Why film? Professor Garrison asked this question today as if he had been waiting for weeks to pose this seemingly simple question. I was working on a side project in class for the website and didn’t participate in the collage of responses, so here goes. Flashback to nine in the morning; we are on our way to interview the famous animator Gene Deitch for our second documentary when he calls to postpone for one hour. George, Andrew and I sit in a park and watch. Sitting and watching is the quickest way to become grounded again if you feel yourself losing touch. I asked myself a similar question, what am I doing here? Answer: Making films. Why? Flash-forward to one in the afternoon, an amazing interview finished. Who knew that a man of such passion and character worked in a second floor studio down this dirty side street in Prague? This is the answer to the question. Why film? Film, as a medium has the ability to record picture and sound, as an artistic instrument film has the ability to record life as a visual memory. I know it’s obvious. Gene, the man we interviewed, just celebrated his 82nd birthday. Today, dying was on his mind, not a fear of it, but a simple statement, “I don’t want to die, no one wants to die.” Every man has struggled with the idea of immortality, religious or secular, and film helps to fulfill this addiction. If something was to suddenly happen to Gene (hopefully not) then we could still see him, hear him bantering with us about religion and his favorite pictures of his wife. Film gives every person, every time period a human face and brief immortality.
Somehow, I finally managed to get myself up on time this morning and was not forced to rush out the door as I usually do. I have a talent for arriving at the stop right as the tram is pulling away, and I’ve grown accustomed to the familiar sight of the metro’s shutting doors as I run up to it. It seems like so much of my time is wasted waiting for a tram or a metro.
Nevertheless, today I made it to class on time. Soon, we headed out on the day’s excursion, the studio of Professor Otto’s favorite artist. After witnessing yesterday’s psychedelic works, Otto felt inspired to take us to Czech artist Jan Husek’s art studio. Husek, an old friend of our professor, warmly welcomed us into his home and allowed us to see some of his work, which he refers to as “psychedelic surrealism.” Husek paints many of his portraits in the dark and makes some corrections by light afterwards. “To really see something, you must close your eyes,” Otto explained to us his friend’s mentality toward his paintings.
Later in the afternoon, I find myself reading a newspaper as I wait for my laundry to finish at Laundry Kings. I run across an editorial on the stalemate position the Czech government has been in ever since Communism ended. It describes how the country’s politicians are learning how to govern themselves again; while many try to move forward, some of the older generations hold faithful to their beliefs in the system. Since I was younger I have been obsessed with Che Guevara and Communism in Latin America, but here I’ve been exposed to a completely different side of it…sometimes, it just hits me: here, Communism was thrown out less than 20 years ago. That’s not a long time at all… everything we see in Prague now, everything we are used to in America, “corporatization” of society, big fashion stores, McDonalds, and cell phones…they are still pretty much “new.” The concepts of freedom and liberty, of rights…having the right to choose a religion or among a wider variety of clothes and music…it’s all still a little “new”—which might explain the many mullets we’ve seen since our arrival and the blaring off 80s music while I am shopping at many of the stores by Old Town Square. And so much was repressed during the Communist era, so much art and music… The country is picking up the strands to so much stalled. Everything that was frozen and smothered is warm and breathing again. But I can’t help to view it with a bittersweet sentiment…because while a lot of the progress is positive, to me being here is… essentially…. like being in the middle of innocence lost.
I was always reprimanded for staring, but I couldn’t help staring at death today. Crumpled bodies, brown and small for the average human these days, lay in the glass coffins of the Klatovy Catacombs. I stared at the dried up little corpses, their skin dried-up leather, and their bones withered paper. I stared at our future and felt a bit rude but more disturbed than anything. The whole exhibit was morbid and eerie, however quite fitting for the gloomy, rainy day overhead.
Afterward, we wandered around an art gallery displaying Martin Mainer’s psychedelic works. The bright colors and intense images swirling around his paintings contrasted sharply with the cloudy sky outside and the macabre exhibit displayed in the cave we had earlier explored. Later, we sat in a small café next to the gallery and facing the town square. As we sipped on warm coffee and as I practically inhaled the delicious tiramisu dessert in front of me, the rain started to pour down harder. We walked back to the hotel to board the bus–minor gusts of wind and water droplets striking against our umbrellas. Scenic panoramas of wide fields and woods quickly passed us by on our ride to Prague. Every piece of this country is so stunning.
Tonight, I also decided to take a walk around Charles Bridge. Dim lights sparkled off the silky, dark waters. An old man warmly clutched his wife by the arm, bringing her closer to him as they casually strolled along. Twin little girls with thick jet-black hair tied back in ponytails raced toward a statue nearby. I rested my elbows against the edge of the bridge as I watched them hold hands and spin each other in circles. Tourists darted out of their way to avoid bumping into them, and they simply giggled out loud. I feel as though this mysterious and romantic city found me. As if I stumbled here by accident and yet as though everything was planned to the last intimate detail…. there’s so much that seems to lie beneath it and each place, each sight changes before me every time I gaze upon it. I can look up at a particular building, a certain window, some elegantly carved door and notice something different, feel something different about it each time.
