FEATURE FILM

Art of living brings out the art of film

	Actor Vlastimil Brodsk´y in a scene from the film.

Who says getting old is boring? Certainly, the Czech comedy Babi Leto sets out to prove just the opposite, and in the process proves that although film technology may appear to be getting old, it still has a lot of life left in it.

The story is centred around a young-at-heart 75-year-old dreamer, joyful, romantic, and a practical joker who refuses to reconcile himself with the lot of old age. He proves that even in your twilight years, life can be exciting, with each new day bringing a wonderful opportunity for adventure.

Producer Jaroslav Boucék.

Together with his loyal and devoted friends, the lead character, who in turn poses as a benefactor, inspector and mountaineer, brings a theatrical role from an operetta to life, thus fulfilling his unrealised dreams and in the process proving what the art of living is really about.

Given the colourful characters and story line, it may seem surprising that cinematographer, Martin Strba, wanted the film to look as understated as possible so that the characters could come to life.

"My intention was to subordinate the picture to the amazing characters of the people," says Strba. "Time had written by wrinkles their deep life stories into their faces. By means of making photographic pictures of faces, the dynamism and energy comes from inside the picture in which the centre is always human."

	DP Martin Strba.

Strba used Kodak Vision 5274 film for exteriors, 5279 for interiors and Expression 5284 film for interiors where he wanted fine details in shades and whites.

"By using the Vision Expression 5284, I could use extremely contrasting lighting as never before," explains Strba.

Shot with a Moviecam Compact 35mm, using Zeiss Objective 1.4 and 25-250 Angenieux zoom lenses, Strba made use of Pink 2 and Sepie Gold filters. The Sepie Gold helped achieve a warm, gold character look, while the Pink 2 was used to recreate an old pink atmosphere in some scenes.

Martin Strba (left) with Director Vladimír Michálek. (PHOTOS © ANTONÍN MALY)

Strba also used Kodak Vision 5289 film to help solve a major organisational and technical problem he was faced with when shooting some long scenes in a subway. "To help make the shooting faster," explains Strba, "I decided not to use any lighting. Thanks to the 5289, I could comfortably use a diaphragm of 2.8."

Although producer Jaroslav Bou'cek is impressed with the advances in digital video technology, he has been an obstinate supporter of film technology for over 25 years - and felt it absolutely necessary to shoot Babi Leto on film, despite the relatively small budget.

"Babi Leto is a film story, not TV," says Bou'cek, "and digital technology is convenient only for a specific kind of film."

Interestingly, although Bou'cek thinks shooting on film helps in selling the picture, he says this is becoming less of a factor these days. "You are always offering the film to view on video tape at first," explains Boucek. "This is why the film, even it is perfectly shot, is somehow disabled on video."

But just like the main character in Babi Leto, who at the tender age of 75 still has many exciting adventures ahead of him, so too does film.

"Film technology contains a specific, delicate feeling," concludes Strba, "which was the most convenient for this type of story."

It is somehow fitting that Babi Leto, a film which aims to be a reminder of what the art of living is all about, is also a timely reminder of what the art of film is all about.