Below, we publish a few questions addressed to directors Jurij Meden and Matevž Jerman about their competition film Ali je bilo kaj avantgardnega? (Alpe-Adria Underground!).
Archivio Aperto explores the theme of memory and archives. How does your film intercept this theme? What elements of the film highlight this exploration of memory?
Our film Alpe-Adria Underground! appears to be perfectly aligned with your explorations of memory and archives. It is an investigation of a forgotten part of film history that has, for decades, existed only as a faint memory, and is now finally becoming part of an official archive.
How do archive images influence the construction of the narrative? Can you tell us about a sequence in your film where archive images transformed or enriched the message you intended to communicate?
Archival images constitute the backbone of our narrative. That said, it should be noted that we have first encountered several images that appear in our film as found footage that was “elevated” to the status of archival images precisely through our use of these images in our film. Our film was, after all, co-produced by a film archive.
What found footage or experimental films have played an important role in your education?
Jurij: It’s super hard to single out any specific titles or names operating in these two vast areas of found footage/experimental cinema, but if I had to drop four names, then I would say Artavazd Peleshyan (representing the past), Jyoti Mistry (representing the present), Sara Bezovšek (representing the future), and Tara Najd Ahmadi (representing my personal preference).
Matevž: One of the cornerstones of my film education are definitely the short experimental films of Karpo Godina, which, with their aesthetic refinement, playfulness, and subversiveness, are today considered some of the cinematic gems from the former Yugoslavia and, fortunately, are also included in our documentary. The most recent fascinating discovery, however, are experimental film diaries of Vukica Đilas, which she created over several decades and were only recently presented publicly for the first time.