Persverklaring ‒ Silwerskermfees 2024 kollig
Shotgun-kortfilm: In die verloop van
’n Groot verlies en die impak daarvan op twee mense se verhouding, is die spilpunt waarom Emma Kotze en Philip Rademeyer se kortfliek, In die verloop van, wentel.
Ná ’n moeilike aand word Jana (Kotze) en Chris (Wilhelm van der Walt) wakker; elkeen vasgevang in hul eie gedagtes. Iets swaar en onuitgesproke lê tussen hulle. Soos hulle deur hul oggendroetine gaan, word die vorige aand se gebeure geleidelik onthul.
Emma en Philip het saam die storie en konsep ontwikkel en Philip het die draaiboek geskryf. Hy was ook verantwoordelik vir die regie van dié intieme blik op hoe die lewe, te midde van tragedie, pyn én vreugde onverpoos voortgaan. Hulle het ’n paar vrae oor die fliek beantwoord.
Philip, In die verloop van is in die nuwe Shotgun Shorts-afdeling – waarom maak dié afdeling jou opgewonde?
Dis ’n uitstekende inisiatief. Die kortfilm-kategorie is gewoonlik vir nuwe en opkomende rolprentmakers, maar Shotgun Shorts bied meer gevestigde skeppers die geleentheid om ’n kortfliek te maak. Deel van die opdrag van hierdie kategorie was om jouself op kreatiewe vlak uit te daag, en dit het dus vir skrywers en regisseurs die geleentheid gebied om dinge te probeer wat hulle dalk nie andersins sou nie.
Emma, buiten dat jy ’n teater- en filmaktrise is, was jy ook betrokke by die draaiboek. Waarom geniet jy dié deel van die kreatiewe proses?
Vir my is storievertel in die teater en op film die dryfveer agter my werk. Dis ’n ongelooflike voorreg om stories te vertel en mense in die proses op reis te kan neem. Dit is hoekom dit lekker is om ook agter die skerms te werk, omdat jy meer beheer het wat die narratief betref.
Wat het aanleiding gegee dat julle juis dié verhaal, oor Jana en Chris, wou vertel?
Emma: Die eerste bepalende faktor was dat dit ’n kortfliek is. Ons het baie navorsing gedoen oor wat hierdie flieks laat werk en dit sluit ’n spanningslyn in wat vir slegs tien tot twintig minute aaneengestring moet word, én ’n onthulling.
Die storie het ontstaan toe ons begin praat het oor die alledaagsheid van verlies. Die titel sinspeel op die krasheid en brutaliteit van die feit dat die lewe net aangaan, maak nie saak wat gebeur nie. Ons het besluit om in te zoem op hoe erg basiese, alledaagse aktiwiteite kan wees en dat ’n mens nie daarvan kan ontsnap nie. As skrywers moes ons die storie eerlik hou, want dis onmoontlik om te sê dat almal dieselfde tipe situasie op dieselfde manier sal ervaar.
Philip: Die onderwerp van die fliek is nie iets waaroor daar baie of maklik gepraat word nie – in ons navorsing en onder ons eie vriende het ons gevind daar is ’n tipe geheimhouding daaroor, of dit nou uit ’n gevoel van verlies van privaatheid, skuld of skaamte kom. Dit was ook van die begin af belangrik om die storie oor die vrou én die man te maak, want alhoewel die gebeure mans en vroue op verskillende wyse beïnvloed, word beide daardeur geraak.
Julle twee het al gereeld voorheen saamgewerk. Waarom werk jul kreatiewe vennootskap so goed?
Philip: Ek en Emma ken mekaar al lank, van universiteitsdae af. Ons is nie net kollegas nie, ons het ook ’n hegte vriendskap. Dié vriendskap help wanneer ons saamwerk, omdat ons begrip het van mekaar as ménse, en nie net as akteur/skrywer/regisseur nie. Ons kan baie lekker idees uitruil, en op mekaar se idees bou, omdat ons gemaklik is met mekaar en ook omdat ons mekaar se professionele insigte respekteer.
Verder het ons dieselfde aanvoeling wanneer dit by kreatiewe werk kom, so ons was van die begin af op dieselfde bladsy in terme van die storie en hoe ons wou hê dit moet lyk en voel.
