stock can be under- or overexposed, how to “push” it to create different effects with colour, knowing what can be achieved in the laboratory - then the DOP will have placed enormous limitations upon him or herself. It really is a case of “knowledge is power” . Hopefully and ideally a cinematographer reaches a point where this sort of knowledge

My duty when working on

becomes second nature. Of course, as film

a movie - before the shooting begins - is to

stocks and equipment change, there is always

define, or guess, by some kind of mental transfusion between the director’s brain and

testing in pre-production. But essentially the

mine, the vision of the future movie, to try to

technicalities should become a factor the cin

translate this vision into technical terms.

ematographer is comfortable enough with to

DENIS

LENOIR

a need for new knowledge, which comes via

still be open to the emotion of a scene, and to STEVE

MASON

I believe the job of a

cinematographer is to hold the whole picture

his or her own artistic temperament and intui tion, as well as those of others.

within your mind and keep it there so the

l enoi r

Somebody, I don’t remember

whom, told me that cinematography has to have its feet on the ground and its head in the clouds. You go from one to the other and back, leaving room fo rth e creative and intui tive to bloom. But, at the same time, not moving out of the technical roots that we know. What I mean by technical is chemical because the other rules - the grammar of the cinema - are rules you can cross and deny, if conscious of the rules, of course. Take the simple example of the 180 degree law: the line between two actors which you cannot cross with the camera. It’s a matter of knowing the effect you are going to get if the line is crossed. Steve Mason, however, tends to disagree: mason

I find I throw away most of the

technical knowledge I have and just search for the heart of the scene. I become like a chameleon. My character changes in rela tion to whatever picture I am doing and I adopt a photography the director and I feel will describe a scene, or push it as far as it will go within a genre or mood. I look for a character to adopt, a vessel

director can use you as a bouncing board. When shooting one particular scene, you

BOYD The knowledge of the technical side

that will take the crew behind the director

is extremely important. The cinematogra

and move into deep and uncharted waters. I

have the scene that came before, the one

pher’s knowledge of the lab, various film

never fall back on technical knowledge be

that comes after, and you are connecting

stocks, understanding the way all that he or

cause I think each film should recreate itself.

them together in your mind, and your jo b - in

she puts in front of the lens will react on film,

The script, in relationship with the director,

a relationship with the director - is to define in camera what the emotion of the scene is. As the quotes suggest, the DOP and the director must form a close working relationship, at times an almost intimate, familial alliance. It tends to go without saying that the level of subservience to the story seems to be matched only by the level of complementarity between DOP and director. Nonetheless, the need to have a strong technical background, which is ultimately sub servient to the story, always tends to place the cinematographer in a divided position. On the one hand, the job involves physics, chemistry and a bit of chess thrown in. Embarking on a film for a cinematographer is like embarking into battle as a general. The DOP has to have a strong knowledge of the artillery available and required: lenses, cameras, film stocks, filters, grip equipment and lights. The cinematogra pher is constantly involved in strategic deci sions based on what the director wants at any given time, and within the constraints of time and money (often represented on set by the first assistant director). 36 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

LEFT: DOP RUSSELL BOYD AT THE TIME OF SHOOTING BETWEEN WARS (1 9 7 4 ). FACING PAGE: FRENCH CINEMATOGRAPHER DENIS

LENOIR, WITH AMERICAN DOP ALLEN DAVIAU.

cinematographer is trying to convince the audience of how talented orskilled he orshe is. This is the worst thing that can happen on a movie. Now that doesn’t mean you have just to do plain and average cinematography. You have to give a film lighting which has mean ing, and which adds something to the audi ence’s mind. BOYD

If any of the camera angles and

lighting draws attention to itself, the impor tant part - telling the story - is overtaken by some sort of technical wizardry. I would definitely agree that if the lighting is too bold in certain instances it can hamper the telling of the story. Even an actor’s performance can destroy a mood if it is so brilliantly, wonderfully, good. MASON

Photography can easily take over

the performance and the film. It is very impor tant to just sit on the edge, which is below the should be a new creation, and I become a

pointed out elsewhere in his interview (pp. 4 2 -

performance or structure of the film in order that the photography never takes over. If you

new being for the script. If you have the

6, 51), one limitation often forgotten in a discus

technical knowledge, you can throw it away

sion of personal style is the knowledge that

know you can take over, then you can pull

and never be hindered by it; you just form

filmmakers are ultimately responsible to the

back. It’s important to pull back and not make

and come with a unique expression.

investors of the film, and that essentially the

every shot beautiful because this is not what

film represents just that: an investment. From a

people want. It becomes distracting eventu

producer’s point of view, a film fulfils a different

ally for people to see beautiful frames. I can

It is precisely the duality between technicali ties and artistry that is cause for some debate amongst cinematographers about the extent to which cinematography can be considered an “art” , which is really part of a broader debate of whether cinema is art. Denis Lenoir is one who has definite views on the subject. L ENOI R

I hate the cliché of “painting with

agenda: to at least make its money back, if not

look at images and say, “Oh, that’s beautiful” ,

a profit. Therefore, the cinematographer and

and forget about looking at the performance,

other principals on set - director, production

and the main thing is the performance.

designer and sound recordist - to varying de grees are always responsible to this obligation.

One aspect of filmmaking that is so obvious it is also often forgotten is its collaborative nature.

Photography can never be a purely indulgent L ENOI R

exercise.

The director and I decide on the

light” , for example. I think it is completely

Of course, it is difficult for DOPs not to want

photographic approach together, whether I

ridiculous and pretentious. If I were to com

to create innovative and beautifuljamages in

am asking the director questions, or trying to

pare my work on film with another art, it is

their work. But each shot within every scene

guess through getting to know the director

closer to composing a musical score than

should be designed with character develop

better by having a coffee, or by seeing a

anything else. You give the script a kind of

ment and the progression of the story in mind.

movie together. Some directors like to show

subtext or modulation, enhancing some as

At times, this may require less than perfect

you a picture they like verym uch, nottoco py

pects or denying others by the lighting.

imagery.

I do not see myself or my colleagues as artists, but as craftsmen. Someone who builds a chair is not an artist. He or she may have an artistic temperament and could put a lot of him or herself in a chair, but a chair , is not a piece of art. A piece of art expresses something about humanity, death, eternity -

it, but to get some inspiration. It’s the same thing as going into a museum to get some

LENOI R

I think cinematography is not

important. The story, actors and directing are important. If there is room for the cin ematography, then this is fine and I am pleased. But the best lighting is that which you don’t notice. When an audience comes out of a thea

these sort of things.

tre and goes, “Oh, w e’ve seen beautiful

A cinem atographer’s personal style or artis-

images” , you can be sure the film is very

tib desires are always limited. First, if so consid

bad. Otherwise the audience w ouldn’t speak

ered, a DOP’s contribution is set by the simple

of the images, they would speak of the char

requirement to follow the director’s desires,

acters and story.

strength for your work. When meeting a director I haven’t worked with, we have to become friends in only three or four weeks before we are shooting. We have to be very intimate when the shoot ing starts, and to just meet each other in an office and talk about the work is necessary, but not enough. In my way of thinking, I seek and need to share an emotional experience, or several emotional experiences BOYD

An important element is missing in

though there is always room to “move” within

Most of all I hate the kind of images which

that the production designer has a big influ

this situation. However, as Geoff Burton has

show off, where you have the feeling the

ence as well. The poor old production de-

CINEMA

PAPERS

99-37

Neg Matching to Offline Edit or Cutting Copy

2 0 Y ears s ervice to th e M o tio n P ic tu re In d u s try

N E G T H IN K 'S CO M PUTER

Titling Specialists

M ATCHBACK' SYSTEM

Scans K eykode™ in 16m m , super 16mm or 35m m Producing Fram e A ccurate Neg cutting lists from EDLS produced by all linear or non linear editing system s. CONTACT

PTY LTD

G re g C h a p m a n PH: (0 2 ) 4 3 9 3 9 8 8 FAX: (0 2 ) 4 3 7 5 0 7 4

• 1 0 0 0 Typefaces on line f Extensive proofing system • A ccept IB M or M AC Files fop discount • All fo rm a ts including anam orphic • Quoting a pleasure

5 Chuter St, McMahons Point, North Sydney, NSW 2060

Phone: (02) 922 3144

Fax: (02) 957 5001

105 / 6 C L A R K E S T R E E T C R O W S N E S T N S W 2 0 6 5

Great Australian Movie? A true story A W.W.l postal romance with a story no scriptwriter could invent! In 1912 my father was posted by the NSW Govt. Railwys to a small country town where he met his future fiancee. In 1917 he enlisted with an Australian Railway Unit being sent to help run the rail ways to the battlefields. By fate, his station became the terminus for all British, American, Australian and New Zealand troops travelling to the front just a few miles away. Though bombed & shelled every day & night he kept a daily diary which records his sad, moving & homesick thoughts, waiting for the day he could return to Australia & marry his fiancee. At home, she too was writing her thoughts in a weekly letter. — I have all of these diaries and letters. Synopsis available. Telephone (02) 380 5198.

STO CK FO OTAGE L IB R A R Y

CHRIS R Q W E L L PRODUCTIONS P T Y LTD SUITE D 172 FILM AUSTRALIA BUILDING ETON ROAD LINDFIELD NSW 2070 TEL: (02) 416 2633 FAX: (02) 416 2554

ffdlf||0 finest in motion picture cdiiienis

Film Equipment Rentals & Service

64-66 Tope Street, South Mdboume 3205 Phone: (03) 699 3922 Fax: (03) 696 2564

38 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

130 King Georges Ave, Singapore 0820 Rhone: [65] 2917291 Fnx; (65] 293 2141

TECHNICALITIES__________ cinematography

signer in both Australian and American m ov

much planning or pre-production has taken place,

they need to be able to do it again for the

ies doesn’t often get a look in, yet their

there are always things that cannot be nailed

camera.

involvem ent is crucial. Designers should be

down (and, perhaps, should not be). Often, ac

After four or five rehearsals, the actors

given more credit, particularly if their work is

tors have not been on the set, whether it is a

have usually pretty much got their own cho

something that is not contemporary, or a

location or studio set, until the day shooting

reography down. At this point, we put marks

little bit out of the ordinary.

begins. Much is left to “happen” on the day

on the ground for where they pause and we

because a good deal of the decisions about

choreograph the camera to it. In the mean

coverage, camera angles and lighting is de

time, the operator and I are thinking about

pendent on the actors’ movements within a set.

where I can bring in lights, whether through

Generally, when the crew arrives on a set,

windows if it’s night, or if I can put in a

the first assistant director, continuity and DOP

practical lamp at a certain spot because

MASON

Hopefully the look or style of a film

is decided on together. I love the director to have images, to give me pictures, to give me dreams, and I love to be able to expand on them if I can. I love to give the director back bigger images and thereby take the film to the limits of expression, to the limit of the heart of what we are after. W hat I like to do is sit down with the director and spend at least a week with them in pre-production going through structure and the way the director visualizes scenes. This allows me more input in being a techni cal support.

(with assistant, gaffer and grip) watch the direc

there’s a fairly long dialogue exchange, and

tor go through the action with the actors, in what

so on. Basically I want it all to come from the

is called a “block through” . This is a very rough

director and actors, and for us to just choreo

rehearsal which establishes how the scene will

graph the camera around them.

carry in terms of action and choreography. As the block through is taken through its paces, various things will become apparent to the cam era and on-set crew, depending on their own agenda. From a DOP’s point of view, he or she will be mentally considering the lighting and

Most of the time the “look” of a film is the

possible coverage. Once the action has been

result of a collaborative effort between director,

established, the director and DOP discuss cov

production designer and DOP. But there is no

erage and maybe a further one or two rehears

set standard over how much of the photogra

als are p erform ed to d ecide on cam era

phy, in term s of coverage, composition and

placement and movement. It is common prac

lighting, is controlled by the director or DOP.

tice fo rthe director and DOP to use a viewfinder

From film to film, director to director, the ap

at this point, which is a lightweight and compact

proach varies enorm ously depending on a di

variable lens which allows the DOP to see the

rector’s attitude, experience and temperament.

shots without having to set up the camera.

Allen Daviau, who was one of the overseas guest at the AFTRS Conference, has an inter esting approach to “block throughs” . Before the director and actors begin rehearsing the scene, Daviau insists that any practical lamps that are on set, or any obvious sources such as win dows, be turned on or utilized. His philosophy is that the light sources will become m otivations for the actors movements and that, almost sub consciously, actors will begin to move around the set with the light in mind. Although much in terms of coverage and lighting is determined on the day, there should always be some concept of what will be in volved for a fairly obvious reason - making sure

As is the case in Australia of late, a director will

Once coverage has been decided upon, the

not have a strong technical background be

actors will go back to make-up and wardrobe,

cause it is the first time out on a feature film and

and perhaps perform some more rehearsals in

will be happy to let the cinematographer take

private with the director. The DOP and gaffer

L ENOI R

control of the photographic approach and style.

begin lighting the set, and the grip and camera

decided the coverage on the night before

In other instances, the director may keep a tight

assistant begin setting up the first camera posi

and comes on the set with a small piece of

rein. A director like John Duigan, who maintains

tion. Once all of these tasks have been accom

paper which is not a storyboard, but some

a fairly consistent world view (particularly with

plished - which at the very least will take half an

sort of shot-list. At the time of shooting we

characters), is likely to maintain a consistent

hour, though sometimes as much as two -

can forget the shot-list, rehearse with the

style. But, even so, it would be foolish to as

everyone comes back on set. Two or three

actors and decide on something completely

sume the contribution of DOP Geoff Burton to

“real” rehearsals take place until the director is

different. But if there is a lack of ideas - I will

be incidental to Duigan’s world view. Indeed,

happy with the performance, and the camera

not say inspiration, but just ideas - then at

D uigan’s film s underw ent a m ajor stylistic

operator (who may also be the DOP) is happy

least we have the shot-list.

change as a result of his collaboration with Burton from around the time of The Year My

with the choreography of the camera. Then shooting begins.

Moreover, an idea of what shots are in

Voice Broke (1986) - a collaboration which has

BOYD Let’s say it is a two-and-a-half minute

lasted ever since.

scene and it is going to take all day to shoot.

There have been many interviews over the

The way I think it should always happen on set

years where cinematographers have discussed

is: first, the director will rehearse for quite a

their personal views and philosophies on what

while and let the actors do whatever they want

they do. But a cinematographer’s approach to

to do. It is importantto give the director and the

the task at hand on a shooting day is often

actors time to sort that out, so they feel com

without precedent. James Wong Howe probably

fortable with the scene. They can talk about

became the first human dolly when he insisted

character and all of that sort of stuff, and

on shooting the final fight sequence for Robert

gradually get confident with the scene.

the right equipment is available to achieve a director’s requirements. Most of the time the director has

volved is also essential from a scheduling point of view, in order that the first assistant director can estimate how long any given scene should take to complete. When day exteriors are involved, and so much of the lighting is out of the cinem atogra pher’s control, this situation may require spe cial demands and choices in terms of time of day to shoot. BOYD In the early days of production when

Rossen’s Body and Soul on roller skates. On

Then it’s time to bring in the DOP and

the first assistant director and the produc

John Ford’s The Searchers, cameraman Winton

probably the operator, and continuity if they

tion m anagerare making uptheirschedules,

Hoch had the choice of two filters: one marked

haven’t already been there as script assist

I am very vocal about the time of day I’d like

down, while the other heightened a sunset effect

ant. Then the way I approach it is to let the

to shoot certain exteriors, given the right

moments before an Indian attack on a home

actor be as free as he or she wants to be, to

circumstances. A good first [assistant direc

stead. Hoch’s response at the time, “Why the

walk anywhere on set they want to walk. But

tor] will bend over backwards to try and

hell not overplay it?” It seems no matter how

once they’ve committed them selves to it,

accommodate the cinematographer in this CI KEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 39

TECHNICALITIES_______

cinematography

NORMAN LINDSAY (SAM NEILL). JOHN DUIGAN'S SIRENS (DOP: GEOFF BURTON).

with the grip, the rhythm and tempo of the actors, the cam era’s following them, the kind of magic which appears when every thing is perfect at the right moment. Of course, maybe you can see it from outside by just looking at the camera when it moves. But, for me at the viewfinder, I am the one who is able to say, “Yes, this is fantastic” , or “No I think this is good but I think we should try another one.” mason

Having an operator depends on the

director. If a director has a picture in mind where he or she has very clear images, my role would not be ecclesiastical. Some films can be very contained and therefore an op erator can give more to a film than I could because it might be a matter of precise fram ing. If you operate yourself, you do lose a lot within the frame, because you haven’t time to sit down and get the frame exactly precise. For some films that is really important. tion to use an operator, essentially because

Over the past ten years, the use of a video

is vastly different from one end of the day to

the producer can be concerned about meeting

split (aka video-assist) on set has become com

the other end of the day.

the schedule if working without one. Having an

mon practice. This is a video camera attached to

I’ve always maintained that exteriors are

operator certainly gives the cinematographer

the film camera which literally sees what the film

much harder to light because obviously you

regard. It’s important because the landscape

more time to observe the whole process, and

camera sees, and is cabled to a television moni

have less control of the elements than you

more time to light. But it also takes away some

tor. When the video-split first became available,

do in the studio. The circum stances are

of the DOP’s control, and adds yet another

it was received with mixed reactions. But when

often impossible to match and all you can do

element to the collaborative temperament be

there is the case of a cinematographer not oper

is try to coerce the director into shooting a

tween the director and DOP, since a good

ating, video-splits are an ideal way for the DOP

certain way. Often they are not interested.

camera operator is largely responsible for de

to be able to keep an eye on what the camera is

It’s an area where you have to make do.

ciding on composition, coverage and camera

doing. Arguments against the monitor have been

When working on a union film in the U.S., a

moves with the director.

largely based on the fact that it distances the director from the actors, and detracts from an

cinematographer must use a camera operator.

boyd

I have mixed feelings about having

intimate atmosphere that is an ideal support for

That is, the cinematographer does not physi

an operator, because even an element like

most actors. (There are some directors who

cally operate the camera and may not even be

the way a scene is constructed is out of your

consistently do not use video-splits, John Duigan

responsible for setting up or establishing the

hands, in that the operator and the director

being one.)

shots. When Conrad Hall came to shoot his first

will obviously figure out things while the

feature for a company he formed with two other

DOP is off in the back of the set lighting the

USC graduates, he was hassled by the Interna

background or something.

tional Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employ

I th inkth at camera operating is one of the

ees (IATSE), despite a legal loop-hole which

great joys in filmmaking. The best camera

entitled him to shoot the picture. A solution was

operators are the ones who don’t even think

proposed by the union: Hall hire a cameraman,

of the technique of camera operating any

leave him on the bus and photograph the pic

more; they just think about how to tell the

ture himself, provided Hall paid the cameraman

story.

and gave him the credit. There are numerous stories like Hall’s, of cinematographers refus ing to relinquish their role as operator, and instead having an operator paid to do nothing simply because he or she “must” be there.

LENOI R

It would appear obvious that w hether a di rector decides to use a video-split or not may be dependent on the nature of a film ’s budget. But it is also largely determined on the director’s past experience with the DOP, or whether the director and DOP feel they can trust and know what the operator is doing. When a long-term collaboration has evolved between a director and DOP, it is easier for the director to give the

One of my pleasures after one or

DOP greater freedom, given their combined

two weeks of shooting is the hope of having

technical and aesthetic knowledge. But if a DOP

won or obtained the trust of the director. I

and director do not share a common under

am, in fact, the only person on the set who

standing of what a camera is doing in terms of

has seen through the viewfinder the shot as

movement and lens size, and if there is no

This is not the case in Australia, and whether

it will be on the screen. The director, who

video-split, then usually the director will check

or not a DOP operates the camera is dependent

has an opinion of what the actors have just

the shot through the camera, and may even

upon the nature of the film, the budget and,

done, will also ask my opinion about the

operate on one of the rehearsals.

importantly, on the DOP’s desires. On occa

shot, sometimes the acting, but mostly about

During the takes, however, a director needs

sion, a producer may put pressure on a produc

the whole thing: the timing, hitting the marks

to continually refer to the operator on the suc-

40 . C I N E M A

PAPERS

Atlab.Setting the standard. A u s t r a li a ’s le a d in g p o s t - p r o d u c t i o n

T e l : (02) 9 0 6 01 0 0 . Fax: (02) 9 0 6 2597.

facili tie s f o r fi lm p r o c e s s in g , stereo

Atlab Q u e e n s l a n d Pty. Ltd.

so u n d m i x i n g , o pt ic al effects and

W a r n e r R o a d s h o w Stu di os , P a c if i c Hwy,

negative matching.

O x e n f o r d , Q l d 421 0.

4 7 H o t h a m Par ade , P O B o x 7 6 6 ,

\Xs rc>1ans|lab, its edlab.

A r t a r m o n , N S W 2 0 6 4 Australia.

Henderson Partners ATL 036

ART

T E C H N O L O G Y OF

M A K E- U P CO LIE G E

3 ARTS MAKE-UP CENTRE PTY LTD ESTA BLISH ED 1966

• FULL TIME & PART TIME COURSES (Austudy/Abstudy allowance approved) Advanced certificate in make-up technology Advanced certificate in period coiffure & make-up Advanced certificate in special effects for make-up Advanced certificate in wigknotting and postiche Associate diploma of make-up technology • OVERSEAS STUDENTS - FULL TIME STUDY • LECTURE DEMONSTRATIONS • THEATRICAL ARTS SHOP complete range of make-up/masks/wigs & special effects materials CNR SHEPHERD & MYRTLE STREETS

(O F F B r o a d w a y )

CHIPPENDALE, NSW 2008 SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

T e l: (02) 698 1070 F ax: (02) 319 1950

Now there is an alternative/ N ow located in South Melbourne, we are geared to handle any project quickly and efficiently. Some of our new services include overnight video rushes to Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide, Osc/r tape to film interface, Digital frame store, colour grading and a brand new 30 seat theatrette.

Digital Film Laboratories © 176 Bank Street South Melbourne © Victoria 3205

Contact Pamela Hammond Telephone 03) 6 9 6 5 5 3 3 Freecall 1800 641 4 3 4 Facsimile 03) 69 6 93 00

CINEMA

PAPERS

. 41

TECHNICALITIES______ cinematography

BOYD If actors want to be lit in certain ways,

cess of the shot. Thus, not having a m onitor

When the actors perform in front of a crew,

can be a disadvantage for the operator since,

it has something to do with the theatre. In

and I think they might be right, I will attempt

not only the director, but continuity, the art

theatre, there is a relationship between the

wherever possible to light them that way: (a)

department, the boom swinger and others, may

actors on the stage and the audience, and on

to keep them happy; and (b) because they

need to lookthrough the eyepiece, which som e

a film set there is this same relationship. If the

probably know better than I do. If I disagree,

tim es can be time-consuming and cause con

crew is somewhere else looking at a televi

then I w on’t do it. But I will certainly listen.

gestion at the camera.

sion monitor I think it is awful for the actors,

The difference between American actors

because they need something. If there is that

and Australian actors is that the American

BOYD

I feel very strongly the video-split is

not there for the crew; it is there for the

lack, I think their performance is different.

director. On commercials it is far different.

It should be clear by now that a cinem atog

The video-split is not there for the crew; it is

rapher’s contribution is predominantly the make

there for the agency.

up of a collaboration with the director, but a

I think the video split is a great tool

cinematographer must also work very closely

because the camera operator can get on

with actors. Most notable in the bond that devel

with his or her job, rather than having fifteen

ops between cameraman and actors is the

people looking through camera and con

tradition of glamour photography under the

suming time. But it is also a tool that has to

Hollywood studio system, particularly from the

be used with discretion. It is there for the

1920s through to its high point by the late ’40s.

director only, and whom ever he or she

Actresses like Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich

chooses to be privy to it as well - the DOP,

and Carole Lombard often sought the services

continuity and the producers.

of a cinematographer - particularly William

LENOIR

I’ve worked only once with the

video-assist and I hate it. I think the director should not be stuck on the video, but should be close to the camera, looking at the actors, saying the words with them without any sound, supporting them and sustaining them. Meta phorically speaking, if they are on the edge of a cliff and could fall, the director has to be ready to help them just by his or her pres ence. I am sure there are some mental links between them, but if the director is some metres away behind a curtain looking at a vid eo the performance is completely different.

MODEL (ELLE McPHERSON). SIRENS.

actors in general are more conscious of how they are lit, the way they are shot with certain

Daniels and Harry Stradling - they had come to trust. A less notable aspect of the DOP-actor relationship, however, is when it concerns per formance. Sometimes, only the operator/cinematographer is the one actually looking through the eyepiece and seeing what is happening. An actor is generally very aware of this fact. American actress Katherine Ross once ex pressed the opinion that the cameraman’s eye is the only real audience an actor has. The operator, in particular, needs to work closely with the actors in order to establish their place

camera angles and certain lenses than Aus tralian actors are. It could be because they have more influence. Actors ih the States have enormous influ ence over a production, and, perhaps when they get a little bit of knowledge, they think they can actually have it forced upon whomever’s in charge of photographing them. I tend to light men for character and women for cosmetic reasons, only because I guess that’s the way I’ve developed. I would never deliberately put an actress in an unflattering light, unless there was a really good reason for it, whereas I would be more inclined to put an actor in something that is more dramatically correct. It’s really a m at ter of balancing the two, really. But you can’t go from one method of lighting in one shot to another style in another shot, just because you are going from a close-up of a man to a close-up of a woman. It is a m atter of welding the styles together. LENOIR

If, for example, you are waiting for

ment in the frame. But the relationship is not

another light to arrive on the set, at the time

always rosy; some actors can suggest (if not

you have to say, “Well, that’s too bad for me,

demand) that a cinematographer take a certain

next time I will do it in a different way, but we

approach either with lighting or camera angles.

can shoot now because it is more important and I already have taken too much tim e.” It is a matter of not putting too much pressure on the actors. Maybe it is the end of the day, the sun is going down and to ask the actors to be good for one or two more takes puts pressure on them. My job is quite easy in comparison to the actors, because they expose themselves, and if they don’t like something on the set, and it could even be the lighting, I will change it. Of course, I will try to explain to them why the lighting is the way it is, and why I think in a particular scene they shouldn’t worry about having half their face in shadow or whatever. I try to explain to them that my lighting is trying to help them give something to the audience. But if they don’t agree, I will change it enough to make them feel a bit more secure. Recent times have ushered in new develop ments in visual technology and major changes to film production, mostly in thè area of post production. With digital editing facilities, we C O N T I N U E S

42 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

P A G E

■>

Cinematographer

v i e w e d by L e i l a n i H a n n a h and Raff ael e Caputo Inter

Geoff B urton’s firs t film as d irecto r of photography was S unday T oo Far A way in 1 9 7 5 . His rise to prom inence as a m ajor Australian, and w orld, cine m atographer corresponds w ith the renaissance of modern Australian cinema. Just as Australian cinem a has gone through many changes, so has Burton’s. He is not a autocrat who makes every film he does look sim ilar; rath er, he is a

At the 1 9 9 3 C in em ato g rap h ers’ Conference, you chaired a debate about w h eth e r th ere is an A ustralian style of cinem atography. The issu e w as n ever re a lly resolved.

I thought that seminar was terribly interesting, and did answer the question in a way. Perhaps what you and a lot of other people were looking for was a definitive, majority-answer by all the

g reat b eliever in fin d in g the rig h t style fo r every individual film and individual directo r. This can be seen in such diverse w o rk as S torm B oy (1 9 7 6 ),

panellists - that, “Yes, there is a style of cin ematography which is Australian.” But if there is an Australian cinematography, it’s not that ob

A S treet to Die (1 9 8 5 ) and T he Nostradamus K id (1 9 9 3 ). Since 1987 and T he Y ear My V oice B roke, Burton has been John Duigan’s DOP of choice.

vious - and it is certainly not that easy to define. In fact, all the contributors to the panel of fered up all sorts of material which we talked

Their m ost recent collaborations are Wide S argasso S ea and S irens. Not ju s t content w ith being a top DOP, Burton has recently (co-)directed his firs t feature, w ith Kevin Dowling, T he S um of Us . Based on th e play by David Stevens, and starrin g Jack Thompson and Russell Crowe, it is the story of a fa th e r’s coming to term s

around and about. Some made comparisons to foreign product, while others drew parallels among differing Australian product. The most interesting thing was that what the panellists were showing were very Australian films and very Australian cinematography, but there seemed to be an inability to analyze and define why it is Australian.

w ith his gay son. A t the tim e of going to press, Burton had

Personally, I think it is unquestionable that

also ju s t completed shooting Hotel S orrento, Richard Franklin’s

there is a methodology of working, and a result

firs t film in Australia since R oadgames in 1981.

ant cinematography, that comes from Austral ian cameramen.

T E C H N ir J d ^ IP S

Burton

Can you define it?

Not easily. There are elements of Australian cinematography which are quite easy to pin down, but how these elements actually contrib ute to a definition is very hard to say. What we were also looking for was an an swer to the second question: If there is such a style, does it travel? In other words, if John Seale is a typical Australian cinematographer, does the work he does in America have the same style as what he does back here? What came out of the seminar is basically, “No.” In fact, Peter James spoke at some length about the idea that when you move, you move culturally as well. You adopt the style of the country you are working in, or what your em ployers are asking you to shoot. You tend to forsake your own cultural roots in a sense. Can you re s ist it?

Probably not very successfully. If I went to work in Hollywood to photograph studio pictures in

just impossible to look at that film and imagine

the same way that I work with, say, John Duigan,

this is the same cinematographer who shot some

I w ouldn’t work there very long. The way I shoot

of Bergman’s most successful films.

John’s films is not very Hollywood. The way the

Would that also be because th ey left the

Americans overlight, the way they shoot spe

d irecto rs th ey n o rm ally w orked w ith ?

cific close-ups and so on, is very studio. We just

Of course. When you try to define a style, are

don’t do all the elements which clearly define

you talking about the individual cinematogra

films as Hollywood studio pictures.

phers as creative artists? About a good director

If one were to successfully exist in Holly wood, one would have to shoot a specific way, which is why the major Australian cinematogra phers working there -

telling him /herhow to photograph? O raboutthe collaboration between the two? The point is that there are a number of

Dean Semler, Don

factors and components to the debate. For

McAlpine and John Seale - do just that. If you

instance, Nykvist hadn’t worked with many other

take any of their recent films, such as Last

European directors, so the difference in his

Action Hero, Rain Man and the Steve Martin

work for Sleepless in Seattle Is immense. But

comedies that Don McAlpine does, and look at

Almendros worked with maybe a dozen major

them anonymously, there is absolutely nothing

European directors before he went to Holly

about those films which says they are shot by

wood, and was still able to m aintain an Almendros style, if you like.

Australians. These guys were basically new cinematog

Working in Hollywood is sort of like cultural

raphers from a relatively new film industry in

imperialism. But it’s not forced on you as an

Australia. The styles they developed or worked

individual. You are choosing to subjugate your

Isn ’t the in trin sic quality of A ustralian cin

with in this country were never greatly ad

own cinema culture background to take on

em atography firm ly tied to landscape?

vanced down the line, and they sort of moved

another. The ground rule is that unless you

I think landscape is the largest component of it,

out while they were still young and fresh.

don’t, you are not going to work there. So, it’s a

and probably the easiest component to recog

choice one makes.

nize. There are also other less obvious aspects

look at the work of more established European

A couple of y e a rs ago you made a statem ent

such as positioning, covering action, where and

cinematographers, such as Vittorio Storaro,

th at the in trin sic “A u stra lia n n e ss” of our

how you view people. In a derivative way, this is

Nestor Almendros and Sven Nykvist, and the

cinem atography w as in danger of being lost.

like landscape, because you always observe

work they did with their respective European

Do you th in k the situation has changed?

people from some sort of geographical situation. But this is less specific and harder to define.

But there is an interesting parallel when you

directors. The films Nestor did with François

I think it is still at risk. But whenever I feel

Truffaut and Barbet Schroeder, for instance,

Australian cinematography has become lost, a

The film Bruce Beresford did in Texas with

are extraordinary. Look at Sven Nykvist’s work

film orseries of films will emerge and restore my

Robert Duvall, and with Russell Boyd on cam

with Ingmar Bergman: entirely characteristic

faith and indicate that Australian cinematogra

era, Tender Mercies, is a good example. It is

cinematography. The brilliant Italian dramas

phy is alive and well. Because there is difficulty

one of the best films Beresford ever made, and

which Storaro shot out at Cinecittà are very

in defining Australian cinematography, it also

a film that I believe is Australian. Obviously,

much his films. You see them on the screen and

becomes dependent on the nature of the films being made.

there is a landscape connection, because it is

What kind of film s w ould th ey be?

Australia’s. But the way of seeing or point of

in Hollywood - Nestor did before he died - and

The easiest films to evidence Australian cin

view clearly belongs to Russell Boyd, who is a

they have all produced Hollywood pictures. Look

ematography, in the m ostsim plisticterm s, have

past master at defining Australian cinematog

at Sleepless in Seattle shot by Sven Nykvist: it’s

involved landscape.

raphy. If you remove the American accents

know immediately they are his work. Now, the three of them work or have worked

44 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

shot in Texas and the landscape is a bit like

TOP TO BOTTOM :ARTHUR BLACK {PETER CUMMINS) AND FOLEY (JACK THOMPSON). KEN HANNAM'S SUNDAY TOO FAR A W A Y (1 9 7 5 ), GEOFF BURTON'S FIRST FEATURE AS DOP. STORM BOY (GREG ROWE) IN HENRI SAFRAN'S STORM B O Y l DOP: BURTON, 1 97 6 ). REDFORD (DENNIS MILLER) AND CHINA JACKSON (BRYAN BROWN). STEPHEN WALLACE'S STIR (DOP: BURTON, 198 0 ).

from Tender Mercies and show it to film theo

graphed it accordingly. I gave the surroundings

w hen co ncern s of national id entity shifted to

rists who know about world cinema, they would

a lot of photographic heaviness.

a contem porary, urban A u stralia and our cu r

probably say it is an Australian film.

As a result, although the film is not very

ren t position in relation to the re st of the

I think landscape has been the greatest

successful critically, every American review that

forming factor in Australian cinematography.

has been half-accepting has mentioned the fact

I think that’s true. But, even as the desire for

Take, for instance, Wide Sargasso Sea, a film

that the landscape plays such a big role. I just

drama in the urban environm ent becomes

with American funding, made for an American

know this is because, and I’m not being immod

stronger, there are ways of translating the style

w orld . Here is w here it is at ris k .

studio and American release, and which, to all

est about this, it was photographed by an Aus

into an urban environment. Forget about the

intents and purposes, is an international film

trees and paddocks; it is a sense of place that

because it has components for every country. I

tralian. I honestly believe that had Wide Sargasso Sea been shot by an LA cinematographer, you

photographed it as though the landscape in

wouldn’t have such a strong feeling of the land

in films set in urban environments.

Jamaica were a part of the dramatic elements of

scape. You would certainly have the cosmetics

There are lots of examples, but take a very

the film. The rainforest, the stupor of tropicality,

of tropicality - sweat on the actors and that sort

domestic film about five people living in a house:

and the climate play as much a dramatic role as

of stuff - but the feeling I was able to get of the

Gillian Arm strong’s Last Days o f Chez Nous

any of the dialogue or the actors. I photo

oppressive rainforest surrounding these people,

(1992). It is set in a suburban terrace in inner-

I believe, was only because of the experience of shooting landscape in this country.

extraordinary. You know exactly the environ

It is totally subconscious; it’s not something you set out to do by saying, “ I am an Australian

scene by the railway cutting, or the extraordi

and therefore I am going to photograph this film

nary parting scene by a park in East Balmain,

we do very well and there are elements of this

Sydney, but the sense of place in that film is ment these people are in, whether it is the little

in a landscape-predominant way.” You don’t

looking across the water. There is a sense of

even make that decision, but you are aware of

place in Chez Nous which is th e “Australianness”

the part landscape plays in the basic cinema

I am talking about, and which I think we must

tography of the work you are doing, in your

fight to maintain. In Hollywood, it is so lost,

visual representation. Somehow it’s taken on

especially in pictures based in Los Angeles.

board and used. In this sense, landscape is the

We could go on at some length about this

greatest significant player.

“Australianness” , but there is a key component

Perhaps one reason w hy an in trin sic “Aust-

which is worth mentioning here. One of the

ra lia n n e ss” is at r is k is because A ustralian

devices for maintaining the more mythical-rural

cinem a is at the tail end of a period through

look about our films, and translating this value

the 1 9 8 0 s in w hich m ost of the film s dealt

into the urban environment, is the use of the

w ith the issu e of national identity through

verandah. I am a great believer in the verandah.

the nation’s past. Landscape, of co urse, is an

I think it’s such a strong component of our

em phatic elem ent of our past. So the in trin sic

culture. Artists have used it since first settle

quality is not only an elem ent of the land

ment, whether they be painters, writers or cin

scape, it is part of h isto ry . But th is changed

ematographers. The verandah is probably the most impor tant playing or staging area in any sort of do mestic situation in Australia, whether it be in the country where the verandah has some very obvious connotations, or in the city, where the verandah is architecturally carried over and continues to be the major meeting place, the major confrontation place, the major departure place. And when it does not figure in the emo tional and psychological depths of the film, it is a half-entertaining place. I think the verandah is the most significant staging area we have within our culture. For The Sum of Us, which is set in an innercity, working-class cottage in Balmain, we built the house in the studio so we could have total freedom. But to generate the design for the studio set, we found an actual house on which to base the design, and where we could shoot the exteriors to match. Although we looked at a lot of houses, it wasn’t hard to find this particular one. The house isn’t especially unique. There is nothing strange about this house; it’s just a typical working-class house. It has a balconyverandah out the front, which is only a metre wide and runs the width of the house. The gate CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 45

TECHNfAM TIFS-----Geoff Burton

LEFT: TOM ALCOCK (HAROLD HOPKINS), DANNY (NOAH TAYLOR) AND MALCOLM ROBERTSON (BRUCE SPENCE). JOHN DUIGAN'S THE YEAR M Y VOICE BROKE (DOP: BURTON, 1 9 8 7 ), THE FIRST OF

THE BURTON-DUIGAN COLLABORATIONS. BELOW: DANNY EMBLING (NOAH TAYLOR) AND THANDIWE ADJEWA (THANDIE NEWTON). JOHN DUIGAN'S FLIRTING I DOP: BURTON, 1991).

at cinematography to use in a drama context. But not ju s t any dram a context?

Of course you still reject scripts, and hopefully there is enough work about so that you can reject scripts. But there can be times when, say, in order to keep the kids at school, you have to earn money and maybe it’s a lesser drama or script than what you would like to be doing. Aya (Solrun Hoaas, 1991) is a case in point. I really liked Solrun’s documentary Green Tea and Cherry Ripe (1988), and I thought Aya was a great chance to make a film about Japanese culture, which I have always been interested in. But the more we got into it and talked about it, the more I realized it w asn’t going to be a very good film. The script was not really strong, and I wasn’t sure Solrun could pull it off. But by then I was already committed. is at one end, and the door is at half-way toward

I once shot commercials for a brief period. It is

the other end, so there is a staging area there

in the past five or six years that I have been able

able and I am pleased to have made it. It’s not

for anybody who comes and goes.

to only shoot drama. Up till then, there wasn’t

the greatest film in the world, but I think it will

As it happens, I think the film is very respect

All these cottages were tiny when built and

enough continuous drama production to allow

always be seen in hindsight as quite an impor

expanded at the back to accommodate the

tant film.

family. The back verandah opened out onto a

somebody to say, “ I am not going to shoot anything else.”

small yard, which is now closed off. One end

But if it came to earning a living, you’d do

You have to have some belief or you wouldn’t

has a sleep-out with a bed and the other has a

w hatever it took in term s of cinem atography?

do it. But your judgem ent can become dis

bath. Then there is yet another room which

Sure. I’m not putting down commercials. A lot of

torted. I was seduced by the idea of working

comes off it, a further extension which has to be

cinematographers enjoy advertising more than

with Ron Cobb, who is a man I admire, and have

accessed through this back verandah.

anything else. Commercials are highly lucra

done since the 1960s.

