In the last review of Workshop & Masterclass, Joan Chen shared her experience from an actress to a director, which is not an exception of filmmakers to grow into a “versatile” role. To further tap their potential in art, filmmakers never stop trying out different identities and roles. For the Workshop & Masterclass of the 14th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF), Emir Kusturica, a Serbian director, screenwriter, actor, and also musician, was invited as a keynote speaker, along with Chinese director Huang Jianxin and Chinese writer Yu Hua as guest speakers, bring us marvelous ideas and thoughts on epics of the nation and miracles from heart. Director Kusturica shared with the audience his experience of self-recognition through the art of cinema in the changing communities and times based on the history and society.

　　Mixed cuts of works by Emir Kusturica

The transcript of Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass at the 14th BJIFF goes as follows: 

Li Mingtao: Today, we are honored to have Emir Kusturica, a famous Serbian director and Jury President of the 14th BJIFF Tiantan Award. To help us recognize and appreciate the master with a master's eyes, we are also honored to invite Huang Jianxin, famous director, producer, chairman of the Beijing Film Association, Dean of the School of Film, Xiamen University, and Yu Hua, a famous writer and a good friend of director Kusturica!

Kusturica: Thank you. First of all, I would like to say hello to all of you. And I'm sorry that I can only speak in English rather than Chinese. I'm surprised that this place is so full today, and I hope that we will be able to use well the next hour and a half.

Huang Jianxin: I'm glad to join this conversation, which is a great opportunity for learning.

Yu Hua: Jianxin and I just met before, but my most recent meeting with Kusturica was in 2018. It's very nice to see my old friend again in Beijing, and hopefully we'll be able to have a good conversation. Let’s look forward to that. 

　　Emir Kusturica

Li Mingtao: For the 14th BJIFF, you came as the Jury President of the Tiantan Award. What’s new to you compared from your last time when you were in the BJIFF? Do you have any interesting stories as a judge that you would like to share with us?

Kusturica: We all know that literature and films are closely related to the times and society, about which I am very optimistic as these stories and films selected for the BJIFF can really reflect the changes of the times.

I’ve been to all kinds of international film festivals before, in which I failed to count how many times I served as a judge or jury member. I was very amazed this time since I saw various perspectives and stories. We were very satisfied about and thought very highly of the selected films. I want to thank you all and thank the BJIFF not because I came to China, but for the great quality and standard of these films themselves. We enjoyed a lot of interesting and powerful stories, about China and different parts of the world. 

We kept a consensus during our review and discussion at the BJIFF. We know that it is the same in China and the world that films are constantly upgrading and evolving, and we see different stories and narratives iterating and happening. What I want to say is that the films that I saw at the BJIFF were all of high quality, and every one of us is very serious and earnest about the BJIFF. We can also see that the production, filming, and storytelling in Chinese cinema are getting better and better.

　　Huang Jianxin

Li Mingtao: We would like to ask Huang and Yu to share with us your three favorite films of Emir Kusturica. After your recommendation, could you tell us what impressed you most from Director Emir's films, and what have you found in common from your creations?

Huang Jianxin: I remember his work Underground, which was recommended by a friend of mine, who spoke highly of the film for its unique style. At that night, I was sitting there without any move, totally lost in the film. I was greatly shocked from a shot in it. That child, after his mother gave birth to him underground, had been staying there for 15 years. One day, his father takes him out and on the ground. The next day when the sun rises away from the lake, since he has never seen the sun, he is deeply attracted by the sunrise in the footage. When the shot turned to his eyes, I cried. Because I know that the essence of human is the desire for life, freedom, and for everything. It manifests a huge power in that moment, calmly and quietly.

Underground also shows off massive artistic expressions, which are known as magical realism nowadays. There are in fact an extraordinary amount of artistic expressions in it. A lot of shots impressed us deeply and left us space for imagination. We see the changes of such a country where the people, their humanity, and their desire are very unique. That's why this film had such a strong impact on me, and the director used his thoughts of freedom and uninhibited artistic skills to complete this movie, which has such a strong power.

