No formula for making good films: Assayas

December 11, 2010 06:08 pm | Updated November 22, 2021 06:56 pm IST - THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

French director Olivier Assayas and veteran actor Waheeda Rehman at the Meet the Press programme organised at the IFFK media centre in Thiruvananthapuram, on Saturday. Photo:S.Gopakumar

French director Olivier Assayas and veteran actor Waheeda Rehman at the Meet the Press programme organised at the IFFK media centre in Thiruvananthapuram, on Saturday. Photo:S.Gopakumar

Noted French director Olivier Assayas said in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday that he did not believe in any formula for making good films.

Speaking at the Meet the Press programme organised as part of the 15th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) Mr. Assayas said that film-making is more about taking risks than going by any formula.

``Film-making is about inventing new ways of telling stories about the ever changing world. It is about taking risks and learning about the world and human conditions,’’ he said.

Talking about his much talked about film Carlos , being featured in the Retrospective section of the festival, Mr. Assayas said that it was a portrait of a real life character who became the media image of terrorism in France in the 1970s and 1980s.

``Carlos, who is from Venezuela, got involved in the Middle Eastern politics and the Palestinian movement and ended up becoming a mercenary planning and executing attacks in France. He was arrested in 1994 and is in jail in France for the last 16 years. The film is a study of leftist radical politics in Western Europe and the consequence of violence,’’ Mr. Assayas said.

He said that it is a pleasure to show his films in Kerala where he believed to have one of the strongest film cultures in India and the art of film-making is respected.

``India, beyond Kerala, also has a great film culture. I think film festivals like this provide a great platform for exchange of dialogue between countries. For me film-making is globalised. It is about sharing values,’’ he said.

Mr. Assayas, who was married to Hong Kong film actor Maggie Cheung, said that he has great love and respect for Asian films and filmmakers in general. Ms. Cheung bagged the best actress award at Cannes for her performance in Assayas’ Clean .

``Meeting Maggie has been an important part of my life and I became more aware of the Asian culture thanks to her. We made two movies together,’’ he said.

Veteran actor Waheeda Rehman, who was also present at the Meet the Press programme, said that films and events like film festivals have brought the world together. She said that while the Indian film industry has grown in leaps and bounds since her time, she wonders if the growth in quantity has affected the quality of Indian films.

``However, there has been a lot more awareness and experimentation in films. Technically also our films have advanced a lot,’’ she said.

Ms. Rehman said that although actresses today were much more focused and hardworking than during her times, there was a sense of insecurity because of the stiff competition in the industry. ``The life-span of actresses’ career today is very short. There are a number of new talents entering the industry every day. So there is a level of insecurity and tension to stay in the field,’’ she said.

She added that heroines generally had shorter career spans compared to their male counterparts, not only in the Indian film industry but across the world. ``Women’s priorities change once they get married. Even otherwise they find it harder to get meaningful roles as they get older whereas men can keep working as leads even in their 60s and 70s,’’ she said.

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