Chandran Rutnam :

First Lankan director to win Best Director Award

Interviewed by Charith Perera

Since the 1960s, no Asian Director has won a ‘Best Director’ Award at an International Film Festival.Now, Chandran Rutnam stands up with the only other South-East Asian Director, Satyajit Ray, who won the Best Director Award, at the Auckland International Film Festival for his film. “The Adventures of Goopy and Bagha” in 1969.

The Madrid International Film Festival awarded Chandran with the Prestigious Best Director Award, in the main international competition, competing with other international directors.

Excerpts:

Question: A Common Man has won Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor awards at the Madrid International Film in the main category. In addition to Madrid Film Festival, it has won a bronze medal in the Feature Films category at the New York Festivals’ International Television and Film Awards. You have effectively shattered the myth that Sri Lankan films (particularly English productions) are incapable of reaching international standards and breaking into major international movie markets. Significantly, it is for the first time, that a Sri Lankan English production has won three main awards in the main category.

What would you think are the avenues that A Common Man opens up for Sri Lankan films (Particularly English) productions in general and for Sri Lankan commercial movie making sector in particular?

Answer: It gives us the knowledge and the confidence that it could be done. We may have known all the time that it could be done.

It is evident that we can establish a film, worthy of an international market. I believe we have restricted ourselves to making only ethnic films for a particularly and obviously small market.

I am a firm believer that commerce has a lot to play in the art and artistry of filmmaking.

As I have said before, great artiste such as Piccaso or Mudigliani or Degas could go to the corner store and buy canvas and paint and if it does not work out to the artiste’s satisfaction, he could throw it away and go back to the cornerstore to purchase another set of canvas and paint. Filmmaking is one of the most expensive art forms in the world and it is done with the collaboration of numerous artistes and craftsmen.

Therefore, it is important that when we find the “financial angels” that we strive by using our artistry in our creations, and also have a chance to make remunerations, so that our “angles” could live another day. So, in this art form of filmmaking, commerce and creativity must go hand in hand.

Therefore, in my films, I strive to entertain, by provoking, by stimulating the viewers’ consciousness, while I draw and hold their interest for two hours of story-telling.

In my opinion, there is no substitute for the story. The story has to work. The screenplay is the thing and with this thought, I would say that if it works on paper, it should work on the screen and if it does not work on paper, it will never work on the screen.

Yes, we could make Sri Lankan films for the world audience. We have the talent. We have the technology. We have the passion. We must find good stories.

Socio-economic reality

Q: A Common Man is the official remaking of the Indian Thriller A Wednesday. However, you have re-worked on the original plot in such a manner that it is intensively linked to contemporary the socio-economic reality particularly in the aftermath of the conflict which claimed thousands of lives and millions of properties. How challenging the task of re-doing a plot in a way incorporating contemporary socio-economic reality?

A: Having seen the Hindi film A Wednesday, I thought this concept would work well in the Sri Lankan context. Because, it was not too long ago, that we experienced such horrific incidents.

Therefore, I re-wrote the script with Sri Lanka in mind, although addressing the movie to the international audience. As we watch TV every evening, we see bombs exploding and terrorism throughout the world. This does not apply to Sri Lanka alone. It is a reality that exists almost in every part of the world.

Q: Although it was a psycho-thriller, A Common Man expounds the deep philosophy on the part of The Man brilliantly portrayed by Sir Ben Kingsley. The core message seems to be the age old maxim that ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ and The Man launches a crusade against terrorism. A Common Man has demonstrated the fact that vital issues and deep philosophies can be effectively bring into mainstream discourse through psycho-thrillers such as A Common Man. Your views?

A: These frustrations are within all of us, as we see devastation and killings on a regular basis.

The Common Man, epitomises the frustrations within us and decides to do something about it. Many of us could identify with the Man and a number of us, would not know what to do about it. Here, we have a Man who says enough is enough and decides to take the matter into his own hands.

Q: Debut actors Patrick Rutnam (as IP Mohideen) and Fredrick-James Koch (as IP Rangan Jayaweera) played important supporting roles in the movie. The supporting roles that Patrick Rutnam and Fredrick-James Koch played in the plot were, in fact, central to the success of the film. As the director of the movie, how would you look back on the natural acting on the part of the two debut actors who proved their mettle in the movie?

