Margarita Kouvatsou - Demon no.1
4:30, 2006, ExperimentalDirectorMargarita Kouvatsou
CountryUnited KingdomEdition2006
< overview
Who is Margarita Kouvatsou?
Margarita Kouvatsou was born in 1978 in Athens, but grew up in Volos and remained there until 1996. From 1997 on she moved to Great Britain, to study English and Creative Studies at Portsmouth university. Throughout her studies she combined Post-Modern English literature with Theatre studies, Creative Writing and Performance. Between 2001 and 2002 she continued her studies in the Netherlands, completing a masters on European Media, working mostly on digital video. There she made her first narrative film entitled "ZWI". She has been studying "image and sound" in the Royal Academy of Arts in the Hague since 2003, mainly concentrating on the fusion of Digital video and/or animation with free verse, text and sound. She has been living in Rotterdam since 2005
Why filmmaking?
Much of my love for film making sprung out from a compulsive need to tell stories, stories given from a very subjective and personal point of view, stories like the ones I would sit and watch as a child. After studying literature and theatre, filmmaking seemed to be a logical progression to a more immediate mode of expression
Demon no 1 is about...
What happens when you see the world around you unwind with a different rhythm than that of your own? Sometimes an active protagonist and others a simple observer, sometimes synchronised and sometimes not, you linger between your two contradictory roles, looking for your self, the pulse of nature, the music of the world. Your number one demon, your number one enemy...... Time.
Financing your movie?
Since I am still a student, it is quite hard to get subsidized by third parties, I was lucky enough though to get in contact with some people who share my passion for filmmaking and who were willing to put time and effort in the project. I tried to keep the budget as small as possible, and paid whatever small costs on my own. The costs came to up about 400 euros for a 4 day shoot, including transport, food and the suit for the actor.
New Media; a challenge for film makers?
The main advantage of new media is constant access to inexhaustible information, and viewed as such it can be considered as a great source of inspiration. Viewing works through the internet also limits potential distribution costs, allows more freedom and keeps one up to date from the comfort of one’s home, nonetheless it all depends on the nature and visual style of the work in question. For the screening of a narrative film, for example, nothing beats a good old fashioned big screen theatre.
Do your films have style, just as some painters have?
At the moment I am busy making films that share a similar visual style, they are all black and white, shot in 16:9, and incorporate super8 as well as digital video. Their narrative style is also very similar in the sense that they appear as a personal account on philosophical and existential concerns, presented in a poetic manner. Camera as well as editing are done in an intuitive manner, involving loads of improvisation. Since there is no script or story board before the production, it all springs out of a basic idea, at the time of filming.
Influences?
To name just one seems so unfair…so I’ll just name a few: Antonioni for his films…Bill Viola for his video art ….Floria Sigismondi and Michel Gondri for their music videos, Samuel Beckett for his literature and plays…..Leonard Cohen and Lou reed for their lyrics and poetry…..so much information….the internet you know?
Which film related websites do you frequent?
Internet sites such as: videos.antville.org, and youtube.com are great up-to-date sources, for small films, music videos, interviews and old TV clips, and they offer the chance to post comments as well as upload your own work. For small art films I visit tank. TV and for archive footage, avant-guarde films, and interviews there is also UBUWEB.
Individual film making or co-operation?
At the moment I am working entirely on my own, doing camera production and editing with the exception of a couple of people that helped me during the time of shooting. I prefer this way of working because I want to learn all the different aspects involved in filmmaking, in order to be later able to direct and communicate better with a DOP, cameraman and editor. If a project is bigger nonetheless, collaboration is essential. Doing everything on your own offers a very limited point of view and can therefore hurt the final outcome.
Future...
Making more films, ultimately being able to make some money out of it so I can quit my day job…..working with nice people that inspire me….making more films……
Did you ever had another ambition in life than to become a filmmaker?
I have had many different ambitions as a child, but this one has been my most intense and long lasting one as an adult.
Digital or classic?
Film is beautiful but also very expensive and in many cases unaffordable, but super 8 is always a favorite, as well as mini DV. Most of my work includes a fusion of super 8 and mini DV, as well as found footage (if I can find it that is…). HD is also a very good format but still quite difficult to use since it isn’t widespread enough.
