Am Rande der Arena

This Waterfront programme was motivated by the fact that Rotterdam is this year Cultural Capital of Europe, so we should also point out here that there is another Cultural (Port) Capital this year too, namely the Portuguese city of Porto. In this remarkable film by Markus Heltschl, the Portuguese port actually plays the leading role alongside the Austrian artist Lois Weinberger and the actress Tatjana Alexander. The film moves on the outskirts of the society of Porto: in the slums, the derelict urban sites and the remains of a dying rural culture.The style of the film contrasts the contemporary mainstream: instead of studios and special effects, the film was shot on location with direct sound, natural colours, no other light than available light and no specially imported props. It sounds like Dogma. But Heltschl wanted to go a step further. He worked without a script and the dialogues were improvised during shooting. The protagonists ‘play’ their own character and their stories and backgrounds are also their own. The film was shot with a crew that is even smaller than that of a documentary film. Heltschl operated the camera, only assisted by Christine Pedarnig who recorded the sound. One man and one woman in front of the camera and one man and one woman behind the camera. Film can be that simple. (GjZ)