Reflections on and
Observations from the 2016 Canes Film Festival
Anik Bhattacharya
A few days ago
I had been requested by
Chris Boardman to jot down some thoughts regarding my
experience at the 2016 Canes Film Festival, which took place from Apr. 29 - May
1st at the University of Miami’s Cosford Cinema, including screenings of
original shorts and short documentaries by both undergraduate and graduate
students here at the University’s film school. I had the honor of writing the
score for one of these films, and had the chance to see the final product at
the screening on Sunday, May 1st, along with eight other such films -
specifically, the third-year graduate thesis shorts - on display at that same
screening. We often don’t hear a lot about the work happening at the film
school, so these events are an eye-opening look into the unbelievable level of
talent and creativity that the Department of Cinema and Interactive Media
currently has to offer, and the superb opportunities which exist for
collaboration between some of the student filmmakers there and the talented
folks at the Media Writing and Production Department here at the Frost School.
To give you a short glimpse into that experience, I thought I’d go into some
detail experiencing some of the highlights from Sunday’s screening.
I composed an
original score for Shane Kinsler’s thesis film, A New Beat, a short, lively little tale about Julius, a geriatric
heart transplant recipient who, much to the chagrin of his family, begins to
exhibit the personality of his dead millennial donor - from his sudden urge to
consume pizzas as well the music of Wu-Tang Clan. Things become significantly
more complicated when Julius develops an affinity for the old flame of the dead
donor, and has to come to terms with and control this strange, supernatural
phenomena, the origins of which even he himself cannot explain. The score
demanded several inklings of hip-hop here and there, and the film was therefore
in part a collaboration with a local artist, who helped compose some of the
original hip-hop tracks featured in the film. Perhaps the most appropriate is the
upbeat, jazzy, and soulful groove which accompanies Julius as he undertakes his
first “rap battle” in one of the later scenes. For the remainder of the score I
concentrated on creating a series of electronic textures, whose thickness,
thinness, softness, shrillness, darkness, hollowness, or richness I could
seamlessly transmute in order to reflect the flurry of emotions - anger,
sadness, wonder, confusion, and others - which permeate the somewhat eerie and
supernatural atmosphere that pervades throughout this film. For instance,
Julius’ fixation on the girl, Gabriela, is represented by a high, somewhat
shrill noise which coincides with the squinting of his eyes in an effort to,
perhaps, “see beyond” into some other dimension, evoking some sense that two individuals
are connected together on a level which transcends the merely physical. Rather
than use a purely musical leitmotif to that end, I decided a more
“otherworldly” (for the lack of a better term) electronic texture was far more
appropriate.
The film
itself was very well-received, and was quite possibly the most unique of all
the stories featured in the showcase. As for the other entries, I should
mention that six of the nine films this year were directed by Chinese students,
some of whom even managed to conduct some shooting all the way overseas in
China! How they secured the budget for that undertaking, of course, was the
subject of some very interesting discussions I had with the directors
afterward. The first of these was a rather somber, gloomy, and matter-of-fact
film which featured absolutely no music, entitled Kao Shi, and directed by Zuxiang Zhao. The film is the story of a
boy, Renming, about to embark on one of the toughest challenges in Chinese
education: the college entrance exam. His tuition payments are jeopardized
after his father is involved in an accident at his coal mine, but his
professor, who has taken a liking to the boy, as a kind of “star student”,
chooses not to reveal this to him in the midst of a grueling time of studying and
cramming for the entrance exam. Instead, the professor, Chen Jun, decides in
secret to personally bankroll the tuition, room and board, and even the food
for his most promising student, without revealing his assistance to him. What
seems like an innocuous feel-good story is punctuated by several rather
poignant scenes, which reveal a struggle between meritocratic principles and
nepotistic tendencies in modern Chinese society, as Chen Jun, struggling with
guilt from his decision, attempts to drown his sorrow in alcohol, even getting
into an argument with one of his colleagues in an effort to explain why he
cannot simply guarantee entrance (to his preparatory school) to his own
daughter, lest she decide to slack off on studying.