Did y o u ever believe in G a r b o ?

I have always had this thing about veran

tive; one makes more money at it. But that’s a

Garbo points to lessons about assessing

dahs, and it has been sitting there and niggling

lesser consideration in my case. I personally

projects. There has to be more than just the

away for years. But then you build a set, you’re

think it’s much more interesting to putyo urskills

idea of working with a director, if there isn’t a

directing a film and working out the staging, and you realize again that the most significant scenes of this film are being played on verandahs. On film, particularly, the verandah is an extraordi narily important business area. There is, of course, the famous American porch in films like Driving Miss Daisy (Bruce Beresford, 1989). In some films set in the Ameri can South, the porch figures significantly, but nowhere as near as much as the verandah does in Australia. You are obviously se n sitiv e to landscape, w hether rural or urban. Is it extreme to suggest that landscape is a silent character, and it has been used in such a w ay in the film s you shoot?

Landscape is certainly a c h a ra c te r-to a greater or lesser degree, depending on the film - other wise you are shooting people against a limbo set. But giving landscape its role is the most difficult part. It involves questions of whether you are going to make it alienating, comforting or whatever. Have you e ver w orked on a p ro ject th at you haven’t believed in ? 46 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

chรกncelo

WMm

BACK A

ISSUES:

G U ID E

T 0

CINEMA

WHAT

' S

PAPERS

A V A I L

A I L

NUMBER 1 (JANUARY 1974):

NUMBER 20 (MARCH-APRIL 1979)

NUMBER 41 (DECEMBER 1982)

NUMBER 55 (JANUARY 1986)

David Williamson, Ray Harryhausen, Peter Weir, Antony Ginnane, Gillian Armstrong, Ken G. Hall, The Cars that Ate Paris.

Ken Cameron, Claude Lelouch, Jim Sharman, French film, My Brilliant Career.

Igor Auzins, Paul Schrader, Peter Tammer, Liliana Cavani, Colin Higgins, The Year O f Living Dangerously.

NUMBER 22 (JULY/AUG 1979)

NUMBER 42 (MARCH 1983)

James Stewart, Debbie Byrne, Brian Thompson, Paul Verhoeven, Derek Meddings, tie-in marketing, The RightHand Man, Birdsville.

NUMBER 2 (APRIL 1974):

Bruce Petty, Luciana Arrighi, Albie Thoms, Stax, Alison’s Birthday

Mel Gibson, John Waters, Ian Pringle, Agnes Varda, copyright, Strikebound, The Man From Snou/y River.

Censorship, Frank Moorhouse, Nicolas Roeg, Sandy Harbutt, Film under Allende, Between The Wars, Alvin Purple NUMBER 3 (JULY 1974):

Richard Brennan, John Papadopolous, Willis O’Brien, William Friedkin, The True Story O f Eskimo Nell. NUMBER 10 (SEPT/OCT 1976)

Nagisa Oshima, Philippe Mora, Krzysztof Zanussi, Marco Ferreri, Marco Belloochio, gay cinema. NUMBER 11 (JANUARY 1977)

Emile De Antonio, Jill Robb, Samuel Z. Arkoff, Roman Polanski, Saul Bass, The Picture Show Man. NUMBER 12 (APRIL 1977)

Ken Loach, Tom Haydon, Donald Sutherland, Bert Deling, Piero Tosi, John Dankworth, John Scott, Days O f Hope, The Getting O f Wisdom. NUMBER 13 (JU LY 1977)

Louis Malle, Paul Cox, John Power, Jeanine Seawell, Peter Sykes, Bernardo Bertolucci, In Search O f Anna. NUMBER 14 (OCTOBER 1977)

Phil Noyce, Matt Carroll, Eric Rohmer, Terry Jackman, John Huston, Luke’s Kingdom, The Last Wave, Blue Fire Lady. NUMBER 15 (JANUARY 1978)

Tom Cowan, Truffaut, John Faulkner, Stephen Wallace, the Taviani brothers, Sri Lankan film, Chant O f Jimmie Black smith. NUMBER 16 ( APRIL-JUNE 1978)

Gunnel Lindblom, John Duigan, Steven Spielberg, Tom Jeffrey, The Africa Project, Swedish cinema, Dawn!, Patrick. NUMBER 17 (AUG/SEPT 1978)

Bill Bain, Isabelle Huppert, Brian May, Polish cinema, Newsfront, The Night The Prowler. NUMBER 18 (OCT/NOV 1978)

John Lamond, Sonia Borg, Alain Tanner, Indian cinema, Dimboola, Cathy’s Child.

NUMBER 24 (DEC/JAN 1980)

Brian Trenchard-Smith, Ian Holmes, Arthur Hiller, Jerzy Toeplitz, Brazilian cinema, Harlequin. NUMBER 25 (FEB/MARCH 1980)

David Puttnam, Janet Strickland, Everett de Roche, Peter Faiman, Chain Reaction, Stir. NUMBER 26 (APRIL/MAY 1980)

Charles H. Joffe, Jerome Heilman, Malcolm Smith, Australian nationalism, Japanese cinema, Peter Weir, Water Under The Bridge. Randal Kleiser, Peter Yeldham, Donald Richie, obituary of Hitchcock, NZ film industry, Grendel Grendel Grendel. Bob Godfrey, Diane Kurys, Tim Burns, John O’Shea, Bruce Beresford, Bad Timing, Roadgames. NUMBER 29 (OCT/NOV 1980)

Bob Ellis, Uri Windt, Edward Woodward, Lino Brocka, Stephen Wallace, Philippine cinema, Cruising, The Last Outlaw. NUMBER 36 (FEBRUARY 1982)

Kevin Dobson, Brian Kearney, Sonia Hofmann, Michael Rubbo, Blow Out, Breaker Morant, Body Heat, The Man From Snoiv)> River.

NUMBER 46 (JULY 1984)

Paul Cox, Russell Mulcahy, Alan J. Pakula, Robert Duvall, Jeremy Irons, Eureka Stockade, Waterfront, The Boy In The Bush,A Woman Suffers, Street Hero. NUMBER 47 (AUGUST 1984)

Richard Lowenstein, Wim Wenders, David Bradbury, Sophia Turkiewicz, Hugh Hudson, Robbery Under Arms. NUMBER 48 (OCT/NOV 1984)

Ken Cameron, Michael Pattinson, Jan Sardi, Yoram Gross, Bodyline, The Slim Dusty Movie. NUMBER 49 (DECEMBER 1984)

Alain Resnais, Brian McKenzie, Angela Punch McGregor, Ennio Morricone, Jane Campion, horror films, Niel Lynne. NUMBER 50 (FEB/MARCH 1985)

Stephen Wallace, Ian Pringle, Walerian Borowczyk, Peter Schreck, Bill Conti, Brian May, The Last Bastion, Bliss.

NUMBER 37 (APRIL 1982)

NUMBER 51 (MAY 1985)

Stephen MacLean, Jacki Weaver, Carlos Saura, Peter Ustinov, women in drama, Monkey Grip.

Lino Brocka, Harrison Ford, Noni Hazlehurst, Dusan Makavejev, Emoh Ruo, Winners, The Naked Country, Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome, Robbery Under Arms.

NUMBER 38 (JUNE 1982)

Geoff Burrowes, George Miller, James Ivory, Phil Noyce, Joan Fontaine, Tony Williams, law and insurance, Far East. NUMBER 39 (AUGUST 1982)

Helen Morse, Richard Mason, Anja Breien, David Millikan, Derek Granger, Norwegian cinema, National Film Archive, We O f The Never Never. NUMBER 4 0 (OCTOBER 1982)

Henri Safran, Michael Ritchie, Pauline Kael, Wendy Hughes, Ray Barrett, My Dinner With Andre, The Return O f Captain Invincible.

NUMBER 44-45 (APRIL 1984)

David Stevens, Simon Wincer, Susan Lambert, a personal history of Cinema Papers, Street Kids.

NUMBER 28 (AUG/SEPT 1980)

NUMBER 19 (JAN/FEB 1979)

PAPERS

Sydney Pollack, Denny Lawrence, Graeme Clifford, The Dismissal, Careful He Might Hear You.

NUMBER 27 (JUNE-JULY 1980)

Antony Ginnane, Stanley Hawes, Jeremy Thomas, Andrew Sarris, sponsored documentaries, Blue Fin.

48 • C I N E M A

NUMBER 43 (MAY/JUNE 1983)

NUMBER 52 (JULY 1985)

John Schlesinger, Gillian Armstrong, Alan Parker, soap operas, TV News, film advertising, Don’t Call Me Girlie, For Love Alone, Double Sculls. NUMBER 53 (SEPTEMBER 1985)

Bryan Brown, Nicolas Roeg, Vincent Ward, Hector Crawford, Emir Kusturica, N.Z. film and TV, Return To Eden. NUMBER 54 (NOVEMBER 1985)

Graeme Clifford, Bob Weis, John Boorman, Menahem Golan, rock videos, Wills And Burke, The Great Bookie Robbery, The Lancaster Miller Affair.

NUMBER 56 (MARCH 1986)

Fred Schepisi, Dennis O’Rourke, Brian Trenchard-Smith, John Hargreaves, Dead-End Drive-In, The More Things Change, Kangaroo, Tracy. NUMBER 58 (JULY 1986)

Woody Allen, Reinhard Hauff, Orson Welles, the Cinémathèque Française, The Fringe Dwellers, Great Expectations: The Untold Story, The Last Frontier. NUMBER 59 (SEPTEMBER 1986)

Robert Altman, Paul Cox, Lino Brocka, Agnes Varda, The AFI Awards, The Movers. NUMBER 60 (NOVEMBER 1986)

Australian Television, Franco Zeffirelli, Nadia Tass, Bill Bennett, Dutch Cinema, Movies By Microchip, Otello. NUMBER 61 (JANUARY 1987)

Alex Cox, Roman Polanski, Philippe Mora, Martin Armiger, film in South Australia, Dogs In Space, Howling III. NUMBER 62 (MARCH 1987)

Screen Violence, David Lynch, Cary Grant, ASSA conference, production barometer, film finance, The Story O f The Kelly Gang. NUMBER 63 (MAY 1987)

Gillian Armstrong, Antony Ginnane, Chris Haywood, Elmore Leonard, Troy Kennedy Martin, The Sacrifice, Land slides, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, Jilted. NUMBER 64 (JULY 1987)

Nostalgia, Dennis Hopper, Mel Gibson, Vladimir Osherov, Brian TrenchardSmith, Chartbusters, Insatiable. NUMBER 65 (SEPTEMBER 1987)

Angela Carter, Wim Wenders, Jean-Pierre Gorin, Derek Jarman, Gerald L’Ecuyer, Gustav Hasford, AFI Awards, Poor Man’s Orange. NUMBER 66 (NOVEMBER 1987)

Australian Screenwriters, Cinema and China, James Bond, James Clayden, Video, De Laurentiis, New World, The Navigator, Who’s That Girl. NUMBER 67 (JANUARY 1988)

John Duigan, George Miller, Jim Jarmusch, Soviet cinema- Part I, women in film, shooting in 70mm, filmmaking in Ghana, The Year My Voice Broke, Send A Gorilla.

ALSO A V A I L A B L E NUMBER 68 (MARCH 1988)

Martha Ansara, Channel 4, Soviet Cinema, Jim McBride, Glamour, Ghosts O f The Civil Dead, Feathers, Ocean, Ocean. NUMBER 6 9 (MAY 1988)

Cannes ’88, film composers, sex, death and family films, Vincent Ward, David Parker, Ian Bradley, Pleasure Domes. NUMBER 7 0 (NOVEMBER 1988)

Film Australia, Gillian Armstrong, Fred Schepisi, Wes Craven, John Waters, A1 Clark, Shame Screenplay Part I. NUMBER 71 (JANUARY 1989)

Yahoo Serious, David Cronenberg, 1988 in Retrospect, Film Sound , Last Temp tation o f Christ, Philip Brophy NUMBER 72 (MARCH 1989)

Charles Dickens’ Little Dorrit, Australian Sci-Fi movies, Survey: 1988 Mini-Series, Aromarama, Ann Turner’s Celia, Fellini’s La dolce vita, Women and Westerns NUMBER 73 (MAY 1989)

Cannes ’89, Dead Calm, Franco Nero, Jane Campion, Ian Pringle’s The Prisoner o f St. Petersburg, Frank Pierson, Pay TV. NUMBER 7 4 (JULY 1989)

The Delinquents, Australians in Hollywood, Chinese Cinema, Philippe Mora, Yuri Sokol, Twins, True Believers, Ghosts... o f the Civil Dead, Shame screenplay.

NUMBER 84 (AUGUST 1991)

James Cameron: Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Dennis O’Rourke: Good Woman o f Bangkok, Susan Dermody: Breathing Under Water, Cannes report, FFC. NUMBER 85 (NOVEMBER 1991)

Jocelyn Moorhouse: Proof, Blake Edwards: Switch; Callie Khouri: Thelma & Louise; Independent Exhibition and Distribution in Australia, FFC Part II. NUMBER 86 (JANUARY 1992)

Overview of Australian film: Romper Stomper, The Nostradamus Kid, Greenkeeping, Eightball; plus Kathryn Bigelow, HDTV and Super 16. NUMBER 8 7 (MARCH 1992)

Multi-Cultural Cinema, Steven Spielberg and Hook, George Negus filming The Red Unknown, Richard Lowenstein Say a Little Prayer, Jewish Cinema. NUMBER 88 (MAY-JUNE 1992)

Cannes ’92, Strictly Ballroom, Hammers over the Anvil, Daydream Believer, Wim Wenders’ Until the End o f the World, Satyajit Ray. NUMBER 89 (AUGUST 1992)

Cannes ’92, David Lynch, Vitali Kanievski, Gianni Amelio interview, Christopher Lambert in Fortress, FilmLiterature Connections, Teen Movies. NUMBER 90 (OCTOBER 1992)

Sally Bongers, The Teen Movie, Animated, Edens Lost, Mary Lambert and Pet Sematary, Martin Scorsese and Paul Schrader, Ed Pressman.

Gillian Armstrong: The Last Days o f Chez Nous, Ridley Scott: 1492, Stephan Elliot: Frauds, Giorgio Mangiamele, Cultural Differences and Ethnicity in Australian Cinema, John Frankenheimer’s Year o f the Gun.

NUMBER 76 (NOVEMBER 1989)

NUMBER 91 (JANUARY 1993)

Simon Wincer, Quigley Down Under, Kennedy Miller, Terry Hayes, Bangkok Hilton, John Duigan, Flirting, Romero, Dennis Hopper and Kiefer Sutherland, Frank Howson, Ron Cobb.

Clint Eastwood and Unforgiven; Raul Ruiz; George Miller and Gross Miscon duct; David Elfick’s Love in Limbo, On The Beach, Australia’s First Films.

NUMBER 75 (SEPTEMBER 1989)

BACK OF BEYOND DISCOVERING AUSTRALIAN FILM AND TELEVISION

L IM IT E D N U M B E R of the beautifully designed

catalogues especially prepared for the 1988 season of Australian film and television at the UCLA film and television archive in the U.S.

are now available for sale in Australia. Edited by Scott Murray, and with extensively researched articles by several of Australia’s leading writers on film and televi sion, such as Kate Sands, Women o f the Wave; Ross Gibson, Formative Landscapes; Debi Enker, Cross-over

and Collaboration: Kennedy Miller, Scott Murray, George Miller, Scott Murray, Terry Hayes; Graeme Turner, M ixing Fact and Fiction; Michael Leigh,

Curiouser and Curiouser; Adrian Martin, Nurturing the N ext Wave. The Back o f Beyond Catalogue is lavishly illustrated with more than 130 photographs, indexed, and has full credit listings for some 80 films. PRICE: S24.95, including postage and packaging.

NUMBER 92 (APRIL 1993) NUMBER 7 7 (JANUARY 1990)

Special John Farrow profile, Blood Oath, Dennis Whitburn and Brian Williams, Don McLennan and Breakaway, “Crocodile” Dundee overseas. NUMBER 78 (MARCH 1990)

George Ogilvie’s The Crossing, Ray Argali’s Return Home, Peter Greenaway and The Cook...etc, Michel Ciment, Bangkok Hilton and Barlow and Chambers NUMBER 80 (AUGUST 1990)

Cannes report, Fred Schepisi career interview, Peter Weir and Greencard, Pauline Chan, Gus Van Sant and Drugstore Cowboy, German Stories.

Yahoo Serious and Reckless Kelly; George Miller and Lorenzo’s Oil; Megan Simpson and Alex; Jean-Jacques’s The Lover, Women in film and television. Australia’s First Films Part 2. NUMBER 93 (MAY 1993)

Australian films at Cannes, Jane Campion and The Piano, Laurie Mclnnes’ Broken Highway, Tracey Moffat’s Bedevil, Lightworks and Avid debate NUMBER 94 (AUGUST 1993)

Cannes Report, Steve Buscemi and Reservoir Dogs, Paul Cox interview, Michael Jenkin’s The Heartbreak Kid, ‘Coming of Age’ films.

NUMBER 81 (DECEMBER 1990)

NUMBER 95 (OCTOBER 1993)

Ian Pringle Isabelle Eberhardt, Jane Campion An Angel At My Table, Martin Scorsese Goodfellas, Alan J. Pakula Presumed Innocent

Lynn-Maree Milburn’s Memories & Dreams, The Science of Previews, John Dingwall and The Custodian, Documen tary Supplement including Man Bites Dog, Tom Zubrycki, John Hughes.

NUMBER 82 (MARCH 1991)

Francis Ford Coppola The Godfather Part III, Barbet Schroeder Reversal o f Fortune, Bruce Beresford’s Black Robe, Ramond Hollis Longford, Backsliding, Bill Bennetts, Sergio Corbucci obituary. NUMBER 83 (MAY 1991)

Australia at Cannes, Gillian Armstrong: The Last Days at Chez Nous, Jonathan Demme: The Silence o f the Lambs, Flynn, Dead To The World, Marke Joffe’s Spotswood, Anthony Hopkins

NUMBER 96 (DECEMBER 1993)

Queensland issue: An overview of film in Queensland, Early Queensland cinema, Jason Donovan and Donald Crombie: Rough Diamonds, The Penal Colony. NUMBER 9 7 /9 8 (APRIL 1994)

20th Anniversay double issue with New Zealand supplement, industry comments, Simon Wincer’s Lightning Jack, Richard Franklin, The Salvation Army. ■ CINEMA

PAPERS

• 49

ORDER FORM CINEM A PAPERS SUBSCRIPTION

INTERNATIONAL RATES

I w ish to su bscribe fo r

6 Issues

12 Issues

18 Issues

1 Year

2 Years

3 Years

per copy

G 6 issues at $ 2 8 .0 0 (one year) Zone 1:

□

12 issues at $ 5 2 .0 0 (two years)

□

18 issues at $ 7 8 .5 0 (three years)

Please □ □

New Zealand Niugini

begin renew

Back Issues

Add to Price

my su bscrip tion from the n ext issue

T o ta l C ost

Zone 2:

Surface

3 6 .0 0

6 5 .0 0

9 7 .0 0

1.80

Air

4 8 .0 0

9 0 .0 0

1 3 6 .0 0

3.35

Surface

Malaysia

3 6 .0 0

6 5 .0 0

9 7 .0 0

1.80

Fiji

Air

Singapore

4 2 .0 0

77 .0 0

11 6 .0 0

3.2 0

Zone 3:

A D D ITIO N A L ITEMS

Surface

Hong Kong

3 6 .0 0

6 9 .0 0

1 0 2 .0 0

1.80

India

Air

Japan

5 9 .0 0

11 2 .0 0

1 6 8 .0 0

5.15

Surface

3 7 .0 0

6 7 .0 0

1 0 1 .0 0

2 .4 0

Air

6 5 .0 0

1 2 5 .0 0

1 8 7 .0 0

6.20

Surface

Philippines

1. BACK OF BEYOND:

China

DISCOVERING AUSTRALIAN FILM AND TELEVISION Zone 4:

I w ish to order □

no. o f copies

USA Canada

$ 2 4 .9 5 per copy (Includes Postage)

Middle East

T o ta l C ost $ Zone 5:

2. BACK ISSUES

UK/Europe

3 7 .0 0

6 8 .0 0

18 7 .0 0

2 .4 0

Africa

Air

South America

7 1 .0 0

1 3 6 .0 0

2 0 5 .0 0

7.20

I w ish to order the follow ing b a ck issues □

C IN E M A PA PER S Issue nos.

F I L L o u r AND MAI L NOW! □

1 -2 copies @ $ 4 .5 0 each

□

3 -4 copies @ $ 4 .0 0 each

□

5 -6 copies @ $ 3 .5 0 each

□

7 or m ore copies @ $ 3 .0 0 each

NAME

T IT L E ____

T o ta l no. o f issues___________________

COM PAN Y A D D R ESS _

T o ta l C ost $ ___________________

C O U N T R Y ______________________ P O S T C O D E

P A Y ME NT DE T A I L S

TELEPH ON E

HOME ______________ WORK ______

Cheques should be made payable to:

Enclosed is my cheque for $

M T V P U B L IS H IN G L IM IT E D

or please debit my

and mailed to:

U BANKCARD

□ MASTERCARD

□ VISACARD

M T V P u b lish in g L im ite d , 4 3 C h a rles S tre e t, A b b o ts fo rd , V ic to r ia 3 0 6 7 NB. ALL OVERSEAS ORDERS SHOULD BE ACCOMPANIED BY BANK DRAFTS IN AUSTRALIAN DOLLARS ONLY

Card N o . ____________________________________ Expiry D a t e ____________ .__________________________ _ _ _ _ _ S ig n a tu re ____________________________________

TECHNICALITIES_____

Geoff Burton

LEFT: RUSSSELL CROWE AND JACK THOMPSON IN BURTON'S FIRST FEATURE AS (CO-)DIRECTOR, THE SUM OF US (BURTON AND KEVIN DOWLING, 1994).

interpretation of the scene is going to be okay. If two people get on really well together, personally and professionally like we do, then there is a lot to be said for the continuity of the relationship. I guess what keeps the relationship really buoyant is that there is never any sense of competition between us. We are really just strongly concerned with the priorities of the film w e’re making at the time, and with feeling a need to complement one another’s work. You’ve done quite a lot of different film s w ith v e ry different v isu al sty le s, even between film s like T he Y ear My V oice B roke and its sequel F lirting. But apart from yo u r nam e, is th ere a com m on elem ent?

I think you’re right that all the films I’ve shot are different and encompass a wide range of film types. It has to do with the desirability of pro ducing adaptive or applicable cinematography. I don’t think anybody could see my films anony mously and say, “That’s a Geoff Burton film .” I’m really proud of that, because it indicates to good script to go along with your assessment.

The real problem with Wide Sargasso Sea

me that the work I do is designed much more to

Were you excited about the co m ic elem ent of

was the relationship between the producer and

complement the film than to complement an

G a rb o as w e ll?

the director. There is no doubt about it. Maybe

individual style.

Oh, yes. I had never shot or worked on comedy

if that relationship had not been a problem,

before and so it was something new. After

Sargasso Sea would have been a better film.

tic subjects. I always have and still do. That’s

Garbo, I didn’t want to do comedy again.

Then it w a sn ’t a m istake?

derived from a strong basis in documentary,

Isn ’t Midnite S pares a com edy?

Well, no, but it turned out to be one.

and also the very strong influence of the realist

Yes, but it w asn’t meant to be. At the period of Midnite Spares, which was the height of 10BA, there were a lot of projects around - and not very good ones. Of those around for me

In terms of choosing projects, I guess what

I prefer working naturalistically; I like realis

British cinema of the 1950s and early ’60s

I am doing is, ipso facto, giving John the re

when I was a young student.

sponsibility of choice. Some years ago, we were both offered a big

I still admire those films so much: filmm ak ers like Karel Reisz, Tony Richardson, Lindsay

budget film. I was very keen that we do it,

Anderson; films like A Taste of Honey, The L-

The guy who wrote the script, Terry Larsen,

because we were to be shooting in Thailand,

Shaped Room, This Sporting Life, The Loneli

was a young writer who went and lived in the

where I have a long association and a strong

ness o f the Long Distance Runner, running

Western suburbs and got into the whole car-drug

affinity with a Thai production company. In fact,

right up to films like Tom Jones and Far From

culture. He was a sociologist and I thought he

the producers offered me the film before John.

the Madding Crowd; and cinematographers like

was going to make a really interesting script out

It was Turtle Beach, and John’s decision not to

Walter Lassally and Tony Richmond. They were

of the material. And it was good! It read very well.

do the film - he felt there were insurmountable

the greatest influences for me.

Then came Quentin Masters, who is an old

script problems - meant neither of us did it

to shoot, Midnite Spares was the best.

mate of mine from twenty years ago. We were

because of our close association.

It was a cinema based on showing British society of its time, warts and all. It was like the

both camera assistants in Vietnam in the 1960s.

If John is uncertain about a film, that rings

neo-realists in Italy at the end of the war. The

He lived and worked in London and he came to

warning bells and means I shouldn’t do it either.

filmmakers were actually producing entertain

Australia and looked me up.

John knows what we both like to film, what we

ment out of poverty and distress. Although this

both like to do.

period of British cinema was somewhat more

As it turned out, my relationship with him as a director was appalling. We had the most

A re you sim ila r people?

refined than the neo-realists, they were taking

dreadful time, and from the first days’ rushes I

In some ways. We have a complementary rela

people out of the slums of Glasgow to see

wished I hadn’t taken it on.

tionship in terms of my photographing and his

themselves in the slums of Glasgow. Further

The point is that your judgem ent is really

directing. John is not a technical person at all.

more, they were paying good money to see

tempered by all sorts of different factors. Some

All his energy on the set goes into working with

these films because they found them interest

you don’t know at the time or cannot anticipate.

actors, which I think is his strength. He allows

ing and entertaining. It was not entertaining in

These experiences also point to the advan

me a lot of freedom in terms of the technical

the “belly laugh” sense of the Ealing comedies,

tage of a long-term relationship with a director

aspects of cinematography, which is very grati

but it was emotive cinema, it was active cinema, it was “change society” cinema.

whom you do get on with.

fying. This is not to say he doesn’t have strong

W hich hirings one to yo u r w o rk in g relatio n

opinions aboutthe visual component of thefilm ,

The strive for realism in those films really

ship w ith John Duigan.

but he is more likely to express them at rushes.

influenced me the most. If given a choice now

\f<§§. If John rings me and says, “I have a film, we

On the strength of the relationship over a

between something which is totally naturalistic

nriust do it” , I’li agree to it without knowing where

certain number of films, I won’t offer up shots to

and realistic, and something which is a fantasy,

it is, what it’s about or how good the script is. I trust

him which I know he has never liked. He is not

I’d go for realism every time.

hisjudgement. Sure we both made a mistake with

going to suddenly like them. On the other hand,

Wide Sargasso Sea but, of the six or seven films

John knows he can leave me alone to light a

See “Australian Cinematographer’s Checklist” , p. 58,

we’ve done together, that’s the only one.

scene the way I want, because he is happy my

for Geoff Burton’s Australian filmography CINEMA

PAPERS

. 51

WÊÊÈit-

A fe w years ago, when S atyajit Ray died and I watched the

W hile a welcome addition to the relatively few documentaries about the technical and aesthetic

tan talizin g ly b rie f excerpts of his film s shown in the scandalously short television obituaries, I yearned fo r screenings of new 35m m copies of Ray’s entire output. I had the same reaction to the feature-length docum entary,

Visions o f Light: The A rt of Cinematography. Yes, I’m prepared to watch new copies of all 12 5 film s glimpsed all too b riefly in this co production of the Am erican Film Institute, NHK (japan) and the

aspects of cinema, Visions o f Light is not ency clopaedic, nor does it set out to be. It is an entertaining, selective, short history of mainly American cinema, with a dazzling array of clips intercut with an equally dazzling line-up of cin ematographers - from John Alonzo to Vilmos Zsigmond - who provide a constant stream of quotable quotes. Incidentally, the disturbingly fam iliar theme music is from Ennio M orricone’s score for Days o f Heaven (Terence Malick, 1978).

Am erican Society of Cinem atographers. Some cinemas in the U.S.

The film zig-zags through film history, some

ran concurrent seasons of some of the film s m entioned in the

times triggered by a cinem atographer’s anec dote, som etim es in an apparently arbitrary

docum entary. We should be so lucky.

fashion. W riter and co-director Todd McCarthy says: The fun part is that you get to hear all these very articulate guys [the cinematographer interview ees] tell you all these inside stories about the

CINEMA

PAPERS

LEFT: DOP CONRAD HALL, SECOND FROM RIGHT, WITH DIRECTOR RICHARD BROOKS, BEHIND CAMERA, AND CREW WHILE SHOOTING IN COLD BLOOD IN KANSAS. BELOW: FILMING CAMILLE (GEORGE CUKOR, 1 93 6 ). DOP: WILLIAM DANIELS. VISIONS OF LIGHT.

films ... connect the dots so to speak. They have ail seen the old films and they know film history better than any other group of people in films; they know Gregg Toland’s work, John Seitz’s work, Leon Shamroy’s work. When quizzed on the inevitable omissions, McCarthy is quick to respond:

tographer, even though he had a relatively

ing from everywhere and we tried to give an indication of that.

undoubtedly an important, influential cinema short career; he died in 1948. But his collabora

Examples used to illustrate this show that

tion with Orson W elles on Citizen Kane has

the current trend, which appears to favour Eu

reverberations which are still felt today. “ Citizen

ropean cinematographers over Americans, is

Kane was a textbook for all of us” , says Laszlo

not new. In Germany, Karl Freund photographed

Kovacs, himself something of a groundbreaker.

F. W. M urnau’s The Last Laugh (1924) and E.

The British audiences wanted more British con tributors; so why don’t they do a similar film, especially since many of their great cameramen are still alive and could be interviewed.

Once an assistant to George Barnes during the

A. Dupont’s Variety (1925) using the subjective

la tte r’s rem a rka b le , in n o v a tiv e p erio d at

camera technique so effectively that it has rarely

Goldwyn Studios, Toland is cited as an influ

been surpassed. Freund arrived in America in

ence by cinematographers as diverse as Sven

1929, too late to work on Murnau’s Sunrise

Where are Kubrick’s films? McCarthy thinks

Nykvist and Vittorio Storaro, not only through

(1927), but a distinguished career in Hollywood

the late John Alcott was so important to Kubrick

Citizen Kane, but The Grapes o f Wrath (John

followed.

that ideally he should have been interviewed,

Ford, 1940) and The Long Voyage Home (John

also. Why w eren’t there more women? Well, there are two included here, Lisa Rinzler and Sandi Sissel, but historically speaking there weren’t any. Where are the Australians? Well, for the record, John Seale was among the forty cinematographers interviewed, but when it came to paring the material down he was omitted. M cCarthy’s fall-back position cannot be ar gued with: We couldn’t include everything we wanted to. There is a film noir bias, because that look is so powerful; but yes, I wish there was more epic films from the 1950s, more Westerns, more musicals. We could have made a four-hour film! W hat is fascinating is the way American film history is revealed as a series of fortuitous associations. For example, Gregg Toland was

Ford, 1940) as well.

However, what is interesting is the way Hol lywood appropriated the techniques and ideas

I suggested to McCarthy that it would have

used by the practitioners of what became known

been interesting to illustrate some of the tech

as German Expressionism. Hollywood cinem a

niques used in Kane which had appeared in

tographers like Karl Struss and Charles Rosher

earlier films by Toland and others. He only

quickly adapted to the demands of Murnau

partly agreed:

when they photographed Sunrise, and the visual effects exploited so powerfully in the films of

What Toland unarguably did was consolidate those things [innovations] in one film and use them in a tremendously dramatic way ... but I don’t think we could have extended the se quence about Toland more than we already did!

through the so-called film noir era.

Regarding the American bias, McCarthy

due credit in Visions o f Light with the visual

explains: I don’t know if we could have maintained the high visual standard if we had to try and get more international clips - Russian, Japanese, Indian, etc. - and also there was the cost factor. But the idea was that the influences were com

this period perm eate Am erican film s right One of the leading exponents of this style (in the 1940s and ’50s) was John Alton. He is given reference of The Big Combo (Joseph H. Lewis, 1955). Cinematographer John Bailey sums it up as “a simple, inelegant film, with strong graphic elements and stark imagery” . Another admirer says simply, “John Alton [...] was not afraid of the dark.” The 91-year-old Alton was guest-of-honour at the premiere of the documentary in Los Angeles, but he was once a rather controversial figure; his relationship with Holly wood not always so cosy. This is not covered in the film, so I pressed McCarthy for more details. He revealed that he was writing an introduction to a reprint of Alton’s famous book on cinematography, the 1949 P ainting With Light, which would detail the since-forgotten skir mishes: Early in his career Alton alienated a couple of people - one of whom was Stanley Cortez, who ended up being very powerful in the ASC in later years; another was John Arnold, who was head of the camera department at MGM. Alton was always more innovative, more artistic, more intel lectual in his approach. But it was the crime melodrama, T-Men (Anthony Mann, 1947), which established the reputations of Mann and Alton. Both were hired by MGM when they were preparing Border Incident (1949), and Alton (surpris ingly) became a favourite of Vincente Minnelli, a director of lavish, sophisCINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 ■ 53

TECHNIEAI1TIFS .

V i s i o n s o i Li ght

ticated, colourful musicals, films which epito mized the so-called MGM look. Alton won an Oscar for his work on An American In Paris (1951). But, as McCarthy points out: “There was still resentment towards Alton from the traditionalists. Alton worked faster than most, used fewer lights and sm aller crews.” Another cinematographer who appears and receives long overdue recognition - he rarely appears in the various pantheons - is Charles B. Lang. Now 91, Lang’s career spanned 45 years with a filmography which reveals a sur prising versatility. Lang’s peak achievements include A Farewell To Arms (Frank Borzage, 1932), The Ghost and Mrs M uir (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1947), The Big Heat (Fritz Lang, 1953), The M agnificent Seven (John Sturges, 1960) and The Stalking Moon (Robert Mulligan, 1968). Like most of his colleagues, Lang is revealed as a modest, amusing and enthusias tic character who, while providing inspiration for contemporary cinematographers, was in turn inspired by the pioneers who preceded him. As a contrast, Gordon Willis, dubbed “the prince of darkness” by Conrad Hall, tends to reinforce his reputation as a taciturn, gruff out sider from the East Coast. But even he cannot resist a grin as he comments on his own work on The Godfather trilogy (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972, 1974, 1990): “Maybe I went too far [in underexposure] there, but even Rembrandt went too far sometimes.” Veteran Bill Fraker ex plains the difficulty in maintaining a consistency in visual style with the three Godfather films over a span of many years. Fraker, formerly an operator who worked with Conrad Hall, among others, was chosen by

his other commitments in the morning. Always

dent or design, the documentary makers have

Roman Polanski to shoot Rosem ary’s Baby

willing to tackle politically unpopular films,

included (in the closing montage) a shot from

(1968) early in his career and has a stack of

Wexler, an engaging personality, remains per

Bailey’s highly-stylized Mishima (Paul Schrader,

anecdotes. Now one of the revered “old mas

sonally and professionally popular in Holly

1985) which is surely a direct reference to a

ters” , Fraker claims he still gets a buzz out of

wood. No wonder he admits to sensing his

scene (also included) from The Conformist.

“walking onto the set and turning on the first

mentor, James Wong Howe, with whom he

Storaro patiently explains his arcane sys

light” . His skilful recreation of W illis’ Godfather

worked on Picnic (Joshua Logan, 1955), look

tem of colour coding the characters in two of

lighting in The Freshman (Andrew Bergman,

ing over his shoulder, encouraging him at cer

the recent Bertolucci films he worked on, but you get a better idea of his philosophy in the

1990) is almost off-hand, yet audiences get the

tain moments by musing “Very good, very good!”

reference immediately. Looking back at his pred

With justifiable pride, W exler relates how he

hour-long television documentary on Storaro

ecessors, Fraker asks, “How do you do better

was able to match the late Nestor Alm endros’

titled, Writing With Light. Sven Nykvist, the

than On The Waterfront [Elia Kazan, 1954]?” ,

p h o to g ra p h y on D ays O f H ea ven when

other truly international cinematographer, is

then answers his own question: “You don’t.” He

also the subject of a fine documentary, Foto:

also explains why Marlene Dietrich seems to

Almendros was called away to work (once again) with François Truffaut.

dominate many of her films: she always had

Almendros in turn recalls the Days O f Heaven

more light on her than any other element (or

shoot with obvious affection, and wryly refers to

Most cinematographers were once opera

actor) in the shot!

the so-called “magic hour” , which occurs prior

tors, and Visions o f Light details the contribu

Another mentor of today’s young turks is

to dusk and was the period during each day

tion of two one-time operators to films where

Haskell Wexler. His credit on the photographi

when much of the film was shot, as “really about

their work is often overlooked. Touch o f Evil

cally dazzling Am erican G raffiti (George Lucas,

20 minutes” .

1973) is “Photographic Consultant” and I once

A modern classic, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The

Sven Nykvist, which details his unique relation ship with Ingmar Bergman.

(1958) was a to urde force for Orson W elles and cinem atographer Russell Metty - everyone

asked him what he actually did on it. He claimed

Conform ist (1971 ) is cited by John Bailey as “a

agrees. But the long hand-held takes, which led

he “helped [George Lucas] out a little bit” , which

compendium of cinema language expressed in

one comm entator to describe the film as “Welles

I discovered meant commuting from Los Ange

a clear and concise way.” High praise indeed

doing a New Wave film in Hollywood” , were by

les to San Francisco every evening by plane to

for what was the now legendary cinem atogra

a young Phil Lathrop. Lathrop’s later career as

supervise the night shooting and returning to

pher Vittorio Storaro’s third film. Either by acci

cinem atographer is studded with brilliant work

54 ' C I N E M A

PAPERS

I f FT* FILMING RED DUST (VICTOR FLEMING, 1 9 3 2 ). PpP: HAROLD ROSSEN. TODD MCCARTHY'S VISIONS OF LIGHT. fflO VV: DOP VILMOS ZSIGMOND, CENTRE, WITH ACTOR WARREH BEATTY, AND DIRECTOR ROBERT ALTMAN DURING LOCATION FILMING FOR McCABE & M BS. M IU E R .

fgr Blake Edwards, Sam Peckinpah, John Boorman and Wim VVbnders.

(1967), Jacques Demy’s M odel Shop (1969)

shoot) black-and-white. As Allen Daviau puts it,

and Roman Polanski’s Chinatown(1974) spring

as an excerpt from Night of the Hunter unfolds,

Jeiws (gteyen Spielberg, 1975) was “the

to mind. Polanski initially yyanted Stanley Cortez

“Learning to see in black-and-white is a great

mpst expensive hand-held film ever made, and

discipline - it’s an abstract medium.”

a very nice bit of operating” , says Michael

[N ight o f the Hunter, Charles Laughton, 1955) to shoot Chinatown (possibly because Cortez

Ghapman, whose staccato speech matches that

was working during the period in which the film

phers debunks the conventional wisdom that

pf his frequent collaborator Martin Scorsese,

is set, 1937). The carefully chosen excerpts

his older colleagues conformed to a studio look.

