American Cinematographer - May 1990 - 102

Breaking In

-

From Start to Finnish
filmmaker in Finland because of the
lack of competition. It is not a capitalist

Making your first feature film is not easy.
Young, aspiring Americans often have
reason to believe that the present "sys¬

a

tem" does not have much room for their
visions. But they are not really alone. As
film continues to knock down the walls

subsidized,

separating nations and cultures to reveal
our common humanity, stories of other
filmmaker's struggles start to emerge.
I I k k

industry. Instead it is heavily government
the economic risks

are

only make low-

budget films."
Normally films made in Finland
are financed 60% by government subsidy
and 40% by private sources. Jarvilaturi's
film

was made for
under $1 million
but it will take him
at least two years

a

Jarvilaturi is an
intense 29 yearold Finnish film¬

to

maker with the
dark and disturb¬

get the money

back. Even then
the returns will not

productions per year and the low
budgets of the films, the filmmaking
community is small in Finland, and get¬
ting good crew members can be diffi¬
cult." Especially important to Jarvilaturi
was choosing the right cinematographer.
In that role he cast

a

friend and fellow

countryman, Kjell Lagerroos. "I think Kjell
is one of the best cinematographers in
Finland and it is nice to work with some¬
one from your own generation."

Lagerroos and Jarvilaturi had
together professionally be¬

not worked

fore. In order to establish

a common

twice his years.
His first full-length

come

from ticket

ground, they watched some movies to¬
gether, such as Flaging Bull, and talked

sales, but from

about the aesthetics. "Ffowever," says

feature, Homebound, is based on

sales to European
television.
One of

Jarvilaturi, "I think the aesthetics of the

ing vision of man

a

true incident in¬

the main problems
for Finnish film¬
makers is finding

volving

a young
and
his
mother and step¬
father. Jarvilaturi describes the story as
one of "an ambitious young student, who
man

through his mother's second marriage is
embroiled in an underworld of sadists,
blackmailers and killers." Not the usual
idealistic fare of first-time filmmakers.
But what can one expect from
a man who philosophizes, "the recent
wave of minimalist cinema is not for me.
I'm for storytelling, for making an emo¬
tional impact on the audience. For me,
the best audience is a crying audience,"

he adds reluctantly, "if it comes to
that, a laughing one."
or,

Jarvilaturi started in film with
the idea that he wanted to be

an actor.

"But it was obvious that I wasn't doing
too well. I decided to try writing and di¬

recting. I went to the film school in Fin¬
land for half a year and then I took a job
as a

second assistant director

on

what

the time, the biggest film ever
made in Finland, The Unknown Soldier."
Fie also had a small speaking role.

was, at

Changing directions in mid¬
stream was not

turi reports,

100

so

small. Of course, we

"Because of the small number

of

American

difficult, for

"It is fairly

as

Jarvila¬

easy to

become

Cinematographer

an

audience outside the 5 million movie-

hungry Finns. "Generally it is very diffi¬
cult to break the language barrier. Even
if you do, the best you can expect is a
minor art house distribution. No one in
the United States has ever seen a Finn¬
ish film! Even those who have seen one

represent a small group of intellectuals,
and money-wise - they don't really
count."

Getting the money, getting
distribution, getting the money back -
common problems regardless of the
country of origin. And there are other
problems recognizable to an interna¬
tional audience of filmmakers.
"The big problem for a first¬
time film director is credibility," says
Jarvilaturi. "Obviously, it is much easier
to make a film if you are established. As

novice you have to spend a lot more
time and energy wanting things - es¬
a

pecially from the crew and the actors. But
in my case, I had a very good relationship
with the actors, perhaps because I had
been an actor I know what it's like to be
over

there in front of the

May 1990

camera.

cinematography should be created by
each story.
"Neither

Kjell or I really want
storyboard each shot. For us, filmmak¬
ing is much more about the elasticity of
the camera movement. From my point of
view, creating a situation on the set and
figuring out the best way to shoot it is
what it's all about. Obviously, the most
interesting filmmaking is when the cam¬
era is part of the concept of the scene.
Instead of covering the scene, you involve

to

the

camera

in it."

Still, Jarvilaturi's advice to
other first-time directors includes a wry
note on how to keep your wits about you

regardless of mountains you must climb:
"You had better consider it

some

kind of

game thatyou are playing. You can'ttake
it too seriously or you will end up in an

asylum." Not the worst of fates for an
artist according to Jarvilaturi, who also
says, "Film production is such a big
mechanism that it somehow supports
you.

It is there. Novelists

can

commit

suicide when they discover they don't
know what they are doing, but film direc¬
tors can't. They can't let down the
crew...."
-NL
Note: Homebound will be
shown at Filmex in Los Angeles on

May 3.
American Cinematographer - May 1990

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