A: It was a pleasure to work with Patrick Rutnam as I.P. Mohideen and James Koch as I.P. Ranjan Jayaweera. Patrick is from the New York School of acting and James is from an Australian School of acting. They both brought valuable talent to the project and complied with my direction at all times. They did very well.

Q: Although A Common Man was an English psycho thriller produced in Sri Lanka, it excels in many aspects. One salient feature of the movie is that it is an exceptional directorial venture with large crew and most of the scenes being shot outdoor.What were challenges that you encountered in the making of the movie as a director?

A: When you work with professional actors such as Sir Ben Kingsley and Ben Cross and a professional and an enthusiastic crew from Film Location Services (Pvt) Limited, I do not consider it work, but a great experience. I always enjoyed working on the set.

We experienced some sound problems during the time of Vesak. Vesak chanting took place during the shoot.

We also shot on high rise buildings with howling winds and crashing waves below. Therefore, we had to do a considerable amount of ADR during Post-Production.

Technical standards

Q: One of the salient features of A Common Man was the high degree of production and technical standards. The very diction and the syntax of the movie definitely cater to a cosmopolitan audience. How did you make use of your exposure to international movie making, expertise and experience in the field to bring about rich texture to the movie with detailed depiction of a profile of busy urban landscape in the movie?

A: I had a good feeling for the subject matter and the script turned out marvellously well and as I said earlier, working with professionals and an expert crew, only helped me bring out my vision to the screen.

Q: A Common Man is a psycho-thriller, a genre rarely tried out by Sri Lankan filmmakers in general and in commercial movie sector in particular. One of the pre-requests for Sri Lankan movie industry to grow and come out of present impasse is to go beyond the shores as you did with A Common Man. Sri Lankan commercial movie sector has still not exploited diverse genres or criss-crossing of genres of films and Sri Lanka as a potential hub for film locations. Your views?

A: Sri Lanka has always been a film location destination. My company Film location Services, has been in business for over 35 years and we have brought in Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and various others to the country.

The high degree in expertise in movie making, attracts foreign filmmakers to use our locations. I feel that very soon, the young filmmakers of Sri Lanka, as they travel far and wide, will gradually target the international audience.

Q: One of the positive scenarios that emerge from A Common Man is that Sri Lanka has all the potential to make a niche for Sri Lankan movies in multimillion international commercial and even artistic move market (Like Indian and Hong-Kong movies).

Obvious, there should be substantial investments in the commercial movie sector with a committed coalition of producers who are willing to invest in commercial movies. What are the changes that you envisage in making a dynamic and lucrative commercial movie sector in Sri Lanka?

A: Every business, eventually ends up with a bottom line. If the film business strives and brings back a good return of investment to the producer, then he will stay in the business and many others would join him in the lucrative business.

Therefore, it is important to select projects which adhere to all the elements that are necessary for profitable film production.

Technical crew

Q:. A movie is a collective venture and success or failure is, by and largely, due to team effect. How would you look back on the technical and non-technical crew which contributed to make A Common Man a success?

A: As I mentioned earlier, A Common Man was backed up and supported by a group of internationally experience technicians and crew members. It is certainly team work and the efforts are all appreciated, whether it is from a light boy or Assistant Director or Production Designer. Everyone plays their part and we make sure that no one drops the ball.

Q: What is obvious is that you have already gone beyond Sri Lankan shores in the field with profitable years of experience and having worked with legends in the industry. What is your next venture and who will produce the movie?

A: I lived in Hollywood for 38 years. So, I suppose that I have absorbed by osmosis, a certain style of film-making. That is now a part of me and will influence my work.

Also having worked with certain important directors in the industry, I was very alert and observed certain techniques, which I have tried to use at the right time and right place. These are things you pick up unconsciously and with a different twist to it, they gradually become your own.

These influences are good and we should pass it around in a positive manner. My next venture is the story of the Vicarage Murders by Father Mathew Peiris. I have titled the film According to Mathew.

This murder case was the talk of the country in the 70’s and 80’s and is the story of the most diabolical murders. The story of an evil man who walks in the foot steps of Rasputin. The film will have all the interesting elements of emotion and twists of fate. We hope to release the film by early next year.