Another such
film which proved to be particularly memorable was Deer God, directed by Tomorrow Mingtian. The film has the feel of a
documentary and is set somewhere in Heilongjiang or Nei Mongol province, where
a historically nomadic ethnic group, the Oroqen, call home. Central to their
way of life is the tradition of hunting, which, ever since the introduction of
gunpowder, automobiles, and deforestation, has been significantly altered and
endangered. Guan, a native of the steppes, wishes to bequeath his son and his
family one last reminder of their native roots before the young family leaves
for America, and sets out to hunt for some reindeer. Along the way we see a
glimpse into Oroqen customs and an ancient way of life. Gaun finally sets his
sights upon his quarry, but is intercepted by a group of poachers who shoot him
in the shoulder as a warning to get off their turf. Defeated, he limps home,
and sits silently next to his fireplace before the final scene shows the
remains of his dead horse, also shot by the poachers as retaliation for his
encroachment. The film itself is a masterwork of cinematography - some of the
shots were captured from overhead drones, and are often accompanied by
traditional Oroqen and Chinese music, diminishing the size and importance of
the hunter to a speck among an ocean of snow, trees, dirt tracks, frozen
landscapes, completely removing the viewer from the modern sights and sounds
which characterize the village, and taking them back in time as Guan traverses
the countryside. The score itself is just plain gorgeous, and ends with a
heart-wrenchingly sad flute solo as we are shown the final remains of Guan’s
horse. As it ends, we are left with a powerful message about the impact of
reckless modernization and lack of oversight on the lifestyles and dignity of
marginalized tribal groups.
Last, but
certainly not least, is Finding Buddha,
directed by Zilong Liu, a film which nabbed a large chunk of the awards at the
official ceremony which took place shortly after the screenings were complete.
In this particular film, Eric, an affluent American businessman, leaves behind
his wife and kids under the pretense of a “business trip” to come to China,
seeking escape, refuge, and some kind of enlightenment at a Buddhist temple,
where he hopes to find for himself a path to true happiness. Eric finds himself
unable to follow the temple’s puritanical rules, and frequently sneaks out at
night to go to local bars, where, after a first chance encounter, he meets
often with his tour guide, a younger woman whose radio station jockey boyfriend
rarely has any time for their relationship, is undergoing a similar crisis in
her personal life, and the two form an unlikely friendship, exchanging stories
and experiences from each other’s lives, and becoming each other’s therapists
to a certain degree. The film seems to take on a certain path as the boyfriend
of the young Chinese tour guide forgets their anniversary, and the crestfallen
girl brings home the American to her apartment. Before what appears to be a
moment of weakness for the two, the midnight show (which the radio jockey
boyfriend is responsible for) begins, and he proceeds to propose to her on air.
The film is a delightful set of sights, sounds, and colors carefully crafted to
give a light-hearted look into a common trope (“Western socialite/tourist
coming to Asia to seek enlightenment”) while preserving a sense of gravitas
about the whole story. The score, composed by Chris Ryan, was my absolute
favorite of the night, and included a mixture of orchestral and popular styles
interspersed with a few inklings of Chinese instruments and melodies. As Eric
finally comes to term with the fact that suffering is the ultimate source to
enlightenment, and prepares to return back to his life in America, we are met
with an excellent U2-esque ending score which accompanies his pensive taxi ride
back to the airport.
Premieres and
screenings such as these offer insight into the level of quality of student
works being undertaken at the University of Miami, and offers students a chance to
locate and meet fellow creative persons with whom to pursue future
collaborations, and the Sunday premiere left me beyond impressed. In speaking
with some of the student filmmakers afterward, I learned that one student
producer, Xinyue Chen, produced not one but two entire films - one, Finding Buddha, involved securing
funding from a plethora of places to ensure that footage could be filmed with
actors on set in Beijing, China. I was struck not only by the polished quality
of the works showcased (some of these films were practically ready for
Hollywood), but by the diversity and depth of the stories, a level of talent
which I frankly didn’t even expect nor knew existed on campus! One of the
directors jokingly admitted that were it not for assistance from one of the faculty
members, who allowed a visiting actor to temporarily stay at his two-bedroom
Miami apartment for ten days, his film simply could not have happened. I had
the fortune of being able to speak at length and network with many of these
talented minds, some of whom I hope I’ll have the chance to collaborate with in
the future.
Anik is a teaching assistant and graduate
student at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, pursuing a M. Mus.
in the Media Writing and Production program, and graduated with a B. Mus. in
Music Composition at the University of Texas’ Butler School of Music in 2015.
He is an emerging multimedia composer and performing artist with an avid
interest in composing music for film, video games, and interactive media. For more about Anik go to: http://www.anikmusic.com/
