2008.10.20
[Updates]
Exclusive Interview with Director Fernando Meirelles of “BLINDNESS”!
“BLINDNESS” directed by Fernado Meirelles was selected as one of the films featured in this year’s Special Screenings. The filmmaker’s sensational Japan debut was at the 15th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2002 with “City of God”, his first feature film about two boys growing up in a violent neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. Now he is back to TIFF with his latest film BLINDNESS which was also selected as the opening film at the Cannes International Festival.
Here’s some notes and quotes from the exclusive interview we had with Director Meirelles who arrived in Japan a little earlier than others to attend the BLINDNESS Press Conference.
To see the interview video.Click here
“BLINDNESS”For film details
Q. BLINDNESS is based on the novel by José Saramago. Why did you choose this novel?
A. The idea of the novel was that we start from a very normal world based in everyday life, stable and everything. Then something happens and this first guy loses his sight, and little by little, everybody gets blind and the society collapses. It really shows how fragile our civilization is and how close we are to animals in our primitive side. A normal person one day loses his sight and in a few weeks he becomes like an animal; eating, having sex... He really goes down pretty fast. That’s what I thought was pretty interesting.
Q. By the simple act of losing one’s sight, it reveals the primitive nature within us. You must have wondered what it would be like to lose your sight. What were some things you thought about?
A. One thing is that when just one person loses sight, then all the others help you. But it is a very different situation when everybody loses their sight?that’s the situation of the film. There is nobody to help you and you are by yourself. I think that this is the kind of film you watch and you are always asking yourself, “What would I do if I were in this situation?” I like it when that happens. When you start watching the film and you see people behaving the way they behave, going down and down. The audience would ask themselves, “Would I do this? Would I rape somebody?” I ask myself to where I would go down to if I were in that situation. I think that this is the kind of question we should ask ourselves.
Q. Why is the doctor’s wife (played by Julian Moore) the one that retains her sight?
A. Well, watch it (laugh). This is the first things I asked José Saramago when I met him, “Why she could see?” And he said, “I don’t know, it was pure chance. There’s no reason, she is not a better person or anything. Some things in life we can’t explain. But anyway, this is not a film about that?about why she is immune, and not about a disease and the cure, or why people are sick and others are not. I think that if we start talking about why she is immune and if she has something special in her blood, the film would go to a totally different direction. This film is really not about this disease?it’s about our incapacity of seeing others. “Sight” in this film is like a metaphor to knowledge, so when we lose our sight, we are revealing our ignorance. So I think it was a good idea not to talk about that because if we did, it would go in a totally different direction.
Q. Your debut film “City of God” brought you to the 15th TIFF. Do you have any memorable moments of your visit then?
A. When we came to Japan with “City of God” in the Competition section, for me it was an amazing experience. First of all because I never thought that film would cross the world and of course I never thought it would bring me to Japan?it’s on the other side of the planet from where I live! At that point, I was impressed with many things then; the traveling and being interviewed. I remember I came to Tokyo and at the hotel I had 75 interviews in 4 days! I was very overwhelmed! The only pity was that I didn’t have a single minute to walk the streets of Tokyo. When I was young, I traveled in Japan for a month by myself and I really loved the countryside. This time, my plan is to show my film at the festival and to take something like a week off to walk around Tokyo.
Here’s some notes and quotes from the exclusive interview we had with Director Meirelles who arrived in Japan a little earlier than others to attend the BLINDNESS Press Conference.
To see the interview video.Click here
“BLINDNESS”For film details
2008 Rhombus Media/O2 Filmes/Bee Vine Pictures
Q. BLINDNESS is based on the novel by José Saramago. Why did you choose this novel?
A. The idea of the novel was that we start from a very normal world based in everyday life, stable and everything. Then something happens and this first guy loses his sight, and little by little, everybody gets blind and the society collapses. It really shows how fragile our civilization is and how close we are to animals in our primitive side. A normal person one day loses his sight and in a few weeks he becomes like an animal; eating, having sex... He really goes down pretty fast. That’s what I thought was pretty interesting.
Q. By the simple act of losing one’s sight, it reveals the primitive nature within us. You must have wondered what it would be like to lose your sight. What were some things you thought about?
A. One thing is that when just one person loses sight, then all the others help you. But it is a very different situation when everybody loses their sight?that’s the situation of the film. There is nobody to help you and you are by yourself. I think that this is the kind of film you watch and you are always asking yourself, “What would I do if I were in this situation?” I like it when that happens. When you start watching the film and you see people behaving the way they behave, going down and down. The audience would ask themselves, “Would I do this? Would I rape somebody?” I ask myself to where I would go down to if I were in that situation. I think that this is the kind of question we should ask ourselves.
Q. Why is the doctor’s wife (played by Julian Moore) the one that retains her sight?
A. Well, watch it (laugh). This is the first things I asked José Saramago when I met him, “Why she could see?” And he said, “I don’t know, it was pure chance. There’s no reason, she is not a better person or anything. Some things in life we can’t explain. But anyway, this is not a film about that?about why she is immune, and not about a disease and the cure, or why people are sick and others are not. I think that if we start talking about why she is immune and if she has something special in her blood, the film would go to a totally different direction. This film is really not about this disease?it’s about our incapacity of seeing others. “Sight” in this film is like a metaphor to knowledge, so when we lose our sight, we are revealing our ignorance. So I think it was a good idea not to talk about that because if we did, it would go in a totally different direction.
Q. Your debut film “City of God” brought you to the 15th TIFF. Do you have any memorable moments of your visit then?
A. When we came to Japan with “City of God” in the Competition section, for me it was an amazing experience. First of all because I never thought that film would cross the world and of course I never thought it would bring me to Japan?it’s on the other side of the planet from where I live! At that point, I was impressed with many things then; the traveling and being interviewed. I remember I came to Tokyo and at the hotel I had 75 interviews in 4 days! I was very overwhelmed! The only pity was that I didn’t have a single minute to walk the streets of Tokyo. When I was young, I traveled in Japan for a month by myself and I really loved the countryside. This time, my plan is to show my film at the festival and to take something like a week off to walk around Tokyo.
