Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2019 – American Mirror: Intimations of Immortality
On our Instagram or Facebook pages, we show only the best part of ourselves, the "beautiful" part of our lives. We hide in this fake. We are so immersed in the process of creating our ideal virtual personality that we forget about real life. We forget the simple truth that beauty is inside.
Interview with Director Arthur Balder
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Art, and also beauty, are very complex concepts, and I've been one way or other involved with art at different moments of my life. I wanted to try to make a film on the unconscious forces that motivate art and an artist, and how the sequences of life are connected to it while memory plays an active role in someone's consciousness.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
I don't know if you 'should' watch it, but I'd rather invite you to do so because it's quite different from what we can call the mainstream documentary filmmaking. I am always looking for films that are different, so I tried to do something different, and perhaps I'd invite the audience to do so, to move out of the 'safe zone' as viewers as I explore the possibilities out of the 'safe zone' as a filmmaker. When we get what we expect, the level of satisfaction is lower.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The universal idea of 'what is beauty?' is a very powerful one, because this is a concept that has changed over thousands of years. Nowadays, beauty has been assailed by a number of stereotypes. People have problems 'aging' because society tends to be obsessed with 'youth'. Moreover, there is a tendency to pursue a perfect image of the self and to project it on social media, and I think that limits the concept of 'happiness' because there is a tendency to equalize the wrong concepts. These conflicts come together when the artist tries to find the true beauty that he pretends to capture.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
You have to adapt to what you have, but it is also possible always to find a way to come back to the original idea. I was able to retain the idea and to amplify some aspects.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
You always get very different ideas, when hundreds of persons watch your film it is interesting to see, as some of them talk to you, how different ideas pop up in their minds. I always like it.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Yes, many times, it's even a way to find new ideas for the future.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
If someone finds it interesting and can watch the film later, that's all in all for me.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Everybody is always welcome. Being a filmmaker is something very complex, help is always welcome onboard from any side.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Like any other author, we always wish for the best.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Can beauty grow as we get older, instead of decline as it is socially assumed?
Would you like to add anything else?
Thank you for the invitation.
Interview: May 2019
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
American Mirror: Intimations of Immortality
On our Instagram or Facebook pages, we show only the best part of ourselves, the "beautiful" part of our lives. We hide in this fake. We are so immersed in the process of creating our ideal virtual personality that we forget about real life. We forget the simple truth that beauty is inside.
Length: 1:02:00
Director: Arthur Balder
Producer: Arthur Balder, David Shara
Writer: Arthur Balder
Key cast: Susan Sanrandon, Tigran Tsitoghdzyan, Florence Faivre
Twitter: @MeatpackingProd
Website: tigransmovie.com
Other: IMDb
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Ramsgate International Film Festival, UK, 16th June, 18:00; Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, at Cinema Nova, July 27, 2019 11:00 pm