Chapman should know. He was responsible for a virtuoso performance, hand-holding the scope

here show that as photographed by John Alonzo,

“The [H ollyw ood] studio cam eram en tra n

who provides a commentary, Chinatown de

scended the look of the studjos they worked for,

camera for the bulk of the footage shot at sea,

picts a period Los Angeles in a very contempo

even irrespective of the director” , he maintains.

after cinem atographer Bill Butler persuaded

rary way: anamorphic, voyeuristic, with an

I have long contended this and it would be easy

Steven Spielbgrg that the audience would get

intimidatory use of the camera. Unlike many anamorphic films today, with

to reel off examples, but many black-and-white Param ountfilm s glisten like their MGM counter parts while RKO’s output is punctuated with

seasick if the camera was bolted to the deck.

At least one of the featured cinematogra

Michael Chapman is one of those whose

their conservative framing (with video in mind),

work is used to illustrate what could be called a

Chinatown has to be seen in the correct format.

bleak films which might well have originated at

sub-genre: the “New York look” . Apart from

But this applies equally to earlier films like In

Warner Bros.

Chapman’s own benchmark film, Taxi Driver

Cold Blood (Richard Brooks, 1967), photo

The juxtaposition of clips from the two-strip

(Martin Scorsese, 1976), there are clips from

graphed by Conrad Hall, and Jules et Jim

T ech nico lor M ystery o f the Wax M useum

Naked City (Jules Dassin, 1948), a fine exam

(FrançoisTruffaut, 1961), photographed by Raoul

(Michael Curtiz, 1933), and a later example of

ple of location “realism ” from a master of studio

Coutard. The excerpts in black-and-white scope

the three-strip process, both shot by Ray

artifice, W illiam Daniels; The Sweet Smell of

are exhilarating, while illustrating a difference in

Rennahan, demonstrate a surprising subtlety in

Success (Alexander Mackendrick, 1957), of

approach by their respective directors.

both cases. The irony is that there was consid

which cameraman James Wong Howe once

When In Cold Blood was made, Conrad Hall,

erable difficulty for the filmmakers in locating

said, “very few films have that look” ; through to

just into his forties, was one of the hottest cam

m aterial from recent colour film s such as

the more recent The French Connection (William

eramen in Hollywood. Despite a mysterious ten-

M cC abe and M rs M ille r (R o be rt A ltm an,

Friedkin, 1971) and Dog Day Afternoon (Sidney

year hiatus, Hall resumed his career with a

1971), The Godfather or The Wild Bunch (Sam

Lumet, 1975). “ It has energy! Every shot has

vengeance and today is as revered by the new

Peckinpah, 1969), which isn’t represented.

movement” , comments Victor Kemper who shot

breed of cinematographers as is his colleague

There is also the insurmountable problem of

the Sidney Lumet film.

Haskell Wexler. Hall was lucky: he has worked in

illustrating the various aspect ratios correctly -

Of course, there have been some equally

an era when black-and-white films were com

Cinemascope excerpts have to fit inside the

dazzling films set in the less photogenic Los

mon in the U.S. and did much of his best work in

widescreen frame and consequently appear

Angeles, many of them made by foreign direc

that medium. Many of his American counterparts

sm aller than they should - and, depending on

tors. Films like John Boorman’s Point Blank

today have never shot (and probably will never

how the documentary is screened, determining the apparent differences in the Academ y

(fu ll)

fra m e

and

v a rio u s

widescreen apertures. The printing of black-and-white film onto colour release prints has always been prob lematic. The black tends towards blue and the gradation never seems quite right. This is not just theory: the re issue print of A Hard D ay’s Night (Richard Lester, 1964) a few years ago (printed on colour stock) was alarmingly different from the origi nal, with the Dolby stereo track no real compensation. But Visions of Light: The A rt o f Cinematography is ultimately about stimulating an interest in an area of filmmaking which is still a mystery to many filmgoers. If it is successful, it’s because the treatm ent is witty and enlightening, a slant typified by the inclusion of one of my favourite production stills from Hud (Martin Ritt, 1963). Yes, that is Paul Newman hand-holding the Mitchell, with an eagle-eyed James Wong Howe look ing overthe proceedings. He’s prob ably murmuring, “Very good ... very good.”

■ CINEMA

PAPERS

. 55

TECHNICALITIES

Taking Stock iv)__ __ of the Situation /

Dominic

Case

reports

“This stuff’s too good - I don’t want to see all that detail

In March, Kodak launched the latest addi tion to its fleet: types 5298 and 7298, rated at El 500, and balanced for tungsten light. Kodak’s Gary O’Brien claims that this is a “true 500” and is the fastest motion picture emulsion available.

in the background. There’s too much

At Movielab, Martin Hoyle agrees: “ It’s under

information”

stocks show their true capabilities when under

rated. You could easily call it 600.” Many fast exposed: typically the shadows become muddy

Cinematographer Graham Lind’s view may seem

and grainy when the print is graded. Not so the

surprising in the context of the continuing fight

’98: “Still good blacks, still good colour satura

between film stock manufacturers and video

tion” , said Martin. “Sure, you could just make

equipment designers to deliver ever more sharp

out some grain in the 16mm - but, hey, this is

ness and resolution. But it’s by no means a

500 El stock w e’re talking about.”

unique view. The paradox is that while film stocks

Apart from a 16mm test roll shot by Peter

are advertised and sold on the strength of their

DeVries, shown at the product launch, there is

ability to reproduce every fine detail, every nu

little of the new stock to see, but Kodak expects

ance of colour, cinematographers - like painters

it to be progressively phased in and eventually

- would often choose a broader brush. The

to replace the older 500 El stock 5296-la un ch ed

essence of picture-making is the ability to cap

with sim ilar fanfare and ceremony only three

ture not simple reality, but an expression of a

years ago.

personal view of reality. And so much of the choice between stock types is based not so

Hagen in achieving the much-vaunted film look

much on theirspeed or accuracy, but the particu

of Network 10’s Heartbreak High. Exteriors are

lar ways in which they depart from reality.

on the medium speed 7248 (filtered of course, as

T alkto a dozen cinematographers, andyou’ll

it is a tungsten film), but the classroom interiors,

get a dozen different verdicts on the best stocks

shot on location at Maroubra High, are on 7297.

around. This article is really a distillation of the

This is a daylight-balanced high-speed film

common ground that most seem to agree with,

(250EI), but is very tolerant to mixed lighting, as

with overviews also from the stock suppliers

the locations have a difficult mixture of fluores

and the laboratories.

cent lights and daylight windows and there is a

At the slow, fine-grained end of the range,

Kodak is moving towards a completely inte

rated at 50 El. Most users have found it pro

grated system of film stocks, with a fam ily of

duces clean bright pictures in sunny conditions

like-looking negatives, and fully compatible in

- beaches and snow work particularly well -

term ediate and print films. All new stocks now

and in Super 16 form at it is excellent for blow

use the EXR technology, in which the silver

ups. The sensationally sharp and crisp results

bromide crystals are flattened during emulsion

in Black River originated on 7245, shot by Kim

manufacture to allow them to capture light more

Batterham, and teamed up with the medium

efficiently for their size. This system follows

speed 7293 (200 El, tungsten). Another Super

through to the latest intermediate and print film

16 feature This Won’t H urt a Bit! (DOP: Marc

stocks, giving sharper final results, even from a duplicate negative.

with 5293, also yielding exceptional 35mm blow up results at Movielab.

PAPERS

lot of character movement through lights.

Kodak -has 5245 - a daylight balanced stock

Spicer) used 5248 (tungsten, El 100) together

56 • C I N E M A

A different approach has been taken by Ron

Despite this, all negative stocks print quite happily onto any choice of print film, and may be

In fact, 5/7293 is turning out to be a useful all

used together. The Custodian was shot on a

purpose film stock: the Kennedy Miller produc

mixture of Agfa XTS400 and Eastman 5248 and

tion Babe (DOP: Andrew Lesnie) is shot entirely

5293, and appears to cut and grade together

on 5293. Kodak was able to supply a single

very well. Cinematographers have the range to

batch for thé production to guarantee uniformity.

choose whichever stock they want to suit a

Although suppliers generally deliver a single

particular sequence.

batch if ordered, Tim Waygood of Kodak feels

Other news from Agfa is,that a lot of television

that this is no longeras important as it was in the

production in the U S. is shooting on Agfa stocks.

past, as different batches match very closely.

NYPD Blue is shot entirely on Agfa XTR 250, and

is attracting interest because of its look, but

DOPs who aren’t willing to change from the tried

other series such as Seinfeld and Love and War

and tested stocks, although Graeme Wisken

500), interestingly, was shot in Europe. A l

are also apparently Agfa shoots. Agfa’s Graeme

finds that labs have now learntto make the minor

though Fuji seems to be clearly in third place

Wisken explains that the stock has a marginally

adjustments in the process to get the best out of

currently, at the time of writing there is much

lower contrast, which makes it particularly suit

all stocks, and are less hesitant to process “other”

in te re s t in a m ajor co m m ercial sh oo t fo r

able for telecine transfer. At the time of writing, it

stocks. Even Kodak stocks often meet resist

Gatorade, being shot in Sydney on Fuji F64D (a

seems that this aspect of the stock has not yet

ance, and Russell Boyd is often mentioned as

fine-grained, daylight stock) and transferring

been picked up locally, and labs and telecine

one of a group of cinematographers worldwide

neg-to-tape at Videolab.

houses are still learning to adjust to the colour

for whom Kodak has continued to manufacture

Does the range of stocks that are currently on

balance of the stock. Martin Hoyle reports that

5247 (first released in the 1970s) because their

offer present any problems for supply? We’ve

early tests showed a powerful green balance,

experience with the behaviour of that emulsion

learned that high-speed stocks in particular have a

although of course this is easily graded out by

under all sorts of lighting conditions has given

limited shelf life, even in cold store. It seems that

the lab (or telecine) once the right light is found.

them better results than shooting on an im

Kodak keeps plentiful supplies of most emulsion

However, Agfa XTS 400 was used on Tunnel

proved, but unknown, stock.

types in its (quite large) cold store at Coburg

est demo roll of Fuji high-speed film (8514, El

Vision, shot by Paul Murphy, and transferred

Bruce W illiam son at Atlab finds that visiting

(Melbourne), and, by virtue of good liaison with

directly to tape at Apocalypse with excellent

crews tend to be more open-minded about

local producers, is able to anticipate needs quite

results. Graeme Wisken still believes that XTS400

different stocks than Australians are. Europe of

well. Tokyo is marginally closer than Rochester,

is the finest-grained high-speed stock around.

course is the home of Agfa, while Japanese

and so Hanimex, with smallersales volumes but an

Both Agfa and Fuji have long suffered from

cinematographers (according to Marc van Agten

even larger range of stocks, relies on airfreight to

the “ INK” (it’s not Kodak) syndrome in Australia,

of Hanimex) are using more of their local prod

supply many of its customers. Marc van Agten

finding an innate conservatism among labs and

uct rather than imported Kodak stock. The lat

reported that stock for the Gatorade commercial, ordered in Sydney on a Friday, arrived ready for

TH E S T O C K S - W H A T ’ S THE C H O I C E ?

shooting to commence the following Wednesday, despite the weekend and a public holiday in Japan.

Ea ch m a n u fa c tu re r o ffe rs a ra n g e of s t o c k s in 3 5 m m and 1 6 m m . (M o st 1 6 m m is n o w

Alison Peck at the Sound & Vision Stock

su p p lie d in s in g le -p e rf fo rm a t, su ita b le fo r S u p e r a s w e ll a s sta n d a rd 1 6 .) Each m a n u fa ct

Shop, which supplies stockfrom all three m anu

u r e r u s e s a d iffe re n t sy s te m of code n u m b e rs (so m e u se tw o s y s te m s ) to c la s s if y its ra n g e

facturers, makes no recomm endations or pref

a c c o rd in g to sp e e d , c o lo u r b a la n ce , and g au g e. H e re ’s th e lis t (s t ra ig h t fro m th e c a ta lo g u e s).

erences. Although more cinem atographers are

TYPE NUM BER

willing to experiment, Alison finds that, particu

STO CK 35M M

STO CK 16M M

S P E E D AND B A LA N CE

D ES C R IP T IO N

larly in the commercial world, stock is picked up by production assistants, who, more often than

AGFA

not, will choose Kodak, despite the com petitive

(35m m & 16m m h a v e th e s a m e n u m b e rs )

pricing of the others. It’s always wanted yester

XT100

Tungsten 100

extra fine grain

day, and so the INK syndrome works against

XTR250

Tungsten 250

general purpose

the other two stocks - better to “play safe” .

XTS400

Tungsten 400

high speed, wide latitude

No survey of stocks could be complete w ith before S chindler’s List, the Australian feature

FUJI F-64

out reference to black and white negative. Even Broken Highway (DOP: Steve Mason) and a

8510

8610

Tungsten 64

slow , fine grain

F-64D

8520

8620

Daylight 64

slow , fine-grain daylight

F-125

8530

8630

Tungsten 125

general purpose

number of 16mm productions had set the way for another surge of interest in this medium. Steve Mason chose black and white to give a sense of alienation (and, by common consent, the black and white of S chindler’s List gave an

F-250

8550

8650

Tungsten 250

high speed

F-250D

8560

8660

Daylight 250

high-speed daylight

were shot on Eastman Kodak negative. The two

F-500*

8514

8524

Tungsten 500

extra high speed

stocks available are Plus-X (5231) and Double-

air of stark reality that colour would not). Both

X (5222), and, although the photographic prop

KODAK

erties have (regrettably) remained unchanged for many years, Gary O’Brien reports that lubri

EXR50D

5245

7245

Daylight 50

finest grain, exteriors

cation and antistatic properties - both of which

EXR100T

5248

7248

Tungsten 100

medium speed

regularly cause nightmares to production crews

EXR200T

5293

7293

Tungsten 200

wide-ranging all-purpose

ECN250D*

5297

7297

Daylight 250

mixed lighting

EXR500T

5296

7298

Tungsten 500

high speed (phasing out)

EXR500T

5298

7298

Daylight 500

high speed (replacing '96)

Plus-X*

5231

7231

B&W 80

general purpose b&w

where the quality improvements are intrinsic to

Double-X*

5222

7222

B&W 250

higher speed b&w

the hardware, the cinem atographer can have

unused to black and white stocks - have been improved recently. Like video, film technology continues to de velop and improve. Ten years ago it would have been hard to imagine the quality and range of film emulsions available today. But unlike video,

every advance, every change, every variety, at

*These stocks do NOT use new EXR (T-grain, XT) technology

the cost of a new can of film. CINEMA

■ PAPERS

. 57

TECHNICALITIES

Checklist of Australian Cinematographers > Compiled

The fo llo w in g d ire c to rs of photography

S c» oA it tt

M ■■ rr rr ao yu M u

roo (1987), Father (1990), Hunting - co-DOP

Em pty (1982), Fast Talking (1984), Hightide -

have sh o t at le ast th re e A u stra lia n fea tu res

(1991) , Weekend with Kate (1991)

w h ich have been th e a trica lly released in

G e o ffre y B u rto n

the hom e m ark et, and at le a st one sin ce

(1975) , The Fourth Wish (1976), Storm Boy

in Space (1987), D evil in the Flesh (1989)

1 9 8 0 . The o nly excep tions a re th ose fem ale

(1976) , The Picture Show Man (1977), Blue

R on H ag en Rom per Stom per (1992), Talk

DOPs w ho have sh o t at le ast one th eatrica l

Fin (1978), Stir (1980), M idnite Spares

(1994, aw), Speed (1994, aw)

featu re sin ce 1 9 7 0 .

(1983), A Street to Die (1985), The Winds of

G a r y H a n se n C athy’s Child (1979), H arle

Jarrah (1985), The Time Guardian (1987),

quin (1980), Manganinnie (1980), N ext o f Kin

Sunday Too Far Aw ay

additional photography (1987) A n d re w de G ro o t Strikebound (1984), Dogs

A fo rth co m in g c h e c k list w ill co ver o v erse as

The Year My Voice Broke (1987), Flirting

(1982), We o f the N ever N ever (1982)

fe a tu re s sh o t by A u stra lian d ire cto rs of

(1990), Aya (1991), Garbo (1992), The

R a y H en m an

photography.

Nostradamus Kid (1993), BeDevil (1993),

M ountain Killings M ystery (1990), Fatal Bond

Frauds (1993, aw), S ire n s (1994), The Sum

(1992)

The date given is th at of A u stra lia n th e a tri

o f Us (1994, aw)

L o u is Ir v in g

cal re le a se . The notation “ a w ” m eans the

E r n e s t C la r k

film is aw aitin g rele a se and the acco m pa

Indecent Obsession (1985), Robbery Under

nying date is th at of com pleted post-

Arms (1985)

the World in 80 Ways (1988)

production.

D avid C o n n e ll Fortress (1986), Bushfire

P e te r J a m e s Avengers o f the R e e f( 1973),

Moon (1987), Les Patterson Saves the World

Caddie (1976), The Irishm an (1978), The

E r ik a A d d is Breathing Under Water (1992)

(1987), Slate Wyn & Me (1987), Boulevard of

Killing o f A ngel Street (1981), The Wild Duck

The Plains of Heaven (1982),

The Settlem ent (1984), An

Little Boy Lost (1978), Sher

A liso n ’s Birthday (1981),

Wrong Side o f the Road (1981), Death o f a Soldier (1986), Twelfth N ight (1987), Round

Broken Dreams (1988), Heaven Tonight

(1984), Rebel (1985), The Right H and Man

Wrong World {1986), With Love to the Person

(1990), What the Moon Saw (1990), Hunting -

(1987) , Echoes o f Paradise (1988), Black

Next to Me (1987), Tender Hooks (1989), The

co-DOP (1991), Over the H ill (1992), Secrets

Robe (1992)

Prisoner o f St. Petersburg (1990), Stan and

(1992) , Gross M isconduct (1993)

Ja n K e n n y

George’s New Life (1992), Body Melt (1994,

R o b in C o p p in g Stork (1971), Libido - co-

A n d r e w L e s n ie

aw)

DOP (1973), Alvin Purple (1973), Petersen

Game (1986), Unfinished Business (1986),

Ian B a k e r Libido - co-DOP (1973), The

(1974), Alvin Rides Again (1974), End Play

Australian Dream (1987), The Delinquents

D evil’s Playground (1976), The Chant of

(1976), Eliza Fraser (1976), The Pirate Movie

(1989), Daydream Believer (1992)

Jimmie Blacksmith (1978), The Clinic (1983),

(1982)

P e te r L e v y

Evil Angels (1988)

Tom C o w a n

R a y A rg a li

R o s s B e r ry m a n

Breakfast in Paris (1982),

Double D eal (1983), Melvin, Son of Alvin

Promised Woman (1975), Pure

Fran (1985) Emoh Ruo (1985), Fair

With Prejudice (1982), Short

Changed (1986), Dangerous Game (1991)

S... (1975), Journey Am ong Women (1977),

Nino M a rtin e tti

Mouth to Mouth (1978), Third Person Plural

Golden Braid (1991), A W om an’s Tale (1991), The Heartbreak Kid (1993), The Nun and the

Wills & Burke (1985),

(1984), M innamurra (1989)

(1978), Dimboola {1979), Winter o f our

S a lly B o n g e rs Sweetie (1989)

Dreams (1981), One Night Stand (1984),

Bandit (1993, aw), Exile (1994, aw)

R u s s e ll B oyd Between Wars (1974), The

Em m a’s War (1988), Backsliding (1992)

S te v e M ason

Golden Cage (1975), The Love Epidemic -

J e ff D a rlin g

The Place at the Coast (1987),

The Tale o f Ruby Rose

(1988) , Luigis Ladies (1989), Waiting (1991),

co-DOP (1975), The Man from Hong Kong

Young Einstein (1988), The Crossing (1990)

(1975), Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), Break

L a ra D u n sta n

o f D ay (1976), Sum mer o f Secrets (1976),

M ike E d o ls

Backroads (1977), The Last Wave (1977),

(1974), In Search o f Anna (1979), The Pursuit

Don M cA lp in e

Dawn! (1979), Just Out o f Reach (1979), The

of Happiness (1988), The Surfer (1988),

McKenzie (1972), Barry M cKenzie Holds His

Chain Reaction (1980), ... Maybe This Time

Candy Regentag (1989), Island (1989)

Own (1974), D on ’s Party (1976), S urrender in

(1980), G allipoli (1981), Star Struck (1982),

D avid Eg g b y M ad M ax (1979), Buddies

Paradise (1976), The Getting o f Wisdom (1977), Patrick (1978), The Journalist (1979),

Come by Chance (1992)

The Office Picnic (1972), 27A

S trictly Ballroom (1992), Broken Highway (1994), Redheads (1993, aw), The Custodian (1994) The Adventures o f Barry

The Year o f Living Dangerously (1982), Phar

(1983) , The Slim D usty M ovie (1984), Morris

Lap (1983), Stanley: Every Home Should

W est’s The Naked Country (1985), The

M oney M overs (1979), M y B rilliant Career

Have One (1984), Burke & Wills (1985),

Salute o f the Jugger (1989), Q uigley (1991),

(1979) , The Odd Angry Shot (1979), ‘B reaker’

Crocodile Dundee (1986), Hightide (1987),

Fortress (1993), Lightning Jack (1994)

M orant (1980), D avid W illiam son’s The Club

“C rocodile” Dundee II (1988), Blood Oath

Z b ig n ie w F r ie d r ic h Apostasy (1979), Hard

(1980) , The Earthling (1980), Puberty Blues

(1990), Sweet Talker (1991), Turtle Beach

Knocks (1980), M ull (1989)

(1981) , Now and Forever (1983), The Fringe

(1992)

J a e m s G ra n t Traps (1986), To M arket To

Dwellers (1986)

D an B u r s t a ll Oz (1976), High Rolling

M arket (1987), Blowing H ot and Cold (1989)

M artin McGrath Snow: The M ovie (1982),

(1977), The Last o f the Knucklemen (1979),

D avid G rib b le

D uet fo r Four (1982), Squizzy Taylor (1982),

FJ Holden (1977), The Best o f Friends

The More Things Change ... (1986), Kanga

(1982), M onkey Grip (1982), Running on

58 . C I N E M A

PAPERS

The Lost Islands (1975), The

P roof (1991), Signal One (1994, Seventh Floor (1994, aw), M uriel’s Wedding (1994, aw)

Laurie Mclnnes With Time to K ill (1987) John McLean D em onstrator (1971), N um ber

Everlasting Secret Fam ily (1988), O ffspring

“U ndercover” (1984), The Coca-Cola Kid

(1994, aw)

(1985), M ad M ax Beyond Thunderdome

96 (1974), The Cars that A te Paris (1974),

Joseph Pickering Warming Up (1985),

Touch and Go (1980), Turkey Shoot (1982),

W indrider (1986), Shame (1988), Sons o f

(1985) , Going Sane (1987), The Lighthorsem en (1987), Bullseye (1989), Dead

Frog D ream ing (1986), D aisy and Simon

Steel (1989)

Calm (1989)

(1989)

Brian Probyn Plugg (1975), Inn o f the

Geoffrey Simpson C entrespread (1981),

Richard M ichalak Tail o f a Tiger (1985),

D am ned (1975), The M ango Tree (1977), Far

M ad M ax 2 - second unit (1981), Playing

Breaking Loosé (1Ô88), Incident a t R aven’s

East (1982), Sweet D ream ers (1982)

Beatie Bow (1986), The N avigator: A M edi

Gate (1989)

Malcolm Richard

Mike Molloy M ad Dog Morgan (1976),

Going Down (1983), Future Schlock (1984),

(1989) , Green C ard (1991), D eadly (1992),

Sum m erfield (1977), The Return o f Captain

The Big H urt (1986)

The Last Days o f Chez Nous (1992)

Invincible (1983)

Ellery Ryan Blood M oney (1980), Grievous

Yuri Sokol Lonely Hearts (1982), Man o f

Vincent Monton The True S tory o f Eskimo

Bodily Harm (1988), Death in Brunsw ick

Flowers (1983), M y F irst Wife (1984), Cactus

A/e//(1975), Fantasm (1976), The Trespass

(1990), Spots wood {1992), Gino {1993, aw),

(1986) , Warm Nights on a Slow M oving Train

Bush Christm as (1983),

eval O dyssey {1988), Jilted (1988), Celia

ers (1976), Blue Fire Lady (1977), Fantasm

That Eye the Sky (1994, aw)

(1988), Georgia (1989), Struck b y Lightning

Com es A gain (1977), Raw D eal (1977),

David Sanderson Shirley Thompson versus

(1990)

News front (1978), Long W eekend (1979),

the A liens (1972), The N ight the Prowler

John Stokes Bloodmoon (1990), Hurricane

Snapshot (1979), Thirst (1979), Râce fo r the

(1979), Haydn K eenan’s Pandemonium

Smith (1991), Rough D iam onds (1994, aw)

Yankee Z ep hyr (1981), Roadgam es (1981),

(1988)

Mick von Bornemann C olour Me Dead

C rosstalk (1982), Heatwave (1982), “Norman

John Seale D eathcheaters (1976), Fatty

(1970), That Lady from Peking (1970),

Loves R ose” (1982) * Hostage: Thé Christine

Finn (1980), Doctors & Nurses: A Story o f

A n n ie ’s Coming O u t{ 1984)

M aresch Story (1983), M olly (1983), M oving

Hopes (1981), The Survivor (1981), Ginger

Keith Wagstaff The Man from Snow y R iver

Out (1983), S treet Hero (1984), Lucky Break

M eggs (1982), BM X Bandits (1983), Fighting

(1982), The Coolangatta Gold (1984), R un

(1994, post-prod.)

Back (1983), Goodbye Paradise (1983),

ning from the Guns (1987), Backstage

Paul Murphy Bliss (1985), D ead End Drive-

Sum ner Locke E llio tt’s Careful He M ight H ear

(1988), The Man from Snowy R iver II (1988)

In (1986), D avid W illiam son’s Em erald City

you (1983), S ilver City (1984), The Em pty

(1989), Dallas D oll (1994, aw)

Beach (1985)

Mandy W alker Return Home (1990) Gary Wapshott The ABC o f Love and Sex

David Parker

Dean Semler Let the Balloon Go (1976),

Australia Style (1978), F elicity (1979), N ight

Pete (1988), Thé Big Steal (1990)

H oodw ink (1981), M ad M ax 2 (1981), Kitty

m ares (1980), Pacific Banana (1981), Sky

Julian Penney

and the Bagman (1983), Razorback (1984),

Pirates (1986)

M alcolm (1986), R ikky and Travelling North (1987), The

■

KINGSGROVE 'a p a r t m

e n

t s

iis t a

l a

s c

p e

_____________________M E L B O U R N E A U S T R A L I A _________ 44 Fitzroy Street St Kilda. Vic. 3182. ____________ Tel: (03) 536 3000. Toll Free: 008 033 786 Fax: (03) 525 4571

MAJOR SPONSORS OF THE MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

SPECIAL PERFORMING ARTS RATES

for our Fully Self Contained & Serviced Apartments • Comfortable 4 Star Accommodation • Fully Self Contained - Just Bring Your Clothes • Serviced Daily • Just 10 Minutes From The CBD • The Friendliest Atmosphere In Melbourne • International Class Restaurants Within Short Walking Distance • Transport Available Outside Our Door Used extensively by ABC Drama, Melbourne Theatre Company, Pro Films, Australian Dance Theatre, Showtravel, Performance Travel & others

CALL TOLL FREE 1 800 033 786 TODAY! CINEMA

PAPERS

. 59

C H R I S LONG

a n d CL IV E S O W R Y

A u s tra lia ’s F irs t Film s:

P a rt Eight: ‘S oldiers o f th e Cross’:

It would be difficult to find an

T an talizin g stories o f “ a film ” rem ain in g lo st in spite o f “4 5 7

Australian film icon attracting more extravagant

ch estral score pop u larly supposed to have accom p an ied it is a

le tte rs” h an d w ritten by N a tio n a l L ib ra ry s ta ff p ersist.4 An o r

claim s than S oldiers o f the Cross (1900). Described as “Australia’s first full-length film ”1, “the Salvation A rm y’s most ambitious project”2,

venerated a rte fa ct in our arch iv es.5 A set o f h an d -co lo u red glass slides said to have been “m ade by the Salv atio n A rm y ” and “ show n during reel ch a n g es” (sic) is also h eld .6 T h ese claim s o f p rio rity and preced en ce fo r S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o s s suggest th a t ou r film h istory is fully ex p lo red . W hen archives are striving to p are dow n th eir film hold in gs by elim in at

or even “the w orld’s first motion picture play, drama or story”3, its saga dominates many chronicles of early Australian cinema.

ing n o n -A u stralian item s, it is a dangerou s assu m p tio n . D o the claim s bear co m p ariso n w ith orig in al d o cu m en tatio n ?

P a s s io n P l a y P r e c u r s o r s S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o s s w as n o t the first lengthy m o tio n picture play. Slide screenings w ere freq u en tly used fo r religiou s in stru c tio n during the 1 8 9 0 s , and a sim ilar usage fo r m ovies suggested

60 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

FACTS AND FABLES

M ilestones and M yths itself fro m the b irth o f the m edium . As early as Feb ru ary 1 8 9 7 ,

the scenes had never been included in the O beram m ergau p la y .19

a perceptive n ew sp ap erm an in M a ry b o ro u g h (V icto ria) w rote:

N evertheless, it w as screened to the press on 2 8 Ja n u a ry 1 8 9 8 and

. M agic lanterns will soon be relegated to the rubbish heap, for who, after witnessing the excellent entertainm ents given in the M aryborough Tow n H all within the last week by the aid of the ciném atographe, will care to sit for an hour or two looking at antiquated views shown by the aid of the miserable magic lantern? Our country clerics will, no doubt, cling fondly to the lanterns, in the hope that this ‘new fangled dakem ent’ will soon have its day. Vain hope, for Edison’s latest electrical marvel has come to stay, until it, in its turn, gives birth to some other wonderful machine. Therefore, there is no alternative for our clerics but to save up their pennies and buy a ciném atographe.7 Sim ilar th o u g h ts occu rred to film prod ucers w orldw ide, w ho saw p ro fit in the sale o f religious film s to a m ark et previously served by la n tern slides. By fa r the long est staged story film s m ade during the 1 8 9 0 s were v ariou s versions o f the P assion Play, the life o f C hrist. In 1 8 9 7 , Passion Play film prod uction began alm ost sim ultane ously in F ran ce, A m erica and B oh em ia. In Paris, the director Léar made a version in 1 2 reels averaging 4 5 feet per reel, running abou t 9 m inutes, w hich w as later sold in B ritain by Philipp W o lff.8 Soon afterw ards, the Lum ière C om pany produced L a V ie e t la P a ssio n d e Jé s u s -C h r is t (1 8 9 8 ) directed by Georges H a to tin 13 one-m inute reels9, and in 1 8 9 8 A lice Guy m ade L a V ie du C h rist, an 1 1 -m inute O n the oth er side o f the A tlan tic, the N ew Y o rk theatrical entrepreneurs M a rc K law and A braham E rlanger financed an expedition to the B oh em ian tow n o f H oritz (H orice, now in the Czech R ep ublic) to film the villagers’ Passion Play, regularly s in c e

1816,

lik e

th e

b e t te r -k n o w n

Film ed in 2 4 “ scenes ” w ith an advertised footage varying from 2 ,1 0 0 to 3 ,0 0 0 feet21, H o llam an ’s P a ssio n P lay o f O b e r a m m e r g a u w as p ro b ab ly the first P assion Play film to reach A u stralia, and the first n arrativ e film ap p roachin g “ fe a tu re ” length. Estim ates o f its running tim e vary from 19 m inu tes22 (an often quoted but in co rrect figure if the fo o tag e is right) to 4 5 m inutes (at the n orm al silent speed o f 1 6 -1 8 pictu res per second). So on H o lla m a n ’s film ran foul o f Edison p aten ts, w hich only perm itted A m erican p ro d u ction by Edison licensees. H o llam an had to surrender the negative to the Edison com pan y, w hich afterw ards retailed prints w orldw ide at $ 5 8 0 a co p y .23 Facing page: Opening title slide from S o ld ie rs o f the C ro s s (1 9 0 0 ). Courtesy Meg Labrum, NFSA, Canberra. Below, clockwise from top left: Flollaman’s P a s s io n P la y o f O b e r a m m e r g a u , the first narrative film approaching feature length (2 ,9 0 0 feet) to be shown in Australia. From H o b a r t M e r c u r y , 14 August 1 8 9 9 . Orpheus M . M cAdoo, whose “Jubilee Singers” toured with Hollaman’s Passion Play films. Photo courtesy of Dr Mimi Colligan. Hollaman’s P a s s io n P la y o f O b e r a m m e r g a u (1 8 9 8 ). Frame enlargement of the crucifixion sequence, as shown by W . H. H. Lane on his Australasian tour with M cA doo’s “Jubilee Singers”, 1 8 9 9 -1 9 0 0 . rjp E H H R R A N C E

H A I. U

TO-NIGHT. TO-NIGHT. Limit«! Swoo Only. Retnm Vi.it after un al«nr* nf 7 year», of O. M. McADOO’S FAMOUS

ORIGINALJUBILEE SINGERS.

version for L eon G au m on t and C om p an y .10

p e r fo rm e d

subsequently m arketed as the P a s s io n P lay o f O b e r a m m e r g a u .20

p la y

O beram m ergau .11 Sh ot by C harles W eb ster and directed by D r W alter “D o c ” Freem an, it briefly covered village life and the m ain events o f the O ld T estam en t before m oving on to C h rist’s life in detail.12 Its 3 0 reels totalled 2 ,3 0 0 feet (38 m inutes), an ex trao rd i

In conjunction with the

PASSION

PLAY

Of Oberammagan. Chritt’i life Depicted with Foil Retiho. 2 ,900 ft. of Beantifnl Film». Lecturer— Dr W. H. LANE. ALSO EBISUN’8 GRAND CONCERT

P H O N O G RA P H Will reader daring the erenlm Dlalone» Bong, end Cboni» from " Pinafore,” Intermezzo “ Cav»!eria Ku.tleana”, by ma OrcWtra of 100 In«tranient», etc. THREE REFINED, ELEVATING, AND DELIGHTFUL ENTERTAINMENTS - F O H ON E P R I C E ONL Y , 3/. 2/.

a .n o

1/.

Flan at Welch & Son*. To amid the cru»li. Day Tick.-t* may 1» obtained at Cearn* liro*., and NetllcloldY. Hook Early and avoid ilixappoinimenL G. F. II. BARN ES. T.»«ring Mwimpt. |

nary length for a staged film in August 1 8 9 7 .13 W ith slides introducing the ch ief players and carrying parts o f the story, its Philadelphia prem iere on 2 2 N ovem ber 1 8 9 7 occupied an unprec edented 9 0 m inutes o f screen tim e14, placing it well ahead of S old iers o f t h e C ro ss (1 9 0 0 ) in its usage o f staged film narrative. A sh o rter P assion Play film w as also m ade in a P hiladelphia b ack y ard studio by Sigm und L u b in during 1 8 9 8 .13 T h e H o r it z P a s s io n P la y (1 8 9 7 ) had origin ally been offered as a film “p ro p e rty ” to R ich a rd H o lla m a n , p ro p rieto r o f the pioneering N ew Y o rk film venue, the Eden M u se e .16 Feeling betrayed by the sale o f the c o n tra c t to K law &

Erlan ger,

H o llam an m ade an even lo n g er and better P assion Play film , later prom oted as being based on the b etter-k n o w n O beram m ergau perfo rm an ce. It w as a ctu a lly based on an A m erican play by Salm i M o rse .17 T o disguise its orig in s, it w as m ade secretly on the ro o f o f N ew Y o r k ’s G ran d C en tra l P a la c e .18 Sh o t fo r H o llam an by a failed X -r a y e x h ib ito r n am ed W illia m C . P aley, n early a third o f CINEMA

PAPERS

. 61

P a s s io n P l a y F il m s r e a c h A u s t r a l ia

to be L im eligh t D ep artm en t p ro d u ctio n s. H ow ev er, there is no

L e a r’s “ 1 2 scen e” P arisian P assion Play film s w ere the first to reach A u stralasia. O w en and G reen screened them on their “A n im a to sco p e” at N ap ier, N ew Z ealan d , on 13 Ja n u a ry 1 8 9 8 .24

evidence fo r th eir lo cal m an u factu re, and the fo llo w in g c o m p ari son in d icates their sou rce. E ach film w as “a b o u t 5 5 fe e t” (one m inute) in length.

T h e 9-m in u te p ro d u ction later screened at W e llin g to n ’s O pera

P assion Play film list from W a r C ry (M elb o u rn e),

H ou se on 8 and 1 0 A pril 1 8 9 8 .

2 7 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 0 , p. 7:

H o lla m a n ’s P a s s io n P la y o f O b e r a m m e r g a u w as in itially

(1)

T h e S a v io u r ’s B irth

im ported to A u stralia by the p ion eer Sydney ph on ograp h ex h ib i

(2)

T h e F lig h t I n t o E g y p t

to r W . H . H . L ane. H e j oined O rpheus M e A d o o ’s A fro-A m erican

(3)

T h e R a is in g o f th e W id o w ’s S o n

trou pe o f “Ju b ilee Sin g ers” , giving the first ex h ib itio n o f the

(4)

T h e E n try in to J e r u s a le m

2 ,9 0 0 fo o t film at H o b a rt’s T em p eran ce H all on 14 August

(5)

T h e E ast S u p p er

1 8 9 9 .23 U sing the latest E d ison p ro je c to r w ith 1 0 0 0 fo o t (15

(6 )

T h e G ard en o f G eth sem a n e

m inute) spool cap acity , he w as able to screen the film w ith only

(7)

T h e B etra y a l

tw o b reak s fo r reel changing. Sp ecial sacred m usic sung by the

(8)

T h e T r ia l B e f o r e H e r o d [sic]

Ju b ilee Singers accom p an ied the film , w h ich seems to have been

(9)

T h e S c o u rg in g

show n w ith o u t any break s fo r lan tern slid es.26

(10)

T h e A s c e n t to C a lv a ry

(11)

T h e C r u c ifix io n

O b e r a m m e r g a u to u r w as beset w ith tech n ical problem s. In

(1 2 )

T h e C r u c ifix io n

H o b a rt it w as claim ed th a t the film s w ere dam aged by W ater en

(13)

T h e C r u c ifix io n

U n f o r t u n a t e ly ,

th e

M c A d o o -L a n e

P a s s io n

P la y

rou te from Sydney27, and a subsequent show in Staw ell (V ictoria)

1 8 9 8 L um ière C om p an y C atalo g u e (Fran ce) list o f film s front

on 1 4 Septem ber 1 8 9 9 had the film w ith d raw n from the p ro

G eorges H à to t’s L a V ie e t la P a s s io n d e J é s u s - C h r is t :40

gram m e causing “ d isappointm en t, alm o st akin to resen tm en t”28. T w o days later, their A delaide debut w ent badly as “the pictures w ere o f sm all size and ra th er in d istin ct” .29 In desp eration , Lane w rote to E d iso n ’s N ew Y o fk agents on 2 2 N ov em ber 1 8 9 9 requesting the “ new 1 8 9 9 m odel P ro jectin g K in e to sco p e ” and sign ifican tly - asking fo r a set o f in stru ction s !30M elb o u rn e T o w n H all screenings began on 2 6 D ecem ber 1 8 9 9 31, and in Ju n e 1 9 0 0 they toured Q ueensland.32A fter O rpheus M cA d o o ’s death around Ju ly 1 9 0 0 , the Company w ent oh to tou r N ew Z ealan d , giving its la st scre en in g o f H o lla m a n ’s 4 5 -m in u te P a s s io n P la y o f O b e r a m m e r g a u a tW a im a te (near T im aru ) bn 2 1 Jan u ary 1 9 0 1 .33 Few w ere fooled by the claim th a t the film w as sh ot at O beram m ergau. W h en a N ew Y o rk cam eram an sh ot fou r scenes o f events surrounding the genuine O beram m ergau play in 1 9 0 0 34, its first p erfo rm an ce since 1 8 9 0 , T h e B u lle tin (Sydney) recalled:

C at. 9 3 3

L ’a d o r a t io n d e s M a g es

C at. 9 3 4

L e fu it e en E g y p te

C at. 9 3 7

R e s u r r e c tio n d e L a z a r e

C at. 9 3 5

L ’a r r iv é e à J e r u s a le m

C at. 9 3 8

L a C en e

C at. 9 3 6

T r a h is o n d e J u d a s

C at. 9 3 9

L ’a r r e s ta tio n d é J é s u s - C h r is t

C at. 9 4 0

L a L la g e lla tio n

C at. 9 4 1

L a C o u r o n n e m e n t d ’e p in e s

C at. 9 4 2

L a m is e en C r o ix

C at. 9 4 3

L a C a lv a ir e

C at. 9 4 4

L a m is e à T o m b e a u

C at. 9 4 5

L a R e s u r r e c tio n

T h e slight d iscrepancies are easily dism issed, as the first list w as given in the cou rse o f a casu al interview w ith Pérry and errors

The recent bio pictures of the genuine O b eram m erg au P assion Play set one thinking of the audacious fakes which the late Orpheus M cAdoo introduced to Australia a couple of years ago. T hey professed to have been taken at Oberammergau, though the latest performance of the Passion Play up to that time had happened about three years previous to the invention o f the biograph.33 T h e Ju b ilee Singers’ m ediocre com m ercial results in N ew Z e a land induced them to sell their Edison p ro jecto r to the “ C orrick

o f rep ortin g are likely, as is obviou s w ith film (8). T h e Lim elight D e p artm e n t’s Lum ière p ro jecto rs needed film s w ith the unique Lum ière p erfo ratio n s, so th a t the Lum ière catalo g u e w as their logical source. In B ritain and its co lo n ies, L u m ière’s P a s s io n P lay set w as sold by the W a rw ick T rad in g C om p an y fo r £2/10/0 each or £35/10/0 the se t.41 T h ey w ould have been av ailab le “ o ff the sh elf” from W a rw ick ’s Sydney ou tlet, the p h o to g rap h ic dealer B ak er & R ou se Lim ited.

