FRED Film Radio - English Channel

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Kevin Ford, Smriti Keshari, directors of the film The Bomb.

Smriti Keshari produced and conceived The Bomb with Eric Schlosser while Kevin Ford co-directed the film with them. The two artists tell FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti about the starting point of the film and describe the process that led them to decide on the structure of the film which can be considered as an audiovisual experience more than a simple documentary film. Every screening is particular and must be a live experience. the 55-minute film will be projected as The Acid performs a live score in the screening venue.

The Bomb: the bomb is a groundbreaking multimedia project that immerses you in the strange, compelling, and unsettling reality of nuclear weapons. Over seven decades have passed since a city was destroyed by a nuclear weapon. But the danger never went away. We are now confronted with a world in which nine nations possess about 15,000 nuclear weapons. Many of the weapons in the American arsenal are roughly 20 times more powerful than the bomb detonated at Hiroshima. the bomb places the viewer in the middle of the story of nuclear weapons – the most dangerous machines ever built – from the Trinity Test in 1945 to the current state of nuclear weapons in 2017. It will explore the culture surrounding nuclear weapons, the fascination they inspire, and the perverse appeal they still exert. It will convey the impossibility of controlling this technology.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Kevin Ford, Smriti Keshari – The Bomb #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews John Trengove, director of the film The Wound.

FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti meets John Trengove, director of The Wound, the opening film of Panorama section at the of the 67th Berlinale. The film unveils the Ukwaluka, an ancient traditional initiation into manhood that is widely practiced by the Xhosa people of South Africa. John Trengove’s main purpose was to push back against clichéd stereotypes of black masculinity perpetuated inside and outside of African cinema. Despite exploring a particular tradition in a very specific and peculiar situation, by narrating about an impossible love triangle between three young man, Trengove manages to turn the story into an universal tale.

The Wound: Xolani, a lonely factory worker, joins the men of his community in the mountains of the Eastern Cape to initiate a group of teenage boys into manhood. When a defiant initiate from the city discovers his best kept secret, Xolani’s entire existence begins to unravel.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post John Trengove – The Wound #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Eric Schlosser, director of the film The Bomb.

FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti meets director, author and writer Eric Schlosser, at the 67th Berlinale to present the film project he conceived and directed with Kevin Ford and Smriti Keshari. The film is based on his own book Command and Control, grew out of a research he did on nuclear weapons. To cite Eric Schlosser’s own words: “The Bomb was created to give audiences a powerful, visceral sense of the nuclear danger we now face. Unlike the bookand the documentary, it seeks to provide a fully immersive experience. It was Smriti Keshari’s idea to combine film, animation, live music, and screens that completely enclose the viewer and this structure proved to be powerful as it was a huge success in New York and at Berlinale.

The Bomb: over seven decades have passed since a city was destroyed by a nuclear weapon. But the danger never went away. We are now confronted with a world in which nine nations possess about 15,000 nuclear weapons. Many of the weapons in the American arsenal are roughly 20 times more powerful than the bomb detonated at Hiroshima. the bomb places the viewer in the middle of the story of nuclear weapons – the most dangerous machines ever built – from the Trinity Test in 1945 to the current state of nuclear weapons in 2017. It will explore the culture surrounding nuclear weapons, the fascination they inspire, and the perverse appeal they still exert. It will convey the impossibility of controlling this technology.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Eric Schlosser – The Bomb #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Armie Hammer, actor of the film Final Portrait.

Armie Hammer is back on FRED from the 67th Berlinale to talk about his experience on shooting Final Portrait. The actor describes how amazing it is to work with Stanley Tucci and how different and more effective is to be directed by an actor. Hammer is also enthusiastic about having worked by Geoffrey Rush’s side. As the film is based on the real life of world renowned artist Alberto Giacometti and his friendship with American writer and art-lover James Lord, Armie Hammer had a lot of papers and manuscripts to read and to base his reasearch and character’s preparation on. The actor also talks about his childhood, his early career choices and life choices and finally about his last film, Hotel Mumbai directed by Anthony Maras.

