Warning: do not let my grandma read this.
"Here in Denmark, we have the benefit of being aware that God does not exist." - Tom (the directing teacher)
When I heard Tom say this, it was like a light bulb going on; it explained everything. I had been a bit taken aback by the lack of religious presence in this country. On the weekends, I do not see families walking to mosque, driving to church, or men in black suits with those big Jewish hats and the curls coming down the side of their face walking to synagogue. Even in Copenhagen. This is not a religious country. It seems a significant majority of the people in this country flat-out believe that this whole "god" business was made up by confused people many years ago.
Now back home, I certainly did not grow up religious. My dad came from a Jewish family and my mom came from a Christian family. In school, there was such a smorgasbord of religions present, I felt like it didn't matter which one I'd choose, so I chose none. I'd research one for a little while, and had a brief stint attending a Unitarian church with a friend before I decided even that was not for me. So I just went about singing the barucha songs at Chanukah, wishing people a Merry Christmas, and doing all the fun parts of Judaism & Christianity, without bothering with church or synagogue (with the exceptions of weddings & bar/bat mitzvahs).
But despite this lack of religious guidance, I still don't think I grew up atheist. I grew up agnostic. It wasn't that my family and society preached "God doesn't exist!" so much as it was "it could be that God exists in a different way, or maybe not at all, who knows". And I think it was reflected in the movies I watched, too. I loved Ben Foster in Liberty Heights, the young Jewish boy who wasn't anti-religion, just bored with the monotony of sitting in synagogue every week. Or the major monologue at the end of Hannah & Her Sisters where Woody Allen explains his views on life and whether or not God exists. It's almost as if Canada's national religion is Agnostic or, perhaps more accurately, Whatever.
But here in Denmark, it really is Atheism. There are people who are religious of course, follow the Bible and yadda yadda, but they are the ostracized ones, or the ones who do it in their own little way that no one really pays attention to. And it's interesting. Because it's Atheism that has guided them to be moral people (and I'd say they've done a pretty good job of it). And this has made me reflect on the development (or undevelopment) of my own spiritual self. As well as recent thoughts I had about "this God character" and Nietzsche (who seems to be a more prominent spiritual guide for Denmark/Scandinavia). Because lately I feel like I've been moving on a path towards "no god exists!" My grandma would be saddened by this, but I feel myself getting less and less spiritual every day, but feeling more and more ethically/morally-grounded. So I think it's okay.
Now as for whether or not we have a soul and whether or not we are reborn with a new life after we die... that's for another debate at another time. May whatever you believe in be with you!
24.9.09
15.9.09
Celebrity-ish Encounter
Today I had a lecture from Jan Harlan on various aspects of film production and had the good fortune of sitting down and talking with him in a small group after lunch. He was very kind and curteous and always excited to share his wisdom with us young folk. And furthermore, he genuinely seemed to be excited by the energy we had. He even accepted a manuscript for a children's book written by one of my classmates.
I would be surprised if anyone reading this had previously heard of Jan Harlan and knew who he was. He is not a big-shot Hollywood producer, he certainly seems to have no interest in the spotlight whatsoever. But, he is an extremely important person to be familiar with in the film industry. He was Stanley Kubrick's producer from 1975 until the man's death in '99.
The enthusiasm I got from Jan (he doesn't really seem like a Mr. Harlan) felt so incredible and earnest. I believe he was truly excited for our generation to start making new films and thinking of new creative ways to approach our productions (a big part of his lecture was on production expenses, especially in relation to music).
Even better, he will be around for supper, all 3 meals tomorrow, and has 2 lectures and an introduction to The Shining to give us. So there is much more to come. He has reinforced all my passions towards art & filmmaking, and I don't doubt he will continue to do so with his future lectures and, simply, his future presence at the school over the next 28 hours or so.
Jan said passion is the most important thing. Even if your story is not about yourself, you must have a passion for it, something that draws you into the story. Either you relate to it or it is about something that is very dear to you, that you feel very strongly about. You need to have Knowledge + Passion or Love, as he put it in his lecture. I think he's right.
And I plan to capture this passion in my own filmmaking. Even if it does run the big risk of "putting all my cards on the table" as Jan put it.
I would be surprised if anyone reading this had previously heard of Jan Harlan and knew who he was. He is not a big-shot Hollywood producer, he certainly seems to have no interest in the spotlight whatsoever. But, he is an extremely important person to be familiar with in the film industry. He was Stanley Kubrick's producer from 1975 until the man's death in '99.
