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A Conversation with Jean-Jacques Annaud, Director of
"The Bear" (1988) |
Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter
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Interviewed
by: Thomas
Hauerslev. Interview transcribed by Mette Petersen. Conversation
recorded at the Gentofte Kino. |
Date:
17.03.2023 |
Jean-Jacques
Annaud
at the GIFF 70 festival, Gentofte Kino, 28. January 2023. Picture: Thomas
Hauerslev
Thomas
Hauerslev: I will start by going back a little bit. You represent the
early French
legacy of the anamorphic lens, the Hypergonar, developed by Professor
Henri Chrétien
[1879-1956]. The lens that was renamed
"CinemaScope". Do you have any
recollection of Professor Chrétien?
Jean-Jacques Annaud: Yes, of course. Well, I think he was probably
already passed away when I was at film school.
One detail that I do remember - well, it was more than a detail: In the Cinémathèque
Française, at Palais de Chaillot (Paris), strangely enough, the screen was not
panoramic! It was not even
Academy. It was a square! Why? Because the French Cinémathèque wanted to to be
able to screen the
first test of
Chrétien's,
who used his invention: CinemaScope [Hypergonar],
not only horizontal but
also vertical. In particularly he shot the Eiffel Tower in vertical [format] and I remember
... I was
good at technology, when I was at Film School. I did two film schools, you know, the two that
existed in France.
One was called National School of Louis Lumière and also at La Fémis in Paris. In those days
there were other names, but I enjoyed the technology, and the concept to compress the image and then stretch it out at the
projection. What a great idea,
and it was perfect for Westerns. In France we didn’t do that much
70mm for widescreen, because we were accustomed to shooting wide screen using 35mm anamorphic. And I shot half of my movies in
anamorphic. What I like about anamorphic is that we use longer lenses, and you have
less depth of field and therefore, you can have the background a little out of focus, which
is better for the format.
• Go to Jean-Jacques Annaud's
Introduction to "The Bear"
• Go to The Immersive Quality of 70mm
Film
THa: You are from 1943, and 79 years old. When you were a teenager,
CinemaScope,
VistaVision and
Todd-AO, all emerged during the 1950’s ....
JJA: Sure! I have seen it all!
THa: ... did you see it and became inspired by it, or did it help you to decide to be involved with
movies?
JJA: Not necessarily, but I have seen something you didn’t even mention, its
Cinerama. We had two Cineramas in Paris. We had the Russian one called
Kinopanorama, and the
US one called
Cinerama. I have seen three or four shows. The first one was very good. The second
not as good and the third one not as good, because they felt that the technology
was enough and they didn’t know how to tell a story. But I have been curious
all my life about all the technology you mentioned. I shot in VistaVision for my
backgrounds in “Enemy at the Gates” (2001) with Jude Law and Ed Harris. I shot a lot of
my backgrounds in VistaVision to get better better definition using the horizontal 35mm.
I shot in IMAX 3D with the [IMAX] Solido camera. A movie called “Wings of Courage” (1996) and I
was the very, very first to use that technology. Yes you know, people had forgotten
about 3D and this
is how my colleague James Cameron became involved [with 3D], because he saw my movie, and he decided to
do the Titanic documentary ["Ghost of the Abyss" (2003)].
Beautiful images everywhere. Shot very, very far below the water, at the real Titanic
wreck. Then I was approached by
Douglas Trumbull, who invented
Showscan, and he wanted me to
shoot some of those shows. I didn’t like it, not because it was 65mm negative,
but he was shooting at 48 frames per second ...
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More in 70mm reading:
Jean-Jacques Annaud's Introduction
to "The Bear"
in70mm.com Interview & People
A Picture Visit to
Kino-Panorama in
Paris, 1990
The Max
Linder, A collection of pictures 1990-2008
Belguiral's Max Linder Panorama (FR)
Belguiral's Max Linder
Panorama (UK)
Empire - Cinerama, Paris Kingdom
of curved screen
Trail of CinemaScope
70mm Cinema and Film in
France
Conversations with Olivier
Brunet, "Fanny's Wedding"
GIFF 70, 2023,
Copenhagen, Denmark
in70mm.com's Library
Presented on the big screen in 7OMM
Peripheral Vision, Scopes,
Dimensions and Panoramas
in70mm.com Interview & People
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Jean-Jacques Annaud's "The Bear" premiered in Copenhagen
(DK) 18. August 1989 at
the Imperial Bio. Playing five times every day at 12:00, 14:15, 16:30,
19:00 and 21:15 in "sub-standard" 35mm format and Dolby Stereo. Last day
was 7.
