Nordwand

Deutschland Österreich Schweiz 2007/2008 Spielfilm

Films are like Kids

A portrait of director Philipp Stölzl, German Films Quarterly 1/2013

It’s so tempting to give an extensive description of what a cool apartment Philipp Stölzl and family have, with its concrete walls, multi-levels, tons of books and DVDs, train set and fitted kitchen but we have cake to eat and tea to drink, as well as films and filmmaking to discuss.

The first thing Stölzl does is trust me with his laptop so I can watch the marketing trailer of "Der Medicus" ("The Physician"). It’s bright, star-studded, action, adventure, romance, danger, thrills and, no art for art’s sake here, very commercial. It’s big and going to be a big success: audiences into this kind of thing will lap it up. "I never went to film school," Stölzl says. "I just learned on the job working on music video sets and watching other directors. I guess I would have been wrong in a film school anyway. When I started out most of the film schools in Germany were very 'artistic' oriented."

In a world where many claims are made, personal smoke and mirrors deployed, Stölzl is open and confident: "I had no great artistic master-plan," he says. "Luckily I’ve always been offered a lot of projects: it was more about instinctively finding out what sets me on fire, who are the people behind it and do you fit with them. I guess when you come from music videos you have a pretty 'craft-y' attitude toward creative work – the videos are a broad art format, you have to sell a record after all, you always try to find a broad audience. You need to appeal as well as maintain standards and do something artistically powerful."

Nailing his colors to the mast, Stölzl says, "I like it when heavy and intelligent themes are told in an entertaining way. It’s great when the mixture works. This German thing about dividing art into entertainment or heavy stuff, is just stupid. I like fun. You can use it to reach someone who is not so into film or opera. Entertainment mustn’t always be stupid."

He admits, "Things sometime flop, but the aim is to entertain. Music videos led me to English-language work and I got to travel the world. Now I love working in the language and it’s big fun to make a cinema film in it."

Stölzl’s filmography "is more European than US but English is a great script language and it’s so good when films have the chance to reach beyond the three German-speaking territories."

Although he has a lot to be proud of, Stölzl does not rewrite his personal history to suit: "I developed a lot of stuff that did not make it into a film. Sometimes it feels like planting a garden, seeing what grows. It could be a tree or nothing." One of these dead trees was a film called "Die Wahrheit über Hänsel und Gretel" ("The Truth About Hänsel und Gretel"). "We worked long and hard on it," Stölzl says. "I also developed with Jan de Bont, producing a film about a time traveling serial killer in Boston. You spend years sitting on the script, give it your all and nothing gets green-lit! It’s the reality of the business unfortunately."

How does he do his thing? "I get a script," Stölzl explains, "I look for what suits me. You have an instinct. I’m making my third historical film. I know I am good at creating worlds, I’m experienced, you have a feeling. It’s not that you want to do that for -ever, but it is a security thing and I feel safe and the cast is in good hands." Stölzl goes on to explain that a script has to evoke "a spark of love. In many cases you know after ten pages if you’re compatible. Every time is exciting. I try to read them in real time, in one go, hoping the spark becomes a flame. You have your own taste, of course, and that gives you more enthusiasm."

Stölzl’s films "are involved with history, literature, a bit of music. I grew up in a home with grand pianos and Goethe. I heard my first Wagner from my father’s LPs. There were many photos and art books. I’m at home in this world, I like living in it. I instinctively seek out projects within this world."

Entertainment, for Stölzl, does not mean lightweight, quite the opposite. "I tend towards heavy themes," he explains. "'Nordwand' ('North Face') is quite heavyweight, about death, survival, politics, Nazis, an ice storm. 'Goethe!' ('Young Goethe in Love') is a bit lighter, it’s a romantic love story but also has painful moments. 'Der Medicus' ('The Physician') is similar: there is a great deal of religious conflict, power politics, war fanaticism, all solid stuff."

As to his methods, Stölzl is "always very involved with the writing, most of the time co-writing the script. It moves the film faster into production and on set, where things are different anyway, you know exactly what is meant and can make quick decisions, find quick solutions. I also love working with others, love dialogue and the teamwork of filmmaking, whatever stage of the process."

Stölzl seeks "to create a climate with actors and camera and crew where everyone can give something. I’m a director where actors can say when something is not right and make suggestions. There is always this large machine running so you have to create a relaxed atmosphere and freedom. Every day is new, you have only so many shooting days, you have to get to the point, which limits what you can try and experiment with."

"'Nordwand' ('North Face') and 'Goethe!' ('Young Goethe in Love') cost around €7 million," Stölzl explains. "'Der Medicus' ('The Physician') is some €20 million, but you always find it’s not enough! The budget has to fit what you want to make. It’s silly if the story is too big! 'Der Medicus' ('The Physician') was a long shoot because it’s also made as a TV two-parter, so you are making two times ninety minutes. In the end, though, whatever the budget, you are always nervous at the start and there is no big difference in the end. But when you have actors like Stellan Skarsgård and Ben Kingsley the whole 'star' thing is not so important. It’s very uncomplicated on set and they were both great to work with."

Author: Simon Kingsley

Source: German Films Quaterly

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