The enthusiasm I got from Jan (he doesn't really seem like a Mr. Harlan) felt so incredible and earnest. I believe he was truly excited for our generation to start making new films and thinking of new creative ways to approach our productions (a big part of his lecture was on production expenses, especially in relation to music).
Even better, he will be around for supper, all 3 meals tomorrow, and has 2 lectures and an introduction to The Shining to give us. So there is much more to come. He has reinforced all my passions towards art & filmmaking, and I don't doubt he will continue to do so with his future lectures and, simply, his future presence at the school over the next 28 hours or so.
Jan said passion is the most important thing. Even if your story is not about yourself, you must have a passion for it, something that draws you into the story. Either you relate to it or it is about something that is very dear to you, that you feel very strongly about. You need to have Knowledge + Passion or Love, as he put it in his lecture. I think he's right.
And I plan to capture this passion in my own filmmaking. Even if it does run the big risk of "putting all my cards on the table" as Jan put it.
2.9.09
Landed
So I've arrived in Denmark, I am at the European Film College (EFC) in quaint little Ebeltoft. It's fuckin' beautiful. I'll make sure to upload the photos I took from my room so you all can be jealous of my beautiful view. It's quaint. I love it.
There's not really too much to say. It's orientation week (frosh week), so we've just been getting a lot of information about what to expect, seeing our way around the college and the local town. I was delayed in communicating with the outside world, however, because upon arriving at the school, we found out the internet was down. Not just in the school, but in the entire town, which I suppose gives you an idea of just how quaint (and remote) this area is.
I had my first lecture today - "On The Performing Arts" by this Danish producer who does some guest lectures at the school. It was really cool. It also opened my eyes to just how different the European (and Danish in particular) approach to film is. At the Canadian film schools I had considered, they had a much more commercial approach to film, talking more about films that simply "addressed the human condition". But when they talk about "the genius of Lars von Trier" or the beauty in various abstract "expressionist" European films, it's... I dunno. It's not like in North America.
We got to have a sneak preview screening of Taking Woodstock (it hasn't come out in Denmark yet) and Soren Høy, our school president, was talking about how it is nice, fine film. But he also talked about how most films are "what you see is what you get" (like Taking Woodstock). And he's right. There might be some metaphors to analyse and so on, but few movies do what Lars von Trier or some other European filmmakers do (like the guy who did Run Lola Run), where they make movies that have many deeper layers to be examined and discussed. I have only seen one von Trier film, although I will be seeing another tonight (Breaking The Waves), and so it will be interesting to see how this movie can be deeply examined.
In the meantime, everything is cool and hunky dorey and I will start actual film projects next week, where we will make several short films a day in an exercise called Shooting Games, and I will (without instruction) get to try writing, directing, producing, editing, camera filming, lighting, and everything else.
Anywho, I am feeling anti-social huddled in the corner of the dining hall on the public computer. I'll write more later. I arrived. I'm alive. And I'm lovin' this shit right here.
Peace!
There's not really too much to say. It's orientation week (frosh week), so we've just been getting a lot of information about what to expect, seeing our way around the college and the local town. I was delayed in communicating with the outside world, however, because upon arriving at the school, we found out the internet was down. Not just in the school, but in the entire town, which I suppose gives you an idea of just how quaint (and remote) this area is.
I had my first lecture today - "On The Performing Arts" by this Danish producer who does some guest lectures at the school. It was really cool. It also opened my eyes to just how different the European (and Danish in particular) approach to film is. At the Canadian film schools I had considered, they had a much more commercial approach to film, talking more about films that simply "addressed the human condition". But when they talk about "the genius of Lars von Trier" or the beauty in various abstract "expressionist" European films, it's... I dunno. It's not like in North America.
We got to have a sneak preview screening of Taking Woodstock (it hasn't come out in Denmark yet) and Soren Høy, our school president, was talking about how it is nice, fine film. But he also talked about how most films are "what you see is what you get" (like Taking Woodstock). And he's right. There might be some metaphors to analyse and so on, but few movies do what Lars von Trier or some other European filmmakers do (like the guy who did Run Lola Run), where they make movies that have many deeper layers to be examined and discussed. I have only seen one von Trier film, although I will be seeing another tonight (Breaking The Waves), and so it will be interesting to see how this movie can be deeply examined.
In the meantime, everything is cool and hunky dorey and I will start actual film projects next week, where we will make several short films a day in an exercise called Shooting Games, and I will (without instruction) get to try writing, directing, producing, editing, camera filming, lighting, and everything else.
Anywho, I am feeling anti-social huddled in the corner of the dining hall on the public computer. I'll write more later. I arrived. I'm alive. And I'm lovin' this shit right here.
Peace!
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