September, and then moved over to Grand and Palads. Picture Thomas Hauerslev
THa: 60 frames per second, actually.
JJA: Yes, thank you for correcting me. I remember I was seeing the demos he had done.
I didn’t like it. I hate those shaking seats and all that, so I didn’t do it.
But I knew him rather well, and he kept me informed about his inventions.
I also went
digital very quickly. But at the very beginning, in 1995 I think, I shot the movie called
“Two Brothers” (2004) featuring some tigers. Unfortunately in those days,
the camera sensor was very small, and I didn’t
really like the look of it. But now ... , you know the most recent movie I made, “Notre-Dame
on Fire” (2022), I had an Alexa camera with an extra-large sensor, larger than 35, much larger
...
THa:
ARRI's Alexa 65 has a large format sensor.
JJA: Possibly so. It was so surprising for me, because even on my viewfinder, I had to
put marks myself because the ratio didn’t exist, but I had almost the resolution of an
anamorphic, in terms of quality. I worked with [Cinematographer] Tonino
Delli Colli on ”The Name of the Rose” (1986). Tony was used to
shooting with
Pier Paolo Pasolini, but also Sergio Leone, and they both used Techniscope!
Two perfs! That had an interesting quality, because it was a little more
grainy of course, but it was much cheaper because you would use a lot less
film. Since “Seven Years in Tibet” (1997) I have been shooting full
frame, you know using also the soundtrack area for extra picture image.
THa: 4-perf Super Techniscope or
Super 35 ...
JJA: ... Super 35 absolutely. And now, recently, for “Notre-Dame on
Fire” for instance, I intended to shoot a bit wider [aspect ratio] than I
[normally] would. I think I was shooting 8k, so I can pan a bit inside the frame.
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Jean-Jacques Annaud
at the GIFF 70 festival, Gentofte Kino, 28. January 2023. Picture: Thomas
Hauerslev
THa: You have been around when all the widescreen formats and technologies were
introduced. Did you embrace them?
JJA: [Enthusiastic] Yes, yes, yes ... you know, when I started very, very young, I was 19½ when I got my first paycheck, saying "Director", I was shooting
black and white. All the TV commercials I did, for three or four years, were
all black and white. Then I remember we were so surprised that we began to
deal with colour. You know, the film stock was quite slow, about 25 ASA in the old
days, and then we soon went to 64, oh my God! It was a revolution, and then we went to
400. It was fantastic [JJA's arms in the air].
THa: Can I take you back to the cinema today. Is it important for you that
people see "The Bear" (1988) in 70mm compared to 35mm?
JJA: Well, the immense difference is the sound because in the 35mm you are
limited.
THa: "The Bear" was perfect this evening. Wonderful
pictures with Dolby
Stereo.
JJA: Yes it was. As I heard it in my sound stage. It was surprising today. You know I always do the
color grading. Sometimes in association with my lighting camera man, but
most of the time they are busy on another film, and so I do it with the
colourist and
what I saw today, was exactly what I wanted. And it is not always that way.
When I supervise my movies being transferred in different format,
I also supervise the grading. I remember a movie that I did “The Lover”
(1992)
in Vietnam, the digital version ended up being what I wanted when I shot it in 35mm.
In Vietnam, I had a lot of very white skies and I had a Chinese
actor, therefore in the film print I very often had to choose between his face
or the skies.
Of course the 35mm print exposure had to always be based on seeing his face. Then I rediscovered on the negative
that I had both values captured in the exposure. So for the digital
rendering I could get a perfectly good stop for my actor, and I could push
the sky which were, as a matter of fact, not entirely white. There were
nuances, there were clouds and all that, so I had a much better image today,
than I had in the 35mm print.
THa: Interesting.
Sune asked you about “Wings of Courage” which was
the first of your films shown in 70mm in Denmark, because it was shown in
the local Omnimax cinema in '96.
JJA: [Excited] Ahh, yes, yes, yes ...
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"PREMIERE
The first dramatic film in Omnimax format from Oscar winner Jean-Jaques Annaud".
Spot the error. Premiere 21. October 1996 in Omnimax 2D at the Tycho Brahe
Planetarium and Omnimax Teater, Copenhagen, DK. Newspaper advertising from
Editor's collection.
THa: Tell me a little bit about the making of that film, please.