Fam ily E n tertain ers” , w ho exhibited film s w ith it at Feilding, N ew

T h e Lim elight D e p artm e n t’s A d ju tan t Ja m es D u tto n (1 8 6 4 -

Z ealand , on 2 2 February 1 9 0 1 .36 This p ro jecto r, w hich exhibited

1 9 4 2 ) very successfully exh ib ited the P assion Play film s around

the first narrative film approaching feature length in A ustralia, now survives in the collection of Jo h n C orrick o f Launceston (T asm an ia), son o f p ro jection ist L eonard C orrick, and is show n in an accom panying photo. M o re prints o f H o lla m a n ’s P a s s io n P la y o f O b e r a m m e r g a u w ere im ported to A u stralia as 1 8 9 9 drew to a close. B aker & R ou se Lim ited im ported one fo r the Sydney ex h ib ito r J . M o o d ie in O cto b er 1 8 9 9 37, and a p rint w as still being show n around Sydney during the E aster 1 9 0 2 season by J . A. D . R od w ay (1 8 8 0 1 9 6 5 ) .38 A u stralian advertisem ents con sisten tly give the film ’s length as 2 ,9 0 0 or 3 ,0 0 0 feet.

S a l v a t io n A r m y P a s s io n P l a y F il m s T h e Salv ation A rm y L im eligh t D ep artm en t, having already p ro duced its in itial film/slide lecture S o c ia l S a lv a tio n (H erb ert B o o th , 1 8 9 8 - 9 9 ) , w as bound to be interested in film s o f the life o f C h rist as a lectu re aid. O n Sunday 3 0 D ecem b er 1 8 9 9 , Lim eligh t ch ief Jo se p h P erry presented P assion Play film s a t the Salv ation A rm y’s C ollin g w oo d (V icto ria ) C o rp s.39 T h ese w ere form erly assum ed 62 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

V icto ria u ntil Ju n e 1 9 0 0 42, then con tin ued his tou r in N ew

partly adapted from T h e B o o k o f M a rty rs by the E lizabeth an

Z ealand until 1 2 N ov em ber 1 9 0 0 .43 C om m and an t H erb ert B ooth

ch ro n icler Jo h n F o x e (1 5 1 6 -1 5 8 7 ) . Initially given the w orkin g

took n ote o f these results, including som e o f the film ’s segm ents

title o f H e r o e s o f th e C ro ss*9, a title later revived fo r the lectu re’s

in his lectu re plans. It w ould be an u nd erstatem ent to say th at

re-m ake in 1 9 0 9 , it involved a cast o f 1 5 0 players^0, n o t 6 0 0 as

these film s influ enced S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o s s , because C hrist's

claim ed by Ja c k C ato in his T h e S to ry o f th e C a m e r a in A u stra lia

E n try in to J e r u s a l e m , T h e B e t r a y a l and T h e C r u c ifix io n were

(G eorgian H ou se, M elb o u rn e, 1 9 5 5 ). All o f the players w ere

used as the new le ctu re’s opening film illu stra tio n s!44

Salv ation Arm y officers or cadets.

W h en we discovered th is, we checked arch ival holdings to

S o ld iers o f th e C ross opened w ith the final events o f C hrist’s life,

locate these P assion P lay item s. If we found the Lum ière version,

then moved on to docum ent C hristian persecution by the Rom an s

we w ould have recovered p art o f S o ld ie r s o f t h e C ro ss. W e were

before 3 1 3 A D , when the Em peror C onstantine officially adopted

disappointed to discover th a t som e N a tio n a l Film & Sound

the new faith. Biblical stories o f the stoning o f Stephen (“A cts”,

Archive (N FSA ) P assion Play prints had been “ d e-accession ed ”

chapters 6, 7 and 8) lead up to a tour o f A ncient R om e w ith the

under the m istak en assum ption th a t they had no lo cal prov

legends o f the arrest and inverted cru cifixion o f St Peter, the life and

en an ce.45 A rch ival selection p olicy clearly fails to recognize the need fo r a lin k to research .

eventual beheading o f St Paul under the orders o f N ero, all show n in shockingly graphic detail. T h e R om an cataco m bs, where early C hristians worshipped in secret am ong the tom bs o f their ances

‘ S o l d ie r s o f t h e C r o s s ’ : C o n c e p t io n

tors, were reconstructed according to archaeological findings. O ne

After B o o th ’s film -illu strated so cial w ork lecture tou rs o f 1 8 9 8 -

group’s betrayal and arrest traced them to the point where they

1 9 0 0 , he ch ose as his second lecture the grisly su bject o f C hristian

faced death rather than recant by offering incense to R o m an gods.

m artyrdom in the days o f Im perial R om e. “ In the face o f so m uch

There w ere exam ples o f m artyrdom by groups o f C hristians

coldness, form ality and sh am efaced n ess,” said B o o th , “nothing

leaping into boiling lim e-kilns, by stretching on the rack, and, in

could b etter incite Salv ation ists and all C hristian s to a holy life

the instance o f the V alerian m artyrs, by death at the stake. T h e 86-

and fearless service th a n the p ou rtray al [sic] o f the plain fa c ts .” 46

year-old Bishop Polycarp of Smyrna was show n being willingly

H e saw th a t it had a m u lti-d en om in ation al appeal fo r “ C ath olics

burnt at the stake for his faith, and Bishop Calepodius was sewn

as well as P ro testan ts - fo r in those days such distinctions did n ot

into a weighted sack by a frenzied m ob and drowned in the T iber.

exist” .47

T h e m assacre o f C hristians in Coliseum blood-sports at the hands

H erb ert B o o th recalled th a t in 1 8 9 9 he “w rote out the lecture

of gladiators or by wild beasts was re-created w ith creditable

and m ade a carefu l d escrip tion o f the slides and film s necessary.

realism . In the last tableau, the w ealthy R om an w om an Perpetua

Then I form ed a little com p an y o f our ow n, trusted people, and

subm itted to C hristian conversion, giving up her fam ily and child

together we produced [them ] ” .48 T h e new lecture on the early

to face execution in the arena rather than abandoning her faith.

m artyrs w as first m ention ed in the W a r C ry on 2 7 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 0 ,

“As the audience witnessed m artyrdom enacted as though grimly real before their eyes,” said T h e A g e (M elbourne), “fervent

Facing page. Herbert Booth (1 8 6 2 -1 9 2 6 ) and Cornelie Booth (c. 1 8 7 0 -1 9 1 9 ), Australasian Territorial Commanders of the Salvation Army 1 8 9 6 -1 9 0 1 , as seen in the W a r C ry (Melbourne), 7 September 1 9 0 1 , p. 9, during Herbert’s tour with his lecture, S o ld iers o f the C ro ss. Courtesy George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Below. Left: The first “B ioram a” Company, raised from Limelight Department ranks in October 1 9 0 0 to tour with films and slides, included many of the production crew from S o ld iers o f the C ross: Julia Perry, Sidney Cook, Joseph Perry, John Brodie and Mira Whiteman. Photo from W a r C ry (Melbourne), 24 November 1900, p. 6, by courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Herbert Booth’s Salvation Army “Training Garrison” in Victoria Parade, East Melbourne, was to be given its first intake of trainee Salvation Army officers through those inspired to join them by Booth’s lecture, So ld iers o f the C ross. It opened on 16 July 1 9 0 1 . Only the front portion of the building survives today. Robert H. McAnally (1882-C.1960), commonly supposed to have written an elaborate orchestral score for So ld iers o f the C ross, did not join the Limelight Department until 1907. The score was for the re-make, H ero e s o f the C ross (1909). The photo was taken in 1904, when McAnally was 21, on his first touring band appointment with the Salvation Army’s “Austral Guards”. Photo by courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne.

questions as to the enduring quality of their own faith w ere put by the C om m andant. ” 51 The final slide closed the show w ith a challenge: “W ILL YO U ALSO FO LLO W C H R IS T ?” 52 B o o th em phasized th a t S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss was neither an en tertain m en t or a fund raiser. Applause w as discouraged as in ap p ro p riate. R a th e r, the lecture was intended to in spire “ 200 young m en and w om en to give their lives as o ffice rs o f the [Salvation ] A rm y” , to be put through their new “T rain in g G arri so n ” , then under co n stru c tio n in V icto ria P arade, E ast M elb o u rn e.53 It was n ot A u stralia’s first screen en tertain m en t o f its type. W ay b ack in 1 8 6 8 , the p h o to g ra p h e r N ic h o la s J .

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 63

Above left: False icon: frequently published as a still from Soldiers o f the C ross. The W irth’s Circus lion in the cage identifies this as a slide from the 1909 remake, H eroes o f the C ross. The confusion between these productions is rife. Photo by courtesy of Brother David Morris, Salvation Army, Adelaide. Left, top: Studio for many films from Soldiers o f the C ross. Large groups were filmed on the tennis courts at the rear of the Salvation Army Girls’ Home in Murrumbeena, photographed here in 189 9 by Joseph Perry. The glasshouse may also have served as a studio or scenery store. Photo by courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Bottom: Shooting locale for Soldiers o f the C ross. Now the Belgrave Special Accommodation House, it forms an interesting comparison with the 1899 photo. Shown here in March 1 9 9 4 , the site of the glasshouse is now occupied by a parking allotment.

C aire produced a com m ercial slide set in Adelaide called T h e D a r k D e e d s o f th e D a r k A g es. It traced the principal subjects in F o x e ’s B o o k o f M arty rs (1563) through ab ou t 5 0 reproductions o f artw orks. It differed from S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss by continuing the saga o f C hristian m artyrdom to the tim e o f King H enry V III, w ith a stridently a n ti-C ath o lic n arration . A copy o f the printed n arration b ook let is held in the theology pam phlet collection of the State L ibrary o f V icto ria 54, and was probably sighted by B ooth in his researches. A nother o f B o o th ’s likely historical sources was the “Early C hurch C lassics” series published by L on d on ’s Society for P ro m oting C hristian K now ledge during the 1 8 9 0 s . Its slim tra ct on St Polycarp was published in 1 8 9 8 .55 An elaborate orchestral score labelled S o ld iers o f th e C ross and held by the N FSA in C anberra is frequently claim ed to be the w orld ’s first film m usic. H ow ever, its com poser, R o b ert H. M cA n ally (b. 10 D ecem ber 1 8 8 2 ; died c. 1 9 6 0 ), was only 17 years old in 1 9 0 0 , then resident in Sydney. M cA n ally did n ot join

T h ere was no specially com posed score.

S o l d ie r s o f t h e C r o s s ’ : A s s e m b l a g e T rad e m arks on the S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss slides at the N FSA indicate th at the set was assem bled from several sources. O nly 5 0 % to 7 5 % were made by the Salv ation A rm y, the rest being standard com m ercial religious slides. If slides already existed to illustrate the points required, there w as no need fo r the expense o f assem bling a cast, m aking costum es and painting backdrops. Sim ilarly, some o f the films illu strating S o ld ie r s o f th e C ross were n ot Salvation Army production s. As far b ack as A pril 1 8 9 9 , the Lim elight D ep artm ent exh ibited a sh ort film called B u rn in g th e M a rty r61, p robab ly a Lum ière prod uction . T h ere being no film libraries or exchanges at th at tim e, prints w ere purchased rath er than borrow ed. As the Salvation A rm y’s film collection grew , econ om ic sense dictated th at a n y pertinent item should be used to illustrate the lecture. L um ière’s P assion Play film s were used in this way. T h e balance o f the slides and film s w ere produced by the Lim elight D epartm ent after O cto b er 1 8 9 9 w hen B o o th and Perry returned from their social w ork lecture tour. P rod u ction was only possible w hile b oth were at the M elbo u rn e headquarters. B ooth directed the various film illu stration s, w hile Perry super vised technicalities and assigned L im elight D ep artm ent staff to assist. These included R o b ert Sandali, Sidney C o o k , Jo c k Brodie, W alter H ow arth and Jam es D u tto n . T h eir shooting locales were indicated in a rep ort on their facilities published in Ja n u a ry 1 8 9 9 :

betw een these tw o productions is rife, and the legend o f the

M ost of our studio work is done in a very commodious and well lighted studio at the rear of our Australasian Headquarters in Bourke Street [M elbourne], but for subjects with a great number of models we have an extra large studio, 4 0 feet by 2 2 feet, situated within easy distance of M elbourne.62

“Soldiers o f the C ro ss” [sic] score m aintains a regrettable plau

T h e “extra large stu d io” w as p ro bab ly at the Salv ation Army

M elb o u rn e’s Lim elight D epartm ent until 7 Ju n e 1 9 0 7 56, and the w riting o f his N FSA score is described in detail in the W ar Cry (M elbourne) o f 1 7 April 1 9 0 9 , page 8. T h e score is clearly for the re-m ake H e r o e s o f th e C ro ss and dates from 1 9 0 9 . T h e confusion

sibility through claim s in official jo u rn a ls.57

G irls’ H om e, “Belgrave H o u se” , then occupying 1 4 acres at the

Press reports and the recently-discovered cue sheet for the

corner o f Belgrave R oad and D andenong R oad in M u rru m beena.63

“P erp etu a” sequence58 o f S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss (1 9 0 0 ) indicate

It was officially opened by B o o th in N ovem ber 1 8 9 9 , ju st as the

th at it was accom panied by a sm all ch oir and o rch estra rendering

prod uction o f illu stration s for S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss began, but

standard hymns and songs o f the p eriod .59 O ne rep ort refers to

had been rented by them apparently as far b ack as the Jan u ary

“selections from the M asses o f M o z a rt and other com p o sers” .60

1 8 9 9 rep ort quoted above. R o b e rt Sandal! recalled th a t film ing

64 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

was done on the ten nis co u rts th e re64, w ith canvas b ack d rop s

B r is b a n e C o u r ie r 6 A pril 1 9 0 1

hung acro ss them . P h o to g rap h s reveal th a t a large glasshouse or

- “2 6 film s and 200 slid es”

con servatory sto o d a t the rea r o f the h ou se, and this m ay also have served as a stu d io .65

A rg u s (M elbo u rn e) 6 M a y 1 9 0 1

Som e o f the film s w ere sh o t elsew here. M a rty rs w ere bu rn t at

- “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es” A u c k la n d S tar 2 0 M a y 1 9 0 1

the stake behind the S a lv a tio n A rm y H ead q u arters in B ou rke

- “ 20 film s and 200 slid es”

Street66, and the d row n ing o f B ishop C alepod ius w as staged at

O ta g o D a ily T im e s 5 Ju n e 1 9 0 1

the R ich m o n d B a th s67, only a sh ort tram ride from the city.

- “ 20 film s and 200 slid es”

U ntil A pril 1 9 0 1 , the L im elig h t D ep artm en t only had Lum ière C in ém atograph es fo r sh o o tin g and p ro jectin g film s.68 T h eir

B a ir n s d a le A d v e r tis e r 3 A ugust 1 9 0 1 - 20 film s and 200 slides”

m axim um film c a p a city w as 100 feet (9 0 second s), set by the size

T h e A g e (M elbo u rn e) 8 A ugust 1 9 0 1

of their m agazin es and their la ck o f a feed sp rock et. In at least the

- “ 20 film s and 200 slid es”

initial show ings o f S o ld ie r s o f t h e C r o s s , this lim ited its film

B a lla r a t C o u r ie r 12 August 1 9 0 1

illu stration s to b rie f h ighlights o f d ram atic actio n . R eview s o f the

- “ 18 film s and 200 slid es”

lectu re’s first show ings in 1 9 0 0 co n firm th is .69 If its later film ,

B a lla r a t C o u r ie r 1 3 A ugust 1 9 0 1

In a u g u r a tio n o f t h e C o m m o n w e a lt h (Jan u ary 1 9 0 1 ), is any

- “ 20 film s and 200 slid es”

guide, each 9 0 -se c o n d film w ould have had ju st one fro n tal

W ar C ry (M elbo u rn e) 1 7 A ugust 1 9 0 1

cam era set up w ith no editing or cu t-a w a y s.70

- “ 3 0 0 0 feet o f film , 2 2 0 s lid e s ”

S l id e S h ow

HoW m uch lectu re n arrativ e w as carried by slides, and how m uch by film s? A dvertisem ents fo r S o ld ie r s o f t h e C r o s s provide the fo llo w ing details: W a r C ry (M elb o u rn e) 8 Septem ber 1 9 0 0 - “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es” G ip p s la n d M e r c u r y (Sale) 18 Septem ber 1 9 0 0 - “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es” G ip p s la n d T im e s (Sale) 2 0 Septem ber 1 9 0 0 - “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es” G r e a t S o u th e r n A d v o c a t e (K oru m b u rra) 2 0 Septem ber 1 9 0 0

T h e V icto ry (M elbo u rn e) Septem ber 1 9 0 1 - “ 3 0 0 0 feet o f film , 2 0 0 slid es”

Exhibitions after Booth’s resignation from the Salvation Army U nidentified A m erican P rogram m e 7 D ec 1 9 0 2 - “film len g th in d eterm inate, 2 6 0 slid es” W ellin g to n , N ew Z ealan d 18 M a y 1 9 2 0 - NO FILMS, 2 4 2 slides B r is b a n e C o u r ie r 19 Ju ly 1 9 2 0 - NO FILMS, 2 4 0 slides A rg u s (M elbo u rn e) 2 0 N ov em ber 1 9 2 0 - NO FILMS, 2 4 0 slides S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss to o k slightly over tw o hours to p resen t.71

- “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es”

Its slides w ere changed “ at a rate o f tw o to three per m in u te”72,

B r ig h to n S o u th e r n C r o s s 2 2 Septem ber 1 9 0 0

or “ one fo r every forty w ords sp o k en ” 73. At th a t rate, the 2 2 0

- “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es”

slides w ould have occupied ab o u t 9 0 m inutes, carrying the bulk

G e e lo n g A d v e r t is e r 4 O cto b e r 1 9 0 0

o f the narrativ e. T h e fifteen film s initially presented each ran for

- “ 1 7 film s and 2 2 0 slid es'1'1

ab ou t 9 0 seconds (1 0 0 feet at the silent speed o f 6 0 feet per

T a s m a n ia n N e w s (H o b a rt) 1 2 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 1

m inu te), so th at their aggregate running tim e did n ot exceed 2 5

- “ 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es”

m inutes, scattered through the slide show . T h e n arrativ e appears

D a ily T e le g r a p h (L au n cesto n) 15 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 1

to have sm ooth ly m oved from slide sequences in to film highlights

- 15 film s and 2 0 0 slid es”

and b ack again 74, althou gh one reference states th at “the scenes are first show n by still pictures and then the sam e incidents are

Below: The trial of Perpetua from S o ld iers o f the C ro ss, reproduced here from T he V ictory (Melbourne), September 1 9 0 1 , p. 4 , with Staff Captain Tolley (left) in the

'title rôle. The image is to be found on a slide in the NFS A set, and the action was followed by a film of the same scene. Photo by courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Right: This martyrdom of Perpetua sequence from S o ld iers o f the C ross indicates the câre taken with the costuming and scenic backgrounds at Murrumbeena. Courtesy

reproduced by cin em atograp h display”75, perhaps an im precise w ay o f saying the sam e thing. S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o s s w as an assorted program m e o f visuals illu stratin g a lectu re, n o t a film . It w as n o t w holly “ a Salv ation Arm y p ro d u ctio n ” in the strictest m odern ap p lication o f th at phrase. Like the illustrated social w ork lecture preceding it, S o ld ie r s o f

of David M orris, Salvation Army, Adelaide.

CINEMA

PAPERS

• 65

OUTSIDE SCENE ST HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE.

Left: Melbourne’s second screening of S o ld iers o f the C ro ss was given at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Exhibition Street, 5 M ay 1 9 0 1 . This sketch of the crowd prior to that screening was published in the W a r C ry (Melbourne), 18 M ay 1 9 0 1 , p. 9. Photo by courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Above. Left: The fact that the Lumière cinématographe was not designed for film loads exceeding 100 feet put severe limitations on the length of film illustrations in the first presentation of So ld iers o f the Cross during 1 9 0 0 . Right: W arwick Bioscope projectors with 1 ,5 0 0 foot (25 minute) film capacity were purchased by the Limelight Department around 1901 to replace its Lumière machines. They were larger, more substantial, and featured alLsteel construction for durable service. The greater film capacity allowed longer film illustrations to be made and presented at the lectures. Reproduction from A u stra lasia n P h o to gra p h ic R ev iew , 2 2 M ay 1 9 0 1 , p. 2 2 . Courtesy of Meg Labrum, NFSA, Canberra.

th e C ro ss included m ore and perhaps longer film s as it toured,

claim ed in the W a r C ry and T h e V icto ry w ould appear to be an

w ith m a jo r additions being m ade around April 1 9 0 1 . T h e W ar

exaggeration in the light o f the data av ailable to us.

C ry o f 2 0 A pril 1 9 0 1 con firm s th at “n e w film s add interest to an already pow erful and p ath etic n a rra tiv e” 76, and, o f 11 M ay,

E x h ib it io n d if f ic u l t ie s

adding th at Perry was in M elb o u rn e “ burning the m idnight oil

S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss prem iered at the M elb o u rn e T o w n H all on

[...] to cope w ith the trem endous rush o f w ork th at is con tin ually pouring in ” .77

the w et T h u rsd ay night o f 13 Septem ber 1 9 0 0 .83 T h e frequently

W ith the proceeds o f film ing T h e I n a u g u r a tio n o f th e C o m

appeared in Ja c k C a to ’s S to ry o f th e C a m e r a in A u stra lia in

quoted attend an ce o f “4 , 0 0 0 ” is a w ild ex ag g eratio n w hich first

m o n w e a lt h for the N ew South W ales G overnm ent in Jan u ary

1 9 5 5 .84 B efore the au d itoriu m ’s reco n stru ctio n in 1 9 2 5 , the

1 9 0 1 , the L im elight D ep artm ent w as able to replace its Lum ière

M elb o u rn e T o w n H all could only seat 2 ,3 0 0 85, and the W a r Cry

C iném atographes w ith W arw ick B ioscop e cam eras and p ro je c

o f 2 2 Septem ber 1 9 0 0 says th at it was n o t quite filled on opening

tors p rior to the R o y a l V isit in M a y 1 9 0 1 . “T h e Bioscop e is the

n ig h t.86 Review s o f the show w ere salutary but brief. T h e A g e

latest A nglo-A m erican m oving picture m achine [...] enabling the

(M elbo u rn e) gave it a couple o f p aragrap hs in one colum n on

o p erato r to ex h ib it film s o f any length up to 1 5 0 0 feet [25

page 7 on the follow ing day, w hile the A rg u s gave it one

m inutes] w ith ou t a sto p p ag e”78, said the W ar C ry on 13 Ju ly

p aragraph on page 4 and T h e H e r a ld ignored it com pletely.

1 9 0 1 . W ith 15 tim es the film cap acity o f the Lum ière m achines,

T h e im pact o f S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss w as lim ited by a lack of

sh ooting , editing and p ro jectio n w ere all facilitated w ith u np rec

follow -up to its prem iere. A lthough an extensive tou r o f V icto ria,

edented ease and flexibility . W a rw ick B io scop e cam eras w ere

South A ustralia and N ew Sou th W ales w as ann oun ced fo r the

used fo r the L im elight D ep artm en t’s con tin u ou s five m inutes o f

rem ainder o f 1 9 0 0 87, B o o th suffered from an illness variously

coverage o f the D u ke o f Y o r k ’s arrival at St K ilda Pier on 6 M ay

rep orted as “rh eu m atic fev er” 88 or a “h eart a ilm e n t” 89 and gave

1 9 0 1 79, and on 2 4 M a y 1 9 0 1 the New; Z e a la n d H e r a ld c o n fir m e d

o n ly o n e p resen tation in 1 9 0 0 after the p rem iere.90 V icto rian

th at “the m achines used in tak in g the pictures are o f the latest

ru ral schedules had the Lim elight D ep artm en t ch ief Jo e Perry

p attern , and can be operated fo r 3 5 m inutes con tin u ou sly, 1 2 5 0

presenting su bstitute program m es o f slides and film s91, while

feet o f film being used w ith ou t a stop p ag e” .

M elb o u rn e su bu rban appoin tm ents m ostly had B o o th ’s D utch

T h ere can be little d ou bt th a t the new W arw ick equipm ent

w ife, C orn elie, struggling w ith the E nglish n a rra tio n o f S o ld iers

w as used to produce ad d itional scenes fo r S o ld ie r s o f th e C ross,

o f th e C rossin m akesh ift fa sh io n .92 Its final in terstate schedules fo r 1 9 0 0 w ere can celled .93

the first ad d ition appearing at a Sydney T o w n H all show ing on 2 2 A pril 1 9 0 1 .80 It show ed R o m a n soldiers chasing a C hristian

W ith o u t B o o th ’s ch arism atic delivery and b an k ab le status,

m oth er w ith a child in her arm s, crossin g a flim sy bridge over a

S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss w as n o t w o rth p resenting. T h e break in

stream . T h e soldiers fell o ff the bridge as “com ic re lie f” fo r the

ex h ib itio n s w as used by Perry to raise the “F irst Bioram a

otherw ise grim ch ron icle o f cru elty and m arty rd om .81 Fu rth er

C o m p an y ” from the Lim elight D ep artm en t ran k s. T h is group,

film s w ere first show n during the N ew Z ealan d tou r o f M ay and

in itially con sistin g o f five m u sician s, lectu rers and p ro jectio n ists,

Ju n e 1 9 0 1 .82 By A ugust 1 9 0 1 , the am ou nt o f film in S o ld ie r s o f

tou red show ing slides and film s — religious program m es on

th e C r o s s had certain ly increased, but the 3 ,0 0 0 feet (45 m ins.)

Sundays, secu lar en tertain m en ts at oth er tim es.94Purely intended

66 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

as a fu n d -raisin g ven tu re fo r the S a lv a tio n A rm y, their trial tou r

C r o s s fo r its last A u stralian tou r there during the first fo rtn ig h t

o f V ic to ria b eg an a t C o la c on 2 0 O cto b e r 1 9 0 0 and proved

o f O cto b e r. R o b e rt San d all acted as p ro je ctio n ist, later staying

highly su ccessfu l.95 Fu n d -raisin g tou rs by “ B io ra m a C o m p an ies”

w ith B o o th as a p erson al assistan t at the C ollie E state, then under

afterw ard s b ecam e the L im elig h t D e p a rtm e n t’s m ain activity

developm ent as the site for a Salv ation A rm y B o y s’ H o m e .101

w hen they w ere n ’t needed fo r B o o th ’s S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss p resen tation s.

his fath er. H is m ood w as intensified by d ictato rial letters from his

B o o th ’s a b o rted 1 9 0 0 to u r o f S o ld ie r s o f t h e C ro ss w as re

b ro th er B ram w ell, the Salv ation A rm y’s C h ief-o f-S ta ff. A n atu ral

launched w ith a L a u n cesto n (T a sm a n ia ) p resen tatio n on 15

need fo r independence arose betw een a b rillian tly resolu te fath er

A t C o llie, H erb ert brood ed over the differen ces he had w ith

Jan u ary 1 9 0 1 .96 Su b seq u en t show s w ere received en th u siasti

and his equally b rillian t son. O n 3 F eb ru ary 1 9 0 2 , H erb ert B o o th

cally, b u t th ere w ere n o t a g reat num ber o f them : tw o in

w rote a long letter to his fath er resigning from the Salv ation

T asm an ia ; eight in V ic to ria ; eight in N ew Z ea la n d ; one each in

A rm y102, also w riting to his b ro th er B ram w ell regarding S o ld ie r s

N ew Sou th W a le s, Sou th A u stralia and Q ueen slan d ; and fin ally

o f th e C ro ss:

twelve in W estern A u stra lia .97 By co m p a riso n , B o o th ’s earlier social w o rk lectu re w as presented several hundred tim es betw een 1 8 9 8 and 1 9 0 1 and u nd ou bted ly had a b road er im pact.

B o o t h ’ s r e s ig n a t io n The A u stralasian S o ld ie r s o f t h e C r o s s tou r w as set in the co n tex t o f H erb ert B o o th ’s d eterio ratin g h ealth , and his in creasin g disillusionm ent w ith the p rincip les o f the L o n d on Salv ation Army com m an d . H erb ert con sid ered th a t his d em on strable achievem ents via a u to cra cy w ere being fru strated by the slow process o f seekin g p erm ission s fro m In tern a tio n al H ea d q u a r

As far as I can gather it cost about £ 5 5 0 including the wages of the Department in M elbourne while employed in making it [...] In view of all it has produced for the Army [...] £ 3 0 0 would be a fair price for Australia to charge my next command for it [...] I am greatly attached to the lecture and its possession will enable me to do a little for God in such a way and on such a subject as will do no possible harm to the Army [...] I should be allowed to purchase the lanterns which have been made to my own idea and special order as this arrangement will prevent me the trouble of importing fresh ones [...] The amount charged for the lanterns and their outfit is - we think about £100 [...]103

ters.98 T h e re is a g reat deal in F. C. O ttm a n ’s biograp hy, H e r b e r t

B argain in g over these term s o f settlem ent fo r the lecture

B o o t h (D o u b led ay , N ew Y o rk , 1 9 2 8 ) , to suggest th at H e rb e rt’s

continued fo r at least three y ears.104 Its A u stralian ex h ib itio n w as

distance fro m L o n d o n gave him the independence to expand the

suspended, only sh ort rem n an t slide sequences advertised as T h e

A ustralian L im elig h t D e p a rtm e n t’s op eration s as m uch as he did.

E a r ly C h ristia n M a rty rs and T h e P e r p e tu a S to ry being later

O n 19 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 1 , the ov erw orked H erb ert B o o th applied

show n by lo cal B io ram a C om pan ies from 1 9 0 3 o n w ard s.103

to his fath er to relieve him o f the A u stralasian Salv ation A rm y

T o avoid scandal and m inim ize any dam age to the Salv ation

com m and , ask in g to be given tem p orary charge o f its C ollie

A rm y, H erb ert and C orn elie B o o th w ent in to seclu sion w ith their

Estate in W estern A u stralia fo r a period o f light duties and

three ch ild ren , m ostly staying in A delaide before leaving Sydney

recu p eratio n .99 T h e sp o rad ic S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o s s p resen tation s

for San F ran cisco on 4 A ugust 1 9 0 2 .106

are und erstand able in these circu m stan ces. H e left M elb o u rn e for W estern A u stralia in S ep tem ber 1 9 0 1 10°, and to o k S o ld ie r s o f th e

CONTINUES

PAGE

Below: Sidney Cook (1 8 7 2 -1 9 3 7 ) officially joined the Limelight Department on 9 August 1 9 0 0 , but had probably been involved in the preparation of S o ld iers o f the C ross for some months beforehand. Cook was an adaptable instrumentalist, as this 1 9 0 0 picture shows. Perry trained him in camerawork and processing, and by 1901 he was the assistant cameraman of the Limelight Department, shooting film prolifically from 1901 to 1 9 0 4 , and providing musical backing for the “Bioram a” tours. Photo by courtesy of Cook’s daughter, N orm a W ood, of Brisbane. Right. Top: This section title of S o ld iers o f the C ross indicates the episodic nature of the presentation. Courtesy of Meg Labrum, NFSA, Canberra. Bottom : S o ld iers o f the C ross: the martyred Perpetua ascends to heaven on snowy wings. Photo by courtesy of Brother David M orris, Adelaide.

CINEMA

PAPERS

• 67

DEBBY HEDMAN

ACTOR Telephone 02 957 6354 Facsimile 02 957 6354

(THE BODYGUARDS)

SOUNDTRACKS <g>

NEW

& UNUSUAL SOUNDTRACK RECORDINGS FROM OUR LARGE RA NGE

A FILM BY RICKY TOGNAZZI TOUS LES M ATINS DU MONDE • VARIOUS CLASSICS $29.95

starring Enrico Lo Verso (The Stolen Children), Carlo Cecchi (Death Of A Neapolitan Mathematician), Claudio Amendola, Ricky Memphis, Tony Sperandeo and Ugo Conti. Music by Ennio Morricone.

SCHINDLER'S LIS T • OSCAR WINNER, BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

JOHN W ILLIAMS $29.95 PHILADELPHIA • HOWARD SHORE • $29.95 PHILADELPHIA • SONGS, INCLUDING OSCAR WINNER, STREETS OF PHILADELPHIA • $29.95 THE PAPER • RANDY NEW MAN • $32

Italian dialogue/English subtitles

ANGIE • JERRY GOLDSMITH • $32 THE ELEPHANT MAN • JOHN MORRIS • $32 THREE COLOURS: BLUE • PRIESNER • $32

6 RELENTLESS TENSION.*

I'LL DO ANYTHING & THE HOUSE OF THE SPIRITS • HANS ZIMMER • $32 EACH

-V ariety.

THE YOUNG INDIANNA JONES CHRONICLES VOLUME 4

LAURENCE ROSENTHAL & JOEL MCNEELY • $32

6 TOP-DRAWER FILMMAKING... BRITTLE ENERGY... A SUPERB ENSEMBLE CAST.* - Hollywood Reporter.

THE CLASSIC JOHN BARRY • INCLUDES MUSIC FROM ROBIN & MARIAN, RA ISE THE TITANIC, THE LA ST VALLEY & LION IN WINTER • $21.95 SERIAL MOM • NEW JOHN WATERS FILM • VARIOUS $32 S IX DEGREES OF SEPARATION • JERRY GOLDSMITH • $32

R E A D I NG S • S OUT H Y A R R A OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK

NATIONWIDE SEASON COMMENCES MID APRIL

153 TOORAK ROAD • 867 1885 f BOOKS /LPS/ CDS/CASSETTES

(check newspapers for more details)

269 GLENFERRIE ROAD MALVERN 509 1952

73-75 DAVIS AVENUE • 866 5877 • 2NDHAND LPS/CDS/CASS. 366 LYGON STREET CARLTON 347 7473

710 GLENFERRIE ROA d||A W TH O RN 819 1917 MAIL ORDER • P 0 BOX 482"S0UTH YARRA VIC, 3141

68 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

FILM

REVIEWS

Lightning Jack; Jona che Visse nella Belena (Jonah Who Lived in a Whale); La Scorta (The Bodyguards); Afrissima (Abyssinia); Wittgenstein; Laberinto de Pasiones (Labyrinth of Passion); Pepi, Luci, Bom y oras chicas del monton (Pepi, Luci, Bom and All the Other Girls); Entre Tinieblas (Dark Habits). LIGHTNING JACK TWO VIEWS

EMMA

COLLER

aul Hogan once referred to the success of Crocodile Dundee (Peter Faiman, 1986) as

being a bit like winning Olympic gold on one’s first attempt - indeed, a hard act to follow. Since that unprecedented, fo ra n Aussie film, triumph, Hogan seems to have lost the magic formula. The three film s that have followed it, “Croco d ile” Dundee II {John Cornell, 1988), Alm ost an A ngel (John Cornell, 1990) and Lightning Jack (Simon W incer, 1994), have been a disillusion ing m anifestation of his brave attempts to re capture that special light and quirky touch, and a very Australian, very laid-back charm. Unfor tunately, no gold for Hogan again, not even bronze - and I am not talking box-office returns; I am still talking magic. To analyze this descent of misplaced inspi ration, let’s start with “Crocodile” Dundee II. The strain began to show early on, in the Mick-

LIGHTNING JACK KANE (PAUL HOGAN) AND BEN DOYLE (CUBA GOODING JR .)- SIMON WINCER'S LIGHTNING JACK.

in-Am erica part of that film. But, fortunately, Hogan was back on fam iliar ground, pardon the

“strong but vulnerable” sort. W hat’s worse is that

But then there is also Hogan’s performance.

pun, once “C rocodile” Dundee //returned to the

no one really thinks of Jack Kane as a major

With Mick Dundee, Hogan managed to bril

Aussie bush and, perhaps more importantly for

threat either, except a small-town sheriff with

liantly capture the essence of laconicism. All he

Hogan’s screen presence, to the quirky, witty

petty political aspirations. And this is a major let

had to do was to keep still and occasionally

and charming real hero.

down for Jack. He wants to be known, he wants

flash a well-informed, tanned grin o rtw inkle his

This concept of Hogan as the real hero, in

to be feared, he wants the papers and, therefore,

fabulous blue eyes in the right direction, at the

spite of eccentricities or, perhaps, because of

the world and, irrelevantly, folks back home in

right time. Very minimalist, very stylized. How

them, was crucial, and one of the main ingredi

Oz to know about him. But all he does is fumble

ever, as with some artistic endeavours in the

ents of the magic formula. The absence of this

the bank robberies, and, even when he suc

m inimalist direction, it is possible to go too ta r

real hero in Alm ost an A ngel proved this point.

ceeds, it’s not real success: his eyesight prob

so that only the very élite few would respond

A lm ost an A ngel was a good idea: the thematic

lem prevents him from realizing that his booty is

favourably, or at all. Hogan’s Jack Kane is just

tension in Hogan as an “anti-hero” , the “triumph

made up of $1 bills. So, real hero he is not and

that tiny bit too still, and the grin-and-twinkle

of an average bloke” , and the quasi-biblical

it is from this paradox that the film tries to obtain

routine is just slightly off its mark. But perfection

parable. But it didn’t work. It seems as if no one,

its comic status.

in such matters is what makes comedy. In this

or alm ost no one (the film did make its money

It seems, as if in writing the script, Hogan

respect, Cuba Gooding Jr. is almost too good

back), really wanted to know Hoges as anything

could not make up his mind about whether he

with his performance as pastiche-and-parody

but larger-than-life, bush M erlin-m eets-holy in

wanted the audience to laugh at Jack or to feel

of the old comedy masters —too good because

nocent, super-being of an Aussie bloke. It was

sorry forhim . Probably both, b uttha tha s proven

playing as he does against Hogan he unbalances

an expensive way to test the formula, but a test

to be a tall order for Hogan. It was much easier

the film. But, then again, something had to be

none-the-less. The result: back to real hero in

to laugh with Mick ‘Crocodile’ Dundee, rather

done to save the day.

