uncensored interview edit
- Tino Schwanemann, Paris
ÉCU: Why did you choose to make a film about democracy?
It was a personal challenge for me. In the last year, The U.S. State Department announced a contest to get various views on current democracy. Most of the entry films were like ‘Democracy is the most beautiful thing on earth’. I simply couldn’t stand it! It was the typical ignorance that I have often been confronted with in the USA: just to concentrate on the beauty of life and ignoring its authenticity. I wanted to provoke them. I wanted to show that there is not only Black and White. Of course, my film was denied as an entry although getting most of the votes by the audience. The State Department’s reaction was: “Tino’s film takes a hard look at what he sees as the negative sides of American democracy –do you think the positives of the freedoms that come with democracy outweigh the negatives? (We do!)”. These circumstances showed to me, there isn’t everything alright, especially about American democracy. I must have found a sore point.Anyway, the contest is being repeated this year.
ÉCU: What inspired you to interrogate the subject of democracy in this way?
I admire Jean Baudrillard and Paul Virilio. And I have read some interesting essays of them. For me, the best inventory of today’s America is Jean Baudrillard’s book “America”. It is written in a wonderful, visual language focusing on various aspects of American politics, society and economy. During my travels through the U.S., I felt the same way, so this book was my main inspiration to look behind the surface.
- Jean Baudrillard
ÉCU: Why did you decide to shoot in black and white?
It was the best way to express that democracy is NOT just black and white. It is NOT a stereotype. But in order to demonstrate it, the optimal way was to leave any color. Black and white also forces an audience to concentrate more on important, subtle details. When you add color, you express much more. I want the audience to add some colors in their mind when they need it, whether red, green, blue or whatever.
ÉCU: What was the significance of setting the film in New York?
New York is one of my favorite cities on earth. I love its creativity, its diversity and its speed. But it is a city of contradictions, too. There are just some hundred streets from Manhattan to Harlem, and to the Bronx. And Manhattan seems to be like a facade. Its intention is to transmit a NYC image that doesn’t exist in the reality. Reality can be found somewhere between a point A and B, in the middle of two sides. For me, New York has its attraction in the opposite of those two: it is high and low, fast and slow, modern and primitive, clean and dirty, intelligent and dumb, expensive and cheap, and all of this at the same time.
NYC on the first sight is like a gorgeous, pretty lady. In the late night, she removes her make-up and looks like a nasty bitch. Then she grabs for your jacket and steals all your money for gambling. NYC is like a melting pot of our society in all its diverse, sometimes shocking facets. If you just visit this city from north to south, it tells a lot about the American Way of Life, and a lot about the American definition of democracy. This is so fascinating about this city. At all, in many ways, it is kind of a representative of other U.S. cities like Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles etc.
ÉCU: The film has a documentary-like quality. Were any of the people featured in the film acting or did you film what you saw on the streets?
Both. I think, a filmmaker’s task is to find and to react on sujets. In many cases, I just needed to watch. But there are also moments, when people recognized me while I filmed them. Then, I needed to talk to them in order to behave naturally. I didn’t want anyone to act superficially like in a Hollywood movie. For this film, I was interested in reality.
- Tino Schwanemann's "Democracy Is ..."
ÉCU: The images are accompanied by comic-book style captions. Why did you choose these over, say, a voiceover?
The message of this film is “Democracy is an image”. The meaning of image can be defined in various ways. On the one hand, it is a picture of a scenery, which is a view from outside, on the other hand, it means to express or even to proclaim a special personal state of mind, which is a view from inside. While the film plays with those definitions and views, it was necessary for me to use it like a cartoon. Cartoons do both: they are images trying to explain the character’s personal situation.
ÉCU: Did you encounter any difficulties while filming?
There have been some situations, when the police or company’s security wanted me to stop filming. But I could handle that. And there have surely been some critical moments while I was filming in the Bronx. I needed to prepare carefully and ask for the help of people, who know those districts well. The most important thing was just to avoid any gang colors. The people in the Bronx, however, are not different from those in Manhattan. Most of the times, they have been even friendlier. Of course, they were always asking me about my intentions for this film. Then, it’s just up to yourself, whether you are open-minded to talk to them or to leave immediately. I decided to explain my point of interest. Finally, they were fascinated about my knowledge of Jay-Z lyrics with a German accent. In the beginning, there is always the word…
ÉCU: What do you want people to take away from your film?
Democracy is a process. I want to make people think about it, whether they agree to the film or not. I am sure, when people stop thinking about its development, democracy won’t be improved. Politicians are like puppets on the string of a majority. With a major population longing for more liberty, more equality and further improvement, politicians are forced to make proposals to fight discrepancies. Finally, I want to make people think about the access on democracy. Is it only for those who can afford it, or can anyone take part of it? When you don’t have any money for internet or a newspaper, is it possible to be part of that process? If you can’t afford to go to school, can you imagine the consequences of non-participation?
- Tino Schwanemann, Paris
ÉCU: Tell me about your next project?
I am currently finishing a short film as a mixture of documentary, experimental and narrative called “Africa Light / Gray Zone”. With this film, I want to extend the film genres. Together with widely spread creatives like Steffen Greisiger, who composed an unique music theme together with the renowned German Film Orchestra Babelsberg, conducted by a German legend like Bernd Wefelmeyer, I want to proof, that it is possible to make a modern film dealing with social, economical and political issues in a symbolic way for a target group of young people. This film looks like a beautiful commercial first, but reveals a deeper story about the current development in Africa later on. It’s just a story as an uncensored view on The 1st World in the 3rd World. You can find further information and some promotional videos on http://www.africa-light.com.
Furthermore, I am preparing a global feature film. But this is still top secret.