JJA: [Laughing] You know what, I went to Toronto, to see the people at
IMAX,
because they said "No, no, no. We cannot. It is impossible to shoot
actors with our system". Because it was very noisy. It was very
cumbersome – I was using - not only the Solido, but I was using two
other cameras. A contraption I would say with two cameras, mirrors, and
all that. The mirrors, as you know ... if it rains you can almost not
shoot, because you have a drop [of water] on one image and not on the
other. When you have dust, it is the same. So, it was very complicated,
but I said to those people, I said: "I know that I can do it. It is
spectacular. It is an extraordinary system, believe me", and they didn’t
trust me. But very fortunately at Columbia/SONY they trusted me. They let me do
it, but what I had to do was of course, to dub everything. Afterwards,
I called my actors back. We had the [IMAX] cameras going like this skfjdkslfdlsjfdksfjdksfjdkslfjdklsjfdskl. I had three of them all the
time! And the other problem was that I had only two minutes [of 65mm
film] in my can.
THa: 15 perf magazine quickly runs out ...
JJA: I remember, I was saying "Roll Camera" and I was hearing a
"Click" and then yaonk, yaonk and faster and faster [JJA simulates the
IMAX camera going faster and faster], and then I said, "Can I say
Action?" "Not yet Sir". [JJA and THa laughing]. It had to be at the
right speed! But you know what is interesting in this, very recently I
was invited to the Imax CEO forum at Scottsdale in Arizona and they
really wanted me, because they said: "You changed the perception of
Imax, because it was of THAT early movie. Not only it was a way to
reintroduce 3D, but it had also helped Imax expand from their documentary
specialty". They were absolutely convinced that their format was
made for documentaries. They did excellent documentaries by the way, and
thy revived documentary films, which disappeared in those days. So, now
I have this very warm relationship with Imax for that reason, and most of
my recent movies has been shown in Imax Theatres. I have done another
genuine one with 3D cameras in China, a movie called "Wolf Totem"
(2004).
It did great in China, did okay good in other places, but a fabulous
success in China and I shot real 3D with those bizarre cameras, those
mirrors and all that. What I must say is, 3D is, if directors are not
aware, that it is not the same kind of direction that you can do as for
2D. You
cannot arrange your scenes the same way. Because you ask an effort from the
audience, because what they see, you don’t have close up. It is not
a close-up in 3D. It is the actor that come TO you. Like one meter away
from you. Then you have to converge and to focus. If the next shot after
that is a wide shot, where the focus is far away, the viewer gets a headache. The only way to do it, is to make sure that you understand which is the
next shot and as you are not inside a frame, but you are inside a
picture, you don’t see the limit and therefore it is very disturbing. And
lots of people tell me that even for "Avatar" (2022) - and Cameron is a
great specialist on 3D - but three hours of that, and people are getting
a headache and the glasses come off.
THa: I wear glasses and I rarely see 3D, also as a former projectionist
I see everything that is not the movie [EXIT signs etc]. I get
distracted wearing my own glasses AND 3D glasses.
JJA: Of course. I know it has been in fashion on the last decade, but now only
China is eager to see 3D.
THa: Jumping back to "The Bear" again. When you shot the film
with Philippe Rousselot, were you aware that it was going to be released
in 70mm? Did you frame it for 70mm? Because the print has thick
frame-lines to keep the entire 2,39:1 aspect ratio on the screen.
JJA: Well, you know, my two previous movies ["Quest for Fire"
(1981) &
"The Name of the Rose"] were released in 70mm. So, yes of course
I knew I would have prestige prints. I don’t know the exact number, but
I think in the world we had like ... maybe 100 prints in 70mm? I know
for France we had like ... I am not sure, but I think between 12 and 20
70mm prints. The movie was released in almost 500 theatres in France. Therefore you know, the proportion between 35 and 70mm is
huge. It was unusual to see it in 70mm in those days, because most theatres did not have a
70mm projector. So, it [70mm] is a luxury. But I remember, I was
mentioning these theatres like
Kino-Panorama ...
THa: -, and at
Max Linder Panorama,
Gaumont Ambassades and Forum Horizon ... at least four 70mm prints in Paris on the opening day!
JJA: ... [Laughing] yes, yes, right, right, but you know, I remember in
New York I had the
Ziegfeld. I had the
[Pacific’s Cinerama] Dome in Los Angeles.
Both in 70mm. I had all the big
cinemas everywhere.
THa: Did you go to the premieres?
JJA: Yes of course. Usually it is my duty to go, to do a little speech
before with a Q&A [afterwards]
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The
editor and
Jean-Jacques Annaud at the GIFF 70 festival,
Gentofte Kino, 28. January 2023. Picture: Charlotte Hauerslev
THa: Is it important for you to meet your audience?
