17/08/2023 - The Indian director enlightens us on the ways of translating the past into a cinematic, fictional present

(© Anna Films)

Indian director Dominic Sangma talks about his sophomore feature, Rapture [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Dominic Sangma
film profile], which screened in Locarno’s Cineasti del Presente strand. He discusses the film – based on his memories of the village he grew up in – the fear instilled by the darkness, and the ways of translating the past into a cinematic, fictional present.

Cineuropa: Can you tell us about the role of childhood memories in your filmmaking?
Dominic Sangma: I’m working on a trilogy based on my childhood in the village I grew up in. My first film, Ma’ama, was also based on very personal memories. I do have lots of memories that I wanted to deal with and get out of my heart, because they prevented me from moving on. Now, in Rapture, I portray something that really happened when I was small. As kids, we were told that there was a stranger who came from somewhere outside who was beaten, but nobody would speak about it. That secret, that suppression, made it very hard – but eventually, it was revealed.

What is the writing process like for you? Did you keep any diaries when you were young, or was it just summoning the mental images?
No, I have nothing [tangible]. I think it's all from memories. Whatever the impressions I have from the past, they are so strong. So I don't even need to write it down; it's always there, stored up in my brain and in my heart.

You work in a way that is visually striking. Do you already see these memories as shots in your head?
Yes, for me, the visuals come first. But what I show – the collecting of cicadas, the procession – they are all real events that happen every year. These visuals are also there in my memories, all the time. So I don't need to struggle; I just have to compose it and find the right camera movement to capture the essence of the entire thing. But that is the reason why scriptwriting can be difficult for me. I like to write literature, short stories and such, because there, I don't have to distinguish between the visuals and what I'm feeling.

How do you work with your cinematographer?
First, my cameraman stayed in Bombay, while I took a small camera and made videos and took photos on location. I bombarded him with these images first, so that while reading the script, we would be able to discuss how we’d be able to achieve the desired effect. The use of deep focus was particularly important because I always knew that, as a part of that village, I could see everything; the eyes themselves see everything. Did you know a camera can have a shallow depth of field or deep focus, but the eye itself can see everything in one go? Right now, I can see this or that object, but it’s a choice that you make, to see. I want the audience to also feel the depth of the interspace, and I want to play with their perception of the different layers of things that are happening.

This is also how you portray suspicion and fear of the other. What was your process of building up this suspense?
When I was writing, I was sure that fear was gripping the characters, and I wanted the audience to see that as well. In a village like that, when I was growing up, the fear was so strong, but an outsider might not see or understand this fear. That’s why I wanted the audience to be very aware from the beginning: the source of fear could just be a natural phenomenon – a blood moon or a cow dying, which are normal things – but then, slowly, the preconceived ideas come into play, with religion and politics making use of it. We also need to think about the politics of fear, and stop, pause and see what's really happening behind the veil of fear.

Fear is also related to power, and that fuels both politics and religion.
Yes, always. But that's why we, as people who have been affected, who are in fear, have to respond to it now. If people are using fear as a tool to wield power, then what is it that we need to do? We need to stop. We need to pause so we can see the bigger picture. Okay, maybe this fear does not really exist on its own, or someone might be playing with these fears that we may have as human beings. Simply pointing it out could be more important than we might imagine.