I then went through his works and noticed that he had a film from a child's view, which is When Father Was Away on Business. The film talks about the times through a child's view, which is very fantastic and appealing. One of the most important plots of the film is that of an informant whose father is arrested after the informing. Such an act drifts apart a family. The child has been longing to see his father, but he has been told that his father is on a business trip. His mother moves away with the whole family and then comes back, which, in fact, demonstrates the human nature. It just likes drawing a circle that we start from a place and then return to the original position, on which I have too many feelings and thoughts. I like many of the director's movies very much. I like many of his films. I have used some non-realistic and expressionistic methods in my own filmmaking, which fully displays his great influence on me. Because of the history of the country in which the director lives, there are a lot of things that we can associate with him, making the film superior beyond cinema, literature, and art and bringing us imaginations on human’s universality. These are the most important contents that impress me in particular. 

　　Yu Hua 

Yu Hua: The first film I watched was When Father Was Away on Business. A Chinese director bought me a videotape from abroad, and I didn't know what language it was in. However, there were English subtitles provided, which I couldn't understand. Although I failed to understand the lines of the characters, I understood that film.

The second was Underground, which was still on VHS played on a 21-inch television set. Underground is now recognized as a classic in the history of the world’s cinema. The third one I enjoyed was the Time of the Gypsies, which was downloaded from the Internet and played on the TV. After I went through the catalog, I realized that I still missed two to three films of Emir’s, such as his debut work, Do You Remember Dolly Bell?, for which I haven't found a source. I watched all of his works that I found a source for, and I really like them.

If there is one thing that I would like to say about Emir Kusturica, it would be the title of the masterclass - Epic National History and Spiritual Miracle. I think that Kusturica's films bring us miracles of heart, because most of us may not feel the pain he suffered. Such pain is what touches me deeply. His films are miracles of heart, the miracles under the history of the nation. The title is really good.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: It is about thirty years from the beginning of your creation to the present day. What are the similarities and differences of creation for you now compared with three years ago?

Kusturica: I made my first film in 1981 and I felt very lucky at that time. It was a traumatic memory in the context of the time. When I made my first film, Do You Remember Dolly Bell?, I remembered the father in it had this dream all the time. No one had faith in the context of the time. I think it is a very interesting film made out of such a particular time. 

Meanwhile, the film also has some discussions on the roots of society. For instance, what kind of person this child would become when he grows up? The whole process of growing up and the journey of his heart actually reflects the background of the time. The general historical background of the time is also a background for me to make this movie.

In 1985 when I was making my second film When Father Was Away on Business, I discussed the impact of such a background on families and children. For example, the child in the film, who at that time cannot enjoy the love of family, especially from his father, in such an era. He has to wait until his father comes back to have a relatively less conventional journey of growing up in such a lie.

For many filmmakers, if they are living in a very special era, it would be a very good nutrient for art that inspires us for creation. But for me, when I lived through such a period, until the end of the century, the pain in my heart caused by the historical background was not alleviated. Therefore, at the end of the century, I might have had to make other choices, and what it meant to me was that we could hear from everyone’s heart if they were suffering from some kind of trauma. They had a sense of bittersweet humor coming out of it. I have to think it over and over at this period of time, and I hope that my reflections, as well as other elements, would be embodied in the films I made. I hope to bring out this broader context in my films and better integrate my personal family and national feelings, such as my upbringing and my values. I hope that I will be able to do so in my films.

I've been thinking about how to better engage with such a world. We need to turn stories like this into films so that everyone would have a chance to enjoy it, to perceive it and to relate to it emotionally. Those are what cinema can do. It can draw a group of like-minded people to the cinema, watching a movie like this and believing that there's something in it that's always there without stoppage.

Perhaps many people like to talk about realism. What kind of reality is available to us, and how can we find our faith in that? Whether what we believe in is true or not, it probably exists. In that way, when this young boy goes out and sees the outside world, from the point of view of his reality, for example, he goes through the war of World War II, and his father would probably be the only family member he may see during that period. Showing in a sci-fi way like this helps the audience better understand the reality, which is what we call life.

I incorporated my personal life experience into the film and presented it to the audience since films are designed to let people know how we survived in that history. That's why I have always said that I was very lucky to survive the war in such a very special time and that I was able to present such experience in the form of art. Through magical realism and surrealism, I want you to understand what people went through at that time, both physically and mentally.

