Greek director makes movies to forget reality

Mumbai: For Greek director Babis Makridis, movie making seems to be a way to escape reality.

The director, here for the 14th Mumbai Film Festival (MFF), says his movies make him lose all sense of time and space, and hopes his works have a similar effect on his audience as well. "When I make a film, I lose sense of time and space. I want to forget reality. I hope the viewers lose sense of time and space for those two hours (too)," Makridis, whose latest film "L" was screened at The MFF is organized by Mumbai Academy of Moving Image-organised MFF Saturday, told IANS. The movie has traveled to international film galas like the Sundance Film Festival 2012, Rotterdam Film Festival 2012, Seattle International Film Festival 2012 and Sydney Film Festival. The filmmaker believes such events help in expanding the audience base for his movies. "They are a big help as the films are shown to more people. My film travels and it`s nice because people go and see it. (In case of normal release), It`s there for a week in cinema with tickets, but festivals give my film a chance to be there for more time," he said. His movie follows the life of a driver, who loses his ability to drive and changes his mode of transport. His career decisions are paralleled to situations in life. Delving deeper into the subject, he explained: "The film is about a man who lives in his car. The car is his home. He transports honey to old men. As the story goes on, he loses his driving skills and his stability in life. Then he changes his transportation from car to bike and hen to something else," he said. The film has not had a world release yet, but Makridis would love to have it screened all over soon. "If someone came and liked the film and wants to release it, I would be very happy," he said. Makridis has also been a successful ad filmmaker and this makes him ensure that his films are not a part of the commercial domain. His last short film "The Last Fakir", as well as "L" are not traditionally commercial in theme or nature. "I have been in this industry for the past 20 years as an assistant, assistant director. I started directing commercials (ads), made my short movie and a big feature film. (But) I don`t want to enter into the commercial realm (with my films). I am a commercial director and do commercials for a living," he said. However, Makridis truly belives cinema is a global medium. "I think cinema is a world thing. The stories must be global. I try to do that. You don`t make film only for your country or for people who understand your language. I believe in stories which are global, people should get involved in the story," he said. IANS