JJA: Well YES! ... you know, in my life, if I don’t do that, I am like spaced out,
because my life is very pleasant [privileged]. I go from casting session to screening
room, to a set and to where they build my sets. Therefore I see a lot of
[people], you
know, I have done this so many years, you know. For 60 years I have been
doing this role. I have a different life, and if I don’t meet real
people, for whom I work, it would be very silly.
You know for this last movie
of mine, I have already toured 35 countries. I have done, maybe more
than 200 Q&A’s, because I go to Seville in Spain, and go to Lisbon, I go
to Rome, I go to Milano, I go to Lucerne, Berlin, Munich, everywhere,
and this is wonderful for me. This last
movie is even more universal, you know. I would jump from Cape Town to
Singapore, and get the same reaction, same moment, people with same surprise.
So, if
I don’t have these experiences, if I don’t talk to people, I am too much
alone. Right now I spend a lot of my days preparing my next movie, reading all the
scripts, helping another TV series to be made etc etc. I see
composers, I see screenplay writers, I see a novelist, I go to very chic
dinners. I am busy. It is a very privileged life, but I miss the roots. I
love being here and hearing what people have got to say. It is
interesting for me to hear the reaction today to a movie that is 40
years old. I am very pleased. When I travel, I usually look at the TV
programmes in my room and almost everywhere there is one of my movies. I
am explaining for my young colleagues, I am saying, "Why is it that you
want to be a director"?. They say: "Ah, because we will go to
Cannes,
and go on
the red carpet". I am saying, "Well, don’t believe that you will go, and if
you are invited with a film, that day is a frightening day. It is one of
the worst days of being a director."
You know it is tough. My pleasure is to have this life
full of ... I go to Abbey Road in London where I do all my music, I spend weeks
and weeks with my composer. The same thing in preproduction. I spend
weeks with my art department to build my sets, I spend weeks of course,
when I shoot with my DoP and my first assistant. It is a wonderful, wonderful life,
but I absolutely need that time. This movie – “Notre-Dame on
Fire”, we first filmed in
France and Belgium, and for the last 6-7 months I have been
travelling.
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"The
Bear" advertising from London, UK. Premiere 22. September 22, 1989, and playing
until 19. October 1989 in 70mm at the Odeon West-End (Source: 70mm Expert
John Sharp)
"The Bear" opened 19. October 1988 in Paris with at least four 70mm prints:
Kino-Panorama,
Max Linder Panorama,
Gaumont Ambassades and Forum Horizon, (Source: 70mm Expert Francois CARRIN)
THa: That is nice.
JJA: Yes, it is nice. I remember being here in this
cinema with a full room full of guests and I did a Q&A. I did four
cinemas here in Copenhagen. I love it!
THa: "The Bear" got a huge applause this evening. That was wonderful. I have one last
question. Do you think there is a future for 70mm films?
JJA: No!
THa: Why is that?
JJA: Because shooting in 70mm is a no longer a big deal. The cameras are too heavy. You
cannot move the camera easily. You have to have a big crane. The very fast
cranes we have with all the Lumar [cranes] and all that, they are not adapted
to those big cameras, and it is very expensive. Today I think using 70mm is
something for snobs. What is good is to see old movies in 70mm, and I
wish that more labs would be able to make such prints. When I see movies done in 70mm,
they are obsolete, because today you have to move your camera quicker,
and the sheer weight of the [65mm] camera does not allow you. If I use a
digital camera, I can use a drone for instance from here to there. Can
I do that with a 70mm camera? No, then I would have to hire a helicopter. I
have done 1000s of hours in a helicopter. Frankly I prefer the drones.
With helicopters you cannot go close to your actors, there is too much
dust and too much noise, and it frightens all the animals around. You got the
dogs barking everywhere. No, no, no, no, I was sort of "drunk" on helicopters.
"Wings of Courage" was helicopter every day. Three hours of helicopter every
day. To get there and come back, plus the shot I did with the stabilizer
camera. You have the problem renting a crane, for a 70mm camera that is
too heavy, ... first they are not available anymore. They are in cinémathèques or exhibited. I have used all those things – you know those
Chapmans [cranes]. They have been my life, being tied on with a belt on those Chapmans that
are coming from Samuelson's
in London, so you know I am very used to working with this equipment. Why
would I go back to have something that I [now] can get better, quicker, cheaper?
THa: Merci Monsieur.
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