German genes, Indian icons

German director Jan Bonny aims to gain cinematic expertise from works of veteran Indian filmmakers.

He comes from a land that delineates world cinema at its best, with most filmmakers drawing inspiration from their expressionist storytelling style. Germany gave birth to what we today know as the golden era of film noir and it is hardly a surprise that debutant German director Jan Bonny’s very first film ‘Counterparts’ will premiere at the Cannes film festival this year.

“The film will be shown at the Director’s Fortnight section at Cannes and it is an honour every filmmaker would like to be bestowed upon. It is a platform which is open to so many talented people and frankly I am a little nervous,” says an exuberant Bonny.

But apart from the fact that he hails from a culturally rich cinematic background it is the way he deals with the subject of domestic violence through the film that makes it different. “For most, domestic violence is about the woman being a victim but my film showcases a couple where the husband gets physically abused by his wife. I came across a newspaper article about this few years back which got be interested in the subject.”

Interestingly, unlike most German filmmakers who place war as their backdrop, Bonny chooses to speak of more personal stories. He also gives credit to his faint memory of Indian filmmakers like Mrinal Sen whose films he grew up with. “Today, there is a huge wave of Asian cinema in Germany, but accessibility to veteran Indian filmmakers’ works it still very tough. I hope something like Cannes will help me improvise my connect with Indian cinema.”

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