View other work of Margarita Kouvatsou
At the moment none of my work is on the net ….but….. Http://www.screamread.tv is soon on line.
< overview
CountryUnited KingdomEdition2006
< overview
Interview
Margarita Kouvatsou was born in 1978 in Athens, but grew up in Volos and remained there until 1996. From 1997 on she moved to Great Britain, to study English and Creative Studies at Portsmouth university. Throughout her studies she combined Post-Modern English literature with Theatre studies, Creative Writing and Performance. Between 2001 and 2002 she continued her studies in the Netherlands, completing a masters on European Media, working mostly on digital video. There she made her first narrative film entitled "ZWI". She has been studying "image and sound" in the Royal Academy of Arts in the Hague since 2003, mainly concentrating on the fusion of Digital video and/or animation with free verse, text and sound. She has been living in Rotterdam since 2005
Why filmmaking?
Much of my love for film making sprung out from a compulsive need to tell stories, stories given from a very subjective and personal point of view, stories like the ones I would sit and watch as a child. After studying literature and theatre, filmmaking seemed to be a logical progression to a more immediate mode of expression
Demon no 1 is about...
What happens when you see the world around you unwind with a different rhythm than that of your own? Sometimes an active protagonist and others a simple observer, sometimes synchronised and sometimes not, you linger between your two contradictory roles, looking for your self, the pulse of nature, the music of the world. Your number one demon, your number one enemy...... Time.
Financing your movie?
Since I am still a student, it is quite hard to get subsidized by third parties, I was lucky enough though to get in contact with some people who share my passion for filmmaking and who were willing to put time and effort in the project. I tried to keep the budget as small as possible, and paid whatever small costs on my own. The costs came to up about 400 euros for a 4 day shoot, including transport, food and the suit for the actor.
New Media; a challenge for film makers?
The main advantage of new media is constant access to inexhaustible information, and viewed as such it can be considered as a great source of inspiration. Viewing works through the internet also limits potential distribution costs, allows more freedom and keeps one up to date from the comfort of one’s home, nonetheless it all depends on the nature and visual style of the work in question. For the screening of a narrative film, for example, nothing beats a good old fashioned big screen theatre.
Do your films have style, just as some painters have?
At the moment I am busy making films that share a similar visual style, they are all black and white, shot in 16:9, and incorporate super8 as well as digital video. Their narrative style is also very similar in the sense that they appear as a personal account on philosophical and existential concerns, presented in a poetic manner. Camera as well as editing are done in an intuitive manner, involving loads of improvisation. Since there is no script or story board before the production, it all springs out of a basic idea, at the time of filming.
Influences?
To name just one seems so unfair…so I’ll just name a few: Antonioni for his films…Bill Viola for his video art ….Floria Sigismondi and Michel Gondri for their music videos, Samuel Beckett for his literature and plays…..Leonard Cohen and Lou reed for their lyrics and poetry…..so much information….the internet you know?
Which film related websites do you frequent?
Internet sites such as: videos.antville.org, and youtube.com are great up-to-date sources, for small films, music videos, interviews and old TV clips, and they offer the chance to post comments as well as upload your own work. For small art films I visit tank. TV and for archive footage, avant-guarde films, and interviews there is also UBUWEB.
Individual film making or co-operation?
At the moment I am working entirely on my own, doing camera production and editing with the exception of a couple of people that helped me during the time of shooting. I prefer this way of working because I want to learn all the different aspects involved in filmmaking, in order to be later able to direct and communicate better with a DOP, cameraman and editor. If a project is bigger nonetheless, collaboration is essential. Doing everything on your own offers a very limited point of view and can therefore hurt the final outcome.
Future...
Making more films, ultimately being able to make some money out of it so I can quit my day job…..working with nice people that inspire me….making more films……
Did you ever had another ambition in life than to become a filmmaker?
I have had many different ambitions as a child, but this one has been my most intense and long lasting one as an adult.
Digital or classic?
Film is beautiful but also very expensive and in many cases unaffordable, but super 8 is always a favorite, as well as mini DV. Most of my work includes a fusion of super 8 and mini DV, as well as found footage (if I can find it that is…). HD is also a very good format but still quite difficult to use since it isn’t widespread enough.
View other work of Margarita Kouvatsou
At the moment none of my work is on the net ….but….. Http://www.screamread.tv is soon on line.
< overview
