Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/941133
www.postmagazine.com 17 POST FEBRUARY 2018 DIRECTOR'S CHAIR "Not that much. We basically wrote the final script together and we went from a different angle from the book, and made some changes. But we kept the essence of it." One big difference was that you changed the setting from the Italian Riviera to the small Lombardy town of Crema, near where you live. Was that a matter of convenience? "No, it wasn't that. We changed it because I really like all the countryside around Crema, and I felt it was the perfect setting for giving the sense of a summer that never ends." Sometimes it turns out that the films that look the most beautiful and relaxed on screen were nightmares to shoot. But this looks like it really was a wonderful shoot? "It was. It was just 30 days and I wish it had gone longer, it was so lovely. We began shooting in mid-May and all the actors lived in Crema and we shot there and all around that area, and everyone was so relaxed." The film is very beautiful visually. Can you talk about your approach to shooting it? "My director of photography, Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, and I shot it on film, and he's a sculptor of light and a master of his craft. I always like to shoot on film except on commercials where I always shoot digitally. And we shot it all with just one camera and one 35mm lens. People say, 'Why?' when I tell them, but I wanted it to be very simple and I also like limits when I'm working. I wanted to let the characters breathe and to focus on them and the story, and not have all the usual camera equipment get in the way of that. I'm in complete command of my work and never let anyone tell me how to shoot or what to do. And a director can find himself in situations where you're told you have to use three cameras. But I won't allow that." Do you like the post process? "I love it, I love shooting, but I think post is my favorite part, when you just sit down with your editor and start making the film. And I love working with music and sound and feeling it all come to life." Where did you edit? "We did all the cutting at my house in Crema, and I've been working with my ed- itor Walter Fasano for over 20 years now. He cut my very first film, The Protagonists back in 1996. He wasn't on the set but he was in Crema while we were shooting and then every now and then we'd meet and talk about it." What were the main editing challenges? "Some movies are hard to edit for whatever reason, but this just flowed like the water in the spring in the film. It's a very flowing movie and we had the final picture locked just one month after we stopped shooting. On A Bigger Splash, it took almost a full year to edit and post it." Where did you do the rest of the post? "We did all the sound in Paris, and we worked with this great sound design- er and mixer Jean-Pierre LaForce. He's worked with so many great directors, like Michael Heneke, Alain Resnais and Denis Villeneuve, and he's also a master at what he does. And we had a few VFX shots — mainly removal and clean up, and we did that in Rome with Metaphyx who does beautiful work. [The studio] also created the whole final wintry landscape. And the DI was done at Augustus Color in Rome and I'm very involved in that process with my DP. As we shot in 35mm there wasn't a lot to change, but we worked a lot on the balance and contrast" Talk about the importance of sound and music to you as a filmmaker. "It's half the movie — and sometimes far more than that. We wanted the sound to be absolutely realistic and ripe with the sounds of the seasons — and invisible. We didn't want it to intrude, and yet it had to be a very rich backdrop to the story. So all the tiny details were so important. When he rips open the peach, we had to get exactly the right sound in post, and we worked on sound for a few months. And I also worked with singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens who created a couple of songs especially for the film." Did it turn out the way you envisioned it? "I don't know. Maybe it didn't turn out how I first pictured the script, but I'm very happy with the film. It's a beautiful collaboration" Do you ever make a film and think, 'It'd be fun to do a sequel and revisit these characters in five, 10 years'? "Yes, I love that idea and I love what directors like Michael Apted and Richard Linklater have done with their Up Next and Before Sunrise series. So, yes, I will definitely plan to return to these char- acters. I already have ideas, so maybe I'll do it in three years, and I'd love to follow them for a long time." What's next? "I've been doing a remake of Dario Argento's classic horror film, Ssuspiria, which stars Tilda Swinton and Dakota Johnson, and I'm in the middle of post on it right now, and we're doing all the post in Rome with a team from all over the world. The release is planned for fall this year. And then I have a project with Jake Gyllenhaal and Benedict Cumberbatch which we're going to shoot in Sri Lanka very soon. It's a noir, and Sri Lanka may sound like it's too sunny and bright for a noir, but it's actually quite rainy and cloudy and monsoonal and humid, and I think it's a great location for a noir." The film was cut at the director's home in Crema. DI was completed at Augustus Color in Rome.