Lightning Jack. Well, a lm o s t...

than at him, and to never, ever feel sorry for

Ultimately, though, it seems as if nothing

Lightning Jack Kane (Paul Hogan) is an out

him. M ick’s quiet, unassuming confidence, his

much could have propelled Lightning Jack dur

law and a great shot. He is cunning in a crisis,

self-effacing heroism, had a very easy appeal.

ing the production into that “gold medal” cat

has the love of a good woman (Beverly D’Angelo)

Mick never talked about his skills and knowl

egory. In his direction, Simon W incer makes a

and the devotion of a kind man (Cuba Gooding

edge, he just went off and performed small

noble effort, bringing his talent for spectacularly

Jr). He seems like a real hero in the making, and

miracles in his own quirky way. Jack, on the

capturing figures in a landscape, great framing

perhaps he would be if Hogan would only let go

other hand, spends the entire film describing

and some slick and fast camera moves. Thanks

of working through the theme of hero/anti-hero

his talents to his speechless sidekick, Ben Doyle

to Wincer, the film seems to reclaim some pace.

duality in his scripts. You see Jack Kane also

(Cuba Gooding Jr.), and the little cunning per

The chase and shoot-out sequences are flaw

needs reading glasses, which, as the film points

form ance in the finale does not quite pay off.

less. But it is the script itself, the very founda

out repeatedly, is his weakness, making him the

Real heroes don’t talk about it, they just do it.

tio n s of th e film

th a t n ee de d re s c u in g . CINEMA

PAPERS

■ 69

Them atically confused, sketchy and disjoint-

Kane’s bungling is pointed out by a hostage he

unaware of whom they have captured, and

edly episodic, Hogan’s script, though showing

shielded himself with in order to escape. Jack

there is hardly anything to indicate otherwise.

great promise, would have benefited from a

Kane has poor eyesight!

That is, until outlaw and lawman are finally

team of solid Hollywood comedy writers. It would

Poor eyesight? The reference is again to

alone and the sheriff says, “ It’s been a long

not have damaged the film ’s Aussie spirit, as

Peckinpah and his film Ride the High Country

time, Jack.” The audience has just passed into

there was none in the first place. And at least it

(1962), which tells of two ageing gunfighters,

the autumnal season.

might have meant I would have laughed more

played by veteran W esterners Joel McCrea and

(Incidentally, the deputy is played by Austral

than just once.

Randolph Scott, at a time when the moral codes

ian Max Cullen, and if one is sensitive to his

RAFFAELE

CAPUTO

ightning Jack\s like an iceberg: there is more i to the film than meets the eye. The tip of the

iceberg pops up any and every chance it gets in

of the Old West no longer hold firm in the face

beady-eyed performance then one isn’t clutching

of automobiles and carnival shows. Kane, like

at straws to have the notion his role is modelled on

the character played by McCrea, tries to avoid

another great character-actor with his heart in the

any disclosure of the fact that he needs, and

West, Jack Elam. Just think of Elam’s role as the

sometimes wears, spectacles.

inept deputy next to James Garner’s sheriff in

the form of undisguised references to other

From here on, Lightning Jacks sign-posting

movie Westerns. The film surprisingly reveals a

rolls through as thick and fast as sagebrush in a

Support Your Local Sheriff, 1969.) These references are too pointed to discard

vast knowledge of the genre, and it’s uncertain

wind storm. Not much effort is made to disguise

as grab-bag, prerequisite elements of the genre.

if this is the effort of Paul Hogan as scriptwriter,

the character’s foreign accent, for instance. In

What is even more surprising is that the makers

or of director Simon Wincer, who is definitely

deed, it is made a point of when the press

of Lightning Jack have shown a cunning adm i

not a greenhorn when it comes to Westerns

mistakenly refer to Kane as an outlaw with an

ration for specific films, directors and Western

(Lonesome Dove and Quigley). Either way, the

English accent, which could be an oblique nod to

types. Lightning Jack is pointing the audience

references are not the stuff of clichés that often

The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1959) - th e British-

in a particular direction.

make the Western easy prey forspoofing; norof

produced, Raoul Walsh Western with English

the conventions of classic W esterns like Shane

man Kenneth More in the title rôle.

Jones’ sheriff shares a past with Kane. Many years ago they used to ride together as outlaws,

(George Stevens, 1953) and High Noon (Fred

Kane’s hostage is an Afro-American mute

Zinnemann, 1952), which one might expect

by the name of Ben Doyle (Cuba Gooding Jr.),

maker. As the sheriff tells Kane, “You can’t

from a trans-Pacific re-working of the genre.

who is tired of the condescending treatm ent by

outrun the w ire.” Jones’ character represents

but time has weathered the outlaw into a peace

Nonetheless, the first of the references is

white folk and convinces Kane to take him on as

one of two types of hero in most of Peckinpah’s

immediately familiar. The opening of Lightning

a sidekick. Together they make an unlikely

W esterns (e.g., Deke Thornton in Wild Bunch;

Jack has the Younger gang enter Junction City

Western team, as unlikely as that of Burt Lan

Cable Hogue in The Ballad o f Cable Hogue,

to rob the bank, of which Lightning Jack Kane

caster and Ossie Davis in The Scalphunters

1970). He is a man who hasn’t been undone by

(Paul Hogan) is a minor member. The townsfolk

(1968). Then, just as Lancaster’s mountain man

the loss of freedom of the Old West, but accepts

are alerted to the robbery and, armed to the

schools Davis’ runaway slave in the ways of the

and adapts to the changing times.

teeth, position themselves along the rooftops

frontier, Kane attempts to teach Ben the ways

overlooking the bank. With the exception of

of the outlaw.

Kane, the gang is wiped out, and a couple of the citizens squabble over who shot whom.

Many would say Lightning Jack is a tragic comedy: that is, the film fails as a comedy. But

By the time Lightning Jack has unspooled

there is another sense in which the film is a

the last reel, the pair has taken a ride through

tragic comedy. Most of the references Lightning

The Lightning opening is not graphically

many a Western. In a scene where Kane unsuc

Jackputs in service are to the revisionist phase

violent, and is without the formal and elaborate

cessfully shows Ben how to shoot, Kane then

of the genre when the new ways of civilization

grace of its model. The film is, after all, a

produces a sawn-off shotgun that can be

began encroaching upon the free spirit and

comedy and this sequence builds toward induc

strapped around the waist. With this gun Ben

values of the Old West. The death of the Old

ing the audience’s first laugh: Kane escapes

cannot miss, and neither does the reference for

W est has always had comic as well as m elan

the slaughter out of sheer luck when his foot is

it’s a gun the Duke hands over to inexperienced

cholic overtones within its them atic concerns.

awkwardly caught in the stirrup and he rides out

Mississippi (James Caan) in Howard Hawks’ El

Finally, it should not be ironic that Paul

of town upside down. Yet, there’s enough going

Dorado (1967). Moments later, the pair is chased

Hogan chose the Western as a vehicle for his

on to realize it is still a take-off of none other

by Comanches across the vista of Monument

damaged persona, at least since Alm ost an

than the opening sequence of Sam Peckinpah’s

Valley down to the river of ol’ Mose’s baptism

A ngel (1992). The comment, by the character

The Wild Bunch (1969).

(John Ford’s The Searchers, 1956); and then

played by L.Q. Jones, about the inability to

But, it’s still early times and the audience may

end up in a town where they face down four

outrun the “wire” could be a veiled comment

not want to concede even this much. That is to

Western goons, one of them named John T.

upon Hogan’s run in with the press, and his

say, although The Wild Bunch seems to have

Coles (a cameo appearance by Roger Daltry),

somewhat fall from favour as a national hero.

spurned a sim ilar sequence in The Great

which is a mildly cloaked reference to John

After all, Lightning Jack Kane is a character

Northfieid, Minnesota Raid (1972), Peckinpah

W ayne’s John T. Chance from the Howard

who cannot adapt to new times, and he has

originally borrowed the sequence from Nick Ray’s

Hawks film Rio Bravo (1959). To cap it all off,

been billed as an outlaw who “wants to be

The True Story of Jesse James (1957) in the first

after Kane successfully knocks-off the Junction

wanted” .

place. And, anyway, Ray had borrowed actual

City bank and achieves his goal of being

footage for the same sequence from Henry King’s

“wanted” , he escapes detection by bounty hunt

Jesse James (1939), starring Tyrone Power and

ers and the law by rolling out of town dressed in

Henry Fonda. Just as well, it might be wise to

wom an’s garb. Indeed, it is the same outfit worn

remember that the Younger brothers were mem

by Marlon Brando in his rôle as the regulator in

bers of the Jesse James gang.

Arthur Penn’s The M issouri Breaks (1976).

But just a little ways down the trail does

LIGHTNING JACK Directed by Simon Wincer. Produc

ers: Paul Hogan, Greg Coote, Simon W incer. Execu tive producers: Graham Burke, Anthony Stewart. Line producer: Grant Hill. Scriptwriter: Paul Hogan. Direc tor of photography: David Eggby. Production designer: Bernard Hides. Costume designer: Bruce Finlayson.

The true size of the iceberg, however, is

Sound recordists: Bud Alper, Lloyd Carrick. Editor: O.

Lightning Jack come up with a real surprise.

perhaps best revealed with the sight of L. Q.

Nicholas Brown. Composer: Bruce Rowland. Cast:

Kane learns the law considers him a minor

Jones, a veteran character-actor of many W est

Paul Hogan (Lightning Jack Kane), Cuba Gooding

league outlaw when he has to force someone to

erns, particularly those of Peckinpah. After a

Jnr. (Ben Doyle), Beverly D’Angelo (Lana), Kamala

read him a news item concerning the Junction

scene in which Lightning Jack Kane has put

City shoot-out. And, in a subsequent attempt to

three or four gunslingers in their place with a

boost his notoriety, Kane sets out to rob a bank

sterling display of gunwork, Kane is locked

Cullen (Bart). Lightning Ridge/Village Roadshow Pro

only to end up with a stash of $1 notes that he

away by a small-town sheriff played by Jones.

duction. Australian distributor: Village Roadshow.

mistook for $100 notes. To add insult to injury,

The sheriff and his incompetent deputy are

35mm. 93 mins. Australia. 1994.

70 - C I N E M A

PAPERS

Dawson (Pilar), Pat Hingle (Marshal Kurtz), Richard Riehle (Marcus), Frank McRae (Mr Doyle), Roger Daltry (John T. Coles), L. Q. Jones (Sheriff), Max

glossed over. He did

labour. Colours are bright for the exteriors, gold

not experience it. It

brown mellow for interiors. Ennio Morricone

is up to the audience

contributes a rather muted score.

to complete the ex

Over all, though, the film seems more like a

perience, and re-live

classy telemovie in its treatment and style,

what we have heard

geared for the widest audience, serious but not

and seen in the other Holocaust memoirs.

too disturbing. La Scorta, on the other hand, brings us

Faenza has also

dramatically into the present: contemporary

changed the simple name of the book to a

Italy, political corruption, the hold of the Mafia.

thematic title. The lit tle boy’s name is Jona

shadows, and with a louder, more melodra

and the biblical over

JONA CHE VISSE NELLA HELENA (JONAH WHO LIVED IN A WHALE)

LA SCORTA (THE BODYGUARDS) ABISSINIA (ABYSSINIA) PETER

MALONE

talian cinema has an exciting history. Com mentators tend to enthuse less about the Ital

Gian Maria Volonte. He would have fitted the part of the honest investigative judge who is

Jona’s mother (Juliet Aubrey) gives him a pro phetic message. He is never to hate, never to be

given the police escort, la scorta. However, differently from the past, the at

consumed by hate, no matter what he suffers.

tention of the film is not on the judge or the

For non-Italian audiences the film has the

However, Jona’s fine, childlike voice-over com periencing do have a somewhat sophisticated

Tognazzi’s La Scorta ( The Bodyguards) can serve as a cross-section of recent lesser-known

vice is effective, concen

Italian films. Jonah Who Lived in a Whale is the most

trating audience attention on the child’s experience

straightforward of the three. It is a Holocaust story. In post-Schindler’s A rk days, this can be

and his pained butalmost

an advantage, since audiences have now been

what is going on around him. The two boys who

original memoir, Kinderjaren (Childhood), by Jona Oberski. W riter-director Roberto Faenza has adapted

honest individual, but on young men, young

ments on what he is ex

(Jonah Who Lived in a Whale) and Ricky

very short and much of it shot in bright colours.

u n w illin g

nominator is the presence of such actors as

what is worth attention. Italians have the same

The clue for appreciating it is in the title of the

spelt out. Jonah, the

belly of the sea-beast, but he finally emerged into a new world, surviving for his mission in life.

friendly British accents rather than American.

colored treatments. While Jonah is serious, it is

ema in the past has been its political dramas, the tradition of Francesco Rosi, Elio Petri and, more recently, Gianni Amelio. A common de

judge when the films are not available or when there are few indications for non-specialists as to

geared towards long, serious, non-Techni-

tones of the name are prophet,

advantage of being in English - and in listener-

Roberto Faenza’s Jona che Visse nella Belena

matic Morricone score. One of the greatest strengths of Italian cin

may have been swallowed up and hidden in the

ian cinema in the 1980s and ’90s. It is difficult to

difficulties with assessing Australian cinema. Francesco Martinotti’s Abissinia (Abyssinia),

Much of La Scorta is dark, filmed at night or in

British tone. But the de

uncritical interpretation of

play Jona, at about three and at about six, are con vincing. A casting surprise is Jean-Hughes Anglade as Jona’s father, almost unrecognizable from his more anguished characters in Betty Blue

TOP OF PAGE: HANNA (JULIET AUBREY), MAX (JEAN-HUGHES ANGLADE) AND JONA (LUKE PETTERSON). ROBERTO FAENZA'S JONA CHE VISSE NELLA BELENA {JONAH WHO LIVED IN A WHALE).

ABOVE: ANDREA (ENRICO LO VERSO), JUDGE DE FRANCESCO

the book as a visualizing of a little boy’s memory of terrible events which he did not understand at

(Jean-Jacques Beineix, 1986) or L ’Homme

(CARLO CECCHI), FABIO (RICKY MEMPHIS) AND ANGELO (CLAUDIO

B/esse(Patrice Chereau, 1988). Bespectacled,

AMENDOLA). RICKY TOGNAZZI'S LA SCORTA {THE BODYGUARDS).

the time, it is an invitation to the audience to supply their understandings to those of the boy.

hair cut, he gives a quietly sympathetic per

Much may be omitted. Much may seem to be

BELOW: ANTONIO (ENRICO ALIMBENI). FRANCESCO MARTINOTTI'S ABISSINIA ( ABYSSINIA).

formance as a loved father who disappears and is finally hallowed in his son’s memory. Juliet Aubrey is fine as a

police who are committed to the cleaning up of

genteel motherwho is

to being ‘in the line of fire’. The appeal is to a

finally consumed by

younger audience, an idealistic audience which

the horror.

is sick of Mafia domination and violence. Does this imply that the older generation has come to

There are many sequences which are

Sicily’s city of Trapani and who are committed

accept the inevitability of the Mafia?

quite moving and of

Italians, during I993, have shown that the

fer the children of the

arrest and ever-increasing imprisonment of Ma

concentration camps

fiosi (and television news eager and prolonged

view of imprisonment:

coverage every night) is the direction Italy wants

children head first in

to go in. The results of the March elections and

th e k itc h e n va ts scrounging food, the

the veering to the right and to memories of

older children daring

tion. That means La Scorta is topical, despite its

Jona to pull faces at the guard, the children

pessimistic tone. In the light of the elections, one

at play and at hard

tic political intervention.

Fascism indicate a deep weariness of corrup

might ask whether La Scorta is looking for dras

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 71

An analogy for La Scorta may be the W est ern rather than the American police thriller, the strong posse on the side of the law fighting the

E d ito r: C a r la S im o n c e lli. C o m p o s e r : E n n io M o r r ic o n e .

tragic proportions, though this is not the film

C a s t: C la u d io A m e n d o la ( A n g e lo ), E n ric o Lo V e r s o

that Jarman has given us. Born into a wealthy,

(A n d re a ), (F a b io ),

C a r lo Tony

C ecchi

(J u d g e ),

S p e ra n d e o

R ic k y

(R a ffa e le ).

M e m p h is C la u d io

land-owners. While the characters are given

B o n iv e n to P ro d u c tio n s . A u s tra lia n d is trib u to r: M a g ic

brief scenes to indicate their personalities and

B o o t E n te r ta in m e n t. 3 5 m m . 9 5 m in s . Ita ly . 1 9 9 3 .

large fam ily with considerable musical gifts, W ittgenstein subsequently studied engineering and aeronautics before experim enting on jet propeller design. He travelled to the University

lives, it is the escort which counts.

A B ISS IN IA (A b y ssin ia ) D i r e c t e d

Abyssinia does not immediately suggest

F ra n c e s c o

M a rtin o tti. P ro d u c e r: L a u r e n tin a G u id o tti. S c rip tw rite rs :

genre comparisons although it has touches of

F u lv io O tta v ia n o , F r a n c e s c o M a rtin o tti, fro m a s to ry

the road movie, the noir triangle thriller and

b y M ic h e le C o r s i. D ir e c to r o f p h o to g r a p h y : M a u r o

dramas of obsession. It received some acclaim in being chosen for Week) at Cannes and was screened as part of the collection shown around Australia mid-1993).

sion. At the outbreak of World War I, Wittgenstein,

B u r c h ie lla r o . C o s

F e lic i. E d ito r: A n n a lis a F o rg io n e . C o m p o s e r: F io r e n z o

much to the surprise of his fam ily in Austria and

C a r p i. C a s t: E n ric o S a lim b e n i (A n to n io ), M a rio A d o rf

his friends and colleagues in Cambridge, en

(E n z o ) , G r a z y n a S z a p o lo w s k a (F r a n c e s c a ) , M ile n a

listed and served on the Russian front, where

V u k o tic (A rm id a ), L u c a Z in g a r e tti (M a rc o ), P a k i V a le n te

It was w ritten and directed by Francesco

( R e n a t o ) . Ite rfilm p r o d u c tio n in a s s o c ia tio n w ith R A I-

Martinotti.

2 /ln s titu to L u c e /M in is tr y o f T o u r is m & E n te r ta in m e n t.

Abyssinia has mythic overtones for Italians, an exotic world of Fascist conquest, an expedi

A u s tr a lia n

d is tr ib u to r :

M a g ic

Boot

E n t e r t a in m e n t .

setting of the movie, may not be Africa, but desert and isolation parallel and bizarre jour neys indicate the evocativeness of the film’s title. Antonio (Enrico Salimbeni), a young waiter

he was decorated for bravery in action. He kept note books in his rucksack and jotted down thoughts on philosophy of m athematics, the foundations of logic and on the nature of lam

3 5 m m . 8 7 m in s . Ita ly . 1 9 9 3 .

guage in general. (The m anuscript had, in fact,

tion into Africa, what smacked of Empire but which led to nothing. The Adriatic Riviera, the

Austrian’s intellectual purity and intense pas

tu m e d e s ig n e r : S e rg io B a llo . S o u n d re c o rd is t: F a b io

M a r c h e tti. A rt d ire c to r: G ia n tito

Le Semaine de la Critique Français (Critic’s

of Cambridge to study with Bertrand Russell, who had been deeply impressed by the young

WITTGENSTEIN

been completed when he was captured by the

RAYMOND

m anuscript would later be published through

Italians in the last periods of the war.) The

YOUNIS

a m a w o rm — p ra y G o d th a t I b e c o m e a m a n .

Russell as Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. After the war, W ittgenstein gave away a

— W it t g e n s t e in

with few prospects and a penchant for alienat

T e ll t h e m I h a d a w o n d e r f u l life !

ing customers and being sacked, narrates his

— W i t t g e n s t e i n ’s la s t w o rd s

fortune he had inherited and lived a simple, rather austere life. Secure in his belief that his

strange journey to an unfrequented but lavishly

echanical engineering, aeronautics, the

designed restaurant, and his being taken in (a

first book had exhausted the problems of phi

foundations of mathematics, logic, phil

losophy, he took up a teaching post in a village

useful pun) by the eccentrically considerate

osophy, school teaching and decorations for

school near Vienna, where problems arose over

owner (Mario Adorf). It is not Antonio’s idea of

bravery in a howitzer regiment: these are some

his rather unorthodox methods. He later worked

a life. In fact, he often finds it hellish or, as he

of the things which one associates with Ludwig

as an assistant in a monastery garden, super

tells his story, like a purgatory as he re-as

W ittgenstein, a remarkable man by any stand

vised the building of a mansion for his sister,

sesses what has happened to him, wants re

ard. Derek Jarm an’s interest in the life and

returned to Cambridge, but, racked by doubt,

venge on those who have harmed him and

thought of the much-admired philosopher is

anxiety and bouts of despair, left the university

becomes entangled in the emotional turmoil of

understandable, especially given W ittgenstein’s

again to work for short periods in a hospital and

his boss, the boss’ mistress and a wealthy rival.

sense of being an outsider, his tormented sen

an infirmary. He returned once more to Cam

sibility and, of course, his homosexuality.

bridge in 1944 before resigning three years

This entanglement is the surface of the film and draws its audience into fam iliar territory. But if the audience has been paying attention

T he

d e c is io n

m ake

from the opening and takes notice of the narra

ing W ittgenstein’s worth as a

tive questions and the doubts about behaviour-

philosopher o rth e dramatic po

consistency that arise, the other levels of the

tential that is inherent in the

film will be satisfyingly unpredictable.

story of his life. But his philoso

The running time is brief. The performances

phy is not one of the most ac

are heightened for the response to the different

cessible nor is it a model of

levels of meaning, Mario Adorf showing a dia

clarity and simplicity.

bolical face while Salimbeni is believable as the gawky loser.

The task for Jarman and his scriptwriter was a enormously

Abyssinia is a film buff’s entertainment which relishes its style and its references.

difficult one. They had to por tray the life and convey the thought in a m annerthat is brief

JONA CHE VISSE NELLA BELENA (Jonah Who Lived in a

and concise but not superficial

Whale) D ir e c te d b y R o b e r to F a e n z a . P r o d u c e r : E ld a

or simplistic. They had also to

F e rri. A s s o c ia te p ro d u c e r: A ro n S ip o s . S c rip tw rite rs : F ilip p o

O tto n i,

R o b e r to

Faenza.

B ased

Jona

O b e r s k i’s b o o k K in d e r ja r e n . D ir e c to r o f p h o to g ra p h y :

consider an audience that is largely ignorant of the types of

J a n o s K e n d e . A rt d ire c to rs : M a r ia Iv a n o v a , L a s z lo

philoso ph ical problem s th at

G a r d o n y i.

B e r a ld o .

W ittgenstein had been inter

S o u n d rec o rd is t: B e rn a rd R o c h u t. E d ito r: N in o B a ra g li.

ested in solving. The major prob

C o s tu m e

d e s ig n e r :

E lis a b e tta

J e a n -H u g h e s

lem, one would think, is the issue

A n g la d e (M a x O b e r s k i), J u lie t A u b re y (H a n n a O b e rs k i),

of just which W ittgenstein to

J e n n e r D e l V e c c h io (J o n a ), L u k e P e te r s o n (Y o u n g e r

focus on, given the remarkable

C o m p o s e r:

E n n io

M o r r ic o n e .

C a s t:

J o n a ), a ls o w ith F r a n c e s c a D e S a p io , D je k e R o s ie , S im o n a F a c e v a . J e a n V ig o In tl./F re n c h P ro d . F o c u s film p ro d u c tio n in a s s o c ia tio n w ith R A I-1 . A u s tra lia n d is

critique of his own early work that W ittgenstein had been ar

trib u to r: M a g ic B o o t E n te r ta in m e n t. 3 5 m m . 9 4 m in s .

ticulating up until the time of his

It a ly -F r a n c e . 1 9 9 3 .

death.

LA SCORTA (The Bodyguards) D ir e c t e d

R ic k y

T o g n a z z i. P ro d u c e r: C la u d io B o n iv e n to . S c rip tw rite rs :

The facts of W ittgenstein’s life and death are fairly well-

G r a z ia n o D ia n a , S im o n a Iz z o . D ir e c to r o f p h o to g r a

known. And there is much ma

phy: A le s s io G e ls in i. A rt d ire c to r: M a r ia n g e la C a p u a n o .

terial here for a film of epic and

72 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

a film

about

W ittgenstein was a bold one: there is no doubt

LADY OTTOLINE MORRELL (TILDA SWINTON). DEREK JARM AN'S WITTGENSTEIN.

later. He spent the last years of his life with

guage is to occur. The film is brilliant in certain

cancer, and died in 1951, having expressed a

respects, but the viewer who is actually more

desire not to live on.

interested in the philosophy than in the life

Clearly, Jarman had much to draw on here.

leaves dissatisfied and frustrated.

Many scenes are sketched with remarkable

The film is otherwise notable fo rth e cinem a

economy and with some vividness. For exam

tography as mentioned earlier, but also for its

ple, the trip to Norway and solitude is conveyed

central perform ance. Karl Johnson gives a

by the image of W ittgenstein rowing a boat in

marvellous and an uncanny performance in the

absolute darkness. Cambridge is evoked by the

major role. One cannot but think that this is just

customary academic gowns and students, and

what classes with W ittgenstein must have been

so on. Though this is one of the strengths of the

like and that this is very much the type of

film, there is the risk of depending on sim plifica

behaviour one must have associated with him.

tion to such a degree that caricature results. A

Certainly, the accounts left by W ittgenstein’s

number of key figures, such as Keynes, Lady

students and colleagues in Cambridge would

Ottoline Morrell and Russell, are little more than

suggest that Jarman and Johnson have suc

caricatures at times in the film.

ceeded brilliantly in the attempt to capture the

Jarm an’s strategy of shooting scenes against

tormented and agitated character, the impa

darkness is however a forceful one: it is as if one

tience and explosive anger, the joy in few things

is constantly reminded of the contents that are

(chief of which was the cinema in general and

not known or that are unknowable; as if this is a

W esterns and musicals in particular) and the

world where the unfathomed and the unfathom

despair in many, the self-loathing as well as the

able are constantly present along with the mun

slightly odd sense of humour, the intensity, the

dane and the familiar; where what Wittgenstein

integrity, and, in a sense, the flame-like purity of

called the unsayable or the mysterious remains

the man.

not just as a backdrop but as a pervasive ele ment; and where, in the light of the fact that this would be Jarm an’s last film, that “undiscovered

WITTGENSTEIN D ire c te d b y D e r e k J a r m a n . P ro d u c e r: T a r iq AN. E x e c u tiv e p ro d u c e rs : B e n G ib s o n , T a k a s h i A s a i. S c rip tw rite rs : D e r e k J a r m a n , T e r r y E a g le to n , K e n

country” , meaning death, from whose “bourn no

B u tle r. D ire c to r of p h o to g ra p h y : J a m e s W e lla n d . A rt

traveller returns” , becomes an irrevocable and

director: A n n ie L a p a z . C o s tu m e d e s ig n e r: S a n d y P o w ell.

immanent setting wherein all forms of life be

Sound

come shadowy, indistinct or negated.

T r e m le tt. C o m p o s e r: J a n L a th a m -K o e n ig . C a s t: K arl

PEDRO ALMODOVAR'S LABERINTO DE RASIONES

Johnson

( LABYRINTH OF PASSION).

Omnipresent darkness here serves to high light the boundaries of what is seen and reveals

re c o rd is t:

( L u d w ig

G e o rg e

R ic h a rd s .

W ittg e n s te in ),

E d ito r:

M ic h a e l

Budge

Gough

(B e rtra n d R u s s e ll), T ild a S w in to n (L a d y O tto lin e M o rre ll), C o llin s

happily escaped her old deluded dad, who

(J o h n n y ), C la n c y C h a s s a y (Y o u n g W ittg e n s te in ), N a b il

thought she was her m other and raped her

the actual are constituted. The darkness is so

S h a b a n (M a rtia n ), S a lly D e x te r (H e r m in e W ittg e n s te in ),

every second day. One of the few left unhappy

enveloping in many scenes that it becomes dif

L y n n S e y m o u r (L y d ia L o p o k o v a ). C h a n n e l 4 /B F I p r e s

by the end of this film is Sexi’s Lacanian ana

ficult to resist the reading that suggests an all-

e n ta tio n ,

in a s s o c ia tio n

lyst, Susana (she’s more W arholian than

enveloping source of negation that is constantly

B andung

p ro d u c tio n . A u s tra lia n

encroaching upon the dwindling spaces of light

3 5 m m . 71 m in s . U .K . 1 9 9 3 .

the tenuous threads by which the imagined and

John

Q u e n t in

(M a y n a rd

K e y n e s ),

w ith

U p lin k

K e v in

(J a p a n ),

d is trib u to r:

of a

R o n in .

Lacanian), who advises her patients while she does her ironing. She’d wanted Sexi’s dad for

within the frame. One is left in a state of some

herself!

sobriety and one presumes that this is precisely

RETROSPECTIVE

what the desperately-ill Jarman intended.

LABERINTO DE PASIONES

triumphed. Anarchists, who formed part of the

(LABYRINTH OF PASSION)

forces loyal to the Republic, were defeated -

PEPI, LUCI, BOM Y ORAS CHICAS DEL MONTON (PEPI, LUCI, BOM AND

them. Anarchism didn’t die, though. Resisting

ALL THE OTHER GIRLS)

the purifications offered by Fascism and Com

ENTRE TINIEBLAS

munism, it went underground. Its spirit is alive

The major problem with the film is the rather perfunctory approach that is taken with philo sophical arguments that Wittgenstein had pains takingly and carefully articulated over many years of reflection and suffering. It simply will not do to take a quotable line from this source or that and have it uttered out of context. Nor will it do to take some of W ittgenstein’s most complex thoughts on the limits of the sayable, on the foundations of scepticism or on the relationship between lan

LORRAINE

During the Civil War in Spain, the Fascists

(DARK HABITS)

doubly so. The Communists, too, fought against

and well in the work of Pedro Almodovar.

MORTIMER

Pepi, Luci, Bom y oras chicas del monton

t the beginning of Laberinto de Pasiones

(Pepi, Luci, Bom and A ll the Other Girls, 1980),

{(Labyrinth o f Passion, 1982), Sexi (Cecilia

Alm odovar’s first feature in post-Franco Spain,

Roth), a gorgeous nymphomaniac, and Riza

has all the marks of his underground work. It

guage and the external or objective world, and

Niro (Imanol Arias), the incognito gay son of the

has a comic-strip quality: colour, kitsch and

not provide any commentary on these.

Emperor of Tyran, cruise the same street in the

intertitles. Part of la movida, the explosion of

W ittgenstein’s approaches do lend them

Madrid Rastro. The viewer is treated to a series

popular culture in the late 1970s, it draws on

selves readily to the use of analogies that con

of nice, crude, full-crutch shots. By the end of

zarzuela (Spanish light opera), the detective

stitutes one of the strengths of his philosophy.

the film, Sexi and Riza are cured - they’re

genre, the madness of advertising and the

It is a great pity that the filmm akers could not

m a kin g

boundless energy unleashed during the period.

lo ve

a p la n e

(ju s t

lik e

come up with something less fatuous than the

Emmanuelle1), heading off to utopia in the Car

It has ban(ne)d music. And there’s lots of vul

Martian (Nabil Shaban) to explain some hairy

ibbean. Meanwhile, back on the ground, Queti

garity. (Bom, played by Alaska, is in a punk

points or something more challenging than

(Marta Fernandez-Muro, a kind of Spanish

group called Bomitoni.)

clichés like the one about a brother “bent” or a

Shelley Duvall), now looking just like Sexi after

Getting to know housewife Luci (Eva Siva),

fam ily being “filthy rich” . The viewer is left with

her visit to the Our Lady of Beauty plastic

with Pepi’s encouragement (Carmen Maura

a superficial understanding of the most crucial

surgery clinic, is making love with Sexi’s father

plays Pepi), Bom pees on her. They bond and

ideas; take for example, W ittgenstein’s insist

(Angel Alcazar), an uptight biogynaecologist

Luci starts to take pleasure in her new milieu.

ence upon “form s of life” , by which he meant,

w ho’s previously been revolted by the idea of

The twist is that, in the end, Bom and Luci can’t

incidentally, those conditions which must be

naked bodies rubbing together. Queti has dis

come near her cop husband in dishing out pain,

accepted indubitably if any language “game” is

pensed her magic potion and made his test-

Luci tells them as she lies in her hospital bed,

to take place, or if any meaningful use of lan

tube budgies sing fo rth e first time! And she has

battered, bruised and satisfied. It’s in her marCINEMA

PAPERS

. 73

and after, the coke-

Toraya (Helga Liné, a B-movie star), dumped

snorting, blackmailing

by the Em peror for not bearing his children,

nun is fram ed with

becomes fertile in m iddle-age (thanks to Sexi’s

care and concern. No

dad) and manages to get some royal semen

re d e e m in g

(thanks to Riza Niro)!

m o ra l

syrup cures the char

This finding of truth in trash, finding sense' in

acters of their vitality,

the vulgar and the visceral, are at the h e a rtd f

their passion w ithout

Alm odovar’s work. When Sexi and Riza Niro

boundaries.2

are “cured” , there’s satire at work. But there’s

The title Labyrinth

more to it than that. In this screen world, iden

o f Passions (the plu

tities change, boundaries are crossed, vistas

ral is more accurate)

open up. Sexi and Riza are affected by each

could apply to Alm

other. They feel tender, transform ed. Anar

odovar’s oeuvre. His

chism is alive and joyous.

s to c k -c o m p a n y in cludes actors who go back to his days in the

Notes 1

E m m a n u e lle (J u s t J a e c k in , 1 9 7 4 ) .

See

Los Goliardos theatre group. The films fea ture an ensemble of players and passions,

I. C a s a ld o , “P e d r o A lm o d o v a r : a S panis'h

P e r s p e c t iv e ”, C in é a s te , X V II I, N o . 1, 1 9 9 0 , p. 3 7 . 3

M . P a lly , ‘T h e P o litic s o f P a s s io n : P e d r o A lm o d o v a r a n d th e C a m p E s th e tic ”, C in é a s te , o p . c it., gLSffe

LABERINTO DE PASIONES (Labyrinth of Passioh) D ir

rlage, rather than amongst the deviants, that

deriving their colour from them, often from the

e c te d

she’ll take her most perverse pleasure.

frailties and faults.

A lm o d o v a r .

P e d ro

A lm o d o v a r .

D ir e c t o r o f

S c r ip t w r it e r :

P ë d ro -

p h o to g ra p h y : A n g e l

Ljlist

Entre Tinieblas (Dark Habits, 1983), harsh,

The politics of the film go deep. It’s a politics

funny and absurd like the first film, has a blue-

of inclusion. Marcia Pally notes that Almodovar’s

S o u n d : M a rtin M u lle r. C a s t: C e c ilia R o th (S e x i), fn iarto f

camp aesthetic is “epicene, extravagant, theat

A r ia s

when a downbeat piano plays as a haze settles

rical, and fantastic” . Yet it is “w ithout scorn.

F e rn á n d e z -M u ro

ovër Madrid. Two nuns from the Order of the

Almodovar exaggerates to champion the thing

tinged sadness to it from its opening moments

Humble Redeemers (Julieta Serrano as the

exaggerated, never to demean. His camp is

Mother Superior, Marisa Paredes as Sister Ma

generous and affectionate.”3The director, who’s

nure) go backstage for an autograph and photo

been known to utter the catch-cry “Plastic sur

of their favourite singer, cute, cranky and drug-

gery for everyone!” , also focuses on very unhip,

a ddicted Y olanda (C h ristin a S. Pascual).

unyouthful cleaning ladies and concierges.

F e r n á n d e z . P ro d u c tio n d e s ig n e r : P e d r o A lm o d o v a r .

(R iz a

A n t o n io

N ir o ) ,

H e lg a

L in e

(T o ra y a |,

ISfáptay

( Q u e t i) , A n g e l A lc a z a r (E u s e b o jv

B a n d e ra s

(S a d e q ),

A g u s t ín

A lm o d o v a r -

( H a s a n ) . M u s id o r a S .A . A u s tra lia n d is trib u to r: V a lh a llâ . 3 5 m m . 1 0 0 m in s . S p a in . 1 9 8 2 .

PEPI, LUCI, BOM Y ORAS CHICAS DEL MONTÓN (Pèpë; Luci, Bom and All the Other G irls) D ir e c te d b y P e d r o A lm o d o v a r .

P ro d u c e rs :

Pepón

C o r ó m in a ,

F e lix

R o t a e t a . S c rip tw r ite r : U g é C u e s t a . D ir e c to r o f p h o to g

(Pascual also appeared in Pepi, Luci, Bom as a

Labyrinth is my favourite Almodovar film, the

transsexual with a very high voice and an after-

most joyous and utopian. When Sexi sees Queti,

M ig u e l P o lo . C a s t: C a r m e n M a u r a ( P e p i) , E v a

five shadow. Serrano has acted in most of

the dry-cleaning girl, wearing her clothes, she

(L u c i), A la s k a (B o m ), F é lix R o t a e t a , K itty M a rn b é r,

Almodovar’s films since Dark Habits and Paredes

gives her a lift in her taxi, talks to her about her

plays thé mother in the 1991 High Heels.) When Yolanda’s boyfriend O.D.s, she takes refuge in the convent, moving to the centre of

problems, becomes a friend. In this film-world,

ra p h y : P a c o F e m e n ia . E d ito r: P e p e S a lc e d o . S o u n d :

Sivai

C e c ilia R o th . F ig a ro . A u s tra lia n d is trib u to r: V a lh ë lla . 3 5 m m . 8 9 m in s . S p a in . 1 9 8 0 .

magic works. Queti’s formula for cracked lips,

ENTRE TINIEBLAS (Dark Habits) D ir e c te d b y P e d ro

heavy thighs and flatulence cures one of the

A lm o d o v a r .

E x e c u tiv e

p ro d u c e r:

L u is

C a lv ó .

