Students from the Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing take on the acclaimed Polish director for a behind-the-scenes documentary.
Still from Maciej Cuske, Thierry Paladino, Marcin Sauter, Piotr Stasik's "Let's Shoot!", photo: polishdocs.pl
Maciej Cuske, Thierry Paladino, Marcin Sauter and Piotr Stasik, who call themselves the 'Paladino group' are currently enrolled in the Warsaw-based film school. They all wrote and directed the film, aiming to show an intimate profile of the director and an insider look at his film methodology. The documentary was made on the set of Wajda's film Katyń.
Wajda, who was awarded an Honorary Oscar in 2000, was closely watched by members of Paladino's team: talking to his collaborators and resting between takes. They show how meticulous the director is on set - talking to the extras and at one point even taking a paintbrush and correcting some set decorations himself. "(Italian director) Visconti ensured that underwear was nicely folded in the wardrobe, and yet he would never open the wardrobe himself": probably best summarised Wajda's attitude towards his profession.
On set, he believes that one should photograph temper and energy, using this to inform the final film. He subsequently grows impatient when set preparation becomes prolonged ("Come on, let's shoot!"). He never wants to lose those elements.
There are two creative aspects to a director's work, the rest lies in execution. The first element is when you take on a subject and the second one, when you decide who should star in the film, says Andrzej Wajda. In directing, the main problem lies in the material one is working with. The most difficult material is people.
The Paladino group previously made a 30-minute documentary Katyń. 60 days on the set (2007), which was commissioned and produced by Akson Studio. It was a typical "making of" film. This time they had higher ambitions. Despite being shot on the set of a single film, the hour-long documentary is meant to depict a universal portrait of the director. Their task mirrors Wajda's words onscreen:
What I expect mostly from the people I work with, is for each of them to provide me with something personal. Then you can work happily because everyone is aware that the film is our community. When it's successful, it belongs to all of us...
- Andrzej Wajda. Let's shoot!" / "Andrzej Wajda. Róbmy zdjęcie!, Poland 2008. Written, directed and executed by: Maciej Cuske, Thierry Paladino, Marcin Sauter, Piotr Stasik, edited by: Anna Dymek, Miłosz Hermanowicz, sound: Tomasz Wieczorek, producers: Katarzyna Ślesicka, Anna Wydra, produced by: the Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing, co-production: Telekomunikacja Polska. Partially financed by the Polish Film Institute. Colour, running time: 54 minutes.
Author: Jerzy Armata, November 2010