　　Emir Kusturica

Huang Jianxin: I totally agree with what Kusturica just said. A film at its very beginning was dedicated to reflecting the impact of a history on persons. I was born in Xi'an. Not far from the Bell Tower in Xi'an, there lies a street called Wuliu Alley where I was given birth. That place is known for actors and actresses of Shaanxi opera, people pulling carts, and other kinds of people. When I had the opportunity to make a film, I wanted to put what I had in my heart into the film. The people around me had a great influence on me. I want to reflect in my films every important event I experienced when I grew up and all the other things that happened along such event after being processed in my mind.

I agree with Kusturica’s opinion that everything you event through would definitely leave marks and traces on you, which makes it very valuable. When you express this with the emotions you have, your imagination, your way of expression comes naturally. Therefore, making a film is both complicated and simple for a director, that is to consistently use your ability to show your imagination to tell every story, to embody and shape every character.

　　Yu Hua

Yu Hua: Kusturica wrote in his autobiography, Où suis-je dans cette histoire?. He said in it that art and cinema saved him and turned him into a great artist. He then gave us so many beautiful things, which is one of the reasons why we love art.

Thirty years later, Kusturica made a good explanation of that era. Since what we know about the Balkans in the news, or what we know about the Balkans in books, may not actually be that real. But in his film, we really get a sense of the history of the Balkans and what the inner world of the characters in it was like.

I remember very well the first time I met Kusturica. We were in Kalemegdan Park in Belgrade, where the Sava River goes into the Danube, and we had dinner there. Kusturica said, "I'll show you where I got the idea for Underground". We were in the side of a sunken, like a ruin, where there was a small door. When the light was up underneath, with the surrounding area remaining dark, I was wondering that since so many people passed by, why nobody thought of making a film like Underground. It was history that made Kusturica find that small door.

Sometimes a creator's sudden change of style has little to do with time. Sometimes an inspiration hits him suddenly, and he starts to create. I think Kusturica is one of those directors whose works you cannot measure by periods. I like him very much. I may not know as much about films as I do about literature. In my mind, he has two souls, one is Shakespeare's soul and the other is Chekhov's, and these two souls are sometimes separate. For example, in When Father Was Away on Business, it is Chekhov's soul. But in Underground, you may feel Shakespeare's wantonness, openness, and freedom to do whatever he likes and he wants. However, in Time of the Gypsies, you may see that the two souls are integrated again. He is such a director, and his works are the result of what his soul encounters and what he creates. I feel that it is not so closely related to time.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: Since you are all good at making individual stories in the course of history. What are the bases for you to choose subject matter and script?

Kusturica: My autobiography, Où suis-je dans cette histoire?, was translated into Chinese version. Yu Hua went to Sarajevo before such Chinese version was published. He wanted to see the neighborhood where I grew up and where I spent most of my time playing. I would say I lived in a good family which was better off and complete. But the people around me had more complicated family relationships, some of whom were raised by single parents, or lived in a poorer family. As far back as I can remember, I've always been looking for this sense of survival, I've always wanted to find the strength and look at the people on the street, and I've also desired to witness social changes, in order to better display the changes of communities and the society on the screen. For example, if you see my shoes, untied, why? I just want to tell you that I am in a very peaceful mood now. In the past, I might feel threatened on the street, fearing that someone might beat me up, for which I had to tie my shoes tightly and be ready to run away at any time. That might have been normal for us at that time. But now I'm relaxed and peaceful with my shoes untied.

I just said that we are all very fortunate as we see these symbolic changes, including the real changes, are happening in the society, and we are able to see what is really important and what is not in the society, from which we may find that why and how we can be artists. From the perspective of reality, we are able to strip the reality and strip some elements or real stuff from other people's deeds. So, I have my own feelings to distinguish what is important and what is not. When we enter the realm of art, the first step is that you have to make a distinction, a distinction between what is important and what is not.

There are some key elements in Shakespeare's plays what the story is trying to show and what it's trying to hide. It is the same in a good film, a narrative, a story, basically based on what we tell the audience and what we show people and what we hide. When we talk about the creation of an artist, it is also a process, and this creation we are talking about now is much more realistic. I created it more than forty years ago, maybe almost half a century ago. But I'm still alive, as an artist. So, we have to adapt to the changes in society, we may have to foresee the future, we may have to think about the future, and we also have to think about what it will be like in the times to come.