S c rip tw r ite r : P e d r o A lm o d o v a r . D ir e c to r o f p h o to g r a

a network of longing and betrayal. Sister Ma

characters and she wins her man. Sadec (Antonio

nure, a killer acquitted because the M other

Banderas), one of the mild-mannered Shiite ter

Superior lied on her behalf, drops acid - into

rorists who Sleeps with Riza Niro, can track down

F a u s te n . C a s t: C r is tin a S á n c h e z P a s c u a l ( Y o la n d a jy .

the food (we all see the world a bit differently

people with his phenomenal sense of smell. When

J u lie ta S e r r a n o (M o t h e r S u p e r io r ), M a r is a P a re d é s '

when she cooks). Sister Sin (Carmen Maura) plays bongos and keeps a tiger called “Baby”

he’s in love, he’s saturated by the loved one’s perfume. (In Matador, Banderas’ character has a

C a r illo ( M a r q u e s a ) , L in a C a n a le ja s (S is t e r S n a k e ),

and Sistér Rat (Chus Lampreave) writes “sen

slightly faulty sixth sense!) Clichés abound, the

sationalist” literature under the pen-name “Con-

film’s magic is crafted from them and, as in the old

ch àT orres” . She has no imagination, she says,

Hollywood musicals, Riza Niro gets to perform by

she ju st tells the stories of the lost girls who

replacing a singer whose leg is in a cast. When he

come to the convent. S iste r Snake (Lina

takes off his dark glasses and wig, a beautiful

Cartalejas) and the Chaplain (Manuel Zarzo) sew together; he’s a fan of Cecil Beaton. In a

butterfly emerges, his face and hands covered in glitter. One of the film’s great

lesson in the camp aesthetic, the splendid,

visual moments is when Riza

ornam ental costum ing of M y F air Lady and the

Niro, in pink shirt with black

C atholic Church are displayed as part of the

cubes, sits on Sexi’s orange

same dream -world.

lounge - it’s kitsch and it’s

The Mother Superior is as hooked on Yolanda

exquisite. (Almodovar’s use

as she is on heroin, as she has been on a series

of colour remains striking

of young sinners. In a glorious scene, Yolanda

throughout his films, though

walks into her room and the Mother Superior

It’s more tasteful in the later

sings along, to her, to a record. Yolanda joins

ones.)

in, singing to the popular, clichéd, sentimental

Television ads, soaps,

music, “the only music that describes all true

melodramas and what the

feelings” . We have a tiny communion.

Spanish call “Revistas del

As Isabel Cadalso notes, the director ac

Corazón” are happily plun

cepts the imperfections of his characters rather

dered In Labyrinth and their

than regretting them. There’s a sympathetic

yam s taken further, com

understanding of their pain. To her last scream

p le te d . T a b lo id h e ro in e

74 » C I N E M A

PAPERS

p h y: A n g e l L u is F e r n á n d e z . P r o d u c tio n d e s ig n e r s : PinfM o r a le s , R o m a n A ra n g o . S o u n d : M a rtin : M u Her, Arm in'

(S is t e r M a n u r e ) , C a r m e n

M a u r a (S is t e r S in ), M a ri

M a n u e l Z a r z o ( C h a p la in ) , C h u s L a m p r e a v e (S is te r R a t), B e r ta R ia z x a ( M o t h e r G e n e r a l) . A u s tra lia n d is trib u to r: V a lh a lla . 3 5 m m . 11 è m in s . S p a in . 1 9 8 3 . (|fe

ABOVE: PEDRO ALMODOVAR'S PEPI, LUCI, BOM Ÿ ORAS CHICAS DEL MONTON ( PEPI, LUCI, BOM AND ALL THE OTHER GIRLS).

BELOW: PEDRO ALMODOVAR'S ENTRE TINIEBLAS ( DARK HABITS).

L o n g fo rd C in e m a

h a r m

ill F ilm

inco rp o ra ting

1 59 Toorak Rd V Sth Yarra » 867 27007

The Other Films

South Yarra’s boutique showcase for outstanding world cinema.

N o w s h o w in g

CURRENT RELEASES:

FOUR WEDDINGS

AND A FUNERAL ®

Ph (03) 826 9077

• *

j? S

\ : t %•’ ~

f .V

The Last Seduction

I T

VF I L M

S C R I P T S

Guarding Tess • Schindler’s List • True Romance Chinatown • The Fabufous Baker Boys • Psycho The Empire Strikes Back • Aliens • Raiders of the Lost Ark

IH C I N E M A P A P E R S B A R # T ELFER

A modern e xcu rsion into classic film noir, (g )

The Hudsucker Proxy Short Cuts The Papers Fearless

■■■■:

(03) 429

C o m m e n c in g m id - M a y From John Dahl, the director of R E D R O C K W E S T

Fax: (03) 8261935

T O A D V E R T IS E

CALL

Starring Emmanuelle Beart, Daniel Auteuil & Andre Dussollier

For Bookings, Catalogue contact P eter Luby

, ,• 1 - ■' '

( A H e a rt in W in te r)

W IN N E R : 2 F R E N C H O S C A R S

BOB MARLEY: TIME WILL TELL m JIMI HENDRIX LIVE AT WOODSTOCK io

Directed by Mike Newell and starring Andie MacDowell and Hugh Grant.

- : /. v

Un Coeur En Hiver

Gaylene Preston's BREAD & ROSES ipgj starring Genevieve Picot Clara Law's AUTUMN MOON im ai Hal Hartleys SURVIVING DESIRE ipgi

Commencing May 5

Hundreds of titles

551 1

Books • S creenw riting Software • Laserdiscs

T H E G 1 N E S T O R E 1 9 3 / 3 9 2 J o n e S t ., U ltim o N .S .W . 2 0 0 7 Ph: (0 2 ) 6 6 0 6 2 0 0 F a x : (0 2 ) 6 6 0 7 0 2 B

•

T R E 1/ I S S

o w

I E

Bringing Perth the very best in World Cinema •>Medlterraneo • Indoch • A Elver Runs Through It • Passion Fish The Piano • Peter’s Friends • MuchAdo About N • g in th o • The Wedding Banquet • Schindler’s List • The Joy Luck Club 1 • The Remains of the D • TousLes Matins Du Monde • y a • • Orlando • Shadovriands • The Scent of the Green Papaya • Like Witter for Chocolate » Blue • Four Weddings and a Funeral • La Scoria • Un Coeur En Hiver

i The S

THE C IN E M ^ = = =s1 rTDCCO PICTURCPdLdCe-------------CNR BEAUFORT & WALCOTT STS MT LAWLEY 370 1777

k O

a v d N O R T H B R ID G E

THE GALLERIA 164 JAMES ST (n e a r Lake St) 227 1771

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 • 75

A comprehensive overview of the Australian cinema from 1896 to the present day.

Written by eight noted cinema experts, with over 300 striking stills. Includes major articles on the documentary film in Australia and the exciting work of short-film makers. An essential companion for anyone interested in Australian films and filmmaking. Available February $24.95 pb

A L L E N & UNW IN 76 â&#x20AC;˘ C I N E M A

PAPERS

REVIEWS

16 OUT 8U*i SHU'S, CiHitlS'S {*«* *«» HU*#

★ Bill Collins ^Essentia!** ★ Debbie Byrne

**Top read** ★ Bruce Saraassan

a fair description of the book’s contents. Like

Images and Industry (1985) publication; out

the earlier publication, entries are arranged

lines of the five Australian television networks

alphabetically by title, with standard inform a

buyers and broadcasters of the drama ‘pack

tion for each series: type (adventure series,

ages’; and sample evening programme sched

m odern serial, historical m ini-series, etc.);

ules for every year from 1957 to 1993. W hile

number of episodes; length; production com

this is confined to Sydney stations only - and

pany; format (film/videotape; colour/B&W); date

therefore not representative of the program

of first broadcast; and cast and crew details.

ming autonomy enjoyed by television stations

The brief synopses of Australian Television

in other states and regions in the pre-network

Drama Series: 1956-1981 have been consider

ing era - Moran feels that this information is

ably expanded to include details of production,

helpful in highlighting the “environment” in which

reception, and the author’s own critical com

programmes were located: what preceded them,

ments, as well as storyline.

what followed, what opposed them on other

In terms of chronology, the entries begin

channels, etc. To this extent, it is a useful

with the Crawfords production Take That, first

appendix to the publication - the first to my

broadcast in 1957, and conclude with some

knowledge to offer this wider view of the televi

1993 material such as Law o f the Land, Seven

sion drama landscape.

Deadly Sins and the ill-fated RFDS. There are

The book also carries some illustrations, a

424 entries in all and the book’s length indi

basic guide to further reading, and a generous

cates the ample nature of the annotations which

all-in index - as distinct from the personality

accompany each entry. Moran is for the most

index for cast and crew, arranged usefully by

part sym pathetic in his assessment of each

role in the earlier text. Bruce G yngell’s Fore

series, though given occasionally to hyperbole

word alerts the reader to the scholarly nature of

nimm*»

MORAN’S GUIDE TO AUSTRALIAN TV SERIES

Vietnam is the finest mini-series produced by Kennedy Miller in the course of the 1980s [... It] has a wonderful complexity, majesty and sweep in its treatment of the years 1964-72.

Albert Moran, AFTRS, North Ryde, NSW, 1993,

and, equally, to condemnation

672 pp., pb, rrp $24.95 KEN

BERRYMAN

In reviewing Albert Moran’s 1989 AFTRS publi cation, Australian Television Drama Series: 19561981,\ noted the relative dearth of good reference books on Australian television available at the time. In commending Moran “for undertaking the initial spadework in this formidable research ter ritory and the AFTRS for making it generally accessible”, I assumed that other publications extending the scope of Moran’s original checklist might be commissioned. But little has changed on this front in the past four years, and it has taken the same Moran-AFTRS team to provide the next step in

what is to come, and this view is quickly rein forced by the author’s Introduction, in which he makes explicit his interests and his criteria for entry inclusion (or exclusion), etc. For Moran, the defining mark is

This boring six-hour mini series [Robbery Under Arms, 1986] was based on an equally boring [...] novel of the same name written by Rolf Bolderwood [sic]. It is slightly unfair, however, to take such statements out of context since Moran’s anno tations are anything but a string of unsubstan tiated opinions. If he is fulsome in praise or trenchant in criticism, or slightly cryptic in tone The Private War of Lucinda Smith is never too demanding of the viewer’s intelligence, and the sight of the many scenic locations helps the viewing time to slip by. the case is generally well argued, persua sive and often insightful.

whether or not the program content is organised around a scripted narrative and the roles of the story’s characters are played by professional actors. This embraces series, m ini-series, serials, and play anthologies, on the basis that each of these sub-genres fill a tim eslot over consecu tive days, “whether that period be as short as two evenings or as long as twelve years or m ore.” Under these terms, one-off dramas tele-features or short fictional works - are ex cluded, despite the odd entry such as the ABC’s W ednesday Night Theatre (1956), and despite M oran’s claims in Images and Industry for the ubiquity of narrative across the whole range of television output, as I noted in reviewing his

exposing a larger chunk of Australian televi

In addition to the annotated series listing,

sion production history for students, media

which form s the bulk of the text, M oran’s Guide

Nor are the anthology series cross-refer

teachers, researchers, archivists, etc. By en

has several other features which add to its

enced by individual title, despite in many in

tering into a co-publication arrangem ent with

value as a handbook. The opening chapter

stances the obvious ‘stand alone’ nature of the

Allen & Unwin, they have produced a major

consists of a useful overview of what the author

programmes concerned: Mike W illesee’s A us

reference work, likely to appeal to “lovers of TV

calls the ‘six stages’ of Australian television, the

tralians, Winners/More Winners, Seven Deadly

trivia and informed couch potatoes” , as the

last of which is his scenario of the ‘Brave New

press release suggests, in the same manner

(Video) W orld’ - a n environment wherein broad

as, say, Leonard M altin’s or Leslie H alliwell’s

cast television is seen as surviving but in a

boundary will be addressed more satisfactorily

reference works appeal to cinema consumers,

marginal position.

in future editions.

earlier volume.

Sins, Six Pack, Spring and Fall, etc. etc. Per haps this blurring of the series/tele-feature

but w ithout sacrificing the scholarly principles

Chapter (or Section) 2 provides a chrono

which informed the earlier work. It is in every

logical list of Australian television drama series,

lo c a l fe a tu re film

respect a com prehensive - if not exhaustive -

enabling the reader to observe at a glance the

‘Australianness’ is also considered in M oran’s

handbook, likely to remain an indispensable

“overall rhythm of drama output since 1956” .

Guide. In relation to television drama, Moran

reference source in its field for years to come.

Following the alphabetical title entries, Moran

plumps for comprehensiveness: “there are many

o ffe rs

ways to be Australian.” Most would agree with

The cover of M oran’s Guide to Australian

th re e

fu rth e r

c h a p te rs

h elp

As with sim ilar reference works dealing with o u tp u t, th e n o tio n of

TV Series boasts of it as “Your complete guide

co nte xtu alize w hat has preceded them : a

his definitions which result in the inclusion of

to every drama series, children’s show and

number of profiles of the principal Australian

such series as Whiplash (1961) and Riptide

sitcom ” and, while not entirely accurate, this is

drama packagers, updating material from his

(1969), but question the entry, for example, of CINEMA

PAPERS

• 77

ing his chosen film s’ cultural intertextuality),

Is Out There (1990). With location shooting by

THE FILMS OF VINCENTE MINNELLI

offshore production companies on the increase,

James Naremore, Cambridge University Press,

flicted nature of his enterprise, something which

this classification issue is likely to become more

New York, 1993, 202 pp., pb, rrp $27.50

the wholly U.S. financed mini-series Something

vexatious in the future.

TOM

Naremore’s Achilles heel is the strangely con he describes early on as “a paradox” that he wants his book to explain but which it doesn’t.

RYAN

One could also quibble perhaps about the

And it plagues him throughout, even if it’s a

lack of full production credits for each series,

At the core of James Naremore’s abbreviated

healthy sign that he is able to acknowledge it.

particularly the long-running ones such as Homi

account of the career of Vincente Minnelli, Hol

Naremore’s prose is eminently readable,

cide, Bellbird, Neighbours and A Country Prac

lywood director of musicals, melodramas and

not a virtue to be underestimated these days

tice, although Moran rightly acknowledges the

comedies, is an interesting enough thesis:

(and I’m referring here not just to what happens

difficulties associated with such an exercise.

S ty lis t ic a lly

M in n e lli’s film s

when scholarship reverts to guerrilla mode but

Nevertheless, there remains no local equiva

m ig h t b e d e s c r ib e d a s la t e , c o m m e r c ia liz e d e x

also to the incoherence that so frequently creeps

lent to the U.S. three volume Encyclopaedia of

p r e s s io n s o f r o m a n tic id e a lis m [ ...] R e p e a t e d l y

into writing about film that is based on nothing

Television and, the longer the delay in commis

[o p e r a t in g ] o n t h e f a u lt lin e b e t w e e n b o u r g e o is

more than “instinct”). But too often it seems as

and

t h e m a t ic a lly ,

sioning such a work on Australian television,

id e o lo g y a n d e x t r e m e a e s t h e t ic is m [...] M in n e lli’s

if there’s an intellectual bogeyman looking over

the more difficult the preparation of a text (or

s o p h is t ic a t io n b e lo n g s to t h e w o r ld o f V o g u e ,

his shoulder, as if he’s a bit embarrassed about

series of texts) recording the history of all forms

H a r p e r s , a n d V a n it y F a i r [ . . . } T o s tu d y M in n e lli’s

actually enjoying as much as he does the films

of indigenous television production will become.

w o rk is t h e r e f o r e to e x a m in e t h e r e la tio n s h ip

he’s writing about (especially The Bad and the

Of more concern with M oran’s Guide is the

b e t w e e n d a n d y is m a n d m a s s c u ltu r e , [p p . 2 - 3 ]

Beautiful).

number of errors and omissions it contains.

Naremore deals individually and in some

Narem ore’s thesis about “dandyism and

Debi Enker in reviewing the book for the Sun

detail with five of M innelli’s films (which makes

mass culture” need not be concerned with

day Age regards these as minor blemishes

his book’s title a bit of a cheat), asserting that

whether or not the films he’s discussing are

only, given the scope of and need for such a

Cabin in the Sky (1943), Meet Me in St. Louis

anybody’s “favourites” . But if the issue is how

reference volume. The problem is that, without

(1944), Father of the Bride (1950), The Bad and

the films directed by this “aesthete in the fac

comparative works or easy access to primary

the Beautiful (1952) and Lust for Life (1956)

tory” occupy a particular cultural status, then

source material, Moran’s publication will be

represent “a cross section of his work” (p. 5). Of

seen as the standard text in its field and its

the films missing, he finds consolation “for such

whether or not Naremore happens to like them is a detour with a dead end. Perhaps this is why

contents accepted without question. Moran cites

losses with the thought that most of the pictures

his book just seems to stop, uneasily identifying

the work of the Television Appreciation Society

I have chosen would appear on anyone’s list of favourites” (p. 5).

Minnelli with Kirk Douglas’ Vincent van Gogh in

Naremore’s response to an anticipated chal le n g e -w h y another book on Minnelli? and why

commentary finally defying disentanglement.

in his Introduction, but has apparently chosen to ignore their suggested textual amendments from the earlier volume. I assume that the more obvious glitches will be noted when the Television Appreciation So

now? - might simply have been “why not?” , but Naremore has loftier ambitions.

ciety reviews M oran’s Guide in its own publica

Offering biographical details to support his

tion (TVEye), but a few examples will illustrate

view, Naremore begins with a telling sketch of

the problem. The Box (1974) is listed as a

some of the ways in which Minnelli’s profes

colour production. According to Crawfords, the

sional career is “symptomatic of aesthete’s

first 221 episodes at least were produced in

progress through the modern economy” (p. 17).

black and white. The Class o f 74 is listed as the

Sensibly qualifying, although clearly not

Class o f 73 in the overview chapter; similarly,

abandoning, the autuerist status convention

Stormy Petrel (1960) was the first ABC/TV

ally bestowed on Minnelli, Naremore posits that

drama, not The Hungry Ones (1963); Matlock

the director’s “identity was shaped by a com

Police began in 1971, as its entry indicates, not

plex of institutions and artistic formations and

in the 1960s as suggested on p. 15; A ll The Way

that the authorship of his films was in the last

(1988) was sold to the Nine Network, not to

analysis multiple or collaborative” . In other

Seven; Dearest Enemy ran to two series, not

words, while Minnelli occupied a favoured place

one; the illustrations include one from the sec

at MGM, where he did most of his film work, he

ond Phoenix series, but the series itself is not

was also the site of intersection for “a variety of

listed among the title entries; conversely, a

cultural, historical, and social forces” (p. 50).

Grundy series of tele-features entitled South

There’s nothing especially challenging about

Pacific Adventures, which has never been

the route Naremore takes here. And few stu

broadcast, is afforded a full entry. Misspellings

dents of Hollywood are likely to disagree with

are also frequent; even the author’s 1985 Cur

the further notion that much of M innelli’s work

rency publication is incorrectly titled Image and

provides a useful illustration of the way unre

Industry.

solved tensions often erupt through the reas

None of this should detract too much from the nature of Moran’s achievement. Having

suring surfaces of ostensibly conservative narratives.

done so much to open up the field of Australian

Naremore’s readings of the films selected

television series to both bona fide researchers

for discussion neatly elaborate his underlying

and general readers/viewers, it is to be hoped

thesis, even if one doesn’t always agree with

that Moran and others will be financially and/or

some of his conclusions (for example, one could

institutionally encouraged to continue gather

take the ending of Meet Me in St. Louis or

ing or refining data in this or related areas. We

Father o f the Bride as far more ambiguous, and

might then contemplate the brighter prospect of not having to wait another four years for the

subversive, in th eir use of nostalgia than Naremore allows).

next major reference work on Australian televi

But, however illuminating his case may be (and he’s an intelligent critic, adept at suggest

sion to appear. 78 . C I N E M A

PAPERS

Lust for Life, the mixed-up threads of Naremore’s

AUSTRALIAN CINEMA Scott Murray (Editor), Allen & Unwin, in asso ciation with the Australian Film Commission, Sydney, 1994, 350 pp., pb, rrp $24.95 As was the case (in the previous issue) with Australian Film 1978-1992: A Survey o f Theat rical Features, also edited by Scott Murray, a review of Australian Cinema was not deemed appropriate in these pages. Suffice it to say, Australian Cinema is an expanded, updated and English-language ver sion of the book Murray edited, on behalf of the Australian Film Commission, for the Australian Retrospective at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. (The Pompidou edition was translated into French and laid out under the supervision of Claudine Thoridnet.) Australian Cinema covers various aspects of Australian filmmaking since its birth. The authors (and articles) are: E. Gough Whitlam (Introduction), Ross Gibson (Formative Land scapes), Phillip Adams (A Cultural Revolution), Scott Murray (Australian Cinema in the 1970s and 1980s, and Australian Directors Overseas 1970-1992), Megan McMurchy (The Documen tary), Adrian Martin (The Short Film), Debi Enker (Australia and the Australians). There is also a Filmography of 150 Austral ian films (plus one stray) compiled by Scott Murray, Raffaele Caputo and Claudine Thor idnet, and a Dictionary of Directors (Murray and Caputo). The book is rounded off with a list of all the Australian films shown at Pompidou, plus an extensive Index. The book has some three hundred stills.

No Transaction Fees on your Personal Banking ■ No Transaction Fees, regardless of how many transactions you make. ■ Earn good interest ■ Receive a free VISA Card* or Bank of Melbourne Card* and a free cheque book. ■ Bank on Saturday from 9 to 12 (most branches). On Weekdays from 9 to 5.

BANK 4'1322

* Our cards are debit not credit cards. You only spend the money in your account. Government duties apply to all transactions.

Bank of Melbourne cuts the cost of banking -

Head Office: 52 Collins Street, Melbourne 3000 ___________________________________. CINEMA

PAPERS

. 79

'■ 'Jill IVAN

SCHINDLER’S LIST ( m c a

HUTCHINSON

W illiams comedy is professional, pretty sounds

result of the number of tracks on the disc, some

A beautifully scored, played and produced disc,

from a largish orchestra, well played and re

feel short of breath: just when they seem to be

John W illiam s’ music here is poignant, plain

corded but unmemorable as far as themes go.

building to something, they stop.

tive, simple and restrained, a wise move and in

It’s the sort of music Hollywood does with ease,

The music, largely in 3/4, is scored mainly

m c a d -10969)

keeping with the way Spielberg has success

but not even “Meeting Mrs. Doubtfire” (Track 4)

for strings and woodwinds. The main theme is

fully - for the most part - overcome his usual

lifts the spirits, unlike the film itself, which cer

quite lovely and is used a lot.

tendency in dramas to overplay his hand. The

tainly picked up every time Robin Williams turned

music creates little impression in the film mainly

up in drag.

THE REMAINS OF THE DAY

because the visuals are allowed to create the

There are 12 tracks on the disc, all sounding

emotion; the music is kept down and well in the

much the same, except the last which has

There are times (Tracks 2, for example) when,

background.

W illiams doing a take on a section of Figaro

listening to Richard Robbins’ score on disc, you

from Barber of Seville. This is short, not very

may very well think that the record is stuck in a

Everything on the disc is impeccably done and top quality. Even the important violin solos

well sung, but lively.

(ANGEL - C D Q 75 50 29 )

rut. This is music which works well in the film, giving a sense of underlying emotion and m ove

are played, not by an unnamed orchestral leader, but by Itzhak Perlman. That’s the sort of help

THE AGE OF INNOCENCE

ment to a surface where all seems controlled

you can hire if you’re Spielberg!

(EP IC - EK 5 7 4 5 1 )

and calm.

This is a big, rich-sounding score from veteran

On disc, however, it’s not particularly excit

they belong to the Boston Symphony, the sound

Elmer Bernstein. Tracks 2, 3 and 4 contain

ing, sounding a bit like something Phillip Glass

is rich and full.

extracts from Gounod’s “ Faust” and music by

may have written as a youth, although the

Strauss (Sr and Jnr), but the remaining 26

scoring (arrangements by Robert Stewart) and

tracks are Elm er’s own.

playing are both excellent. Ann M urray per

Emphasis is on strings throughout and, since

Tracks 6 and 12 are written by other com posers (Track 12 for example is the unaccom

forms a Schubert lied and “Blue Moon” gets a

panied “Jerusalem of Gold”), but the majority of

The notes accompanying the disc and refer

the tracks are W illiam s’ originals. The major

ring to the music are signed by Scorsese and Jay

guernsey as well, but overall this is not a disc to

theme heard on tracks 1, 4 and 14 in various

Cocks (who gets major credit for the screenplay),

treasure.

guises is quite haunting, with a folk-song fla

and are entirely appreciative of Bernstein’s work.

vour entirely in keeping with the film ’s setting

It is certainly music that fits the period in which

RAISING CAIN

and theme. Highly recommended.

the film is set and doesn’t overpower the visuals

(MILAN - 7 31 3 8 -3 5 6 2 1 -2 )

MRS DOUBTFIRE ( f o x

0 7 8 2 2 - 1 1 0 1 5 -2 )

This Howard Shore score for the hit Robin

80 • C I N E M A . P A P E R S

(hard, admittedly, to do in this visually rich film).

Not even the most fervent Brian De Palma fan

On disc, however, a lack of real distinction in

would concede Raising Cain a great success.

the themes is noticeable, and perhaps as a

His musical cohort on a number of his films,

Pino Donaggio, supplied the contrasting sounds

fam ily haunted by an act of greed by an ances

The excellent booklet with the record - a real

necessary to accom pany De Palm a’s convo

tor (Fiorile), (ii) a m an’s decision to turn his back

rarity with film music - includes the devastating

luted tale and the disc is probably m arginally

on w orldly fame (N ight Sun) and (iii) the Italian

news that all his m ajor scores were destroyed

more interesting than the film itself.

brothers who migrated to Am erica and helped

by a fire at Pinewood Studios. Worse, he hadn’t

N evertheless, though the skill of the arrang ers (Donaggio and Natale Massara) is obvious, th e a c tu a l m u s ic a l c o n te n t is th in

build sets for D.W. Griffith in Hollywood (Good

kept the original m anuscript sketches and the

M orning Babylon).

original sound tracks were “junked” .

and

Lovers of the work of Nino Rota and the

However, Christopher Palmer has done a

uninvolving. Try track 16 (“Flying Babies”) and

rom antic side of Morricone will find Piovani very

fine job of restoration here, and the music,

track 3 (“Cain Takes O ver”). If these appeal, so

much to their taste. Sample tracks 6 from Fiorile,

played by the London Symphony under Richard

will the disc as a whole.

7 from N ight Sun and 12 from Babylon to note

Hickox, has never sounded better. The one

MY LIFE ( e p i c

the contrast and get the flavour. Genuinely

thing that doesn’t stand up in English films of

haunting at times.

that period compared to the Am ericans is the

- 4 7 5 5 1 0 2)

John Barry m usic covered this little weepie like

quality of the sound itself.

ALWYN: FILM MUSIC

m olasses, all but sm othering its chances to

The music for Odd Man Out, ominous, pas

come to life. This one is for fans of the dirge-like

(CHANDOS CH AN 9243)

sionate and elegiac, was a fine score for a fine film and it sounds m arvellous here. Track 4

only, or for those who just have a really sweet

Alwyn died in 1985 aged 80 and in the last

tooth.

couple of years Chandos has interested itself in

(“ Nem esis”), a twelve-m inute sequence, brings

Two discs featuring the music of Italian com

his m ajor works for the concert hall, five sym

back the final segm ent of that film with great

poser Nicola Piovani and Englishman W illiam

phonies as well as string quartets, song cycles

poignancy. Would anyone these days in Eng

Alwyn are am ongst the most interesting discs

and concertos for various instruments.

land make a film with an IRA man (even a dying

He was, however, especially in the 1940s,

one) as its hero? Yet politics is forgotten as this

much in demand for film scores and this disc

tragic odyssey unreels and the Irish-sounding

reviewed this issue.

FIORILE (MILAN 8 7 3 1 4 8 )

includes his work for director Carol Reed’s two

melody, first heard in the Prelude, has great

This features m usic from three of the films by

m asterpieces, Odd Man Out and The Fallen

force in these final moments.

the rem arkable Taviani brothers. The notes call

Idol, as well as the adaptation of H. G. W ells’

Overall, a must for anyone with an interest in

Piovani, born in 1946, “the new great com poser

The H istory O f M r Polly which starred John

film music, a restoration of the music for an

of Italian cinem a” , and certainly this disc shows

Mills and is virtually forgotten, and a brief

undisputed and, until now, largely ignored m as

him to have the ability to write simple, haunting

calypso from The R ake’s Progress which starred

ter in this field.

m elodies and use a variety of styles which are

Rex Harrison and still occasionally turns up on

used here to accom pany stories about (i) a

television.

C I

N E

MY T H OLOGY I I N E M Y

A unique opportunity

AO r I A A RETROS PECTI VE OF G R E E K F I L M

MAY

A very profitable Hong Kong based production company for sale. Including office facility and experienced team of professionals. Excellent company portfolio. Six year successful track record in the design, produc tion and production management of sets for film, theatre, TVC and Industrial Events.

A F I CINEM A

High turnover and spectacular Client list.

Paddington ( 0 2 ) 361 5398

Curently run by an Australian partnership: Producer and Production Designer.

27 of the Finest films to ever come out of Greece

Don't hesitate to enquire. For further details, please contact Sharon Seyd in Hong Kong

Telephone (852) 517 2311 • Facsim ile (852) 517 2716

CINEMA

PAPERS

. 81

'Soldiers of the Cross’ FROM

PAGE

A m b a s s a d o r ’ H e r b e r t B o o th PRIVATE EVANGELIST

but, in term s o f p recedent, little m ore can be claim ed fo r it. T h e Salv ation A rm y’s so cial w ork exposé S o c ia l S a lv a tio n (1 8 9 8 -9 9 ) included narrative film s m ore than tw o years earlier, and is

A m erican churches eager for in sp iration al speakers con tracted

p ro bab ly m ore w orthy o f acclam atio n as an A u stralian m ovie

H erb ert B o o th to tour 2 2 states in as m any m o n th s.107 A surviving

m ilestone.

program m e indicates th at S o ld ie r s o f th e C r o ss w as show n over

N evertheless, the Salv ation A rm y L im elight D ep artm en t w a s

there as early as 7 D ecem ber 1 9 0 2 .108 H e later toured Europe,

A u stralia’s first m ajo r co rp o rate film producer. Its greatest film

South A frica and C anad a, giving the “ lectu re” p ro lific ex p o

achievem ents cam e after S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss and before 1 9 0 5 ,

su re .109 O th er slide show s w ere period ically added to B o o th ’s

w hen it produced n ea rly 8 0 % o f a ll th e film s m a d e in A u stra la sia .

rep ertoire, including E c c e H o m o , an exam in atio n o f the visual

T h is b o d y o f w o r k , rath er than any single p ro ject, w as its

rep resen tation o f C hrist in a rtw o rk .110 O n 18 D ecem ber 1 9 1 9 , H erb ert B o o th arrived in A uckland at

outstanding co n trib u tio n to A u stralia’s film heritage. Its film record o f A u stralia’s Fed eration celebratio n s in 1 9 0 1 , released

the start o f his last A u stralasian to u r.111 H e screened S o ld ie r s o f

on the N FS A videos L iv in g M e lb o u r n e (1 9 8 8 ) and F e d e r a t io n

th e C r o s s as a “ grand fin a le ” to each o f his m issions - for

F ilm s (1 9 9 1 ), will be the focus o f a future instalm ent.

exam ple, at Invercargill on 2 8 Ja n u a ry 1 9 2 0 and in A uckland on 2 2 Ju n e 1 9 2 0 . H e left A uckland for Sydney aboard the “M a h e n o ” on 2 6 Ju n e 1 9 2 0 , then repeated his exh ib itio n pattern in A us

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

tralia. S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss w as screened at B risb an e’s E x h ib itio n

O ur m ost heartfelt thanks go to George Ellis o f the Salvation

H all on 19 Ju ly 1 9 2 0 , at the Sydney T o w n H all on 1 N ovem ber

A rm y’s M elbourne Archives for his con stan t input over six years,

1 9 2 0 , and at the M elbo u rn e T o w n H all, the site o f its prem iere,

and the additional support o f his secretary, Sue M clver.

on 2 2 N ovem ber 1 9 2 0 .112 T h e film inserts had been deleted by the tim e o f the A u stralasian tou r, the num ber o f slides being in

Assistance was given in alm ost equal m easure by m any o f the follow ing:

creased from 2 2 0 to 2 4 0 to replace th e m .113 T h e film sections o f S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss were p robably

W ellington (N Z ): M a jo r Laurence H ay, Salvation Arm y T e rri torial Archivist.

discarded long before 1 9 2 0 . T h ere w ere m any likely reasons for

Adelaide: Envoy David M o rris, Salvation Arm y historian.

this: the early loss o f the novelty o f the m ovie m edium , the

B risbane: Pat Laughren, who provided the financial support o f

d isproportion ate effort needed to stage a m ixed m edia show , the

his institution, G riffith University. Also the daughters o f the late

obsolescence o f the Lum ière perfo ration s on the original prints,

Sidney C ook, M avis M cG aw and N orm a W ood.

and increasingly stringent safety regulations on film p ro jection

Launceston: Jo h n C orrick, R honda H am ilton.

plant. Perhaps the film s j ust w ore out. W hatever the reason, film s

Sydney: G raham Shirley, Judy Adam son.

w ere only an op tion al part o f the show , and S o ld iers o f th e C ro ss survives in the slide-only form show n by B o o th in 1 9 2 0 , w hich

M elbourn e: N FSA M elbourne O ffice: Ken Berrym an, H elen Tully, Szuszi Szucs.

our N atio n al L ib rary recovered from B o o th ’s son H enry in 1 9 5 3 .

Ross C ooper, D r. M im i C olligan, Phillip G race, H arold Speed.

U n fortun ately , the n arratio n script was n ot recovered w ith the

Th eological Assistance: Rev. A. D . D argaville o f St. Bede’s

slides. O nly the cue sheet from the P e r p e tu a sequence, found in

Anglican C hurch, Elw ood; Ja n et Bell o f M elbou rn e U niversity’s Trinity College T h eological Library.

1 9 8 9 in an A delaide co llectio n , is presently know n to survive.114 H erb ert B ooth finally lost his battle w ith heart disease and died in N ew Y o rk on 2 5 Septem ber 1 9 2 6 .115 T w o years later,

C anberra: N FSA D ocum entation O fficer M eg La brum , M arilyn D ooley, H elen Ludellen.

Ford O ttm an w rote his biography using only B o o th ’s A m erican papers as source m aterial. S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss was the only

Last but by no m eans least, thanks go to Anne Sow ry and Prue Long, our long-suffering wives.

Lim elight D ep artm ent prod uction know n to him , so th at it received intem perate atten tion . Ja c k C ato revived O ttm a n ’s claim s, boostin g them w ith ou t sufficient v erification or original

Notes

research in his w ell-know n T h e S tory o f th e C a m e r a in A u stra lia

(1 9 5 5 ). Few w riters bothered to check original sources subse quently, so th at the legend o f S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss steadily

outgrew the reality. Salvation Arm y film production begs for re appraisal.

T h e f in a l a n a l y s is S o ld ie r s o f th e C ro ss w as an illustrated lecture, m ostly a lifem odel slide program m e, but w ith highlights on film . These film s were all very sh ort and episodic, unconnected except through intervening slide sequences. Som e o f the film s were n ot Salvation Arm y prod uctions. Th e total film running tim e p robab ly did not exceed 3 0 m inutes, distributed through the 140-m in u te lecture in 90-seco n d bursts. [A com plete Film ography will be published in the n ext issue; space requirem ents m ade it im possible to run in

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

this.] M u ch longer im ported Passion Play film s were show n in A u stralia m ore than a year before the 1 9 0 0 prem iere o f S o ld iers o f th e C ro ss.

13 14

S o ld ie r s o f t h e C ro ss w as the first A ustralian venture including lo cal film s w ith costum ed actors perform ing on elab o rate sets, 82 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

Garry Fabian, The Advent o f the Cinema in Australia, paper delivered at Vlth Australian History and Film Conference, Melbourne, December 1993. Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900-1977; A Guide to Feature Film Production, Oxford University Press, in association with the Australian Film Institute, Melbourne, 1980, p. 6. Jack Cato, The Story o f the Camera in Australia, Georgian House, Mel bourne, 1955, p. 118. Virginia Cook, National Library o f Australia News, Canberra, December 1991, p. 5. Ibid. Peter Luck, This Fabulous Century, Circus Books, Melbourne, 1979, p. 16. Maryborough & Dunolly Advertiser, 15 February 1897, p. 3. John Barnes, Filming The Boer War, Bishopsgate Press, London, 1992, p. 129. Ibid. Ibid., pp. 128-9. Ibid., pp. 131. Charles Musser, “Les Passions et les Mystères de la Passion Aux Etats-Unis”, in An Invention o f the Devil’s? Religion and Early Cinema, Les Presses de l’Université Laval, Sainte-Foy, Canada, 1992, pp. 162-8. See ref. (11). Charles Musser, The Emergence o f Cinema, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, 1990, p. 210. Ibid., p. 219.

16 17 18 19 20

Ibid., p. 212. Ibid., p. 213. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid., p. 216.

21 New York Clipper, 19 February 1898, p. 53, states 2200 feet. Argus (Melbourne), 23 December 1899, states 3000 feet. It is possible that in selling the Passion Play films, the Edison Company amalgamated parts from both the Klaw/Erlanger and Hollaman productions. 22 Before H ollyw ood, Hudson Hills Press, New York, 1987, p. 92. 23 Terry Ramsaye, A Million and One Nights, Touchstone, New York, 1986, p. 374. 24 The Daily Telegraph (Napier, New Zealand), 11 January, 1898, p. 3; ibid., 14 January 1898, p. 3. 25 The Mercury (Hobart), 14 August 1899. 26 Ibid., 15 August 1899. 27 Ibid., 15 August 1899, ibid., 18 August 1899. 28 Stawell News, 16 September 1899. 29 South Australian Register (Adelaide), 18 September 1899, p. 3. 30 Edison National Historic Site, Orange, New Jersey: correspondence files, W H. H. Lane to C. E. Stephens, Edison Phonograph Agent, Broad Street, New York, 22 November 1899. 31 Argus (Melbourne), 26 December 1899: Amusements. 32 Mount Morgan Argus, 22 June 1900. 33 Waimate Times (New Zealand), 19 January 1901, p. 2; ibid., 22 January 1901, p. 3. 34 See ref. (12), p. 175. No views of the Oberammergau Play itself have ever been filmed, only of events surrounding it. 35 The Bulletin (Sydney), 5 January 1901, p. 28. 36 Feilding Star (New Zealand), 22 February 1901, p. 3. 37 Australasian Photographic Review (Sydney), 21 October 1899, p. 26. 38 Cumberland Times (Parramatta), 22 May 1902. 39 War Cry (Melbourne), 13 January 1900, p. 4; ibid., 27 January 1900, p. 7. 40 Quoted in John Barnes, op. cit., pp. 129-30. 41 Warwick Trading Company Catalogue Supplement No. 2, c. 1899. 42 War Cry (Melbourne), 13 January 1900, p. 9; Broadford Courier, 8 June 1900.

43 War Cry (New Zealand), 20 October 1900, p. 8. 44 War Cry (Melbourne), 27 January 1900, p. 7. 45 Information was obtained from Access Officer of NFSA in Canberra while preparations were underway for the video Federation Films. The films had been sent abroad to America around 1988. 46 War Cry (Melbourne), 18 August 1900, p. 5. 47 Ibid. 48 Brisbane Courier, 6 April 1901, p. 5. 49 War Cry (Melbourne), 27 January 1900, p. 5. 50 War Cry (Melbourne), 18 August 1900, p. 9. 51 The Age (Melbourne), 14 September 1900, p. 7. 52 Auckland Star, 21 May 1901, p. 3. The closing title slide survives at NFSA. 53 War Cry (Melbourne), 22 September 1900, p. 9; Brisbane Courier, 6 April 1 9 0 1 , p. 5 .

