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Still
waters…
Geoff Andrew, Time Out (London), 19 – 26 May 2004
Nuri Bilge Ceylan
talks to Geoff Andrew about taking his time…
If many
of the main competitors at last year’s Cannes were vilified, few questioned
the award of two major prizes to ‘Uzak’ (Distant), the third feature from
young-ish Turk Nuri Bilge Ceylan. A beautifully subtle, incisive account
of what happens when an Istanbul-based photographer plays host for longer
than agreed to a friend from the small town he himself left years ago,
this lyrical, melancholy, funny film not only confirms the promise of
his first two features (‘The Small Town’, ‘Clouds of May’), but builds
on them.
That said, ‘Uzak’ is a major achievement in its own right, its deceptive
simplicity covering a multitude of themes: the fragility of friendship,
the pros and cons of urban life, the allure of the new, the burden of
the past, the gulf between desire, idealism and reality. All this and
visual poetry too, from a man who directs, produces, writes, edits and
shoots; who uses his family as cast; and whose first feature had a crew
of two- himself and a focus-puller –before he upscaled for ‘Clouds’ and
‘Distant’, deploying, respectively, crews of four and five.
‘Funny,’ smiles Ceylan, ‘I think my films turn out connected because I
like to make them autobiographical. Here, I wanted to make a film about
the city, I wanted to deal with a melancholy man who lost his ideals through
lack of motivation. Then a second guy came into it; I felt h'd help show
the first character better.
The problem is that the photographer leads an intellectual life. Most
people in Istanbul are from the country and not like that, but when intellectuals
become economically sufficient, they can feel they don’t need others.
If you don’t want anything, you don’t give… The photographer dislikes
himself, and turns that dislike on to others. I was like that, before
finding cinema. With film I could create a peace in my soul. It’s like
therapy, you put the dark aspects of yourself into films, and get rid
of them - or at least control them better.’
If such talk makes ‘Uzak’ sound oppressively serious, fear not; while
it deals with frustration, loneliness and disenchantment, it’s also very
funny, with deadpan performances and deft visual gags. How important is
humour to Ceylan? ‘Well, I don’t make films analytically, but I do find
humour even in tragic situations. With humour tragedy becomes more convincing.
I love Chekhov, so it may be his influence. But I always found life tragic,
at the same time as seeing the funny side. Maybe that’s what makes it
bearable.’
Ceylan’s style is also agreeably laconic; hence the importance of visuals.
‘In life or in film, I’m not keen on too many words. Generally, people
lie, so the truth is in what’s hidden, unsaid. People try to protect themselves,
they have a weak side to hide, so they make themselves the hero of any
story they tell. Also, not using much dialogue means the viewer is more
active; he should use his own experience in following the film.’
Likewise Ceylan prefers to root his films in personal experience – a reason,
presumably, why he works with his family. (Not only as cast; the first
feature was based on a story by his sister.) ‘I was very happy to work
with them on the first two, as I felt guilty about not seeing them much.
Also, if an actor’s concerned by the success of the film or his acting,
it distracts him. But if, like my family, you pay such things no mind,
you’re more natural. I started working with my parents on a short because
I was afraid to work with professionals: I didn’t know what to do, I wanted
to try things, be open to people. And I liked how it worked out. The same
with a small crew; I don’t much like people around while I’m shooting.
Also, you can take your time.’
So does he do many takes? ‘No,’ he laughs. ‘Film’s too expensive! Three
takes at most; and the first’s usually best. I seldom even show the actors
the script. On set I tell them the gist of a scene, or what they have
to say. But first I want to see what they give me; if I don’t like it,
I adjust it. Really, my scripts are just memory joggers – some I don’t
even finish writing.
But isn’t a finished script needed for funding? Again a laugh, ‘So far
I’ve funded myself – modestly – and fortunately my films have all made
a profit! With ‘Uzak’ I did finish the script because I felt safer that
way. But I didn’t have to stick to it’.
As for shooting his films himself; ‘It’s not that I don’t trust anyone,
but I know what I have in mind. I used to be a photographer, so why have
one more person in the crew? DoPs use lots of lights and equipment. Maybe
one day I’ll work with a DoP; sometimes, if you’re doing a camera movement
you might miss something in the acting. But I mostly use fixed shots so
that’s not really a problem!’
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