Interview with Fernand Malgar
Trieste Film Festival 2006
Carthograpie 6. La vallée de la jeunesse.
Was the idea to make a short film about a contemporary dance performance yours or did the choreographer come up with it?
The whole Cartographies series, including mine, La Vallée da la Jeunesse, came about on the initiative of the renowned choreographer from Lausanne, Philippe Saire. It was he who wanted to experiment with the interaction between music, dance and architecture: it’s a challenge from a directing perspective, in as much as the choreography takes place in the open air and so the normal effects that a theatre offers (lighting, backdrops, costumes) are not available.
This choreography has two different outputs: the short film and the live performance in front of an audience. How did you, as a director, get involved in the construction of the show?
I have to say that the result of the shooting is particular in many ways; first of all, the show itself is shorter than the film: the dancers perform for the audience for only 15 minutes, while my work, which includes part of the rehearsals and the building of the choreography, goes on for 26 minutes. Saire, when he suggested that I work on Cartographies, immediately revealed his interest for the cinematic aspect of the work: I was free to approach the project how I wanted, I was even given the freedom to modify, via the editing, the real outcome of the ballet.
How was the setting of the performance decided?
I, myself, proposed the “Vallée de la Jeunesse” as the setting for the dance. It is a garden/ work of art created in 1964 for the Expo National. It’s an extremely suggestive place with a huge impact and it is interesting to see how, in the film, it works as a backdrop: the dance becomes decidedly predominant, the architecture mere background.
Who chose the texts quoted in the film, and according to what criteria?
The texts are extracts from a series of tales by Ramuz, an author from the ‘30s who wrote in a very modern style: one can say that his texts are to traditional literature what contemporary dance is to classical dance. Even if it can be difficult to grasp if you don’t speak French, there is a particular rhythm to his texts, created by repetition, innovative stylistic structures, curious linguistic choices: it’s almost a “choreography of writing”. Knowing and loving this author, I found the idea natural: a parallel between the two forms of expression, writing and dance.
What is the relationship between your short film and the other Cartographies? What is the “thin red line” running through these films?
Although originating as part of one project conceived by Saire, the Cartographies are each very different. Each work concentrates on a specific aspect: I, for example, have tried an in-depth examination of movements within dance, their origin and their slow perfecting. Watching my clips with attention one can see that a more documentaristic look intermingles with the search for the aesthetic image.
In your opinion what is the relationship between a feature film and a short film? Do they follow different rules?
I think that there is a certain difference between the two products. I have made many feature films, documentaries in particular. When I was asked to make a short film, I originally thought of something of about 7-8 minutes, but having started the filming I immediately realized that that would not be enough to recount everything I wanted to say: in fact, the end result turned out to be 26 minutes long.
This probably came about because I’m used to thinking in terms of a feature film, a more narrative mode, rather than experimental: short films often limit themselves to creating atmospheres rather than telling actual stories.