Did you know that father Coppola publishes his musings online? I don’t remember what chain of links I followed to get there, but I found this year-old diary on the Web site for his latest film, Youth Without Youth. Apparently, it is an adaptation of a novella by the same name (Tinereţe fără de tinereţe) which concerns an old man who is struck by a bolt of lightning and becomes young again. Now endowed with a fantastic memory and comprehension, he receives thought messages from the supernatural.

Along similar lines, Coppola comments:

I’ve been thinking about what seems to be a repeating pattern: artists who distinguish themselves when they are young, and then never can quite reach those levels again…
Why is this? What are the reasons? Is it only that genius at the level of Shakespeare, Verdi, Kurosawa and Picasso is as rare and precious as it would seem, or are there other factors as well? More on this subject will come …

The film appears quite autobiographical; Coppola has taken Woody Allen’s film-as-therapy approach. To me the problem is clear: eventually one runs out of interesting things to say. I think the best antidote is a healthy curiosity, and a desire to learn. I know I spend a lot of time reading the news (just watch it fly by you on the blog’s sidebar).

The movie, starring the great Bruno Ganz (from Der Untergang), was supposed to be out by now, but the IMDB lists it as being in production for reshoots as of today.

Even better was a video of him with his notes from The Godfather! He goes over each section of the notebook:

1. Synopsis. If you pause the video, you can read a whole page.
2. The Times: Establishing the scene, based on when the story is set.
3. Imagery and Tone.
4. The Core: What the scene is about.
5. Pitfalls: What not to do when directing the scene.

Tracking pitfalls is one habit I am going to copy; you can never be too organized. One of his concerns was avoiding the cliche of “Italians who-a, talka like-a dis”! Didn’t, uh, Brando commit that crime, once or twice?

I am experimenting with enriching our RSS feed. Since I do not have time to comment at length on everything I read, I decided to share the ones I found interesting by RSS. You can see the most recent ones on the sidebar, under Recently Read. I do not want to alienate you so I am conducting a survey. Register your opinion, or write a comment; don't be shy!

You might have noticed the blog got a makeover! Let us know if have any problems with it. I think the central column is a bit cramped but I am going to live with it until next year before making any decisive changes.

 I would also like to point out that we have an RSS feed if you do not want to visit the site to find out what is new.

The most recent festival in which TFII participated has drawn to a close. Thanks to everyone who came. It made me remember just how important it is to watch films in the theatre. I know they are becoming increasingly expensive, but do treat yourself to it occasionally. Unless you have a real home theatre—a big, dark, quiet room with a projector and surround sound system—there is a notable difference. As a film-maker I like to watch the audience's reaction so I have an additional incentive to go, but it is worth it even without that.

I just received an e-mail from the organizers about the results:

Best Documentary: The Play
Best Short Film: Crash

Best Documentary Audience Award: The Restorer
Best Short Film Award: Crash

Crash is a Tarantinoesque heist film—a perennial favorite genre—with intersecting plots. Congratulations to the director, Umut Aral. No doubt he will be using his prize money to pay off his debts and fund his next film.

The festival was concluded with Nuri Bilge Ceylan's latest film, İklimler ("Climates"), which won the FIPRESCI (the film critics) Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. His last film, Uzak, was a hit there too. I think his sensibilities are aligned with those of the French. I doubt any of his films would fare well in the States. The moral for film-makers is simple: know thy audience/critic.

A superb series of panoramic photographs, titled Turkey Cinemascope, taken during the scouting of the film, was present at the Thessaloniki Film Festival. Having seen them, I conclude he is better at photography. He has a truly gifted eye, but visuals alone do not make a good film. Can anyone honestly say they enjoyed the acting in Uzak (Distant)?