Final Portrait: in 1964, while on a short trip to Paris, The American writer and art-lover James Lord is asked by his friend, the world-renowned artist Alberto Giacometti, to sit for a portrait. The process, Giacometti assures Lord, will take only a few days. Flattered and intrigued, Lord agrees.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Armie Hammer – Final Portrait #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Carolina Mancini interviews Danis Tanovic, director of the film Death in Sarajevo.

One year after Death in Sarajevo premiere at Berlinale, where it won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize and the FIPRESCI prize, Fred catches up once again with director Danis Tanovic during Balkan Florence Express, where he took part to the round table Big Cinema of New Europe, talking about his film, its life in film festivals, and the difficulties of European distribution

In Death in Sarajevo, Tanovic gathers together an imaginary group of VIPs in the famous Sarajevo’s Hotel Europe, set in the Holiday Inn, during the centennial of Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s assassination. The hotel and its guests aim to represent a satirical metaphor of the circles of hell, which Bosnia finds itself in the midst of. And for the first time, the film talks publicly about some “taboo” subject that have always only been discussed privately.

Death in Sarajevo: Sarajevo’s Hotel Europe is bustling in preparation for tonight’s European Union gala for the centennial of Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s assassination. But the disgruntled staff plans to strike because they haven’t been paid for two months. If this prestigious political dinner fails, the already mortgaged hotel will be shut down by the bank. Desperate to stop the strike, hotel manager Omer must turn to tough guy Enzo, who runs the cellar strip club. Things get tricky for head receptionist Lamija when her mother Hatidza is elected strike leader. While the French VIP guest rehearses his keynote speech in his room, TV journalist Vedrana conducts interviews on the roof for a centennial special. Among her guests is Gavrilo Princip, the namesake descendant of the Archduke’s assassin. Firm political stances quickly lead to age-old disputes. From the roof to the cellar, via the reception, laundry room and kitchen, increasing tensions turn the Hotel Europe into an ideological pressure cooker.

The post Danis Tanovic – Death in Sarajevo #BalkanFlorenceExpress appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Bénédicte Prot interviews Teresa Villaverde, director of the film Colo.

After explaining the meaning of the title, Colo, and the warmth the word contains, Portuguese filmmaker Teresa Villaverde underlines the close connection between the intimate family crisis she is describing and the economic context, in Portugal and elsewhere. The tension, she points out, comes from the perception that the current situation is at a standstill, as if Portugal and the world and every one of us were waiting for something to happen, but not without some hope and faith in the younger generation.

Colo: Scene after scene, snapshot after snapshot, the film follows the slow descent of a family of three – Father (João Pedro Vaz), Mother (Beatriz Batarda), and their teenage daughter Marta (Alice Albergaria Borges) – into silence, frustration, and disconnection, following the sudden unemployment of Father. An observational yet perceptive camera captures the subtle shifts in the family dynamics, in the context of a painful and ominous standstill.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Teresa Villaverde – Colo #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Michael Winterbottom, director of the film On The Road.

It’s not the first time that Michael Winterbottom commits to a music project. This time he got so fascinated by life on tour and the wandering routine of bands prmoting their album that he decided to totally focus his “filming”attentions on that. Winterbottom chose young band of Wolf Alice as the subject of his new docu-film On The Road so he followed them with a crew on the final tour of their first album My Love is Cool. However a simple documentary on a band was not enough for Winterbottom who decided to add a fictionary element to the real story and introduce a love story in the film between Estelle and Joe, the only two fictional characters in the film, played by gorgeous actors who “acted” 24/7 to better melt into the film. On the Road screens at the 67th Berlinale in the Generation section .

On The Road: March 2015. North London rock four-piece Wolf Alice take to the streets of the UK to promote their debut album, My Love Is Cool, for the last time. Driving from city to city, playing 16 cities in three weeks, the band are joined by Estelle (Leah Harvey), an intern with the band’s record company, who will be helping the band with their promotional duties, accompanying them as they visit local radio stations and give interviews to the press. Estelle strikes up a intimate friendship with Joe (James McCardle), a member of the band’s road crew, and through their eyes, we see both the magic and monotony of life on the road, giving us a glimpse behind the scenes of a passionate young rock band in their searing prime.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Michael Winterbottom – On The Road #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer, actors of the film Call me by your name.

