I Could Bring Half of Hollywood to Zagreb

The horror is the same in Gaza as in Auschwitz. I don’t know how to make peace between the two sides. If I did, I’d go to Knesset and say so

Branko Lustig, a world renowned movie producer whose work has been crowned by two Oscars for the films “Schindler’s List” and “Gladiator” is the president of the 3rd Jewish Film Festival which will begin this Sunday. 

Oscar-winner Lustig, who has spent 20 years in Hollywood studios, needs to special presenting. In an interview for Javno he revealed what he thought about Gaza, film in Croatia, cooperation with his leading actors and directors and the situation in Croatian cinematography.

He also told us about a day’s work of a Hollywood producer.

American movies are very bad. People in Europe watch good movies, while people in America watch entertainment, which means – they eat popcorn. Therefore, here, when there is a good movie, cinemas are full and when there is a bad movie, cinemas are empty.

Branko Lustig

People in Croatia know more or less about everything you have achieved in Hollywood. But less is known how you arrived to that film Mecca.

- I got to Hollywood by plane… (laughs). I was working on series “War and Memories” and “Winds of War”. I don’t know why, but after the first episode of the Winds of War, the director said that he simply cannot be without me. And no, he was not a homosexual.

I asked me to come over to prepare a film for him. I took it seriously, so I went to America and came back, made films across Europe. When filming in Europe was completed, he called me back to America to finish the series with him. I stayed and after that he made me a member of a film association. Later I worked on television.

What does a day of a Hollywood producer look like? 

- First you have to get up on the right foot. If you get up on the wrong foot, then the entire day goes very, very wrong. If you get up on the right foot and all of your associates are listening, if everything is well prepared, then the producer has nothing else to do but to order coffee for everybody in the morning and say good morning, smile and keep smiling until the evening.

Who would you like to bring to the Jewish Film Festival from foreign guests? 

- People would come if they had reason to come, if the festival had the money to pay for their trip over.

I could bring here half of Hollywood if we paid for their trip and hotel. These people are used to flying in first class, sleeping in hotel suites and eating and drinking well.

Which actors do you appreciate?

- My favourite is Russel Crowe, who is a friend of mine. I like Liam Neeson very much and, of course, Steven Spielberg, whom I adore.

How did your story with Spielberg begin?

- Spielberg invited me. He learnt that I was in a concentration camp and he asked me if I wanted to make a film with him.

Have you had conflict situations with actors in America during your work there?

- No, I haven’t. It is difficult to agree with somebody for eight years, which is how long myself and Ridley Scott got along. We parted ways when we stopped sharing the same opinions.

People don’t even stay married for eight years and that is how long we made films. Recently, Zuzi Jelinek said in a show that love is passing, it lasts for four years and is over and then friendship remains. After eight years, there was not even friendship between us, so we went our separate ways.

How do you think Croatians view Croatian film?

- I think that film is being taken lightly here. I lectured at the Academy of Drama Arts. Everybody thinks it is so easy there.

But a lot of hard work is behind it. Nobody understands that the most important things are to read, read and read, write, make good screenplays. A good movie can only be made with a good screenplay. A good film does not happen overnight. That is the most important thing to know.

Once you said in a weekly that it would have been better for Jadran film to have

You cannot say that the horror in Rwanda is less terrible than the one in Dachau or Auschwitz. I, who have survived Auschwitz, believe it is important for people to love each other.

Branko Lustig

- I said that at one point. But had it remained in the state’s hands, considering how things have been developing, it would have gone under.

What is now happening with Jadran film?

- People from Jadran film, which is now a private company, are really trying to bring others in.

Today, cinematography can no longer exist on its own, especially when it comes to a small one, such as ours is. Today cinematography successes the most when it is done in co-productions, for example, when it is in Croatian-English-Holland-French co-production, or, for example, British-American co-production. Then it is best sold around the world and it is the only way for it to prosper.

Vinko Grubisic is a nice young man and if they continue doing what they started in Jadran film and if they manage to bring in foreign partners, everything could turn out well.

