Interview of the Raw company with Govanmehr Esmaeilpour director of "On bruised years" movie
What was your motivation for making the film?
Sometimes I ask myself this question but of course, in a more general way. Basically, what is the artist's goal in creating a work of art? One learns studies and experiences all one's life to create a work at the promised moment. Does the artist produce the work of art or is it the work of art that deems that person worthy of his own creation? Different thinkers have offered different perspectives from each point of view. My view is closer to Eastern mysticism. In this view, the artist cultivates his existence towards perfection. Simultaneous ideas from everyday life and from the study of the world around them invade the artist at all times. But from this innumerable idea, one that flips in harmony with his wisdom and spirits and flows the stream of his thought.
With this introduction, let me say that many thoughts had formed in my mind and needed time to express them. Making this film made it possible for these thoughts to be reflected and for me to portray my own views and suggestions to the world.
How did the idea of the film come to you?
Well, I'm very interested in studying the rituals of the people on the street and in the bazaar; the thing that called folklore. These popular beliefs, which still exist in the lives of people today, and because they are not directly related to known religions, are known as superstitions.
The interesting thing about these behaviors for me is that they are a clear response to human fears and unknowns. From ancient times to the present day, it is enough to put each of them on the laboratory table and under a microscope to show us the sources of human nature. The idea for this film came to me while studying one of the types of spells called "The tree-spirit", which is done in Austrian villages. People have to perform a ritual to avoid calamity and death, and no one has the right to make mistakes. I thought what if someone makes a mistake and slips? And it showed me its whole story.
What is your main goal of filmmaking in Iran?
First, I was born in Iran. So there was no other choice. But when I got to know myself and my homeland, Iran, I decided to study the cultural and artistic background of my homeland as much as possible and learn about the archetypes of storytelling and the intellectual structure of thinkers in its history of several thousand years.
I would also like to say that as a cultural person, I consider cultural boundaries not just political boundaries. So when I look at Iran, the border of my gaze is a wide area that starts from the Indus Valley and continues to the beautiful Mediterranean. But even though I was born in Iran, I consider myself as a citizen of the world. I like the structure of the work that I create, and within that structure, the message that I convey with my film has a universal value and is tangible and effective for all people at all times. So I can say that my goal in filmmaking in Iran is to benefit from the cultural facilities of Iran and history and the background of storytelling and wisdom in this ancient land to talk and communicate with any human being anywhere in history and all around the world.
How concerned is the subject of the movie and why did you choose this one?
As I mentioned earlier, I took the subject of the film from one of the ritual archetypes, and these archetypes, because they are rooted in human nature, have always been a concern and will remain in the future. "The spells transference of evil" are behaviors that we perform to keep evil away from ourselves into the life of an animal or an object. In many places, animals are sacrificed. In some places, certain plants are burnet.
But what is the origin of all this? What does one want to escape from? I made the main character of my story as someone who makes a mistake and all the other things that the others run away from. In fact, I confronted him to the greatest archetypes of human fear. I wanted to see what these fears really look like when they show up to someone.
On the other hand, I followed the rest of the people who had transmitted their disasters and fears to the hero and victim of our story. When a calamity, no matter how great it is, befalls someone, does everything end for that person? The protagonist of our story finds the opportunity to see the truth of the terrible calamities away from fantasies. The rest of the characters in the story also find the opportunity to live away from their calamities and great fears. But do they found peace? We soon realize that nothing is going to be better as well as they thought, because man has become terrified during that time, which even nature and its monsters are afraid of. I lived as all the characters as the creator of this story. Their fears and troubles are my own fears and troubles, and so are their joys and desires.
How did you come to these cast and crew and what are your criteria for selection?
This film could not be included in the category of commercial films. It has a story that along with its charm and fascination makes you think. So with a lot of respect for the actors and artists of commercial cinema, I put them aside and went to other kinds of people. Some of the main actors in the film appeared in front of the camera for the first time, despite decades of experience in theater and university teaching. I was deliberately looking for people who could not easily respond positively to any job offers. We had a meeting with some for several months and discussed until we came to a conclusion. The same thing happened with the technicians and behind the camera roles. I was looking for people who have as much independent thinking and vision in their work as possible. I wanted them to connect with the story and understand my thoughts.
What were the Problems with the film production?
This film is a low-budget film. This created a lot of problems for us. We had to make the technical group as small as possible. Reduce the number of assistants and make the most of the minimum technical facilities. To make the film, I had chosen a remote location in one of the border towns that had neither electricity nor tap water. The lack of electricity caused us a lot of problems and we had to change the location to a nearby city to film night scenes. On the other hand, it rained heavily in those days, which locked us inside the hotel for a long time. Worst of all was when we went up a mountain to film a scene. A difficult mountaineering for which some actors bled and the others worked very hard to get the filming equipment there. We filmed half of the shots in that scene and moved the camera to the opposite angle to record the rest of the shots, but the camera had a software problem and everything we did, did not work. We had to go down the mountain empty-handed and return the camera by plane to the capital to be repaired, and ... the thought of filming the continuation of that scene and going back to the top of that mountain had taken away my sleep and food for a few days.
Tell us about the positive points and good memories in making, producing, writing the script, finding the crew or any other subject that can inspire the filmmakers?
As I said, heavy rains started that lasted for a long time. Little by little, the time of the actors' contracts was coming to an end. The camera also broke down and delayed work for a few more days. I was particularly worried about an actor who had already told me that he had to return to the capital a few days after his contract. With what happened, it was practically impossible to film the rest of their scenes in the remaining days, and at the last night of those days I was very upset and I decided to change the script. I recorded a plan to remove him from the script and shot the rest of the film. The next morning, when I entered the restaurant, I saw the crew at the breakfast table having a meeting with him, and without my interference, satisfying him for a few more days to get the job done. This empathy and self-sacrifice of the crew was very inspiring for me.
Tell us about the film funding and the challenges?
This part was very annoying and difficult for me. At first, we had a financer that gave us a part of the budget for making the film before filming, and we entered the pre-production with peace of mind. But at the beginning of the filming and when the equipment and personnel were moved miles away from the capital, the financer suddenly cut off contact with us without any explanation. You know that in a professional film, if the crew find out about the financial situation everything will be ruined. so I could have talk about the issue with everyone and stopped working until we returned to Tehran and everything was over, or I could have tried every possible way to continue this adventure. Due to my fighting spirit, I chose the second way. Many days when the crew were busy adjusting the camera or eating, I was away from the rest and I sold my house, car and my furniture. I had to laugh all the time and show my relaxed and happy appearance so that no one would worry.
What are your expectations of your movie?
I myself got good feedback from the film in several private shows for different groups of people. I am glad that despite all the difficulties, with the help of professional crew and the artist of the project, the result of the work has been impressive and spectacular. I really hope that the film can open its way in international festivals and also provide fair conditions for its release inside of Iran so that many people can see it. I made this film with a lot of love and hope, as well as more study and effort than I thought of many. In a day when war and bloody aggression have engulfed the world and the fire of anger and revenge has risen, this film has a message of reconciliation and love by tracing the roots of human struggles and showing the end of these struggles. It reminds people that the purpose of life is something else. Many people fight for a better life and destroy their own lives and the lives of others. This movie has something that I would like many people to hear and I think there are wise people in the world that will help to see it.