“A film that is less merry, but which is rather sad, poetical and wise”, by Cornel Mihalache
by Dana Medar
In his travelling and working around the country, the documentary filmmaker Cornel Mihalache once met Pătru Godja Pupăză, a carver of wooden gates from Maramureș. That actually happened in 1996. And that was when their long, true friendship began. Every time he reached that part of the country, the director would go to old papa Pupăză and shoot something in Valea Stejarului as well. He would go to talk to him, to see how his children grew up, how they got married and had children at their turn. Pătru Pupăză was a strong man, full of charm, he was a man of faith and he said that love was not a sin, even if it sometimes manifested outside the marital bed.
In order to be prepared, the craftsman bought a piece of land that he turned into “old papa Pupăză`s cemetery, which is less merry, but rather sad, poetical and wise”. He even kept a place for Cornel Mihalache, who became a sort of family member. All this friendship translated into 26 hours of shooting; out of them, with great difficulty, Mihalache cut down the material to a 90 minutes documentary – A film that is less merry, but which is rather sad, poetical and wise / Un film mai puțin vesel, mai mult trist, poetic și sfătos. And actually how can you possibly cut a material when you are emotionally involved? This TVR production was screened at the Indie IPIFF 2016 and also in the Vadu Izei village in Maramureș.
rue friendship began. Every time he reached that part of the country, the director would go to old papa Pupăză and shoot something in Valea Stejarului as well. He would go to talk to him, to see how his children grew up, how they got married and had children at their turn. Pătru Pupăză was a strong man, full of charm, he was a man of faith and he said that love was not a sin, even if it sometimes manifested outside the marital bed.
Cornel Mihalache despre Un film mai putin vesel @IPIFF 2016
