A decline in the relevance of cinema is linked to current geopolitical divides, according to Hungarian director Laszlo Nemes
“Because of technological advancement, we feel that cinema is irrelevant today,” said Nemes, speaking at the Venice press conference for his Competition film Orphan. “But I think if we stop telling big stories, we condemn ourselves to downfall as a civilisation.
“Cinema is not just an entertainment for the elite,” continued the filmmaker. “In its essence, it was very popular, in the way it can bring something very human to audiences.
“If we throw it out the window, we fail to touch each other’s soul; and cinema can achieve that. That there’s a conflict within civilisation that’s growing, and we’re losing cinema – that’s not by chance. The two are correlated, for me.”
Nemes was responding to a question about the political relevance of his film, and began his remarks by acknowledging “there’s only so much a filmmaker can do” in a political context. “Our means are limited,” said the director. “We have to keep cinema alive.”
Later in the conference, Nemes praised cinema as something that can take people beyond the information-heavy internet age. “Especially with the internet, we have the feeling we know better,” said the director. “We can judge. Cinema can bring us beyond that – we cannot control and judge. You have to witness.”
Political issues
Orphan, Nemes’s third feature, follows a young boy after the Hungarian uprising of 1956. Raised by his mother with the tale of an idealised dead father, he is confronted with a brutish man who claims to be his real father.
Mubi holds distribution rights on multiple territories including UK-Ireland and Germany.
Nemes was asked about the role of filmmakers today amid ongoing political issues, with specific reference to the Venice4Palestine movement that looks to highlight the crisis in Gaza at the festival.
“The big question for me – in film, in art, but also in everyday life – are you a humanist or an anti-humanist?” responded Nemes, who criticised The Zone Of Interest director Jonathan Glazer last year for the speech he gave at the Oscars on the topic of Gaza. “There are two forces in the heart of civilization, and sometimes there is this duality that cannot be easily solved.
“It’s intertwined. We have seen in the 20th century what it can produce in the heart of civilization… we know what it can produce in the future. So, the real question is, where is the humanism in what we do? As a filmmaker, that’s my responsibility.”
All three of Nemes’ films have been historical stories – Second World War feature Son Of Saul, pre-First World War story Sunset and now Orphan. “I’m drawn to historical subjects,” said the director. “I don’t want to make TV movies, postcard movies about [the historical subjects]. I want to take the viewer to the heart of a historical experience that happens in the past.”
The film is inspired by the stories of Nemes’ father, filmmaker Andras Jeles, and his grandmother. The latter was born in 1914, and Nemes said her life through the 20th century “encapsulated the hardness of human destruction at the heart of civilisation.”
Nemes was joined by cast including Bojtorjan Barabas, who plays the young boy; Andrea Waskovics; and Gregory Gadebois.
Also on the panel were his co-writer on the film Clara Royer, plus producers Ildiko Kemeny and Mike Goodridge.
Orphan has its world premiere this afternoon in Venice.
The Competition then continues this evening with Noah Baumbach’s Netflix title Jay Kelly, with George Clooney expected to attend despite having missed the press conference with what moderator Giulia D’Agnolo Vallan described as “a bad sinus infection.”
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