TV Times

TV Times

French New Wave changed world cinema
The French Embassy has organised a series of workshops on the ‘French New Wave’ for film enthusiasts and serious students of cinema from May 2 to 8 at the Sri Lanka Television Training Institute (SLTTI) from 2.30 pm onwards.

The workshop is about the genre that includes the films somewhere between 1955and 1959 which evolved a distinctive theatrical and highly self conscious approach to film culture. The workshop was based on the discussion pertaining to films made during this period. The subject for discussion on the opening day and the film shown was Jean-Luc Godard’s “Breathless”.

The first of these series was started when Mr. Tissa Abeysekera as the guest speaker spoke introducing the French New Wave cinema. Speaking to young filmmakers and film enthusiasts on the subject one of the turning points in the history and the evolution of the cinema as seen in Jean-Luc Godard’s “Breathless” Mr. Abeysekera said there is a common factor that is seen in the French New Wave and Sri Lankan society. It is that if the senseless, feverish activity going in search of identity.

Analysing French New Wave Mr. Abeysekera said it was possible for us to take real life incidents and situations to produce innovative film images that depict instantaneous gratification that the youth seek. This quick fix method is the reality of society and as such it creates empathy with the film audience who seek to live intimately with the characters in the film.

There is no substitute for the way he treats life chances and his films also reflect the deep and genuine love for cinema and deep love for life itself. The influence of French New Wave in Sri Lanka was felt when the then young filmmakers like Dharmasena Pathiraja produced “Paradige” a film which depicts youth unrest in search of identity in society. Such films were produced also due to the ambience that was prevalent in the 1960s and 1970s. The period of pre-uprising 1970’s was the influence.

Evaluating on the changes that took place in Sri Lankan society and of contemporary Sri Lanka, the restlessness of the youth during the period pre-uprising 1971 which burst into a revolution was the reflection of French New Wave cinema in the local context.

We admire these films even after nearly five decades and we can still discuss these films for so many years to come” Tissa said at length.

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