Emma: Ek hou baie van konsepskryf en storieontwikkeling, terwyl Philip gesout is met dialoog en karakterbou. Ons fliek het min teks, maar wanneer daar wel iets gesê word, vang hy dit só goed was. As regisseur laat Philip my altyd net terugkom vir nog! Hy het ’n duidelike visie, maar hy laat akteurs toe om op hul eie manier uit te kom by die plek waar hy hulle wil hê. Hy pak die proses met emosionele intelligensie aan.
Philip, die storie van In die verloop van is gelaai met onuitgesproke emosie. Watter uitdagings en moontlikhede bied die genre van kortflieks vir jou as skrywer en rolprentmaker?
Die grootste uitdaging van ’n kortfilm is ook dié element wat dit werklik kragtig kan maak – om binne ’n baie kort tydperk ’n storie te vertel en kykers iets te laat voel. Jy het nie 90 of 120 minute om ’n gekompliseerde verhaal te vertel of om jou karakters en wêreld uit te bou nie.
Die uitdaging met hierdie fliek is dat ons die karakters tydens ’n tragedie wat hul verhouding beproef, ontmoet. So die draaiboek, regie, spel, ontwerp en kamerawerk moet van die eerste oomblik af daardie emosioneel gelade wêreld vasvang.
Film is ’n visuele medium, so as skrywer wou ek myself uitdaag om so min as moontlik dialoog te gebruik. In my teaterwerk praat die karakters báie, so ek wou hier iets anders probeer en ’n spesifieke gevoel effektief weergee.
Philip, vertel asseblief van jou ervaring op stel en van Emma en Wilhelm in die hoofrolle?
Ek het al verskeie kere met Emma én Wilhelm gewerk. Ons verstaan mekaar, ons praat dieselfde taal wanneer dit by kreatiewe werk kom, en ons het al ’n shorthand ontwikkel – as ek tussen takes terugvoer gee, kan ek een woord vir hulle sê en hulle weet wat ek daarmee bedoel. Hulle is beide ongelooflike spelers – hulle verstaan subtiele emosie en weet hoe om met ’n kamera te speel.
Emma, wat was jou aanslag as speler om Jana se ervaring van verlies oor te dra?
Die gebeurtenis waarom die fliek wentel is vreeslik sensitief. Vir my was die grootste uitdaging om ’n rouheid oor te dra. Ek het persoonlik nog nie beleef wat met Jana gebeur het nie, maar ek hét al baie verliese ervaar, en dit was my aanknopingspunt.
Klank en kleur vervul belangrike funksies in die fliek. Het julle reeds tydens die skryfproses op dié strategie besluit?
Emma: Die fliek maak baie sterk op die visuele staat, meer as enigiets anders. Om mense se aandag te behou met ’n redelik eenvoudige konsep, moes ons baie aandag aan die visuele elemente skenk. Kleur weerspieël deur die loop van die fliek ’n spesifieke gevoel.
Die klank het later ontwikkel, al was ons van die begin af oortuig daar sou nie ’n klankbaan wees nie. Die vergroting van alledaagse klanke het natuurlik gekom en versterk die konsep waarmee ons speel: daai onafwendbaarheid van die broodrooster se klank; van die motorhuis se deur wat oopgaan. Die tegniese span was ongelooflik: Meekaaeel Adam is die fantastiese kinematograaf; Matthew Swanepoel het die redigering behartig en John Claassen was verantwoordelik vir die klank terwyl ons geskiet het, terwyl die na-produksie klankontwerp en -meng deur Pressure Cooker Studios gedoen is.
Press release ‒ Silwerskermfees 2024 spotlight
Shotgun short film: In die verloop van
The impact of a terrible loss on the relationship between two people is the theme of In die verloop van, a short film by Emma Kotze and Philip Rademeyer.
After a dramatic evening, Jana (Kotze) and Chris (Wilhelm van der Walt) face a new day, each occupied by their own thoughts. Something serious and unspoken hangs in the air between them. As they follow their morning routine, the events of the previous night are gradually revealed.
Emma and Philip developed the story and concept together, and Philip wrote the screenplay. He also directed the film with its intimate exploration of how life proceeds unabatedly, despite tragedy, pain and joy. They answered some questions about the film.
Philip, In die verloop van is included in the Shotgun Shorts section of the Silwerskerm Festival. What excites you about this category?
It is an excellent initiative. The short film category is usually reserved for new and emerging filmmakers, but Shotgun Shorts also offers established artists an opportunity to make short films. Part of the brief of this category was to challenge yourself creatively, therefore offering writers and directors a chance to try out things they perhaps wouldn’t have otherwise.