Armie Hammer was the Star of this year’s Berlinale with two films screening at the 67th Edition: Final Portrait and Call me by Your Name. On the contrary, Timothee Chalamet is the this Festival’s revelation, a breath of fresh air on screen and in real life. The actors talk about their experience on set with Luca Guadagnino and how developing these characters and their love for each other was a unique experience. Call me by your name describes the essence of first love in the purest and most universal way and Armie Hammer and Timothee Chalamet reveal their own relationship with passion and desire that their character experience so strongly for the first time.

Call me by your name: It’s the summer of 1983, in the north of Italy, and Elio Perlman, (Timothee Chalamet) a 17- year- old American-Italian boy spends his days in his family’s 17th century villa lazily transcribing music and flirting with his friend Marzia (Esther Garrel). One day Oliver, (Armie Hammer) a charming, 24-year-old American scholar working on his doctorate arrives as the annual summer intern tasked with helping Elio’s father (Michael Stuhlbarg), an eminent professor specializing in Greco-Roman culture. Amidst the sun-drenched splendor of this sensual setting, Elio and Oliver discover the heady beauty of awakening desire over the course of a summer that will alter their lives forever.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

The post Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer – Call me by your name #Berlinale appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Călin Peter Netzer, director of the film Ana, Mon Amour.

His Child’s Pose won the Golden Bear in 2013 at the Berlinale and after 4 years, Calin Peter Netzer is back in competition at the 67th berlinale to present Ana, Mon Amour based a on a novel . The film explores the limits between love, addiction and codependency through the Toma and Ana’s love story. At first he’s the strongest one and she is the weakest until the situation changes drastically. Ana, Mon Amour moves along past and present of the couple during 7 years of their life together. Netzer reveals his interest for psychiatry and the analyzes the differences between this way of investigating the human brain and the one carried on by religion and the instrument of confession.

Ana, Mon Amour: Toma meets Ana while they are both studying literature at university. Ana has a mild neurotic disorder and suffers from panic attacks. Toma follows her to every dark corner she ends up in, he fights his parents when they reject her, he accepts being a father and marries her, he becomes her babysitter, her driver, her everything. Toma appears to be in control of the couple’s relationship, when in fact he just gravitates around a woman he can not understand, pushing his endurance to the limit, trying to save her.When Ana overcomes her fears and adapts to the outside world, Toma remains alone, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together, striving to understand the whirlwind that he has gone through.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

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PODCAST | Angelo Acerbi interviews Travis Matthews, director of the film Discreet.

Travis Matthews, a veteran to the Panorama section at Berlinale, talks with Angelo Acerbi about his most challenging film to date: a thriller, as far as plot is concerned, but with a narrative that totally eludes all the rules of the genre. There were social and political reasons behind this project, and, peculiar as it is, the film brings out a new and enticing way of filmaking that will surely struck some chords.

Discreet: bacon sizzling in fat, a young woman thanking the subscribers of her YouTube channel, a corpse neatly wrapped up in black garbage bags and floating down a river – as clear as the first few images of Travis Mathews’ mystery thriller may be, the connections only become clearer gradually, as if they were emerging from the subconscious. This elliptically edited story, which revolves around a man who can no longer be described as young, is accompanied by an eerie soundscape. Filmmaker Alex lives in a van. He sets up his camera in rural areas in the US, in the no-man’s land near highways. During a visit to his mother, a former alcoholic, she shares with him a well-kept secret. There is also a small boy, with whom Alex develops an unexpectedly close relationship. Director Mathews chronicles a modern day gay existence in the West – from anonymous sex to heterosexual porn in a sex bar cabin, or as a service in a motel room. A small house and a life on the margins of society. Meanwhile, on the radio, we are treated to a steady stream of right-wing slogans against everything that is not white and heterosexual, here in Texas.

For the film page on the festival website click here.

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