H is first film in 1976, The Beach Guard in Winter, won the Berlin Film Festival, then conquered the rest of the film world. During a long career in the following decades, Paskaljević put his name to some unfor- gettable films, such as SpecialTreatment,The Elusive Summer of ’68, Time of Miracles, Tango Argentino, Cabaret Balkan, The Optimists etc. The films that he worked on in co-production, such as Someone Else’s America or those he worked in oth- er productions, such as How Harry Became a Tree in Ireland or Land of the Gods in India, which brought him the status of one of the most important ambassadors of Serbia in the world today, Paskaljević completed his basic film studies at the then famous Prague Film School, FAMU. Here he tells Ele- vate how a ticket checker at the Yugoslav Cinematheque be- came one of Europe’s most important film directors. How did you even end up studying in Prague? - From the age of 16, I quite by accident became a reg- ular visitor to the Yugoslav Film Archives Cinematheque. My stepfather, who worked there, offered me the job of checking tickets at the entrance to the hall. In return, I could watch the films for free. At that time, a cycle of Italian neorealism films was being shown at the Cinematheque. De Sica’s films The Bicycle Thief and Umberto D. left an indelible impression on me. After a year of film education in the auditorium of the Cinematheque, I wanted to make my own films, and to for- mally educate myself in film. I opted for what was then best film school in Europe, FAMU. The entrance exam was not easy at all, but I passed through the eye of the needle. There was no end to my happiness. I am an academic, I graduated with a clear ten, and I’m proud of that today. What was the difference back then between studies at FAMU and at the FDU? - I can’t answer this question precisely, because I hav- en’t lectured at FDU. However, I know that in Belgrade they took the textbooks from FAMU and formed the curriculum with a view to the academy in Prague. Perhaps the greatest value of studying in Prague for all of us was residing in that beautiful city, where culture flourished even during the pe- riod of oppressive communism. Our professors were artists who’d already proven themselves in the world and who con- tinued to create new films alongside working as FAMU pro- fessors. They were, to mention just a few: Milan Kundera, Oto- kar Vávra, the Oscar-winning Elmar Klos et al. Thanks to FAMU, the term “Prague school” was created. What are its characteristics? - What’s common to all of us who graduated from FAMU is that at this school we learned good foundations of the film craft. Later, in our professional work, we each developed for ourselves and didn’t follow any kind of aesthetic manifesta- tion, as was the case with the French new wave, for example. How do you remember your student days in Prague? - That was probably one of the most beautiful times of my life. I had no responsibilities other than educating myself, learning, watching and creating school films without worry- ing about having to secure funds for them. At the same time, in Prague were also my older colleagues Goran Marković, Điđa Karanović, Rajko Grlić, Lordan Zafranović and Pega Popović. We socialised intensively and met up almost every day in the evenings at the “Orlik” cafe on the promenade beside the Vltava. Our conversations were mainly about film. We were obsessed with art, but we didn’t forget to comment on the beauty of young Czech girls.
A ko je neko svojom karijerom predstavio diverzitet žanrova, onda je to svakako Goran Mar- ković. Od Specijalnog vaspi- tanja , preko filmova Majstori, mastori , Variola vera , Već viđeno , Tajvanska ka- nasta , Sabirni centar , Tito i ja , Kor- don , Turneja , Falsifikator do Sle- pog putnika na brodu ludaka , te angažovanih dokumentaraca
GORAN MARKOVIĆ
PRAG JE TADA BIO
Nevažni junaci i Srbija, godine nulte , do biograf- skih, koji ga u poslednje vreme interesuju. Marko- vić predstavlja okosnicu srpskog filma moder- ne, koji uvek na go-
PRAGUE WAS THEN GREY, BUT STILL VERY BEAUTIFUL SIV, ALI IPAK VEOMA LEP
tovo nevidljivi, ma- gični način spaja umetničko i ko- mercijalno u
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