The artistic cadre raised at the Academy could blend with the technical personnel of Jadran film and foreign co-production into something quite nice which could function as it use to, on the level of Croatian film.

You are a lecturer at the Academy of Drama Arts. Do you recognise any new talents? Would you emphasise anybody?

- I think that the students are full of enthusiasm and will. If they were to take my advice to read and write and work a bit longer… not just leap and concede to anything as soon as they get money. One needs to prepare well first and then work.

Who do you appreciate from Croatian cinematography?

- Branko Ivanda, he is a nice man, a capable director and a very good teacher.

It is known that you are preparing a new film in cooperation with him. Tell us something about that.

- Ivanda is trying to make a movie about lea and Darija. I hope I will be able to help as much as I can to make a good film. The subject deserves to be put on the silver screen and for people to see the story.

The story is about a young actress who lived here in 1937 and 1938 and danced with the Croatian National Theatre. She danced with our famous director Tito Strozzi and have beautiful performances.

Then, Darija, a girl from Osijek, who was also good dancing and acting, arrived on the scene. They were inseparable until the Nazis arrived. Lea was taken to Auschwitz where she died and Darija left for Berlin and Vienna, made films for UFA, but she also disappeared.

Do you have favourites among Croatian actors?

- Rade Serbedzija, Mustafa Nadarevic, Goran Visnjic and Bojana Greguric.

More and more people are being downloaded from the internet, people are watching

I got to Hollywood by plane… (laughs). I was working on series “War and Memories” and “Winds of War”. I don’t know why, but after the first episode of the Winds of War, the director said that he simply cannot be without me. And no, he was not a homosexual.

Branko Lustig

- Not in the world. For example, the Box Office in America gets some 64 million dollars in three days. This means that one film plays in 4,500 cinemas and that there is an average of 6,000 people in every cinema.

How are things in Croatia with regards to that?

- Cinemas here are empty because, unfortunately, films are what they are like and do not interest the public.

But when there is a good movie playing, it probably fills up the cinema. But, I repeat, today’s movies are bad. I don’t mean Croatian movies I mean in general.

American movies are very bad. People in Europe watch good movies, while people in America watch entertainment, which means – they eat popcorn. Therefore, here, when there is a good movie, cinemas are full and when there is a bad movie, cinemas are empty.

Does that mean that today’s movies are bad?

The movies are not poor, but there are poor scripts. Today in Cannes there are very good films. We will have very good films at our festival because we chose them. They all do very well in the world.

The problem is that production has stumbled. People are interested, but the quality of films is not what it used to be, whether they are Hollywood, London, French or Croatian films.

Are the costs of filming higher in America, Europe or Croatia?

- The costs in America are not smaller. But the possibilities in that country result in cheaper products, even though filming in Europe should be more expensive. We have no financial construction in Croatia.

In America, each of the 51 states offers an initiative of tax relief or gives compensation for a movie to be made in that state, so it costs less for the film workers.

For example, a 10 million dollar film in Louisiana will get 30 percent of subsidies from the state, which means that for every dollar spent, you get 30 percent back. Therefore, the film no longer costs 10 but seven million dollars. If a film is managed to be sold to somebody beforehand, then there is a possibility of the film costing 3.5 million dollars.

Then it is cheaper than in Croatia, where the same film would cost 10 million dollars.

How was that problem solved in other countries and what should be made differently in Croatia?

- Croatia should think of some possibilities, for example, of giving tax relief for making a movie, or to provide certain benefits, like, for example, in Vienna.

If you are making a movie in Austria’s capital in museums, castles or any place in the country, then the country gives 30 percent relief for that. Hungary gives 20 percent, the Czechs gave more than 25 percent of a discount, so everybody made films in Prague.

Today, ever since the Czech Republic has entered the European Union, nobody goes to Prague anymore, even Budapest. Now everything will move to Ukraine.

Will it move to Croatia?

Perhaps to Croatia if there are ideas that would reduce the price. It is not about making films cheaply, but how to make a construction by which making films would become cheaper than now.

What can the public expect at this year’s Jewish Film Festival?

