I was impressed when I came across director Konrad Aksinowicz’s work. Commercial director from Poland (our thoughts and prayers to his country) directed this entertaining and surprise ending commercial film. Though shot on 35mm film, hardly any films today are finished without going through a digital process. We appreciate Konrad in putting together this write-up as challenging as it was in his second language. He shares some great insights on the challenge of being a commercial director and having the client take over a project, though not in the case of FILMWEB. Great cinematography and a clever concept (shocked by the true story of Charlie Chaplin’s final remains) we hope to bring more of Konrad’s work to digital cinema foundry. There’s been a great interest in not only the visual appeal of films featured here but of story and of concept. We will do our best to feature projects that suit that criteria.

aksinowicz.com

THE STORY BEHIND FILMWEB COMMERCIAL

Everything we dream of or want to be close to, is the true inspiration for any film project. It can be music, video, commercial, or a short; you name it. If you have the will to see it, you are going to do so with the true belief that everybody, including yourself, can understand and enjoy that movie experience.

That’s what I was doing when I made the FILMWEB commercial. I just wanted to see a very small story on a really big screen. I wanted to believe in this crazy idea – of a film buff whose hobby is collecting bodies of celebrities.

People are so crazy about celebrities now days, so i thought; why they don’t go a little bit further with their desire of having something personal of a celebrities? Why not their body itself when the celebrity dies!

The events following Charlie Chaplin’s death and what happened to his body is actually based on true events. In 1977 when he died, two people dug up his body, and contacted the family for ransom. One guy was Polish, the other Hungarian. This event gave me the idea for the Filmweb commercial, the main film-data base for polish film community.

I’m a big fan of Steven Spielberg’s works in eighties. I grew up on his E.T and Indiana Jones movies. For me as a kid growing up in communist Poland, watching Spielberg’s visions provided me with a safe place; in the Cinema, i could watched all their adventures.

Filmweb commercial was specified as an opening film before any important film event in cinemas, including before important screenings, festivals or premieres.

I wanted to make the main character a little bit like Indiana Jones; professional, unstoppable, and totally insane.

We shot it on 35 mm ARRI 435 with an anamorphic lensesm made in 80′ – COOKE. It was a two day shoot with my close friends in production.

My friend Wojtek Zielinski was cinematographer; the producer Konrad Stefaniak; and set designer, Robert Dabrowski. Most important, WE DIDN”T HAVE ANY INTERRUPTIONS FROM A MAIN CLIENT AND THE COMMERCIAL AGENCY.

I didn’t have to explain every crazy idea or any alternate possibility of how to make the shoot better. I didn’t have to worry that any aspect of my work could make anyone sad, or if anybody thought what I was creating was right or wrong… I JUST SHOT IT.

I think that a big problem in the commercial world, is that we as a directors are not trusted. They; the client or agency people, choose us based on our showreel, and have big aspirations to make something similar or better. But as soon as we sign their papers, they take over the project – in reality, they are afraid of failing.

Failure is not an option for a commercial agency, but even thinking about failure in the middle of the film making process, increase the possibilities of that happening.

I was 27 when I did FILMWEB. Now I’m 31 years old… the successes from FILMWEB production, gave me the recognition that made producing my first feature film possible; it made me a creative commercial director. Never the less, it was the last work I had total control on, and I haven’t made anything worth seeing since… I suffer from that. I ask myself whatever had happened to the guy who forgot what the creative process of any filmmaking is about. I hope you’ll understand me.

Thank you very much for your attention,

Konrad Aksinowicz

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