HollyShorts / New Renaissance Film Festival 2018 - UB-13
Following a misjudgement by its ambitious young captain, a German WWI U-boat is forced to wait for a prolonged period on the bottom of the North Sea, facing the threat of enemy torpedo ships. This will cause unprecedented physical and mental challenges for captain and crew.
Interview with Writer/Director Juri Ferri
Watch UB-13 here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
The idea for the film came from an image: a photo of the interior of a WWI German U-boat. It certainly looked like a very dangerous place, almost from a different world. It is only afterwards that I read more into WWI submarines, a somehow neglected part of the Great War, and about the dangers of working on these small and claustrophobic vessels. In fact, one third of all those who served on board German submarines died in action over the course of the war, a much higher percentage than any other front!
One of these stories caught my attention and was the main inspiration for this film: the story of how the submarine UB-13 had to wait on the bottom of the North Sea for three days and three nights, while normally they would not stay in immersion for more than a few hours. I wanted to explore what would happen to a group of men, to their bodies and minds, when put in a stressful situation like this, and especially how those in charge would react to being responsible for other people’s lives.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It’s an unusual-looking film, shot in black-and-white, and it's first and foremost a gripping emotional experience. On the one hand it sheds some light on an aspect of WWI that is normally ignored – submarine warfare – but on the other hand it also deals with some timeless human themes: what is a good leader? What should their priority be, personal success or safeguarding the group? What is the best attitude for a leader in time of danger?
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The film explores two very different kinds of leadership: Metz, the submarine’s captain, prioritizes his personal ambition of becoming a war hero and is capable of winding up the crew to take part in that. Nierlich, the second in command, on the other hand, focuses his leadership a lot more on empathy and service, and prioritizes the crew’s safety and well-being before anything else. While the film puts these two characters in a particularly difficult and dangerous situation, these are also themes that apply to many aspects of life in which leadership is required, and not only in war.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
At first, I wanted to make the internal journey of Metz a lot subtler. He would have changed by experiencing the pain of the crew around him, but would not have suffered much himself. It was only after a while that I realised that if I wanted to make a point about him, I had to make it clearly: the main character was the one who had to suffer the most in order to learn something useful from his mistakes. Quite interestingly, though, the very end of the film, the final image, remained roughly the same from the very first draft onward.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Most people have commented positively about the production design: the control room was a set we built in just three days! I think we managed very well to recreate the sense of claustrophobia of a real submarine. In general, everyone seemed quite impressed with what we managed to accomplish given the limitations we had in time and budget, considering this was also a student film.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
It was certainly interesting to see that, since this film is certainly a lot more ambitious that I had ever been before, the level of the critique was also at a higher standard. Being the first film of this level that I made, it was interesting to see that people were expecting more from it and from me. It meant that I am growing as a filmmaker and that I can aim at being even more ambitious in future projects.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
Ultimately, we don’t make films to hide them away: we make them because we want as many people as possible to watch them and be touched by the stories we create. So, the more visibility the film gets, and the more people I am able to reach, the more I will feel that I have made this for a purpose!
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
As I said, I would like to reach as many people as possible, so anyone who can help make the film more visible is definitely welcome on board: distributors, festival directors, journalist, and so on.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would like the audience to feel like they are watching a compelling story, getting absorbed into the world of the film for 12 minutes. I also hope it can touch them on an emotional level. Next to that, I hope the audience would be more mindful of submarine warfare in WWI, and to open up the possibility of telling other stories of WWI U-boats in film.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What does it mean to be a good leader? This is definitely the key dilemma that Metz is subconsciously facing throughout the film, and that is also a question that I hope the audience will think after watching it.
Would you like to add anything else?
One of the best parts of working on UB-13 was being able to shoot on 35mm film. It would definitely not have looked the same if we had gone down the digital route: the film look was just perfect for this story. I hope that film will continue to be one of the aesthetic choices available for filmmakers in the future! I am for sure looking forward to shooting on analogue film again soon.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am about to start pre-production for my next film: it will be a WW2 film based on a real story, handed down through my family. Yes, it will be another war film, but while it will share certain themes with UB-13, it will look very different. It will be the internal journey of a single soldier against the backdrop of the German invasion of the Netherlands.
Interview: August 2018
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UB-13
Following a misjudgement by its ambitious young captain, a German WWI U-boat is forced to wait for a prolonged period on the bottom of the North Sea, facing the threat of enemy torpedo ships. This will cause unprecedented physical and mental challenges for captain and crew.
Length: 12:31
Writer/Director: Juri Ferri
Producer: Titto Téllez
About the writer, director and producer:
JURI FERRI is an Italian filmmaker currently studying at the London Film School. Born and raised in Bergamo, Italy, he previously lived in the Netherlands and is now based in London.
TITTO TÉLLEZ is a Colombian filmmaker. After completing a Master’s degree at the London Film School, he returned to Colombia seeking new opportunities in his country.
Key cast: Daniel Anderson, Atilla Akinci, Michael Wagner, Simon Stache, Paul Vitty, Josh Leese
Looking for: distributors, film festival directors, journalists.
Facebook: UB-13 Film
Funders: London Film School
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month: HollyShorts Film Festival (Hollywood, CA), on 13th August, and New Renaissance Film Festival (London, UK), on 24th August.