This year we are coming with a new idea, the entire festival is dedicated to the young. Those who died during the holocaust. A million and three hundred young people were killed in the holocaust.

When we talked about this we came to the conclusion that we should make a film about all young people. Those who died in Vukovar, Srebrenica, Gaza, Darfur, Rwanda.

Wherever young people and children are dying that is a tragedy. It does not matter if they are Jews, Catholics or Muslims.

We started this festival to dedicate it to victims of war all over the world.

At the mention of Judaism, the first thing that comes into people’s mind is the holocaust.

- We have 28 films, out of which eight are movies, about the subject of children dying in war. The festival will be opened by the victims of war. We will bring two children, a brother and sister, whose parents were executed in one day in Vukovar. And as such they too are victims of was and belong to that subject. They are not Jews nor do they have anything to do with Judaism, but they are victims of war.

And it is not true that the Jewish Film Festival must be connected to Judaism. The holocaust began somewhere around the year 1937 during the Crystal Night and lasted until 1945. In eight years the

We are bringing to the festival Yair Dalal, a singer whose best friends are Arabs. He is proof that there can be a symbiosis between Arab and Jewish music. Based on the music he is trying to reconcile the two worlds. So, there are people who are thinking about reconciliation.

Branko Lustig

The festival also has other subjects and the Jewish nation also has other films. In Israel they make phenomenal comedies. We brought three films to the festival which will be shown at noon, by one of the most renowned world’s comedy makers – Ephraim Kishon.

He wrote the screenplays, which are phenomenal. There is laughter and has nothing to do with the holocaust. We have films that speak about Jewish problems within Israel, documentaries about growing cucumbers, which again, has nothing to do with the holocaust.

We do not want the holocaust to happen again, but we will never forget it. We always think of the holocaust as something that was terrible. But all us Jews are moving on.

It is interesting that Jewish artists are not going to America as they used to. They are staying in Israel and making movies in the world, good movies.

What do you think about the war in Gaza?

- The war in Gaza is injustice that began back in 1945 when Arabs left Palestine. This injustice, for which the British are to blame, is now being replayed. It is very difficult to say why this is happening if you don’t live there, or even if you do.

One animated film, which we will show at the festival, which is one of the best in the world in that genre, is called “Waltz with Bashir”. It will answer for you why this is happening.

It all started in Lebanon and is continuing. People are not forgetting and are retaliating, they have the right to live.

They need to find peace, one state, and make it on that piece of land because that piece of land was left to both sides.

Is the world looking at Israel differently, especially since the last offensive on Gaza?

- It is a little. There are many people who are not concerned with that at all. There are so many people who just don’t care. Those who do look at Israel a little differently. Everybody watching the situation would like the sides to calm down and reconcile.

We are bringing to the festival Yair Dalal, a singer whose best friends are Arabs. He is proof that there can be a symbiosis between Arab and Jewish music. Based on the music he is trying to reconcile the two worlds. So, there are people who are thinking about reconciliation.

We don’t know if you’ve seen photographs after the offensive on Gaza which were later compared to death camps from World War II. There are incredible similarities between the two sets of photographs. What do you think about this?

- All photographs depicting horrors are alike. The horror is the same in Gaza as it was in Auschwitz. There is no difference between Gaza, the concentration camp near Prijedor and Auschwitz. Every horror is the same.

You cannot say that the horror in Rwanda is less terrible than the one in Dachau or Auschwitz. I, who have survived Auschwitz, believe it is important for people to love each other.

Small Arabs are already in school taught to hate the Israelis. Looking at the other side of the fence, the Israelis are automatically defending themselves because they are scared.

How would you reconcile the two sides?

- At last year’s festival we showed a documentary in which we put both Israelis and Arabs in one school. We don’t have to go that far, we’re trying to do the same in Vukovar.

We also are trying to create peace, which is very difficult. We should try talking about the problem with love, reconcile the two sides. But, I don’t know how, whether through mixed marriages, settling people, accepting people in one or another side…

If I knew the answer I would go to Knesset and suggest it. But I don’t.