I strongly believe that no matter what kind of person we become or what kind of path we take, we need to look at some of the historical choices of the moment that may bring us some changes and inspirations. At the same time, when you find such an important historical channel, you may know where you come from, where you want to go, and where you can discover human nature from this process. In this process, we also need to understand the human nature in the end from where it comes from, or in the process of how to overthrow it. Also in this process, through the form of art, we can find the vulnerability of the human nature and understand the human nature deep down in our hearts. Through such a possibility, we can help everyone understand such feelings, understand the deeper meaning of human nature, and find a more profound significant.

The fate of human nature is also always in flux. Sometimes, we may say that we cannot put the fate of human beings into a movie story simply, as if we were facing a Yin and Yang dichotomy. There are times we cannot see changes simply between black and white. So, in the end, where his human nature is fragile or strong is in fact a matter to be explored and is also a question of the nature of human beings.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Huang Jianxin: Since all the films I made are relatively small in theme, which is mainly sourced from literature. I like to read novels. Yesterday in a symposium, I was asked about the source of my film. I said that of my first six films, five were from the novels. I always think that Chinese writers are better than filmmakers in the observation of human nature and shaping characters as they have a state called meditation, which is barely possessed by filmmakers. People produce metaphysical problems in meditation, which may help them reach the essence. That's why Chinese literature has laid a particularly good foundation for Chinese movies. 

Besides literature, life experience is another source. That's why I paid special attention to ordinary people and to all the subtle things around me when I was making a film. Especially after I finished making what people call pioneering movies that used various expressionist techniques, I had the opportunity to visit Australia as a visiting scholar where I enjoyed a lot of documentaries, which had a great influence on me. After I came back, I started to make realistic films, which were about the changes that happened in China during the period of reform and opening up at its beginning. I wanted to record them, so I made Stand Straight, Don't Bend Over, Back to Back, Face to Face, and Signal Left, Turn Right. The main shots of Signal Left, Turn Right were made at the yard where I grew up. The yard was torn down a month after I finished the film, and I left it in the film. When I think of that yard, I will watch the film again to recall my growth.

At that time, I wanted to highlight the relationship of neighbors in reform and opening up era. What changes could we see to the three families living on one floor? Back to Back, Face to Face is about the relationship of different people in a workplace. Signal Left, Turn Right is about a group of Chinese people learning to drive. It is said that Signal Left, Turn Right is a more realistic record of the psychological characteristics of our kind during that period of time.

In general, we cannot get away from the influence of history on us, every director has his or her own and unique perspective and favorite. But what’s important is that we are not focusing on a pure soul, but looking into a real, multi-polar, and rich-content soul. In this way our films and novels will be meaningful, valuable, and vigorous for long.

　　Huang Jianxin (left) 

Yu Hua: The first time when I met Kusturica in Belgrade, I saw that his shoes were untied and I reminded him of that. He said "Hmmm" and continued to walk like that. Then I found that he had such a habit of not tying his shoes, and I didn't know why. Just now he lit me up. I thought it might be one of his hobbies, which is very interesting. I finally know the answer. 

Kusturica just talked about the script that he had been preparing for years ago. The story comes from Aitmatov's novel, and I read its Chinese translation - The White Clouds of Genghis Khan, which is excellent. Kusturica has been expecting to shoot it in China as he holds that the story of Genghis Khan is supposed to be filmed in China.

An important point in his film The White Clouds of Genghis Khan he just mentioned, also the point he wanted to exploit, is the fragility of human nature, not the strong part. Human nature would be touching when it turns to a fragile side. In other words, we can understand human nature, not through his strong part, but precisely through the fragile part. Even for the human nature from an individual perspective or in a general meaning, we need to understand human nature through a fragile perspective.

I’ve read the script of The White Clouds of Genghis Khan. So, I have the right to speak about it. I'm looking forward to that film, which is about Genghis Khan as a tough man from a certain perspective of vulnerability of his human nature. It is just like when we had dinner in the park, and then you showed me the small door that inspired you to create Underground. Our creation, our inspiration, everything we have, may come from a certain small door, and we find such a wide world when we go through it, so I hope this film can be successfully completed in China.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: What kind of Chinese stories and Chinese movies do you like most?