Sunday is usually my laziest day of the week, but today I had very little time to rest and relax. My roommate Erin and I woke up early in Klatovy to catch a train back to Prague. We went back early in the afternoon to prep for a shoot with Pavla Joussonova from the punk band Zuby Nehty. I have never really been on a train and was excited to see the small towns that keep the countryside beautiful.
Today it was wet and foggy most of the day. I can’t seem to keep my toes warm or clean. The streets around here are so dirty that my feet are black by the time I get home. The photo below (or above) was taken from the train on the way into Prague. It was so dreary and wet that I felt like curling up in a ball and sleeping the rest of the day.
The shoot with a few of the Zuby Nehty band members was exciting. They were practicing some of their old music and the sound clip above is one of their most popular songs. Just for some information, Erin and I are working on a documentary that spotlights two woman who have succeeded in their life goals. Well, the story theme is vague at the moment but this week we’ll be working hard to hone down the ideas our two women presented to us.
After the shoot my friend Jan took me to a modern dance troupe’s performance. There were bongos, drums, percussion instruments, singers and dancers. I didn’t quite fallow the story because I don’t know much Czech or French, but I felt the depth of the energy these people put into their work. The sound clip and the picture are from the show.
Today was our excursion to Bohemia. We left around 9:30, almost on time. It has finally cooled off in Prague and it was mostly rainy and cold all day. On the way to Cesky Krumlov we stopped at Frantisek Bilek’s house, which has been turned into a gallery. The sculptures were amazing and I like being able to actually see the actual artwork we talk about in class. We got to Krumlov late and had to rush to make the tour. Rushing so much, in fact, some of us got left behind at Katka’s hotel. After finally catching up to the group we toured the castle. I am always shocked about how much wealth is just sitting in these types of places. They had a ridiculous gold carriage on display that has only been used once. I can’t help but think about melting it down and using the money to feed the homeless. Is that wrong of me?
We walked around the town until dinner. The town was amazing. It was surrounded by a river and full of really interesting museums and galleries. I was so glad it was rainy and cold; I really needed a break from the heat. I think the weather made the town that much more beautiful. We had dinner in a cave-like room inside a restaurant. A Roma band played what seemed like the same song over and over, but they were incredible. The food was pretty good and afterward everyone danced around the cave to the music. Later on we went to a discothèque and some how everyone made it back to their respective sleeping quarters.
Before I left on the excursion I wasn’t sure if I should go on the trip or not. Helen and I had a lot of work to do on our project and I felt like the trip would postpone the work, making it that much harder to finish. Ultimately we decided to go on the trip and come back early to do the last of our filming. In the end I am glad that I went. I knew I would probably never have the opportunity to go to Bohemia again. That has been somewhat of a problem here. I am torn between making documentaries and seeing everything I should in Prague. I think I need to reposition my way of thinking. Making documentaries is the only way for me to experience the city. How else would I have gotten to see an all women punk band play in their studio and listen to an amazing woman filmmaker talk about the intimate details of who she is and how she got to be there? Reflecting back on all my experiences up until this point I realize how amazing this city is and how much I love documentary films. I know that probably sounds cheesy and over the top, but there is truth to it.
A couple kisses, accordion, harmonica, some kind of wind-up keyboard/viola sends out scratchy sweet sound, “clop, clop, clop” of hard shoes to cobblestone, baby cries, door creaks, puddle splash and quiet—I am in an alley way. “Don’t take my picture!” a man yells in muddled Czech-English.
I have been numb. It’s not a bad thing necessarily, but I haven’t been happy or sad just here. I look at The Castle and no rush of joy. No loneliness either. Just a castle. How can this be? A most beautiful building—and I know it’s beautiful!—minimized by a still mind. I can’t respond to it no matter how hard I try.
My sleep pattern has finally returned to normal—kinda.
People here love to shop. In a shopping mall a group of teenage girls carry plastic bags of pink, yellow and red. 3 girls. 15 bags.
Everyday seems to have its own thrilling adventure…you’ll go for a ride you’ll never forget. First of all, I can’t believe its already August. After looking back at an entry I made just three days into our trip, I felt like I’d been here a month. Now it feels like 3 (months). With only a week and days left to cut our documentaries, enjoy our fairytales and prepare for our final screening, I can’t help but feel nervous and excited.
Before this week began, Clay and I had shot 8 hours of footage on our subjects for our final documentary: A wonderful and “arms wide-open” Gypsie family. Kim, a director for an abroad program here in Prague, advised us to visit Smichov for some interesting subjects and it turned out to be a life changing experience…aren’t they all? Shooting 5 consecutive days (thankfully 2 of those days with a translator) should set us on the right track and on schedule to have enough time to log and edit our new experience. There is such a great feeling when logging the footage you shoot…you have a chance to view it in its’ trapped in history, part-of-the-past form, from outside the box. I keep my eyes on their facial expressions, their gestures, language, and overall communication skills. Fascinating. The cut is coming, we must now enter the Dragons lair and tame the beast, and become one with its power and might.
