10th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival –
Images of the 21st Century
March 7-16, 2008
PRESS RELEASE
PRESS CONFERENCE
CITY OF CRANES – THE SKY BELOW
BURHAN UYGUR PASSION OF AN ARTIST
On Monday, March 10 a press conference took place in the “Green Room” of the Olympion, in the context of the 10th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. Those participating were Floor Kooij and Sibel Bilgin, directors of the documentary Burhan Uygur Passion of an artist, Sarah Singh, director of The sky below and Samantha Zarzosa producer of the documentary City of Cranes.
Sibel Bilgin, director of Burhan Uygur Passion of an artist, explained that she knew the innovative artist Burhan Uygur personally, and respected him as much as his work. She and Floor Kooij decided to honor Burhan Uygur, in a documentary meant to express the feeling and soul of the Turkish artist who departed early from this life. “The problem with someone who is not alive is how to bring him back to life. Uygur struggled to prove that painting has value. He didn’t come from a rich background and he was undervalued by his environment. He finally gained respect, but he died at the age of 52 and didn’t have the chance to enjoy his success”, noted Sibel Bilgin. “He explored the limits of human existence, a fact that makes his work very human, universal and international. We wanted to have the same message in the film”, said Floor Kooij.
Sarah Singh’s documentary, The sky below, presentes a contemporary portrait of India and Pakistan seen through the continuing consequences of the partition of the Indian peninsula. “During shooting, which lasted 3 months, there was peace, and one felt that there was hope for a solution to the problems of the area. However, a week after the film was completed, the events leading up to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December, 2007 began. So, all the questions that were the reason I made the documentary remain unanswered, even after its completion”, said Sarah Singh.
Samantha Zarzosa, the producer of City of Cranes, , explained that the director Eva Weber undertook the making of a documentary that takes the viewer on a journey to an urban landscape, through the eyes and words of crane operators, recording what happens to the human spirit when it finds itself in such extreme working conditions. “Eva went to construction sites and spoke to the drivers. She saw that they have nothing to do with the stereotype of a laborer. They change, since they view life from a great height”, remarked Samantha Zarzosa.