Yu Hua: It is hard to say. I think it is difficult to give a specific answer, because there are too many examples. We might forget what we said, which may make friends unhappy. So, we should try not to keep it secret. 

There has been a saying that we should tell a good Chinese story. In my opinion, to tell a good Chinese story, the first and foremost point is that the Chinese people should like it. If they don’t, I believe foreigners won't like it either. Because peoples are connected, so is human nature. For example, the first time I watched When Father Was Away on Business, I could not understand it, especially the lines and the English language. But there is a scene in which I was very shocked. In the face of parents quarreling, the two children, one is in panic, and another is crying. Kusturica had intense skills in filming. The next scene is the family in bed, singing. What does it mean to us? What does it give us? It's a miracle of the heart. The miracle of the heart is not something important, but a tiny thing from life. You can feel the creator’s insight into life. You are particularly impressed by such scene, right? Mr. Huang. 

Huang Jianxin: Yes, indeed. After the quarrel, the father beats the mother, and a child bites the father. Then the father hugs and kisses the mother. Later, the older son plays the accordion, and the family has dinner together.

Yu Hua: This, I believe, is the miracle of heart, which comes from the life that we are most familiar with, most able to feel.

Kusturica: As for the human nature mentioned earlier. There is only one human nature on the earth, a core value, also a common value. We come from different countries. We represent different cultures and different civilizations. The Chinese culture, Chinese stories, Chinese movies, to be displayed on the screens worldwide and become eternal or common, must be universal and all-encompassing in nature.

Storytelling is very important. We should not simply pass our ideas through stories as this is not about trying to instill ideas. Instead, it is about storytelling. Making a film is like building a house. We have to care about people, and that's why we mentioned the nature of people earlier. If we start to write, or start to make a movie, the story of life would not be given the priority, which does not mean that we do not want to make a realistic film or documentary since there are a lot of realistic elements in the story of life. Creation comes from life, and the form of creation can be realistic. But I think the realism of the form of creation doesn't mean that it has to be dependent on the reality of life. Every one of us has a different interpretation of the reality of the form of creation and has our own symbol and emblem. We need to express them through films. We have different themes and types of films to express these kernels. We can also use different languages. In some cases, people cannot understand different languages, but they can follow the plot because it is closely related to our lives. It is also possible that the plot is far from our real life.

When I reviewed films earlier, I saw one directed by Zhang Yimou. I knew it was a Chinese film, but it shared some common ground worldwide, including human nature. I cannot understand it. However, as the plot goes on, I know who the main characters are. So, it is a kind of picture language or storytelling language that has made Zhang Yimou a very well-known director around the world.

Art itself is not about defining a category, nor is it about success in a category. Each of us has our own artistic boundaries. But we have to go beyond them to communicate with the mind and spirit.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: When Zhang Yimou's film Not One Less won the award, Kusturica was the president of the jury, and it was clear that the film had touched Kusturica deeply.

Huang Jianxin: As Yu Hua mentioned the stories of China, we have been trying to tell the stories of China. Whether the audience likes it or not is decided by the characters in the film. We call it a feature film, and it's all about writing the characters' stories. Despite the great variety of films, what lasts for long and affects every audience must be the one that talks about human nature, that deeply analyzes all the strengths and weaknesses of human beings, that shows you the moments that make you proud and happy, and that allows you to reflect and think about the gray zones of your life, all of which makes you a complete person. We were talking the other day about how the Renaissance drove human culture in a great leap forward, and how we became interested in beautiful things driven by intellectuals and influenced by works of art. Artists should know that life has its value and that life is important. In such a process of rolling up and down, we are writing about our concerns, our emotions, and our love, making writing our responsibility. This is a drive that drives humanity moving ahead. Therefore, to write a good story, we need to vividly depict the characters.

Li Mingtao: The following question is for Kusturica. It is generally believed that your films are magical, circus-like, baroque, and imaginative. However, in recent years, you have been shifting to a more documentary style with more serene and soothing images. Can you tell us why? What will be the style of your next work? As Kusturica just introduced, his next film is likely to be The White Clouds of Genghis Khan.