54 The Dark Deeds o f the Dark Ages (1868) in theology pamphlet collection, La Trobe Library, Vol. 3, No. 25 - call no. SLT204 S087. 55 Rev. B. Jackson, St Polycarp, Bishop o f Smyrna, Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, London, 1898. 56 Salvation Army Archives - Staff Record Card for R. H. McAnally; War Cry (Melbourne), 8 June 1907, p. 12 - “The New Biorama Band”. 57 Virginia Cook, National Library o f Australia News, Canberra, December 1991, p. 5. 58 Held, with many other cue sheets, by Brother David Morris of the Salvation Army in Adelaide. Although some of the slides held with this sheet are demonstrably from Heroes o f the Cross (1909), the cue sheet is much older. There are two copies of each cue sheet in this collection: an original typescript for the lecturer on stage and a carbon copy for the projectionist. 59 Hymns, include “Onward Christian Soldiers”, “Lead Kindly Light” and “Abide With Me”. The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 April 1901, refers to “quite a number of hymns, mainly of the old school”. 60 The Age (Melbourne) 14 September 1900, p. 7. 61 War Cry (Melbourne), 15 April 1899, p. 10. 62 Australasian Photographic Review (Sydney), 21 January 1899, p. 3. 63 War Cry (Melbourne), 2 December 1899, p. 8. 64 Salvation Army Archives: Correspondence file R. Sandall to Col. P. Dale, 4 October 1951. 65 Joseph Perry, Album o f Photographs o f Australasian Social Institutions, c. 1899, held by Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. 66 War Cry (Melbourne), 25 October 1958, p. 3 - letter from Harold Graham. 67 Ibid, p. 7 - letter from Chas. Rixon.

68 This fact was stated in a “brief” from Herbert Booth to IHQ in 1899 (copy in Salvation Army Archives) and was confirmed in an oral history interview with Colonel Howarth and Colonel Graham, recorded by Alan Anderson of Film Australia in about 1960. There are many other War Cry references to the early usage of Lumière machines. 69 War Cry (Melbourne), 22 September 1900, p. 9. 70 All of the surviving parts of the Inauguration o f the Commonwealth (1901) were reassembled for the NFSA video Federation Films by Chris Long in 1991. All of the sections conform to the one reel/one shot practice. 71 Argus (Melbourne), 14 September 1900, p. 4, says 150 minutes; War Cry (Melbourne), 22 September 1900, p. 9, says 135 minutes. 72 War Cry (Melbourne), 18 August 1900, p. 9. 73 Unidentified American programme for Booth’s lecture The Struggles o f the Early Christians (obviously Soldiers o f the Cross) to be held at “Association Auditorium, 153 LaSalle Street” (SanFrancisco?). Sunday, 7 December 1902. Programme held by Salvation Army Archives, London, p. 3. 74 War Cry, 22 September 1900, p. 93; The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 April 1901. 75 See ref (73). 76 War Cry (Melbourne), 20 April 1901, p. 9. 77 War Cry (Melbourne), 11 May 1901, p. 10. 78 War Cry (Melbourne), 13 July 1901, p. 8. 79 The footage was released on the NFSA video Living Melbourne (1988). 80 New Zealand Herald (Auckland) 24 May 1901, p. 5. 81 War Cry (Melbourne), 4 May 1901, p. 8. 82 The films were Paul’s Escape from Damascus and possibly A Christian Youth Tortured on the Rack. 83 War Cry (Melbourne), 22 September 1900, p. 9; The Age (Melbourne), 14 September 1900, p. 7. 84 See ref. (3) 85 Information from Ian Frazer, Melbourne City Council Archives. 86 War Cry, 22 September 1900, p. 9. 87 War Cry (Melbourne), 6 October 1900, p. 16. 88 Geelong Advertiser, 5 October 1900. 89 War Cry (Melbourne), 13 October 1900, p. 10. 90 At Collingwood Town Hall on 19 September 1900; refer War Cry (Mel bourne), 29 September 1900, p.8. 91 Geelong Advertiser, 5 October 1900; Mt. Alexander Mail, 6 October 1900; Bendigo Advertiser, 9 October 1900; Ballarat Courier, 16 October 1900. 92 War Cry (Melbourne), 13 October 1900, p. 8; 20 October 1900, p. 12; 20 October 1900, p. 9. 93 No report can be found for the lectures scheduled for Adelaide on 17 October 1900, for Sydney on 24 October 1900, or for Newcastle on 25 October 1900. We must presume that they were cancelled without any publicity. 94 War Cry, 24 November 1900, p. 6, “Peregrinations of Perry” (Pt. 1); ibid., 1 December 1900, p. 14, “Peregrinations of Perry” (Pt. 2). 95 Colac Herald, 19 October 1900; 23 October 1900. 96 Daily Telegraph (Launceston), 16 January 1901, p. 5. 97 Itineraries of all of these tours can generally be found on the back page of the Melbourne War Cry from week to week. 98 Ford C. Ottman, Herbert Booth, Doubleday, New York, 1928, chapter 12: “The Resignation”, pp. 208-26, and chapter 13, “The Crisis at the Collie”, pp. 227-303. The book was republished by Jarrold’s in London in the following year under the title of Herbert Booth - Salvationist. 99 F. C. Ottman, op. cit., p. 196. 100 War Cry (Melbourne), 21 September 1901, p. 8. 101 War Cry (Melbourne), 26 October 1901, p. 8; 8 February 1902, p. 2. 102 F. C. Ottman, op. cit., pp. 215-9. 103 Ibid., pp. 220-1. 104 Ibid., p. 310. 105 Early Martyrs slides referred to in Newcastle Herald, 21 February 1903 and 23 February 1903. Perpetua slides referred to in Bendigo Advertiser, 20 July 1903. 106 F. C. Ottman, op. cit., p. 305. 107 Ibid, p. 311. 108 Photostat of an American programme bearing this date held by Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. See ref (73). 109 F. C. Ottman, op. cit., p. 313 et seq. 110 Brisbane Courier, 10 July 1920. 111 New Zealand Herald (Auckland), 19 December 1919, p. 10. 112 Argus (Melbourne), 20 November 1920, p. 28. 113 The number 240 in respect of the slides shown with Soldiers o f the Cross during this tour never varies. 114 Held by Brother David Morris of Salvation Army, Adelaide. Copies held by Chris Long and George Ellis in Melbourne. 115 F. C. Ottman, op. cit., p. 433

CINEMA

PAPERS

9 9 . 83

TECHNICALITIES__________

cinematography

have now seen the beginning of the manual and

usually with a budget which is double.

m echanical process of film post-production merge with what has traditionally been video post-production. Within the photographic arena major advances have been made in lighting equipment, lenses and film stocks. BOYD We now have stocks that are suited

LENOI R

When working on commercials

FR O M

P A G E

These two programmes were formerly handled through one Division. Assistance for emerging documentary filmmak

things, new materials, new techniques, new colour. I probably wouldn’t try anything new

ers: Film Victoria has introduced a separate cat egory in its Young Filmmakers’ Fund for documen

on a feature, but I can try it on a commercial

tary filmmakers. A mentor scheme will also be put

and maybe use it after on a feature.

in place to assist emerging filmmakers develop their projects with expertise from established pro

boyd

raphy, like day exteriors, day interiors, night

commercials is that you can experiment. You

exteriors. Pretty much all situations have

can go a bit further and use a bit more time to

their own particular film stock these days,

play around. While doing a commercial, I don’t consider the storytelling part to be all

What I like about doing television

stock. Each one of those stocks has been

important. Commercials are a very visual

very well designed in its chemical make-up,

medium as far as a cinematographer is con

and they are so far ahead of what they were

cerned, so the feature film work and commer

like even five to ten years ago in their ability

cials don’t really interact all that much for me.

to generate marvellous quality on the screen. The other thing is that lighting equipment

and videos, I can experiment with certain

to almost every particular method of photog

and I am talking pretty much about Eastman

With ever-increasing changes in film stocks

fessionals. Increase Script Development Funds: There will be an increase of 60 per cent in the amount of script development funding for documentary in 1994/95, which will be financed from within the Corporation’s budget. In discussing the changes with a forum of filmmakers in Melbourne, Executive Director of Film Victoria Jenifer Hooks, said: “It will give the independent documentary sector a major boost.

and more flexible and is, in fact, sm aller and

an essential testing ground. But, finally, one of

lighter. Nowadays you can actually light a

the greatest potential changes cinematographers

For the first time, Film Victoria will have a manager who can focus solely on the needs of documentary makers, without the additional responsibility of

set with a film stock that is much more

face (and which audiences face as well) is of the

other projects or government production.”

responsive with far less light, far fewer light

craft as we know it becoming obsolete. It now

The government production unit will be headed by a manager who can provide information to government departments and be more responsive to their individual requirements.

is becoming more and more powerful, more

and technology, commercials can be seen to be

ing units, or with sm aller lighting units carry

seems possible to conceive of a time in the near

ing a much bigger work-load. This has all

future when films will be digitally created and film

affected our way of working. Plus, there is lens design. I think the computer design has

emulsion will be a thing of the past.

In undertaking the programme evaluations, Film L ENOI R

The day will come when we will

brought incredible changes to our lenses as

have on the television monitor exactly what

well as our film stocks.

we have on the big screen. It may be a loss,

Many cinematographers make a large por

but not of the storytelling, of the pleasure.

tion of their income filming commercials and

BOYD What I would hate to see disappear

music videos. There are some DOPs who have

is the quality you get when you go to the

only ever shot commercials and have never

cinema and see the projected image on the

used the medium of cinematography in a dra

screen. It is almost like a velvet thing that

matic context. Garrett Brown, a cameraman

you can touch. But if it goes on to a giant

who formed his own company and sold his

electronic screen with a couple of thousand

services exclusively to the advertising industry,

lines dividing the screen, something is going

wanted to free the camera from the camera

to be missing, probably because I was

man. He invented the Steadicam out of sheer

brought up in the generation when film was the only thing.

frustration at doing commercials with the limita tions of rigs, dolly, tripod, crane and even a hand-held camera. Given that the narrative is

On the question of technical advances, per

not the most important issue in commercials,

haps it is apt to refer to Conrad Hall one last

and ideally everything should look as beautiful

time: “ I hate technical stuff. I don’t care or know

as possible, commercials often give DOPs the

anything about it. I can find out in ten seconds,

opportunity to indulge their lighting and inven

all I have to do is go to a technical guy [...] I’m

tiveness. This is aided by the fact that commer

for dissemination of all knowledge in the busi

cials generally have much more time to spare

ness. Artistry is something else again. That is

and money to spend. The daily shooting sched

something you can’t disseminate.”

ule on a commercial is easily half of what has to be achieved in a day on a feature film, and

But then again, Hall was speaking twenty years ago.

Victoria used processes from the government’s Management Improvement Initiative. Film Victoria Chairman Peter Griffin expressed satisfaction with the results. “The work addressed external realities to increase Victoria’s share of the national docu mentary slate, and recommended internal improve ments to focus more clearly on customers. The Board looks forward to increased outputs and better outcomes and commends the higher per formance targets set by Film Victoria as part of the new policies.

New chair at Australian Centenary of Cinema The Australian Centenary of Cinema Committee is pleased to announce the appointment of Keith Moreman as its Chairman. This Committee has been established to co-ordinate preparations for the many celebratory events and programmes which are being planned forthe commemoration of one hundred years of cinema in 1995. Moreman is President of the Australia Society of Cinema Pioneers, as well as being Chairman of the St. George Bank. He has an extensive back ground in the film industry, including 31 years with the Greater Union Organization, ten of those as its Chief Executive. Commenting on the 1995 Australian Centenary of Cinema celebrations, Moreman said: “All Austral ians will be able to join in celebrating 100 years of cinema and I trust that at the end of next year, the cultural and social status of film will be even greater.” The Australian Centenary of Cinema Commit tee’s Secretariat is located in thè Melbourne of fices of the National Film & Sound Archive. To help accelerate plans for next year, the Committee has appointed James Sabine as its full*

84 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

S of, new Melbourne groups such as Cinema Cobra and Cine Bohemio. A national programme inevita bly has to suffer something of a Tyranny of the Majority, generalizing its programming at the cost

time co-ordinator. Sabine was formerly Manager

Dear Editor,

of the sort of idiosyncratic, local or genre screen

of the Australian Film Institute’s Research and

Bruce Molloy has always written with care about Australian film industry and culture, and their inter

ings these groups-and others such as the Queens

tact James Sabine, Australian Centenary of Cin

relationship. The intention behind his overview of

which we love to get along to see ourselves when

ema Co-ordinator on (03) 690 5537.

the Queensland film activity in the December Cin

we have the chance). At the time of writing this letter, a few volunteer

Information Centre. For further details please con

ema Papers (No. 96) - that any such overview must

AFI Awards 1994 The Australian Film Institute is calling for entries in both the film and television sections for the 1994 ¡AFI Awards, and estimates that no fewer than 25 feature films will be eligible for entry this year.

not just indude the familiar discussion of the indus try’s dynamics of corporate structure, market share,

land Cinematheque - can, and should do (and

film buffs are putting together the 1994 National

sales growth/decline, etc., but also some indication

Cinematheque programme in their spare time and on a variety of kitchen tables and lounge room

of the activities of local screen culture and what its ideals are - was not only honourable, but a pleasant

floors; worrying about how to please everybody; worrying if membership and advertising money is

surprise. However, we are concerned that some

going to cover costs (the last government funding

The AFI Awards Advisory Committee, in con sultation with the film industry, has now completed

how the cut-and-thrust language of the corporate seemed to have infected that of his discussion

the Melbourne Cinematheque received was a one-

the annual review of awards procedures, and has determined that no changes will be made to the current rules and regulations.

about film culture. The implication seems to have been cast that some sort of “foreign take-over” is taking place in Queensland film culture, with the

The AFI Awards, which will be presented in

National Cinematheque invading from the south to

Melbourne on Friday, 4 November, at the World

annihilate a viable local Queensland Cinematheque. As the “corporate raider” in this fable, we think some clarification needs to be made.

Congress Centre, follow the U.S. Academy style of voting. Peer-professional jurieis select the nominees in each individual category. The films gaining nomi nations are then screened to AFI members around Australia through the Australian Film Festival. For further information, please contact Marianne Collopy, National Publicist, (03) 696 1844.

The 8th WA Film & Video Festival Award winners Festival of P erth M ost P ro m isin g Young Film m aker

James Mairata, The Hero. T e rtiary Student P riz e Anna Lise Murch (Curtin), Boys & of the Y e a r

The nature of the Queensland Cinematheque’s current difficulties are the province of the rumour mill and the Board of which Mr Molloy is a member - and not these pages. However we are confident that the implementation, in Brisbane, of the Na tional Cinematheque programme has had nothing to do with, and did not precipitate, this crisis. We would be very surprised - and then very concerned - if this was the opinion of many in Queensland’s film cu lture, e spe cia lly as the N ational Cinematheque programme is being presented in

off, special-purpose grant in the late 1980s to cover the publication of the Annotations on the films we show); and if we are mad for doing this for practically nothing, but the love of film, each year. If Mr Molloy could see this, and our bookkeeping, he’d realize we are (to again use corporate par lance) a “paper tiger”. As a “raider”, we probably don’t even have the profile of a $2 company. We only want to be a party with, and of service to, Queensland’s film culture. We are far too busy getting on with showing films (and we certainly don’t have the resources) to plan anything like a cultural invasion. Sincerely, Quentin Tumour Committee member, The Melbourne Cinematheque (programmers of The National Cinematheque)

Dear Editor

Girls, Consumer Passions, Go Scooter, Olivia Rousset (Murdoch), A Way In. SPA A A w ard fo r Excellen ce Teresa Rizzo, On Becoming. A u stralian

Indeed, to fear the National Cinematheque isto fear something that isn’t there - and to misunder stand what is there, and what are the intentions of

As Members of the Board of Management of the Queensland Cinematheque, we would like to dis sociate ourselves from the representations of the Queensland Cinematheque made by Bruce Molloy

W riters Guild A w ard fo r S c rip t Excellen ce

Robert Bygott, Ascape. C in e m a trix A w ard Karryn de

the Melbourne Cinematheque in programming this national circuit, and the AFI in facilitating it. The

in his “Film in Queensland: An Overview” in Cin ema Papers.

Cinque, Michelle’s Third Novel. B est Dram a Se

National Cinematheque is no more than a pro gramme, and a loose alliance between the AFI and state-based film cultural bodies such as the Queensland Cinematheque to make this pro gramme happen. We are not usurpers. We wish only to complement local film cultural activity, indeed to assist it by providing a cheap, sharedcost, cycle of consistent repertory screenings upon

It is surprising to find the Cinematheque omit ted from the list of film cultural organizations cited in Molloy’s first paragraph, which mentions all

bastian Craig, Dreamwake. B e st D o cu m entary Teresa Rizzo, On Becoming. B est M usic Video Chris Allen, Bank Robbery. B est A cto r - Fem ale Emily Bott, Sweetbreeze. B est A cto r - Male Marcus Clark, Desmond Makes a Friend. B est A rt D irec Juliet John, Michelle’s Third Novel. Best Cin em atography Sebastian Craig, Dreamwake. B est D i

tion

Teresa Rizzo, On Becoming. B est Editing Robert Bygott, Ascape', Nathan McDermott, Seems

rectio n

Twice: The Cruel Sea. B est O rig in al M usic Sebas tian Criag, Dreamwake. B est Sound Robert Bygott, Ascape. O v e ra ll En co u ra g e m e n t A w ard Danny Featherstone; Pilar Kasat.

Brisbane by the Queensland Cinematheque.

which the state groups can build their specialist

In the advertisement for Preston* Laing on p. 16 of the New Zealand Supplem ent (No. 97-8), Genevieve Picot’s first name was wrongly spelt. Cinema Papers, which typeset the ad, apologizes for the error, though Ms Picot was so pleased by the ad she is generously unmuffed by the error. The caption for the still from Tony Scott’s True Romance was incorrectly captioned on p. 54 of issue No. 97-8. Tony Scott incorrectly became his brother, Ridley.

ing the im plem entation of the N ational Cinematheque programme” . It was in fact not an identity crisis but a cash crisis arising from such

events and their local public profile. Certainly we’ve had the impression this is the reason why state bodies (including The Queensland Cinematheque)

drastic and sustained state and federal shortfalls that they virtually eliminated our programmes of

have picked the programme up.

ca pa city even to a dm in iste r the N ational Cinematheque screenings.

We have always tried to convey the sense of this National programme as no more than a net

Corrigenda

other such organizations. When the Cinematheque does reappear, it is imputed with “a minor identity crisis as it endeavours to redefine its aims follow

work, through our involvement in the Screen Cul ture Network (formerly FAN) as an equal with these bodies; and to promote SCN meetings as a

contextualized screenings, and threatened our

If Bruce Molloy had sensed our having an identity crisis, it is surprising that he never men tioned it when he sat on the Board.

film programmes and programming - and maybe

Yours sincerely, Stephen Crofts, Donald Crombie, Murray Henman, Pat Laughren, Sue Pavasaris and

the cost of making these available to Australia.

Brian Tucker

jamboree where we can share information about

For years here in Melbourne, we have always enjoyed and supported the company of other spe cialist film screening organizations. We bemoaned the loss of such groups as the Melbourne Univer sity Film Society (MUFS) and Anemic Cinema, and the general decline in local repertory cinema. We look forward to its revival within, and the advance

Members of the Board of Management, Queensland Cinematheque

Bruce Molloy was invited to reply. He issued this statement: “Bruce Molloy stands by his original comments.” • CINEMA

PAPERS

. 85

PRO D U CTIO N

BROUGHT

SURVEY

PERMANENT

TO YOU

TRUSTEES

NOTE: Production Survey forms now adhere to

Finance

FFC

come embroiled in a macabre plot when a corpse

Prod, designer

a revised format. Cinem a Papers regrets it can

Synopsis: 16 year-old country boy Mick cross

and a cop both decide to take refuge in the

Editor

disused pawn shop that is their residence.

Other Credits

not accept information received in a different

dresses and joins an all-girl band in town for the

format, as it does not have the staff to re-process

local festival. He falls hopelessly in love with

the information. Information is correct and ad

band member Angela who is flirting with lesbian

judged as of 7/4/94.

ism. She’s hot for Mick, not just because he’s

Prod, manager

NAPOLEON Prod, companies

Film Australia

cute and talented but being a woman he’s hon

FEATURES PRE-PRO D UCTIO N

MUSHROOMS Prod, company Arenafilm

Principal Credits

Producer

Brian Rosen

Executive producer

Director

Gérard Lee

Producer

John Maynard

Scriptwriter

Gérard Lee

Clapper-loader

Michael Bourchier

Exec, producers

Ron Saunders Masato Hara

AlanMadden Scriptwriters

John Wild Mario Andreacchio

Cast: Julia Blake, Lynette Curran, Simon Chilvers. Synopsis: A romantic black comedy about Minnie and Flo, widows in their mid-sixties, who be-

FFC F U N D I N G Australia by their father, a Malaysian prince.

February

Naonori Kawamura (Herald Ace)

Scriptwriter

35mm

TELEV ISIO N

Focus puller

Mario Andreacchio

AlanMadden Line producer

90 mins

FIRE (13 x 60 min mini-series) Extra Dimensions

Steven J. Spears DOP

Roger Dowling

Productions. Executive producer: M ikael Borglund. Producers: Michael Caulfield, Tony

TELEVISIO N

DRAMA

Cavanaugh, Simone North. Director: Peter Fisk. Scriptwriters: Tony Cavanaugh, Everett de Roche, Deborah Cox. A female fire-fighter bat tles sexism and the curse of her brother’s name when she is forced to join an arson investigation which points to a male colleague as a serial pyromaniac.

FEDS

examine the plight of more than 10,000 children

(6 x 90 min tele-features)Crawford Productions.

whose human rights are in international limbo.

Executive producers: Bruce Gordon, John Kearney. Producer: Jan Mamell. Directors: TBA. Scriptwriters: John Reeves, Vince Moran, Jan

(55 mins). Curtis Levy (Indonesia). Producer:

Sardi, Patrick Edgeworth, Everett de Roche, Ian

C h ris tin e

McFadyen. Six tele-features concentrating on

O lse n .

D irector:

C urtis

Levy.

John Foster Kath McIntyre

Grip

John Smith Tony Cronin

Standby props Unit asst.

Brian Scraggs

Storyboard artist/admin. Dog/bird wrangler

Kieran Weir The Cuong Truong Alice Truong

Asst wranglers

Mick Braddock Dog consultant Asst editor

Barbara Moore Adrian McQueen-Mason

DECISIONS

Belgium, Switzerland and Morocco, this film will

PROPHETS OF FREEDOM

Mason Curtis Kristin Witcombe

Michael Bourchier

Filming in Australia, America, England, France,

DRAMA

Deborah Wilde

Mario Andreacchio

Director

Length

Prod, accountant Location manager

Producers

RichardHarper

Gauge

Sue Edwards

Director

Entertainment

John Wild

Pro. co-ordinator

Continuity

RosenHarper

G O O D N IG H T IRENE Prod, company

Furry Feature Films

Principal Credits

est. [No further details supplied.]

Vicki Niehus Edward McQueen-Mason

Story, M ark D eFriest. Scriptwriters: Peter Hepworth, Neil Luxmoore, David Phillips, Judith Colquhoun, Kate Henderson, Helen MacWhirter, Lois Booton. Principal cast: M azena Godecki, David Hoflin, Jeffrey Walker, Kerry Armstrong, Alex Pinder. Neri, the mysterious girl from the sea, returns to search for the secret of her past, aided by the kids from ORCA.

Scriptwriter: Curtis Levy. The film will look at the

the investigations of Federal Police Superin

new populist democracy movement emerging in

tendent Dave Griffin and Detective Sergeant Jo

Indonesia as President Suharto nears the end of

Moody, a woman lawyer recruited to the Feds.

G O IN G TRIBAL DROPPING OUT IN THE ’90s

March

(52 mins). Light Source Films. Producer: Michael

his rule. The documentary will focus on a young Muslim leader, Emha Ainun Nadjib.

CONVICTIONS

FEATURES

D O C U M EN TA RIES

Murray. Co-producer: Ronald Tanner. Director: Michael Balson. Scriptwriters: Michael Murray,

SPELLBINDER

(55 mins) Oracle Pictures & The Notion Picture

(26 x 30 min children’s series) Film Australia.

Company. Executive producers: Max Lloyd,

BILLY’S HOLIDAY

Michael Balson. Modern tribes like the Ferals

Executive producer: Ron Saunders. Producer:

Gregory Swanborough. Producers: Robert

(100 mins). Tristram Miall Films. Producer:

and Crusties have attracted a growing following

Noel Price. Associate producer: Dennis Kiely.

Reynolds, Victor Gentile. Director: David C ae

Tristram Miall. Co-producer: Denis Whitburn.

among young people. The film looks at the re-

Director: Noel Price. Scriptwriters: Mark Shirrefs,

sar. Scriptwriter: Victor Gentile. Study of the

Director: Richard Wherrett. Scriptwriter: Denis

emergence of tribal lifestyles as mainstream

John Thomson. Children’s fantasy/adventure

forces influencing personal and national con

Whitburn. Principal cast: Max Cullen. When mid

society becomes more splintered.

series, to be produced in association with Polish

victions using the Korean W ar as a backdrop.

dle-aged Billy’s jazz band takes off life changes

television. An Australian boy finds himself ma rooned in a pre-industrial world where Spellbind ers control people through fear and manipula tion. The boy manages to outwit the Spellbinders with the help of a local girl, but when the children return to 1990s Australia they must confront further dangers and challenges.

(55 mins). Stephen Ramsey. Executive pro

WOMAN RABBI

his world on its head and the true romantic spirit of Billy Appleby emerges - voice and all.

Ram sey, Jane Ramsey. Director: Stephen

TELEVISIO N WHITE LIES (90 min tele-feature. Damien Parer Produc tions. Executive producers: Victor Glynn, John

THE LAST WHALE

Sexton, Chris Brown. Producer: Damien Parer.

(70 mins). Youngheart Productions. Executive

Director: Ian Barry. Scriptwriters: Henry Tefay,

(54 mins). Piper Films. Executive producers:

producers: Wayne Young, Scott Young. Direc

Kee Young. Ellie Lynch, the wife of an aspiring

Geoff Barnes, Mike Piper. Producer: Mike Piper.

tor: David Bradbury. Scriptwriters: Wayne Young,

politician, is tricked into an adulterous love affaire

Co-producer: Jacquelynne Willcox. Director:

David Bradbury. Principal Cast: Sam Neill, Olivia

which soon turns to blackmail and entrapment.

Jacquelynne Willcox. Scriptwriter: Jacquelynne

Newton-John. Sam Neill will narrate and Olivia

Willcox. A film about the transformation of an

Newton-John will feature in this documentary

Australian lawyer from a privileged background

about the plight of whales in the Antarctic

tions about the Sydney Hilton Hotel bombing, ist plot.Film follows blast victim, former Police Constable Terry Griffith's search for the truth.

ANATOM Y OF A UNION (52 mins) Summer Hill Films. Executive pro ducer: Geoff Barnes. Producer: Tony Wickert. Associate producer: Rod Freedman. Director: Peter Flynn. Scriptwriters: Peter Flynn, Tony Wickert. A portrait of the inner workings of the

HALLIFAX f.p. (6 x 100 minutes tele-features). Simpson Le

Automotive, Food, Metals and Engineering Un ion (AFMEU).

Mesurier Films. Producers: Roger Le Mesurier,

into one of Australia’s first women rabbis ... and the evolution of women in Judaism. Through the

A further two projects were approved at special

Roger Simpson. Directors: Paul Maloney, Mike

story of Jacqueline Ninio we also observe the

Board meetings following the December and

Smith and tba. Scriptwriters: Roger Simpson,

changes in Israel marked by the peace process

January Board meetings of the FFC.

Peter Kinloch, Vincent Gil, Mac Gudgeon, Keith Aberdein. Principal cast: Rebecca Gibney. Tele

with the PLO.

EMPTY ARMS, BROKEN HEART

Director: Daryl Dellora. Scriptwriters: Daryl Dell-

which the police could never prove was a terror

Ramsey. Scriptwriter: Stephen Ramsey. Third film in The Fam ily A lbum series will look at four

(55 mins). Film Art Doco. Producer: Sue Maslin. ora, Ian Wansbrough. Film re-opening ques

ducer: Pamela Williams. Producers: Stephen

Australian families as the children grow up.

D O CU M EN TA RIES

CONSPIRACY

dramatically. Fame, fortune - and Faust - turn

RITES OF PASSA GE

FEATURES

features following the adventures of Jane Hallifax, forensic psychiatrist.

A further project was approved between Board meetings and the FFC entered into contract negotiations with the producer: THE RUSH FOR REASON (52 min documentary). Aspire Films. Producer: Chris Hilton. Director: Chris Hilton. Scriptwriter:

(50 mins), lain and Jacqueline Gillespie. Prod

TUNNEL VISION

ucer: lain Gillespie. Director: lain Gillespie.

(92 mins). Avalon Films. Producer: Phil Avalon.

OCEAN GIRL 2

Scriptwriter: lain Gillespie. Co-producer: Jacq

Director: Clive Fleury. Scriptwriter: Clive Fleury.

(13 x 23 mini-series). Jonathan M. Shiff Produc

hind the heroin trade and trace the drug’s history

ueline Gillespie. In July 1992 Jacqueline Gill

A police detective is accused of murder but his

tions. Executive producer: Jonathan Shiff. Pro

from the Vietnam W ar to the present day with

espie’s two young children were smuggled out of

female partner tries to clear his name.

ducer: Jonathan Shiff. Directors: Judith John-

particular emphasis on Australia.

86 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

Chris Hilton. Will examine the many forces be

Sound designers

James Currie

Set dresser

Craig Carter Sound editor

Glen W. Johnson

Props buyer

Jodie Chandler

Marita Mussett

Standby props

Still photographer

Carolyn Joiins

Wardrobe

Insurer

Richard Oliver

Standby wardrobe

Completion guarantor

FACB

Finance

Dean Sullivan

Cast: [No details supplied.]

Sound editor

Frank Lipsom

Synopsis: A story of a happy suburban puppy,

Laboratory

Cinevex

Napoleon, unexpectedly transported into a natu-

Lab liaison

Ian Anderson

ral bushland world.

Government Agency investment

H 1

FFC

Cast: John Lynch, Jacqueline McKenzie. of the human psyche.

Production

21/3/94 ...

Principal Credits

Epsilon Fandango (Rome)

Director

Michael Rymer

Pre-production

Producers

Timothy White

Production

Mar 1 9 9 4 ...

Post-production

... Mar 1995

Jonathan Shteinman Scriptwriter

Michael Rymer

DOP

Ellery Ryan

Sound recordist

John Phillips

Editor

Dany Cooper

Production designer Costume designer

Chris Kennedy Kerri Mazzocco

Principal Credits Rolf de Heer

Producers

Domenico Procacci Rolf de Heer

Co-producer

Trish McAskill

Prod, manager

Alison Barrett Casting Additional casting

Greg Apps

Production Crew Prod, manager Prod, co-ordinator Prod, accountant

Continuity Unit manager Unit asst.

Mike Carroll

Melissa Rymer Jo Weeks Andy Pappas Jolyon (Joel) Simpson

Peter D. Smith

Gauge

Super 35

Screen ratio

1:2.35

Government Agency Investment Development Production

FFC

Emma Javold

Marketing

Insurer

Tony Leonard

Inti, sales agent

Focus puller Clapper-loader Cam era equipment

3rd asst director Continuity Boom operator Make-up Hair stylist

Still photography Double green room Make-up/wardrobe bus

Production Facilities Publicist

John Thornhill, Beyond Films

Catering

Keith Fish

Asst caterer

Tony Sisi

Intrafilms (Rome)

Standby props

Wardrobe

Samuelsons

planet earth.

HOTEL SORRENTO Prod, company

Bayside Pictures

Principal Credits

Construct, manager

Director

Richard Franklin

Post-production Laboratory

John Brennan

Scriptwriters

Richard Franklin

Lab liaison

Peter Fitzpatrick Based on play by

Geoff Burton

Sound recordist

Lloyd Carrick

Euan Keddie

2nd asst director

Robbie Visser

Prod, designer

3rd asst director

Damien Grant

Costume designer

Still photography Unit publicist

Jennifer Mitchell Fiona Searson, DDA Rick Herr

Catering

Harley to Rose

Art Department Art director Art dept co-ordinator Art dept attachment

Hannie Rayson

DOP

1st asst director

Zeljka Stanin

Tracy Watt Lisa Meagher

Editor

David Pulbrook

Planning and Development Casting

Zev Eleftheriou Zev Eleftheriou Rob Dekok Jenny Bichard Simon Stanbury Maria Blore

Art dept asst.

Yuri Poetzl

Props buyer

Moira Fahy

Props dresser

Moira Fahy PhilMacPherson Perscia Brokensha Andrea Hood

Prod, manager Prod, co-ordinator Prod, secretary

Jacinta Lomas

Tony Briggs (Dan). Zoran Rakovic Synopsis: Harry Dare is the coolest Aboriginal Cinevex

Video transfers/post

Ian Anderson

detective there ever was.The man spent years

David Flint, AAV

restoring his VW Kombi only to have it stolen

after its maiden voyage. Equipped with the de Clive Duncan tective kit bought by young son, Jim, father and Stock Steve Tayson, Kodak son trek off to find the Kombi. Their search leads Cast: Caroline Gillmer (Hilary), Caroline Goodall them to a relationship they never had, and to (Meg), Joan Plowright (Marge), Ray Barrett (Wal), Lab liaison

Nicholas Bell (Edwin), Ben Thomas (Troy), Tara

unravelling the mystery of Harry’s father’s disap

Morice (Pippa), John Hargreaves (Dick).

pearance many years ago. A comedy about discovery.

seaside family home by the disappearance of

TUNNEL VISION Prod, company

THE LIFE OF HARRY DARE Prod, companies

‘Spider’ Neil McCart

Hugh Bateup

Unit manager

Michael Batchelor

Unit assistant

Paul Ammitzboll Cameron Stewart

Shane Wilton

Frazer (Dulcie, 1978-80s), Bob Agius (Bert),

their father. Rachel Gamsey

Sara Jane Van Gyen

Carrie Mellett (Anne), Ben Nelson (Johnny),

Sue MacKay

Sharon Young

Production runner

Post-Production

Francesca Cubillo-Alberts(Dulcie, 1965), Carole Ian Doig (Kincaide)

Synopsis: Three sisters are reuinted at their Greg Apps

Production Crew

Location manager

Joanna Park

Michael Oxenberry

in his twenties), Bobbi-Jean Henry (Jem ),

Best boy

Jolyon (Joel) Simpson

CarmelTorcasio Andrea Hood

Art Department

ChrisJamesAsst, editor Attachment

Construction Dept

Asst editor

Make-up bus driver

Mike Bakaloff

8 years old), Aaron Wilton (Jim), Billy Trott (Jim

Helen Watts

Hairdresser

KaranMonkhouse MichaelOxenberry

Rachel Nott

Richard Franklin

Kirsten Veysey

Monica Pearce

Laura Jocic

Producer

Make-up

Chris Hereford

Standby wardrobe

Co-producer

On-set Crew

Richard Rees-Jones

Costume cutter

Barry Hansen

Greg de Marigny

PaulHamlyn

Gaffer

Cast: John Moore (Harry), Gordon Weetra (Harry,

Ted Nordsvan

Generator operator

Asst, grip

Margot McCartney

Key grip

Greg de Marigny

Jill Eden

Wardrobe supervisor

Gaffer 3rd electric

Mike Smith

Wardrobe Shane Aumont Standby wardrobe

Set decorator

Synopsis: An intergalactic love story about a

Andrew Jerram

Wayne Aistrope

Key grip

Art dept runner ChristinaNorman

Art dept assts

Cast: Ulli Birvé (She), Syd Brisbane (The Man).

Sion Michel

Lyddy Van Gyen

Clapper-loader

Standby props

Art administrator

Steeves Lumley

Robert Murray

Paul Meulenberg

Focus puller

Steve Meier

Camera Crew Cam era operator

Cam era operator

Best boy

2nd asst director

Antonia Barnard Film Finances

Chris Corin

ChrisWebb 1st asst director JohnMartin 2nd asst director Tanya Jackson 3rd asst director JulieBates Boom operator Chris Roland Continuity Jose Perez Make-up Jose Perez Runner Loli Sanchez Stunt co-ordinator Heather Ross Safety officer George Mannix Tutor Suzie Woods Nurse Michael Batchelor Still photography Unit Facilities Catering Mobile

Art Department SAFC

Production runner

On-set Crew

Tania Nehme

Sound designer

Production runner

Completion guarantor

Digital Arts

Chris Shananhan

On-set Crew

Safety report

Sean Caddy

Steve Brett

Tim Morrison

Generator operator

Film Finances

Jo Friesen

Tanja George

Steve Wells

Best boy

Completion guarantor

Tony Clarke

Samuelsons

Brian ‘Soapy’ Adams

Sean McGovern

Camera Crew

Scott Brokate

Gaffer

Make-up asst.

Bernadette Breitreuz

Director’s attach.

Jaems Grant

Grip (location)

Tim Stanley

Unit asst.

Peter Stockley

Charles Kiroff

KevinPlummer Miriam Ready

Unit manager

Leilani Hannah

2nd unit DOP

Unit manager

Post-prod, supervisor

Prod, accountant

Kathryn Milliss

Hair supervisor Sharon Jackson

Special fx photography

Judith Hughes

Asst location m’ager

Sharon Jackson

Yvonne Collins

Producer’s asst. Location manager

Digital Arts

Assoc, producer

Other Credits

Focus puller

1st asst director

Director

Planning and Development Casting

Jan - Mar 1994

Barbara Ring

Location manager

Grip

Prod, companies

Barbara Gibbs

Prod, co-ordinator

Australia

Key grip

EPSILON

Astral Films

Prod, manager

Greg Helmers, Traveltoo

Cam era equipment

A N G EL BABY Prod, company

Beverley Freeman

Production Crew

Brett Woodhouse, Hirecom

Clapper-loader

Synopsis: A roller-coaster journey to the fringes

Ian Jobson

Costume designer

Redlich

Camera Crew

Production

FEA TU RES P R O D U C T IO N

Tony Patterson

Art director

Chris Lovell, Holding

Motorolas

BronwynMurphy

Editor

Barnard

Travel/Freight

Geoff Hall

Sound recordist

Antonia Film Finances

Legal services Frank Lipsom

Gerald Thompson

DOP

Tony Gibbs, H. Wood

Martine Simmonds

Sound design

Insurer

Barbara Gibbs

Scriptwriter

Kim McKillop

Isobel Carter

Post-production

FFC

Assoc, producer

Lyn Jones

Producer office attach. Completion guarantor

Asst costume

Herald Ace

Prod, accountant

Avalon Film

Dist. companies

Beyond Films

Infinity Pictures South Australian Film Corp.

Principal Credits Director Producer

Aleksi Vellis Terry Charatsis

Pro Films Pre-production

14/2/94 ...

Production

21/3/94 ...

