Fem.Cine.Anarchy 2019 – Spaced
The wager’s conclusion at the bar drastically changes the ordinary life of selfish and egocentric Maria. Has someone settled in it? Or is it just a modern woman’s fear of a huge responsibility? After all, nowadays she has to look at the world not only with her own eyes.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Diana Belova
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I wanted to speak out about an issue that is rarely addressed, to display the emotional turmoil of a woman facing the unknown.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
In my art, I break down stereotypes, illusions, and traditional attitudes. On the one hand, it’s a painful and laborious process. On the other, it enables us to envision everyday situations from a different perspective, to get outside of the box.
The film presents an idle woman who is struggling to accept her accidental pregnancy, to embrace a new social role, and to take responsibility for another person. The heroine feels as though she were possessed by an alien who makes her do strange things… Although what if children really did come from outer space? :)
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
This story happened to me 14 years ago. I was only 19 then. I remember how I couldn’t believe that I was pregnant, how my views on life, habits, tastes were transforming, how many of my friends turned their backs on me and how their parents forbade them to be friends with me.
What I got instead was my love for my baby, who, as a cosmic force, helped me grow up and see the world with new eyes. That's where my personal experience comes into it.
With regards to the universal aspect of my film, some women face accidental pregnancy and some are in their 40 and have to decide whether to have kids or not. The latter is of particular interest in Russia. In our country, many women decide to have a baby only because they believe that after 40 getting pregnant becomes very unlikely or because their parents ask them for grandchildren. But even in their forties, they are just not ready to have children or they have no desire to have them at all. In these situations especially, motherhood creates a huge change in women's lives.
The other universal theme is my attempt to deconstruct the myth of the mild, domestic mother-to-be.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
This is a very fascinating story. My crew and I decided to take part in the competition A Film in 48 Hours. So, we got a brief and a 48-hour time limit. I wrote a script in three hours and sent it to the crew for a read-through, during which they changed practically everything. We were discussing it until 5 a.m. when I finally turned my Skype off to have a nap for a couple of hours. When I woke up I realized what problem was bothering me and wrote a completely different script. In the morning of the shooting day that was quite a surprise for my crew. That’s how our first 5-minute film was made. But I wasn’t satisfied and after a while, I decided to remake it and shoot the second part. By that time, I had already had a perfect idea of what I wanted to say and what metaphors I was going to use. Luckily, the characters and both artistic and sound solutions meshed so well with the script that outcome turned out to be surprisingly vivid and unusual.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Practically no one has seen the film yet. We had a preview for a small group, and everyone was asking how we had shot outer space. I had filmed that scene with our composer, but we decided to keep our tricks in secret for now.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I actually can’t wait for more feedback. It’s particularly interesting how the film will be understood by the audience from different countries.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I would like to tell about our project to more people. Maybe, the film will pique somebody’s interest, or it will even help to form new creative cooperation for other projects.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I’d hope to get on board all of them:)
I’m eager to cooperate because naturally, I would like my film to be seen by as many people as it’s possible.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would like viewers to look at themselves from the outside and ruminate how firmly people sometimes stick to their beliefs and attitudes, how it is difficult for them to accept changes in themselves and to see something new in others. And I also want them to think about what happens with a woman who is going to become a mother.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Do aliens exist? :)
Would you like to add anything else?
I would like to thank my crew. Everyone contributed to this project and made it much richer.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I’m working on the film Arriving Now at the moment. It is a thriller comedy about the stupidity of nationalism and nonsensical stereotypes about immigrants told through a story about a taxi driver from Uzbekistan and his passengers. I have also the film I-DEAL in pre-production process which is about false ideals in our relationships that are imposed by the media on us.
Interview: September 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
Spaced
The wager’s conclusion at the bar drastically changes the ordinary life of selfish and egocentric Maria. Has someone settled in it? Or is it just a modern woman’s fear of a huge responsibility? After all, nowadays she has to look at the world not only with her own eyes.
Length: 12:12
Director: Diana Belova
Producer: Diana Belova
Writer: Diana Belova
About the writer, director and producer:
In her work, DIANA BELOVA reflects on psychological problems, ironically showing stereotypes, illusions and social attitudes of individuals and society as a whole. She has completed a specialization in film and electronic arts and psychology at Saint-Petersburg State University. Diana is also the author of the book “Evolution of Female image in Italian cinema”, Aletea, St. Petersburg, 2018 ISBN 978-5-906910-82-0
Key cast: Alyona Vartomo (Maria), Roman Danilychev (Alien)
Looking for: sales agents, journalists, film festival directors, producers, distributors, buyers
Facebook: Diana Bellova
Instagram: @dianabellova
Website: www.dianabella.com
Other: IMDb
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Fem.Cine.Anarchy 2019/Portland - 19.09.2019