CANNES, France – "This is nice, but
it can’t compare to the view from Red Hook," said Kino head
Don Krim, a New York film distributor, as he stood at the water’s
edge in Cannes.
Brooklyn was on the minds of many at the 59th Festival de Cannes.
In fact, Park Slope resident Paul Bettany was one of this year’s
first to climb the red carpet, as he joined castmates for the
premiere of Ron Howard’s "The DaVinci Code," the controversial
film that opened the festival on May 17.
The film has certainly had its detractors – from Catholic organizations
to the critics – but that hasn’t hindered its box office appeal.
During a press conference at the festival, Bettany spoke of his
decision to take the role of Silas, the homicidal monk, and only
touched on the storm surrounding the movie’s release.
"Ron rung me up and asked me to be in the movie and he said,
"Monk, assassin and ’Da Vinci Code’" and it was Ron
calling me, so I said, ’Yes!’ immediately," Bettany told
reporters.
"He asked me if I had read the book and I said, ’Yes, of
course,’ and I hadn’t, so I ran and got the book – not in theology
and personal growth, but in the fiction department – and I read
it in two sittings.
"It was a real page-turning adventure story. And since,
for the film, I’ve read a number of theological discourses. They’re
not page-turners, quite dull. It should be quite clear to everyone
that it is a fiction." And so it went.
"The Da Vinci Code" was shown out of competition, which
means it wasn’t eligible for any awards. So we will never know
if this year’s jury [comprised of actors Samuel L. Jackson and
Tim Roth; actresses Zhang Ziyi, Monica Bellucci and Helena Bonham
Carter; directors Patrice Leconte, Lucrecia Martel and (former
Brooklyn resident) Elia Suleiman; and chairman Wong Kar Wai]
would have felt kindly toward the film or not.
Nonetheless, the coveted Palme d’Or – top prize – was given to
an English-language film, Ken Loach’s "The Wind that Shakes
the Barley" at the Closing Night award ceremony on Sunday,
May 28. And although there were three American films in the competition
– Richard Linklater’s "Fast Food Nation," Richard Kelly’s
"Southland Tales," and Sofia Coppola’s "Marie
Antoinette," not one of them came away with an award.
Cannes support group
Beyond the red carpet of the festival, where stars come and go
on a twice-daily basis, there is real work going on in Cannes.
The Cinefondation, the festival’s educational arm, has been supporting
new filmmakers for years by giving residencies to artists (including,
in 2002, former Brooklynite Peter Sollett).
Last year, the Cinefondation instituted an additional program,
L’Atelier du Festival, a workshop for filmmakers making their
first or second feature film. There is no residency involved,
but for directors with a script and a plan, the festival helps
to arrange support by setting up meetings with possible funders
from all over the world.
This year, one of the selected artists was Marine Park resident
Cruz Angeles who, with his wife and creative partner Maria Topete,
was accepted into the Atelier with the recommendation of the
Sundance Lab, part of the Sundance Institute, where he had completed
his script.
GO Brooklyn sat with Angeles, Topete and producer and East Williamsburg
resident Jay Van Hoy to discuss their film project and their
Cannes experiences in the producers network lounge. (A lot of
wheeling and dealing takes place here, alongside the port, where
a collection of incredibly pricey yachts are tied up for the
duration of the festival.)
Not one of the three is a native Brooklynite, but all are happy
to call it home now. Originally from Texas, Van Hoy "got
to Brooklyn as soon as I could!" And he not only lives in
the borough, but bases his production company there. Maria hails
from Oakland, Calif., and Cruz from the South Central section
of Los Angeles, but they both spoke of the sense of family and
community in their new home.
"New York seemed very safe compared to our old neighborhoods,"
Maria said. "Marine Park is very family-oriented."
However, things changed after Sept. 11, 2001, and thus came the
idea for their film.
"Everything changed," Angeles said. "People were
told not to get on a subway car with too many people sleeping;
it could be anthrax."
Topete added, "New York post-9-11 reminded us of how we
grew up." This sense of fear inspired them to write the
script for their feature film, "Don’t Let Me Drown."
A love story set weeks after the terrorist attacks, the pair
took two and a half years to write the screenplay.
Then Jim McKay – Park Slope resident, director, producer and
"godfather" to many American independent filmmakers
– read early drafts, gave them feedback, and recommended them
for the Sundance Lab in 2005.
Which, of course, led them, here, to Cannes.
Van Hoy, with his producing partner, Lars Knudsen, came on board
just after the Lab, when Sundance held readings of the Lab’s
projects in New York. As a producer, he finds the Cannes Atelier
to be valuable.
"The festival is very available to us," said Van Hoy.
"It’s an intelligently designed program. They try to match
us up with people who actually have the resources to help us."
The festival has set up a total of 25 meetings for them. This
is
serious stuff, but it seems the festival also wants them to be
fully aware of the art-commerce connection.
"They only schedule meetings in the mornings, so that we
have the rest of the day to see films," said Van Hoy. "In
fact, the festival encourages us to see films."
When we spoke, the group had already been to two red carpet events
at the festival’s enormous Lumiere Theater, for premieres of
the films in competition. And they are continuing to take full
advantage of all the festival has to offer.
"We really feel privileged," said Van Hoy.
But back to the meetings. So far, a lot of interest in "Don’t
Let Me Drown" has been shown by European companies – from
the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Italy, and also
by NHK, a Japanese company. In order to give these potential
investors a real sense of what they want to do, the filmmakers
have put together a prospectus that includes a slide show of
Sunset Park locations where they hope to shoot the film.
"In the US, people really like the script, but now they’re
asking about cast and bottom line elements," Angeles told
GO Brooklyn. "Non-US companies are more interested in the
idea of a new narrative."
This is fine with him.
Said Angeles, "I want [the film] to be a very lyrical poem
of New York."
So what happens next? Van Hoy told us that there have already
been some follow-up meetings, with more to be arranged after
Cannes. Angeles and Topete want to start shooting in October.
"The film takes place one month after Sept. 11, so we want
the same season and the same sense of time," said Angeles.
So Van Hoy will be busy as soon as he returns to East Williamsburg
in order to start on time. Which is why this gang – producers
and filmmakers – seem so "together."
"Working with Jay and Lars is awesome," said Angeles.
"They respect our vision, and they have good taste. What
can I say? They have my back!"
And the festival seemed to have their backs as well. Remember
their names; perhaps they’ll be climbing the red carpet for the
premiere of "Don’t Let Me Drown" in a few years.
Marian Masone is the associate
director of programming for the Film Society of Lincoln Center
and chief curator of The New York Video Festival also at Lincoln
Center.