Principal Credits Director

Clive Fleury

Creativity, Judgement & Trust Essential ingredients to sound film investment Complete the picture... with Permanent Trustee FILM

For an initial discussion contact David Hepworth (02) 232 4400

TRUSTEESHIP

PERMANENT TRUSTEE COMPANY A.C.N. 000 000 993

CINEMA

LIMITED

PAPERS

9 9 . 87

Producer

Phillip Avalon

Assoc, producers

Phillip Bowman Brenda Pam

Scriptwriter

Clive Fleury

DOP

Paul Murphy

Sound recordist

John Schiefelbein

Prod, designer

Phil Warner

Costume designer

Rosalea Hood

Editor

John Scott

Composer

David Hirschfelder

Planning and Development Script editor

Gerard McGuire

Casting

Liz Mullinar Casting

Extras casting

Dist. company Production

29/11/93 - 24/1/94

Principal Credits Producer Line Producer Scriptwriter DOP Sound recordist

Brenda Pam

Prod, co-ordinator

Jennifer Cornwell

Prod, secretary

Kerry Mulgrew

Location manager

Chris Strewe

Unit manager

Stuart Lynch

Unit asst

Warren Stewart

Production runner

Angella McPherson

Prod, accountant

Michele D’Arcey

T ravel

Jet Aviation

Insurer

Editor

Legal services

Film Finances

Starwagons Australia

Unit truck

Starwagons Australia

Qld liaison

Pacific Film & TV Commission

Camera Crew

Adienne Read

Australian landscape. It deals with a young Eng

Michael Blakemore

lish woman who comes to live at an Australian

Steve Windon

country property where her beauty and poise

Wendy Chuck Larry Eastwod

Composer

Alison Barrett

Extras casting

Helen Salter

Production Crew Prod, manager Prod, co-ordinator Prod, secretary Producer’s secretary Location manager Unit manager

Julie Simms Anne Gilhooley Merlyne Jamieson Phillip Roope Bob Graham

Unit assts

Laurie Pettinari

Drivers

Accounts asst

Marianne Flynn Sandie Morris

Completion guarantor

Film Finances

Mike Kelly

Clapper loader

Chris Taylor

Camera equipment

Samuelsons

Key grip

Grant Neilson

Grip

Jacon Parry

Asst grip

Brett Marks

Gaffer

Chris Fleet

Best boy

Phil Mulligan

Electrics

Mick O ’Brien

Casual electrics

Paul Klican

On-set Crew

Camera operator Focus puller

Callum McFarlane

Clapper loader Key grip Grip Asst grip

Bob Howard

2nd asst director

Julie Burton

3rd asst director

Peter McLennan

Boom operator

Chris Goldsmith

Sound attach.

Matthew Archman

Continuity

Jenny Quigley

Make-up artist

Sally Gordon

Make-up asst.

Sash Lamley

Hairdresser

Sash Lamley

Choreography

Alan Lane

Stunt co-ordinator

Chris Anderson

Safety officer

Greg Skipper

Still photography

Keith Byron

Publicity

Rea Francis Publicity

Cast van driver

Warren Stewart

Cast driver

Hans Van Beuge

Make-up/wardrobe bus Catering

Phil Morant Quinnele’s catering

Art Department Asst art director

Tracey Robertson

Props buyer

Kristin Reuter

Standby props

Bradley Campbell

Art dept runner

Priscilla Cameron

Armourer

Steve Courtney

Wardrobe Phil Eagles

Standby wardrobe

Phil Eagles

Costume attach.

Sacha Drake

Animals Ron Roman

Post-Production Asst editor Editing rooms

Spectrum Films

Post-prod, facilites

Spectrum Films

Film transfers

Apocalypse PostProduction

Laboratory Stock

Agfa-Gevaert

RiggSynopsis: As the clock ticks down, the lives of three people will change dramatically ... don’t look back!

Prod, company

88 • C I N E M A

PAPERS

Storyboard artist

Eddie doesn’t realize is that what he sees and what he gets are two different things ... And is

MURIEL’S W EDDING Prod, company

Films

Peter Carrodus Paul Grabowsky

Dist. company

Village Roadshow

Pre-production

J u ly -S e p t 1993

Production

Oct - Dec 1993

Post-production

Jan - May 1994

Principal Credits

Eliza Greenhatch

Jocelyn Moorhouse Assoc, producers

Rachel Gamsey Lesley Parker

Producer’s asst

Sarah Norris

Director’s asst

Ben Holgate Jacinta Lomas

Location manager

Chris Odgers Leigh Ammitzboll

Juanita Parker Clive Young Sharon Young

Insurer

Tony Mahood Michael D. Aglion

Prod, co-ordinator

Prod, accountant

Lynda House

Producers

Liz Mullinar Casting

Prod, supervisor

Accounts assts

Paul J. Hogan

Director

Production Crew

Unit manager

House & Moorhouse

Steeves Lumley Film Finances

Scriptwriter

Paul J. Hogan

DOP

Martin McGrath

Sound recordist

David Lee

Editor

Jill Bjlcock

Prod, designer

Patrick Reardon

Costume designer

Terry Ryan

Planning and Development Casting Extras casting

Alison Barrett Gabrielle Healy

Production Crew Prod, manager Prod, co-ordinator Prod, secretary Location manager Unit manager Unit assts

Catherine “Tatts” Bishop Rowena Talacko Sharon Gerussi Patricia Blunt Simon Hawkins Philip Taylor

Colin Fletcher

Legal services

Barker Gosling

James McTeigue

T ravel/Freight

Showt ravel

Paul Naylor

3rd asst director

Guy Campbell

Mobile Prod. Facilities

Shane Naylor

Continuity

Pamela Willis

Buses/Greenroom

Production runner

Camera Crew

Boom operator

Gerry Nucifora

Camera operator

2nd boom operator

Michael Taylor

Focus puller

Make-up supervisor

Lesley Rouvray

Clapper-loader

Chris Hobbs

David Vawser

Camera attach.

Greg de Marigny

Make-up Make-up asst

Nicole Spiro

Hair supervisor

Lesley Rouvray

Camera equipment

Unit nurse

Patsy Buchan

3rd grip

Unit publicist

Jim Townley Fiona Searson, DDA

Catering

Camera Cooks

Runner

Stephen Tolitz

Art Department

Gaffer

Cam era operator

Brendan Campbell

Michelle McGahey

2nd asst director

Rob Visser

3rd asst director

Damien Grant

Property master

Brian Edmonds

Continuity

Art dept runner

Richard Hobbs

Boom operator

Action props

Richard Hobbs

Make-up

Kirsten Veysey

Hairdresser

Cheryl Williams

Justine Dunn Dimity Huntington

Armourer

Robert Colby

Wardrobe

Wardrobe asst

Miranda Brock Kerrt Thompson

Mark Wasiutak

Mark Hennessy

Safety report

Mark Hennessy

Safety officer Unit publicist Catering

Olivia Schmid Graham Ware

Asst wrangler

Graham Ware Jnr.

Construction Dept Construct, manager Scenic artists

Larry Sandy

Carpenter

Donna Brown

Greens

The Greens Department

Post-production Editing asst Rushes courier

Christine Woodruff Midnight Express

Laboratory

Atlab

Lab liaison

Ian Russell FFC

Darryl Mills Darryl Mills Denise Goudy Chris James Susi Thompson Rachel Nott

Andrew Moore Darryn Fox

On-set Crew 1st asst director

Boom operator Make-up supervisor Hair supervisor Hairdresser Hair asst Choreographer Still photography Catering

Tony Mahood

Art director

Noriko Watanabe Noreen Wilke Noriko Watanabe Jan Zeigenbein Noreen Wilke John O ’Connell Robert McFarlane Eat & Shoot Through Hugh Bateup Christina Norman

Art dept runner

Peter Forbes

Set dressers

Jane Murphy Glen W. Johnson

Art dept asst Walter Speri

Daphne Paris Jack Friedman

Art Department

Louise McCarthy

Construction Dept

Standby props

Dianne Bennett James Cox

Wardrobe

Post-production Asst editor

Peter Maloney

Electricians

Art dept co-ord

Wardrobe

Construct, manager

Best boy

Make-up asst

Denise Goudy

Wardrobe asst.

John Tate David Parkinson

Script supervisor

Tao Weis

Standby wardrobe

Gaffer

Fiona Searson, DDA Masquerade Caterers

Simone Semen

Wardrobe supervisor Trish Graham

Asst grip

Sally Gray Brett McDowell

John Martin

Art dept runner

Standby props

Key grip

Karen Mahood

Art dept co-ord.

John Styles

Set decorator

Cam era assistant

3rd asst director

Victoria Hobday

Props buyers

Brett Matthews

Jennifer Mitchell

Art director

Bill Undery Michael O ’Kane

Darrin Keough

Clapper-loader

Eddie McShortall

Two Can Do

Set dressers

David Williamson

2nd asst director

Art Department

Wrangler

Travel Too

Focus puller

Peter Stubbs

Stunts co-ordinator

Still photography

Wardrobe supervisor

Marketing

Special fx

Victoria Sullivan

Film Finances Bryce Menzies Roth Warren

Travel co-ordinator

Chris Shanahan

Deborah Eastwood

Casual dressers

Legal services

3rd electrics

Art dept co-ord.

Asst standby props

Steeves Lumley Completion guarantor

Camera Crew

1st asst director

John Osmond

Tony Leonard

Anthony Tulloch

Asst art director

Standby props

Sandie Morris

Insurer

Best boy

On-set Crew

Jill Steele

Accounts asst

Peter Stockley Nick Payne

Martin Williams Moneypenny Services

Samuelsons Scott Brocate

Grip

Prod, accountant

Greg Ryan

John Goldney

David Vawser

Still photography

Vince Monton

Key grip

Hairdresser

Production Dalton Films

Editor

Cameron Stewart

Government Agency Investment

COUNTRY LIFE

Cast: Gia Carides, Anthony La Paglia

2nd asst director

Music consultant

FEATURES PO ST-PRO D U CTIO N

Anna Borghesi

Composer

Completion guarantor

Movielab

Cast: Patsy Kensit, Robert Reynolds, Rebecca

Costume designer

Production runner

Animals Lisa-Anne Morris

Peta Lawson

Robert Hall

On-set Crew

Standby wardrobe

Cat wrangler

Gary Wilkins

Prod, designer

Cameron Stewart

Ken Muggleston

Costume supervisor

Sound recordist

Allan Dunstan

1st asst director

Vince Monton

Unit runner

Gary Hill

(Anne Darrouzet)

Ben Lewin

DOP

Unit attach.

Reg Garside

Best boys

Scriptwriter

Frank Flick

Scott Johnson

Gaffer

FFC

Production

Bob Weis Judi Lewin

Warren Grieef David Shaw

Government Agency Investment

Ben Lewin

Producer

Prod, secretary Marc Spicer

Kodak

Stock

Eddie all he seems to be?

Director

Casting

Tom Read Prod, accountant

Lewin Films

Principal Credits

Planning and Development

Camera Crew

Focus puller

Generation Films

Grayden Le Breton Dave Suttor

Clive Duncan

meets Eddie, the man of her dreams. What

LUCKY BREAK Prod, companies

Grayden Le Breton Andrew Marshall

DFL

Lab liaison

who lives in her own fantasies until one day she

Co-producer Lynda Wilkinson

Soundfirm

Mixed at Laboratory

Synopsis: A romantic comedy. Sophie is a writer

cause turmoil in the household.

Peter Best Planning and Development

Clark Film Services

Cast van

sensibilities colliding in the harsh beauty of the

Production designer

Clark Film Services

Wardrobe trailer

Synopsis: C ountry Life is the story of European

Robin Dalton

Costume designer

Martin Cooper & Co.

Make-up van

Cast: Greta Scacchi, Sam Neill, John Hargreaves,

Nicholas Beauman

H. W. Wood Australia

Competion guarantor

Southern Star

Michael Blakemore

Ben Osmo

Casting

Prod, manager

Inti, sales Kerry Fox.

Director

Rose Garcia

Production Crew

UIP

Stephen Evans

Sound transfers by

DFL

Music co-ordinator

Mike Grabowsky

Wardrobe supervisor Costume construction Standby wardrobe

Michele Leonard ‘Mouse’ Heather Laurie

Wardrobe asst

Mandy Sedawie

Post-production 1st asst editor

Jane Moran

2nd asst editor

Cleo Myles

Sound transfers by Sound editor

Soundfirm

Art Department Art director

Brian Dusting

Art dept co-ordinator

Sharon Young

Post-production Asst editor

Maria Kaltenhaler

Glenn Newnham

Laboratory

Cinevex

Chris Gough

Marketing

Musical co-ord. Mixed at

Soundfirm

S e e p revious issu e s for d e ta ils on: ENCOUNTERS SPIDER & RO SE THE SUM OF US VACANT PO SSESSIO N

Director

James Ferguson

Producers

Leisl Hillhouse Sherry Stumm

Scriptwriters

James Ferguson Stephen Dunne

D OCU M EN TARIES

Inti, sales agent

Principal Credits

Tom Gleeson

DOP

Beyond Films

Editor

Tony Egan

Laboratory

Cinevex

Lab liaison

Ian Anderson

Cast: Peter Coyote (Henry Warburton), Lisa

Film gauge

35mm

Harrow (Alice Flack), Jamie Croft (Ort), Mark

Screen ratio

1:1.85

Fairall (Sam Flack), Amanda Douge (Tegwyn

Shooting stock

Kodak

Flack), Louise Siversen (Mrs Cherry), Paul

Dist. company

Government Agency Investment

Sonkkila (MrCherry), Jeremy Dridan (Fat Cherry),

Credits

Development

Film Victoria

Alelthea McGrath (Grammar).

Producer

Insurers MichaelWarrell-Davies

FIUA

Production

Film Victoria

Synopsis: A young boy struggles to free his

Director

MichaelWarrell-Davies

Cinesure

father from a coma following a car accident.

Scriptwriter

FFC Marketing

Publicity

Palace Publicity

THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT: FOR THE SAKE OF LIFE AND LIMB

TO THE POINT OF DEATH

Publicity

Prod, company

Pocket Money

Village Roadshow

Productions

Cast: Toni Collette (Muriel), Rachel Griffiths

Budget

(Rhonda), Bill Hunter (Bill), Jeannie Drynan

Pre-production

(Betty), Daniel Lapaine (David), Matt Day (Brice),

Production

Sophie Lee (Tania), Chris Haywood (Ken).

Post-production

Synopsis: Sometimes your better half is you.

Principal Credits

THAT EYE THE SKY Prod, company

Entertainment Media

Dist company

Beyond Films

Pre-production

16/8/93 ...

Production

25/10/93 ...

Post-production

20/12/93 ...

Principal Credits

$80,000 Aug - Nov 1993 7/11/93 - 24/11/93 Feb. - June 1994

Flinders Medical Centre

Sound post-prod.

Flinders Media

Post-prod, studio

Post-production

Production Crew

Unit manager

That Eye the Sky

Camera Crew

Cinesure Page Seager

Cam era operators

Mark Tomlinson Craig Godfrey

Focus puller

Scott Goodman

Ken Sallows

Camera type

SP Betacam

Chris Kennedy

Key grip

Peter Cass

Vicki Friedman

Gaffer

Brett Carter

Electrician

Production Crew Prod, manager Prod, co-ordinator Prod, secretary Location manager Unit manager Prod, accountant Insurer

On-set Crew

Tony Leach Susie Wright

Hairdresser Special fx

Liz Goulding

Robin Astley

Safety officer

Dorothy Godfrey

Tech, adviser

Ken Godfrey

Kevin Plummer First

Still photography Catering

Ken Mellors Drunken Admiral Restaurant

Art Department Art directors

Jo Howie

Australian Completion Bond Company

Craig Godfrey

Holding Redlich

Cast: Lorraine Merritt, Jon Sidney, Bill Pearson,

Mandy Walker

Vick Hawkins, Jacqueline Kelly, Pam John,

Legal services

Camera Crew Camera operator Key grip

Barry Hansen

Gareth John.

Gaffer

Ted Nordsvan

Synopsis: Upset by an unfaithful fiancé, Cassie

1st asst director Continuity Make-up Make-up asst Special fx supervisor

Credits Producer

Andrew Ganczarczyk Ben Gaughwin

Sound recordist

Andrew Ganczarczyk

Composer

David Kotlowy

Exec, producer Technical producer Camera

1 2 /4 /9 4 -2 5 /5 /9 4 Peter Oyston Bill Green David Bradshaw

Scriptwriter

Bill Green

Based on short story by

Bill Green Neville Stanley Nicholas Sherman Felipe Muraca

Editor

Paul Sinkovich

Composer

Felipe Muraca

Other Credits

Alan Bentley

Prod, manager

Ben Green

Clapper-loader

Cassandra Green

Andrew Ganczarczyk David Kotlowy

Music performed by

Sound recordist

Rod Larcombe Michael Warrell-Davies Andrew Ganczarczyk

Grip

Sabina Kennedy

Gaffer

Jack Bridson

Best person

Cassandra Luise

Cast: David Bradshaw, Jillian Murray, Ben Green,

Synopsis: An overview of the role and activities

Peter Oyston

of physiotherapists in a busy general hospital.

Synopsis: An investigative journalist attempting

Se e previous issu e for d e ta ils on: BOYS AND BALLS CONVICTIONS FLOOD - THE MANAGEABLE DISASTER THE SAFETY HABIT WAR OF DISTANCE Y O U , ME AND DIRETFE

accident is threatened. His relationships deterio

to expose the owners of chemicals involved in an

SH O RTS

rate under the power of his obsession.

S e e previous issu e for d e ta ils on: EXTREMES OF SORROW THE SEWING ROOM

A U STRA LIA N FILM TELEV ISIO N & RA D IO SC H O O L THE STRANGER

A HOPE IN HELL Prod, companies

Phil Jones

winter. Only an eccentric anthropologist and an

Annie Beresford

incestuous couple share the seclusion. Many

Amanda Rowbottom

murders later, Cassie is the target of a madman.

Pre-production

Only a mental asylum can save her, maybe.

Production

Zjelka Stanin

Productions

Michael Warrell-Davies

Director

Kinsella retreats to a deserted beach town. It is

Michael Bladon

20/3/94 - 2/4/94

DOPs

Ian Lang, Kerry Laws, Tim Aris, David Noonan,

On-set Crew

Flinders Media

Liz Goulding Craig Godfrey

Maurice Bums Michael Batchelor

Production

Producers

Flinders Medical Centre Dist. company

Editor Jo Howie

Special fx make-up

Jardines

Completion guarantor

Santo Fontana

Continuity

Nowhere to Hide

Flinders Media

Scriptwriter

Lloyd Carrick

John Flaus

PHYSIOTHERAPY AT FLINDERS Prod, companies

Leonie Godfrey

Insurer

NOWHERE TO HIDE Prod, company

Director Lorraine Merritt

Janis Lee

Maura Fay & Associates

and pathos of their day-to-day lives.

Principal Credits

Prod, designer

Casting

process, and we become involved in the drama

promptly as they would like.

Costume designer Script editor

ling group of people who are taking part in this

Cast: Adam McCulloch, Ernie Ellisson, Jean

sons why some patients are not attended to as

Tony Francis

Scott Goodman

Planning and Development

their feelings. W e meet a complex and compel

Ron McCullouch

Editor

Legal services

Editor

Andrew Ganczarczyk

at Flinders Medical Centre explaining the rea

Jim Barton

Sound recordist

Sound editor

David Kotlowy

George Goers

Sound recordist

Prod, secretary

Ellery Ryan

Music performed by

Synopsis: A day in the Emergency Department

Prod, manager

Tim Winton

where inmates are helped to come to grips with MichaelWarrell-Davies

Camera

Mark Tomlinson

DOP

Robert Le Tet

DOP

Synopsis: Within the hell of the prison system there is a small unit called the Special Care Unit

Dianne Spillane Chris Baggoly, Cheryl Beaumont.

Fred Schepisi

Written by

Frank Zotti Rod Larcombe

Exec, producer Technical producer

Terry Keegan, Adam Keegan, Dianne Birrell,

Dialogue coach

Based on the novel

AFC NSW FTO

Craig Godfrey

Planning and Development

John Ruane

Production

David Kotlowy

Mark Tomlinson

Peter Beilby

Scriptwriters

Andrew Ganczarczyk

Fraser, Emily Coombe Sharon Baulderstone,

John Ruane

Tim Bevan

Sound recordist Composer

Audio Edge

Government Agency Investment

Ellisson, Jodie Celeste, Andy McPhee, Suzie

Director

Exec, producers

David Geddes

Craig Godfrey

Composer

Grainne Marmion

Legal services

Craig Godfrey

Scriptwriter

Jim Blackfoot Toni Strachan

Director Co-producer

Michael Blanchino

Runner

Producer

Producer Co-producer

Other Credits Still photography

Greg Adey

Marketing CiBy Sales

Alastair Stevenson

Flinders Media

Prod, companies

AFC

Inti, sales agent

Composer

Dist companies

The Write-On Group

Prod, company

AFTRS

Emerald Films

Post-production

Jan - April 1994

AFI Distribution Discovery International

Post-production

6 /1 2 /9 3 -1 7 /1 2 /9 3 2 2 /1 2 /9 3 -4 /3 /9 4 7/3/94 - 9/6/94

Principal Credits Director

Jun Li

Producer

Nicki Roller

Scriptwriter

Robert Connelly

DOP

Moira Moss

Creativity, Judgement & Trust Essential ingredients to sound film investment Complete the picture... with Permanent Trustee FILM

For an initial discussion contact David Hepworth (02) 232 4400

TRUSTEESHIP

PERMANENT TRUSTEE COMPANY A.C.N. 000 000 993

CINEMA

LIMITED

PAPERS

9 9 . 89

Sound recordist

Southern Star

Michael Taylor

Editor

Susie Spittle

Prod, designer

Brett Chandler

Composer

Network dir. of prod.

Des Monaghan, ATN 7

Other Credits Financial controller

Peter Anderson,

Nicki Roller

Asst to Mr McElroy

Bronwen Stokes

Other Credits

Southern Star

Prod, co-ordinator

David Scandol

Network head of drama

Emma Palavs

Prod, runner

Kris Cawthom

Director of prod.

Focus puller

Emma Cooper

Prod, operations manager

1st asst director

Louise Home Drew Lean (HSV 7) Russell Gray (HSV 7)

Alex Morrison

2nd asst director

Louise Loomes

3rd asst director

Catriona McKenzie

Continuity

Technical liaison

Tim Coulson (HSV 7)

Scheduling supervisor

Peter Fleming (HSV 7)

Karin McEvoy

Boom operator

James McGinlay

Runner

James Neil

Standby wardrobe

Gwendolyn Stukely

Post-prod, co-ordinator Editing asst

Prod, manager

Jo Warren Denise Morgan

Cerexhe

Script editor

Denise Morgan

Police advisor

Michael Winter

Phil Judd

Film gauge

16mm

Prod, secretary

Cathie Simpson (Madam), William Gan (Man on

1st asst directors

Synopsis: Quite by chance, two old friends are

2nd asst director

ney, Australia. The moment of reunion they

Art directors

Jenny Carseldine (pilot) Phil Chambers (series)

share is clouded by memories and denial. Props buyers

Rolland Pike Michael Ackerly

Standby props

DOPs

Mai Hamilton Mike McKenzie

Sponsor

NSW Health Dept. - Public Affairs

Synopsis: Footage for news release and archi

Keryn Ribbands

Standby wardrobe

Alban Farrawell

Make-up artist

Simone Albert

TELEV ISIO N PRO D U CTIO N

Principal Credits

Steven Scoble Malcolm Daff

Technical director

Andrew Cutler

Jamie Crooks

Nicola Moors Linda Ray

Boom operator Make-up

Viv Mepham

Asst hairdresser Safety officer

Catering asst

Peter Scott

Art director

Jon Rohde

Props buyers

Kris Torma

Rohan

Safety supervisor Staging

Runner

Adam Slater

Standby wardrobe

Hughes

Construction Dept

Lindsay Pugh

Mary Christodoulou Amanda Sedawie

Construct, manager

Alan Fleming

Post-production Post-prod, supervisor

Stella Savvas

Asst, editor

Patrick Stewart

Sound editor

Penn Robinson

Sound post

Tracks Australia

Telecine transfer

Armourer

John Bromley

Cutting rooms

Frame Set & Match

Catering

Chery Kahler

On-line facilities

Frame Set & Match

Music supervisor

Christine Woodruff

Publicity

Victoria Buchan Susan Elizabeth Wood (HSV 7)

Flights & accommodation

Length

1 3 x 5 0 mins

Gauge

SP Betacam

Synopsis: An Aboriginal police liaison officer investigates the death of a girl at a small coastal Aboriginal community.

JANUS (series) Prod, company

ABC

Production

23/5/94 - 27/11/94

Directors

Michael Carson Kate Woods Julian McSwiney Amanada Smith

Producer

Bill Hughes

Exec, producer

Penny Chapman

Series concept

Alison Nisselle Tony McDonald

Scriptwriters

Deborah Parsons Deborah Cox Joanna Murray-Smith Susan Hore Cliff Green Alison Nisselle Graham Hartley Annie Beach Tony McDonald Michael Harvey John Cundill Graeme Koetsveld Jutta Goetze Barbara Bishop

Prod, designer

Sally Shepherd

Composer

T ravis Ackerly

Colin Forsythe

FFC ABC

Marcus Erasmus

Wardrobe Wardrobe asst

Jamie Leckie

Finance

Leanne Cornish Standby props

Malcolm

Tom Coltraine

Beyond Inti.

Glen Sommer

David Field

Grip

ABC

Dist. guarantee

Danny Baldwin

Studio rigger

Arch Roberts

Colin Rudder

Presale

Danny Baldwin

Studio technical asst

Peter Craig

Toni Higginbotham

Noreen Wilkie

Stunts co-ordinator

Art Department

Studio boom operators

Casting Art director

Viv Mepham

Peter Scott

Location boom operator

Wayne Henry

Noreen Wilkie

Ron Van Der Heyden

David Muir

Ro Hume

Prod, manager

Graham McKinney

Catering

Studio audio director

Script editor

Tom Read Margaret Wilson

Stephen Price

John

Marcus North

Nikki Long

Location gaffer

Osvaldo Civetta

Prod, designer

Kath Hayden

Jamie Campbell

Studio gaffers

Geoff Manus

Principal Credits

1st asst directors

Publicist

Videolab

Music editor

David Rae

Laboratory

Movielab

Stock

Kodak

Jet Aviation

Cast: Alex Dimitriades (Nick Poulos), Sarah

Cast: John Wood (Tom Croydon), Grant Bowler

Lambert (Christina Milano), Nico Lathouris

(W a y n e P a tte rs o n ), Ann B urbrook (R o z

(George Poulos), Doris Younane (Yola Futoush),

Patterson), Lisa McCune (Maggie Doyle), William

Scott M ajor (P eter Rivers), Hugh Baldwin

Mclnnes (Nick Schultz), Julie Nihill (Chris Riley),

(G raham

Martin Sacks (P. J. Hasham).

Salvatore Coco (Con Bordino), Corey Page

Synopsis: [No further details supplied.]

(Steve Wiley), Abi T ucker (Jody Cooper), Stephen

Gannon Television

Principal Credits Michael Jenkins Graham Thorbum

Paul Moloney

Ian Gilmour Shirley Barrett

Julian McSwiney

Andrew Prouse

Robert Bruning Hal McElroy John Hugginson Errol Sullivan,

PAPERS

On-set Crew

Frank Racina

Judith John-Story Supervising producer

90 . C I N E M A

Andrew Smith

Lighting director

Directors

Managing director

Best boy

Hairdresser

Gary Conway

Assoc, producer

Tom Moody

Deborah Lester

Prod, company

Southern Star

Exec, producer

Robert Kerr

Gaffer

Hairdresser Cameraman

John Cundill DOP

Ian Freeman

Make-up asst

Senior cameraman

Nicholas Parsons

Brown), P eta Toppano (S tella),

Paul Grabowsky

Other Credits Lighting directors

Producer Exec, producer Line producer DOP Sound recordist

Ben Gannon Michael Jenkins Stephen Jones Ron Hagen Don Connolly

Clive Sell Graeme Brumley

Story editors

Tony McDonald Alison Nisselle

Prod, manager

Lorraine Alexander

Script editor

Jutta Goetze

Casting

Cameron Harris

Length

26 x 50 mins

Gauge

SP Betacam Synopsis: Janus is a story of justice, and the corruption of justice. It is about lawyers, judges, magistrates and police who work with a very imperfect system, about those who know it is time for change, those who will resist and those who will lead.

LIFT OFF 2 Prod, company

A CTF Principal Credits

Series director Directors

Brendan Maher Paul Nichola Ray Boseley

O ’Rourke (Jim Deloraine), Jan Adele (Ruby St.

BLUE HEELERS (series)

Directors

Sammies

Key grip

Deborah Lester

HEARTBREAK HIGH Prod, company

Michele Duval

Grip

Make-up

Background Action

Se e p revious issu e for d e ta ils on: CONSTRUCTIVE REFORM THE HUMAN FACTOR MOMENTS OF CHOICE PRE-DRIVER TRAINING WETLANDS PROMO W OMEN’S HEALTH

Gary Bottomley

Equipment

Continuity

Make-up/wardrobe bus

val purposes.

Focus puller

Valerie Nelson

Wardrobe supervisor

Bob M aza Kristen Dunphy

Cast: Ernie Dingo.

Clapper-loader

Wardrobe manager

Stunts co-ord.

Streamline

Rob Brown Simon Klaebe

Script assistant

Julian Glavacich

FUNDS BO O ST - NEWS/ARCHIVAL

Prod, runners

3rd asst director

added.

Prod, company

Heyden

Shane Warren

Synopsis: Compilation of existing footage for B ook Launch, plus studio camera shots to be

Rosa Del Ponte

Unit manager

Schmidt

Streamline

Prod, secretary

2nd asst director

Location technical asst

NSW Health Dept.

Christina Van Der

John Greene

Wilkinson

Prod, company

Debbie Atkins

Producer’s asst

Simon McCutcheon

Location manager

Location sound director

Sponsor

Prod, co-ordinator

Tim Disney

Set dresser

Susan MacGillicuddy

Other credits

Camera Crew

Paul Kiely

B O O K LAUNCH

Steve Darby

Production Crew

Mandy Carter

Michael Bridges

NSW FILM & TELEV ISIO N O FFICE

Soccer coach

Travel Too

Prod, designer

S e e previous issu es for d e ta ils on: AERO PLANE DANCE AUSTRALIAN BIOGRAPHY III COMEDY (Working title ) DREAM HOUSE FLOWERS AND THE WIDE SEA THE FORGOTTEN FORCE THE GADFLY G O R G EO U S MUTTABURRASAURUS THE PRAM FACTORY WILDLIFE CRIMINALS

Joan Thompson

Miranda Kelly

Director’s asst

FILM A U STR A LIA

Casting assistant

Accounts asst

brought together in a foreign land. Long and Lin,

Scriptwriters

Sandra McKenzie

Travel co-ord.

Serge Adimari

Bruce Best

Pirn Hendrix

Casting

Helen Boicovitis

professional dancers in China, now live in Syd

S e e previous issu es for d e ta ils on: A KITCHEN APPLIANCE NIGHTWORK A TIME FOR ETERNITY

Attach script editor

Anissa McCarthy

Ian Kenny

Phaedon Vass

Lisa Hoppe

Rick Komaat

David Clarke

Assoc, producer

Anne Brooksbank

Cynthia Kelly

Train), Wang Handong (Man in Brothel).

Bruce Best Penny Chapman

Chris Roache

Trainee script editor

Unit manager

Faith Martin

Casting assistant Prod, accountant

Todd Hunter

Planning and Development

Prod, accountant

Casting director

Cast: Xiao-Xiong Zhang (Long), Vina Lee (Lin),

Composer

Pam Tummel

Prod, co-ord. Story editor

Peter O ’Brien

Mixer

Mark Chambers (HSV 7)

Carloyn Jane Schneider

Sound editor

Studio operations

Producer Exec, producers

Nick Holmes Denise Haratazis

Script editor

development

Unit manager

Murray Picknett Christiana Plitzco

Editors

Xiao Yuan Zhou

Prod, manager

Prod, designer Costume supervisor

Cameron Clarke

John), Elly Varrenti (Ireni Poulos), Isabella

Producer

Gutierrez (Chaka Cardenes), Nicholas Garsden

Co-producer

(Marco Rossi), Katherine Halliday (Rosa Malouf),

Line producer

Tai Nguyen (Jack), Despina Caldis (Effie Poulos),

Scriptwriters

Emma Roach (Danielle Miller).

Dr Patricia Edgar; Susie Campbell Sandra Alexander Ray Boseley Christine Madafferi

Synopsis: Television spin-off from the feature

Cam erati Clarke

film The H eartbreak Kid.

Sue Edgar Sue Hore

HEARTLAND (m ini-series) Prod, company

Northway Productions

Principal Credits Directors

Penny Robenstone-Harris DOP Prod, designer

Julian Pringle Scott Hartford-Davis

Costume designer Editor

Craig Barden Tel Stolfo Rose Chong Edward McQueen-Mason

Composer

Chris Neai

Planning and Development Researchers

Julie Turner Camilla Gold

Story & script editors

Chris Anastassiades Robert Greenberg

Casting

Liz Mullinar Casting

Production Crew Prod, manager

Ray Hennessy

Segment unit prod, mgr

Deborah Samuels

Prod, co-ord. Segment unit co-ord.

Susie Wright Julian Dimsey

Visual effects co-ord.

Julian Dimsey

ABC prod, manager

Mervyn Magee

ABC prod, co-ord.

Lee-anne Jones

Prod, secretary

Robin Astley

Producer’s secretary

Jan Challenor

Receptionist

Jan Challenor

Location manager

John Brousek

Prod, runner

Michael Agnew

Prod, accountant

Sophie Siomos

Completion guarantors

Film Finances

Guarantor rep.

Ann Darrouzet

HOT ON THE H E E L S OF OUR 2 0 th A N N I V E R S A R Y C O M E S OUR

On-set Crew 1st asst directors

Phil Jones Stuart Wood

Art Department Art designer

Bernie Wynack

ABC asst designer Props buyer Art dept secretary

Dale Mark Marian Murray Samantha Eddey

Puppet doctor

Hamish Hicks

Puppet designer

Terry Denton

Puppet maker Special fx designer

Rob Matson Michael Bladen

Post-production Supervising editor

Ralph Strasser AAV

Video facilities Musical director

Other Credits Producers’s asst

David Cheshire

(Wakadoo Studio) Katrina Mathers

Technical producer Lighting director

Julie Peters Mike Bramley

Lighting console operator Lighting assistant

Eric Burt Andrew Jepson Gary Schultz

Audio operator Vision operators

John Parker (WK7) Pat Njorth (WK9) Greg Wilden

Senior camera

Joe Murray

Vision mixer Cam era operators

Soner Tunchay Andrew Schmidt

Sound assistants

Peter Bradley Ernie Everitt

Asst grips

Kelly Simpson Lisa Burridge

Setting crew staging

Darko Hribernik Alf Camilleri Bill Whiteside

Asst designer

Peter De Jong

Staging assistant

John Lambert

Videotape operator

ISSUE

Sue Woods

Cast: [No further details supplied.] Synopsis: [No further details supplied.]

TELEV ISIO N PO ST-PRO D U C TIO N S e e previo us issu e for d e ta ils on: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF BLINKY BILL PARADISE BEACH SHIP TO SHORE (se ries) STARS (se ries p ilo t)

OUT IN

JULY

D O N ’ T M I S S IT!

Creativity, Judgement & Trust Essential ingredients to sound film investment Complete the picture... with Permanent Trustee FILM

For an initial discussion contact David Hepworth (02) 232 4400

TRUSTEESHIP

PERMANENT TRUSTEE COHPANY A.C.N. 000 000 99}

CINEMA

LIHITED

PAPERS

9 9 • 91

Eight

C r i t i c s ’ Best

and

Worst

EIDETIC EIGHT A PANEL OF EIGHT FILM REVIEWERS HAS RATED A SELECTION OF THE LATEST RELEASES ON A SCALE OF 0 TO 10, THE LATTER BEING THE OPTIMUM RATING (A DASH MEANS NOT SEEN). THE CRITICS ARE: BILL COLLINS (NETWORK 10; DAILY MIRROR, SYDNEY); SANDRA HALL (THE BULLETIN); PAUL HARRIS (“EG”, THE AGE; 3RRR); IVAN HUTCHINSON (SEVEN NETWORK; HERALD-SUN); STAN JAMES (THE ADELAIDE

FILM TITLE D ire c to r

BILL COLLINS

SANDRA HALL

PAUL HARRIS

IVAN HUTCHINSON

: STAN JAMES

TOM RYAN

DAVID STRATTON

EVAN WILLIAMS

AVERACE

ADVERTISER); TOM RYAN (THE SUNDAY AGE); DAVID STRATTON (VARIETY; SBS); AND EVAN WILLIAMS (THE AUSTRALIAN).

THE ARISTOCATS W o lg a n g R e it h e r m a n

—

6.3

BACKBEAT I a i n S o fle y

—

5.8

8 '

7 .7

BAWANG B IE JI (Farewell My Concubine) C h e n K a ig e BLACK RIVER K é v in L u c a s

—

UN COEUR EN HIVER (Heart in W inter) C la u d e S a u te t

—

7 .7

LA CORSA DELL’INNOCENTE (Flight of the Innocent) C a r lo C a r le i

—

THE CUSTODIAN J o h n D in g w e ll

—

4 .7

LA DOMENICA SPECIALMENTE (Especially on Sunday) G iu s e p p e T o r n a t o r e

—

4 .8

L’ELEGANT C RIM INEL (The Elegant Criminal) F r a n c is G ir o u d

—

5 .3

tH E FENCING MASTER P e d ro O le o a

—

HORS LA VIE M a r o u n B a g d a d i

—

7.5

INTERSECTION M a r k R y d e l l

—

3.8

IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER J i m S h e r i d a n

—

7 .7

LIGHTNING JACK S i m o n W i n c e r

3.6

M . BUTTERFLY D a v i d C r o n e n b e r g

—

4s8

M Ù I DU DU XANH (The Scent of the Green Papaya) T r a r i A n h H u n g

—

6.8

MY GIRL H o w a r d Z i e f f

—

3.8

NAKED GUN 3 3 1 / 3 : THE FINAL INSULT P e t e r S e g ai

—

5 .3

THE PELICAN BRIEF A l a n J . P a k u l a

—

5 .9

PHILADELPHIA J o n a t h a n D e m m e

6.9

POLICE RESCUE: THE MOVIE M i c h a e l C a r s o n

—

1.6

RAPA NUI K e v i n C o s t n e r

—

3.5

SHORT CUTS R o b e r t A l t m a n

—

8.7

SIRENS J o h n D u i g a n

—

TROIS COULEURS: BLEU (Three Colours: Blue) K r z y s z t o f K i e s l o w s k i

—

8.2

VISIO N S OF LIGHT: THE ART OF CINEMATOGRAPHY T o d d M c C a t h y

—

7.6

92 . C I N E M A

PAPERS

4 .3

Australian Films The Australian Film Commission is proud to be involved with the development and production of Australian films and to promote Australian filmmakers to international audiences.

A t Cannes the A FC provides catalogues and screening schedules for Australian films and information on the Australian industry.

Australian Film Commission at Cannes

Carlton Hotel, Ground Floor, Desk PB 0 8 or

Australian Sales Office 8th Floor, Residence du Festival, 52 La Croisette Telephone: 92 98 12 80

AUSTRALIAN FILM COMMISSION SYDNEY

â&#x20AC;˘

LONDON

â&#x20AC;˘

MELBOURNE

Find out why so many film editors are using our Emmy Award winning system. Congratulations to Frameworks, Kennedy Miller and Mike Reed Post Production for using the Avid Film Composer to edit Heartbreak High, The Babe and numerous commercials. Over 50 features have been cut on the Film Composer, the only non-linear system that edits in native 24 FPS mode and outputs a frame accurate cut and optical lists. And it’s from Avid - the company that’s already proven in over 3,500 film and video installations worldwide and in over 100 installations in Australia and New Zealand.

Mfk M

For more information, fax our Asia/ Pacific Régional office at 813-3505-7938

® ATAS/NATAS

V •

i . i)