Kusturica: Films reflect life and lifestyle in a real and grotesque way. Actually, directors are also translators as we translate what happens in real life into film language and stories. I can see very good young people here. You have the knowledge, the ability, and some basic qualities and skills as a filmmaker. You have developed more skills to make films now and face the trend that everyone can make films around the globe. My next film will be based on a literary work, in which I want to discuss some European issues, tell some stories about good people, and present their stories on the screen for all the audience. We all know the work Crime and Punishment, which displays the development of human nature in the whole storyline. For example, a good man may fall into a situation where he has to dedicate his life to serve others with his goodness, to arouse the goodness of others, which is also a common language. Meanwhile, we also need to describe the human being as both strong and fragile, complicated in both, but common in different histories, different societies, different contexts, and different regions.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: Director Huang, as the "romantic black cannon" of China's fifth generation of directors, you have always been concerned about social issues, by highlighting sharp criticism and exploration of film language. In recent years, you have been shifting towards a more ambitious outlook, and you have become a representative at the forefront of new mainstream cinema. Could you talk about your experience with your shift? Could you share some news about the projects you are currently working on?

Huang Jianxin: I have often been asked this question. You have been a director for long. Why did you suddenly become a producer and executive producer? How do you balance directing and producing, two completely different fields? Have you ever faced any contradiction? I cannot answer these questions. I found a reason that I am a Gemini.

I vowed at that time that China would have a group of people who could make more than half of box office from Chinese films, which was our dream at that time.

As Yu Hua said, if you shoot a Chinese story, Chinese people need to watch it first. In the past, Chinese people didn't watch, but now 80% of them would watch. Recently we found a good phenomenon that the films gained popularity not because of the strange plot or big or dazzling scenes, but the characters. The audience came back to appreciate the characters. For example, in the film Endless Journey, the audience is actually appreciating the characters. We hope that the state of good films in the past could match our understanding of the market, so that the films can be enriched and enjoyed by the Chinese audience, and we also need to support creative and meaningful films like those displayed in the BJIFF. In that way the world could understand China through films.

We also have commercial films that sell, like Frant Gwo's films with a record of 10 million US dollars to 20 million US dollars. Exchange is especially important nowadays since we see a benchmark which we should learn from. We should seek development towards such direction through market expansion and upgrading films to a higher level of spiritual consciousness. At that time, you would see a soul in Chinese stories. 

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Li Mingtao: As you just said, Mr. Yu, sometimes the change of style is not based on time. What do you think are the bases for the change of style. What is your most concerned goal in your creation at the moment? Can you introduce the works you are creating?

Yu Hua: I would not talk about writers or literary here at the place of filmmakers. Let's move on to films. I'm wondering that Kusturica just talked about the work Crime and Punishment. Is the one by Dostoevsky, why do I feel like it sounds like it's not, it's "The Idiot", that makes sense to me, I feel like Dostoevsky is such a great writer, and when I talk about Dostoevsky his human nature, his human nature of every character exudes sociability because all of his characters are people in the society, he writes about people in a crowd. One thing is certain, any character, whether it is a fictional person or a person like Kusturica, his image is not created by himself, it is created by others. What kind of person Kusturica is, is that there are many, many viewers around the world, his friends around him to shape his image, want to become like this may not be able to become, but the viewers and friends to make him like this. Dostoevsky did this particularly well. He expresses both human nature and social nature at the same time.

The social attributes of human beings cannot be avoided since we are all living in the society. However, Dostoevsky is a writer who is very prominent in this regard since he expresses it in a relatively intense way. Therefore, it's appropriate that Kusturica makes the film.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Huang Jianxin: I found that the actors and actresses in Kusturica’s films such as Underground and When Father Was Away on Business, are highly varied as he likes to use performers of different aspects. I can even remember the faces of each actor and actress. For example, in the film When Father Was Away on Business, when the grandpa finally leaves the nursing home, he is looking at the house sideways. I remember that face very well. I would like to know what kind of method you use in choosing actors and actresses.

Kusturica: I did not think that much actually. When I chose an actor or actress, I would imagine if he or she was right for the role, and if he or she can embody irony. I think most performers are flexible and have their own form of expression. Perhaps, to a certain extent, we actually need to find a side of human or character for an actor or actress, not in a very harsh or serious way. We can sometimes imagine from the personality of an actor or actress. For instance, we can imagine what kind of emotion he or she can release. You just said you remembered the actor's face. But I think if he is able to shape any other portrayal so that you cannot remember his face any more. Sometimes when I was casting, I wanted the actor or actress to be creative in visual expression, which I believe is the key to acting.