Emma, in addition to being a theatre and film actress, you also had a hand in this film’s screenplay. Why do you enjoy this aspect of the creative process?
Storytelling for theatre and film is the greatest motivation for my work. It is an incredible privilege to tell stories and, in the process, take people along on a journey. That is also why I enjoy working behind the scenes, because I can have more control of the narrative.
Why did you want to tell this particular story of Jana and Chris?
Emma: The short film format was the first determinative factor. We researched the reasons for the success of these films extensively, and the answers include threading a line of tension in only ten to twenty minutes, followed by an exposé.
The story came to us when we had a conversation about how mundane loss really is. The title engages with the brashness and brutality of the fact that life merely goes on, no matter what happens. We decided to zoom in on how difficult basic, everyday activities can be, and how we are unable to escape it. As the writers, we had to keep the narrative honest, because it is impossible to assume that everybody will experience similar situations in the same way.
Philip: The film’s topic is something that people are hesitant to discuss. During our research and from what our friends say, we found a general tendency to conceal the subject matter, be it for reasons of guilt or shame, or out of fear to lose your privacy. From the start, it was also important to include both the woman and the man in the story, because both are affected by the events, even if it influences them in different ways.
You two have collaborated regularly in the past. Why is your creative partnership so successful?
Philip: Emma and I have known each other for a long time, since our varsity days. We are not colleagues only; we are also good friends. The friendship is an asset when we work together, because we understand each other as human beings, and not only as actor/writer/director. We love exchanging ideas and to build on each other’s ideas, because we are relaxed with each other, and we respect each other’s professional insights.
Our creative intuition is also very similar, we were therefore always on the same page in terms of the story and how we envisioned its look and feel.
Emma: I really enjoy writing concepts and developing stories, while Philip is an expert in dialogue and character development. There is little dialogue in our movie, but whenever something needs to be said, Philip captures it perfectly. As a director, Philip allows me to always come back for more! He has a clear vision, but he allows actors to reach the point where he wants them to be, in their own way. He approached the process with emotional intelligence.
Philip, the story of In die verloop van is rich in expressing emotion without it being verbalised. What challenges and opportunities did you experience as a writer and filmmaker with this genre?
The biggest challenge of a short film happens to be the element that can make the movie really powerful – to tell a story that touches the heart of the viewer within a short time. You don’t have 90 or 120 minutes to present a complicated narrative or to build your characters and their world with expansive detail.
The challenge with this movie is that we meet the characters at a time they are experiencing a tragedy that puts their relationship to the test. So, the screenplay, direction, acting, design and camera work must capture that emotionally charged world accurately from the very first moment.
Film is a visual medium. As a writer I wanted to challenge myself to use as little dialogue as possible. In my theatre plays the characters talk a lot, so I wanted to do something different with this film, and to portray a specific atmosphere effectively.
Philip, please tell us how you experienced working with Emma and Wilhelm in the lead roles?
I have worked regularly with both Emma and Wilhelm in the past. We understand one another, we talk the same language when it comes to creative work, and we have developed a shorthand – when I give feedback between takes, they understand exactly what I mean, even if I use one word only. They are outstanding actors – they master the art of portraying emotions subtly, and to engage with the camera.
Emma, how did you approach the part of Jana, and to convey her experience of loss?
The incident central to what happens in the movie, is very sensitive. The biggest challenge for me was to express a sense of rawness. I haven’t experienced what happened to Jana, but I used my encounters with loss as a point of contact.
Sound and colour are important and functional elements of the movie. Did you make a strategic decision about these aspects when you wrote the screenplay?
Emma: The film relies heavily on its visual state, more than anything else. To keep viewers’ attention with a rather simple concept, we had to pay a lot of attention to all the visual elements. Colour reflects a particular feeling throughout the film.
The sound aspect developed later, even though we were convinced from the start that the film wouldn’t have a soundtrack. The idea of amplifying ordinary sounds came naturally and strengthened the concept we had in mind: that inevitability that characterises the sound of a toaster; of a garage door opening. The technical team was incredible: Meekaaeel Adam was the wonderful cinematographer; Matthew Swanepoel did the editing and John Claassen was responsible for sound when we were on location, while Pressure Cooker Studios took charge of the sound design and mixing afterwards.