9:47am: “I woke up, fell out of bed and dragged a comb across my head…” This is after staying up till about 6:30 am logging…and pushed myself into the bathroom for a cold shower to awaken my body. I got to FAMU for class lugging my bag and a camera&case that I swear weighs about 2 tons. After locking the camera up in Doc class location “Room 2,” I met up with Dr. Otto Urban and our Art and Architecture class for our weekly Wednesday excursion. We were going to visit the National Theatre and the Municipal building…Both equally as amazing and historical, significant of early Prague restoration and growth in the late 18th century. I really enjoy the contrast in taking an intensive production class with an equally enriching Art class…great combo.
After witnessing some sights and sounds (words cannot describe) from the busy buildings that had tourists frolicking everywhere, we retreated to an upstairs Café with the class for some coffee and a closing conversation to wrap up the “class day.” This is where I first felt the wrath of time…translated into a temporal state of sadness.
“Well,” says Otto, “It is only natural that you feel this way. You know, you have been living here, finding your way around, meeting people, learning the language and just when you feel you are about to be comfortable and settled in…you must leave.”
It’s true and I must come to grips with these emotions when they come…when it happens. I get the feeling no one really wants to leave yet…maybe just one more week…or two? If that’s not the case, love must exist in another location, or something of the sort. For myself, fortunately, I fall in love everyday, but even better yet, when you fall for “working hard” at what you love; what an intense emotion…
1:00 pm: Jan Sacher, a Czech TA for our class and newly made close friend of mine, was waiting for me at FAMU as I was running late from the Café. One of his friend’s, Mirek, is in a local band that is quite successful and after meeting them weeks ago and expressing my love for music, I pitched an idea for a video to shoot and collaborate on while I was here in Prague. Why not I thought? Ok, they said. Done. I can hear Jan’s words ring in my head, “Lets dooooooooo it!”
1:55pm: So we packed up my camera, Jan’s awesome tripod and for the first time in Prague, I was in a small hatchback (car) that wasn’t owned or driven by a taxicab driver…More connecting with this city and its’ people and I’m never going anywhere!!
Jan had done some great location scouting and after meeting briefly to talk about our shoot, the shot list, and what was to take place…I could not wait. Let’s roll baby!!
2:36pm: By “roll” I mean we have Mirek running down three-flights of stairs, random neighborhood streets, Jan at the wheel pulling off some amazing feats, and me…hanging out the rear of the car, hatch wide-open, camera on sticks with a rear perspective from the vehicle and a couple of rubber bands to hold everything (including myself) in place. What coincided the next 5 hours were some of the most thrilling moments of my life as a filmmaker. The shoot went well, and it is only 1 of 5 for our video. I can’t explain the feeling of collaborating with fellow artists in making magic…again and again, and again…We’ll keep rolling till the wheels fall off…and then some more. I love this town.
I have never been anywhere during the month of August where the weather dropped forty degrees in one day. Today the weather went from about ninety-five degrees Fahrenheit and sunny to about fifty-five degrees and rainy. It was really strange.
I spent the majority of my day just wandering the city alone. I went to a coffee shop, ate lunch, wrote, and just watched people. Then, I walked around the city looking in shops and taking in the things around me. There was something strange about walking around a crowded city in a foreign country in the rain. It made me feel a sense of isolation even though I was surrounded by people. Maybe it’s the fact that they all speak a different language or maybe it’s just the fact that the culture is unfamiliar still, but something about it felt lonely. I guess it also could have just been the weather. After feeling that way today, it made it hard to imagine what it would be like to live in Prague in the winter. The weather today was basically a cold winter day in Corpus Christi, where I am from, so it’s hard for me to envision an entire season of twenty-degree weather. Anyway, after walking around the city in the cold rain, the only thing I wanted to do was return to the dorm and take a nap in my warm bad. So, that’s what I did.
July thirty first, I am now a bit familiar with the city, so getting around is simple. The public transportation is great, well besides the occasional long wait for night trams, another story altogether. So, here I go Metro A to Staromestska, the daily track, then FAMU an old historical building facing the river, our place of study. Today my task is to finish the research on Gene Deitch, an old, very well known, respected animator from America, who has been living in Prague for over forty years. He likes to refer to himself as the only free American living in Prague during Communism. Tomorrow I will go to Barrandov Studios to interview him and his wife. Gene is a director of 2d children animations and has been doing it for over fifty years. He has directed cartoons such as Tom and Jerry and Popeye. His wife Zdenka Deitchova is the production manager at Barrandov Studios and has worked there for over sixty years! I am excited about meeting them tomorrow, even more excited about seeing them work. Tonight we are watching a documentary, Cesky sen movie, with director Filip Remunda attending. I have been trying to take advantage of my time here by reading and watching as much work from Czech people as possible. It is great that we get to see a documentary and have the director in attendance. Interpretation is fun, but there is insight in hearing someone explain their work.