Speaking of the key to acting, I would like to tell you a story, the story of Black Cat, White Cat. I chose a Gypsy for the film. When I made such decision, I believed that he was so great. He was like from the cartoon world, making him highly suited for such a role. He was very thin, having two big eyes, sitting in a wheelchair. All of these perfectly matched the character. But he had never acted before. Every day I would stay on the set in shooting the film. At night when I went home, I felt like that I didn't want to live anymore. It is actually a very difficult process. You may think it was wonderful in this picture, but you need to teach a lot of acting techniques, including the actor's performance skills, in order to make the scene perfect. So, it is not really a very simple process. When we are casting an actor or actress, we need to consider if he or she has exceptional acting talent, any similar acting experience, or the ability to perform the lines better. If he or she is not good enough, we don't use him or her. This is how we do casting on set.

Sometimes, for example, when shooting some scenes like by the river or in the meadow, I would sit there with a cup of coffee and quietly watch their performances. I also told the performer not to be nervous, get relaxed, and just present the story as naturally as possible. I would also tell him or her that it is okay if he or she does not have the ability to present it well. Just chill out. If you want to have a good actor or actress, you may need to wait for a long time and be patient teach and guide him or her. Sometimes he or she may fail you. Do not be too hasty. If you can still remember some of these faces and images in my films, these characters, like the father and the grandfather in the film When Father Was Away on Business, were chosen from a large number of popular actors, and many of them didn't even have any acting experience. So I just asked them use their imaginations to do acting. 

This is a whole thing and a whole system of my casting, or the principle that I have been following. That's how I make my films.

　　Emir Kusturica Workshop & Masterclass

Yu Hua: The first movie I enjoyed was When Father Was Away on Business. When that little boy is sleepwalking, there is a scene in which a dog comes in, which is so wonderful in depicting. I thought he was so lucky. How did he shoot a dog running in? Later I found a lot of animals in his films. So, I want to ask a question, how do you deal with those animals when you're filming? How do you talk to them about the film?

Kusturica: It is very simple. You just have to feed them when they behave well. Just give them a little reward. I always bring some food and treats on set for these animals. Or we can have other ways on set. We tried other ways to teach the animals, but the best way is still to tempt them with food.

Li Mingtao: Your autobiography is titled Où suis-je dans cette histoire? May I ask you where do you think you are in history since today is April 25, 2024? Where are we all in history?

Kusturica: I feel like I'm in this flood of time from where I belong. For example, when I am making a film, I would look at time and space from a new dimension. When I view my country, my nation, the next film I am about to make will be very exciting. It will be a new journey. If I make it, it would be a hard choice for me cinematographically. For myself, I need to fight with myself at all times, overcoming a lot of difficulties, including the interaction with others on the set and a lot of hiccups in the process.

If you ask me where I stand in terms of culture, I would say that culture is very important, and it is a topic that I have been focusing on for the past two centuries. So, if you ask me where I stand in terms of culture, I would talk more about the fact that we are at a moment which is important for the future. It is also an important tool for us to be able to create a better future, a better society, by seizing the moment that we are in right now. It is a time when a civilization is demonstrated like a circle and the people on it have the faith and belief that they want to do whatever they want since future is now.

Where am I at this moment in history? I would say that I am in the midst of a cultural and historical development, and I am in the midst of what I believe in. That is what I am trying to say about this important moment in history. We know that the sun rises in the east and then sets, which stands for a day. We have every day like that. Like the sun rises in the east and sets in another part of the world, the extension of our culture is slowly unfolding in this way. From this perspective, we may anticipate the importance of the future, and that where I think I am at.

Huang Jianxin: As the Jury President of Tiantan Award at the 14th BJIFF, Kusturica has the opportunity to express to us his particularly valuable ideas, artistic concepts and his works. I think that with such an important interaction, filmmakers like us will be enlightened, and we will work hard to push our own films towards a new height.

Yu Hua: I wish I could meet Kusturica in Beijing every year.