ARTS THURSDAY April 8
JAN KOUNEN
Friday morning. The Sofitel Wentworth Hotel, Sydney.
Jan Kounen, one of France’s most eclectic and visionary film directors is here for two days to introduce his latest film, “Coco Chanel et Igor Stravinsky” and gives me a charming interview for EASTSIDE fm.
I have seen some of his other films as well as the stunning Coco et Igor and I find each film to be as extraordinary and exceptionally diverse as they are captivating. He is both undeniably cool and creatively an evolutionary.
His early films such as GISELE KEROUZENE- see YouTube listings are electic- like Tati on speed, or Commedia del arte du cinema.
Then there is DOBERMANN, 99Francs…BLUEBERRY, LE DERNIER CHAPERON ROUGE, VITROBOY and D’AUTRE MONDES.
His documentary DARSHAN was screened in the Official Selection at Cannes and he soon to co-direct The LAST CALL, a docu-drama starring the Dalai Lama.
He is a renaissance man, a man of depth, grace and humour. He is a visionary director. To quote COCO CHANEL herself:
“Fashion goes out of fashion…but style never does”
COCO AND IGOR is currently in release.
SL The opening sequence the dazzling ballet and orchestral sequence shot in the Theatre Champs Elysees….over 2 days then to the studio for more stage and especially backstage..
JK “The theatre was wonderful but we had limited time to shoot there. And today it’s too modern so we recreated the interiors in the studio.As we shot, the editor worked on assembling sequences so at the end of my shooting day in the studio I would view the edit and sometimes decided to create a new sequence to film the next day.When we were shooting in the house(located near Paris) the three actors were all there every day so we could make new scenes or moments.
SL- And you must have had a great First Assistant Director in Dominique Delany who told me she loved working with you.
JK- Yes! Dominique is wonderful and a great human, she has heart, you know. And she’s Australian!
SL-The design is exquisite. Is the Designer one you work with on all your films?
JK- No, but I knew Marie-Helene from school. And as she was also the set decorator and so every little detail was perfect.
SL_ It seems that you, more than any other French director today, have many selves and each film reveals this. But it is like there is a higher self of ‘Jan’ infusing his essence in all of them.
JK- “ You know, each film appeals to a different side of myself- so each film is a good opportunity, a great chance to take a different adventure. And different genres means different aspects. And I have the chance to really get into the psyche of many different characters.”
SL- The response of he audience to the premiere of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring was originally so extreme as you brilliantly captured in the film. It’s not like that any more.
JK-“Aha, but there is Cannes! So we thought why not screen the film at the Cannes Film Festival because that’s where it happens today( the audiences sometimes yell and so on) and so we were the closing night film last year. And so we gave the audience their chance to be like the original audiences for Stravinsky. They could play a role as they did in Igor’s day.
SL- You’ve just arrived from a long flight from France-do you like o think about the world you are flying over or do you remain in your own space on the ‘plane?
JK- When I take a long flight I like a window and to look down at the cities, if you can see them, and the country and yes, the clouds. I do dream yes but like to be focused- Maybe focused on sleeping or like on this flight I worked on my laptop because I have to finish a new script.
But it was amazing to look out over Australia, from Perth hours of desert and new landscape.
SL- How were you first introduced to this script?
JK- The script came to be from Claudie Ossard the Producer who sent me a script- by Greenhalgh from his own novel. So then I read the book- I love to read, especially on the plane a journey on a journey..
But the script was for an English language film and that’s the first thing I wanted to change. And to add the long exchanges in Russian- very important.
SL- I wonder who is the most inspiring artist, writer, thinker or person to you?
JK- The traditional healers of the Amazon.. Art, healing and giving visions – the jungle is very important to me.
I have taken some directors there to feel for themselves this inspiration.
And artists where reality and art transform into each other.