Manoj Mauryaa creates history by being the first Indian director whose German film ‘Con Anima’ gets screened at Metropolis Cinema, Germany
It is a proud moment for
India as painter-filmmaker Manoj Mauryaa successfully screens his German
feature film titled ‘Con Anima’ at the highly reputed Metropolis Cinema in
Neuwied, Germany. The film was screened for a private preview to a fully packed
theatre of 200 guests including the film’s cast, crew, film critics,
journalists, distributors, and film connoisseurs. Manoj couldn’t attend the
preview because of the Covid related restrictions but he interacted with the
audience through a video message. The film concluded with a standing ovation
and a high-pitched ululation. After watching the film, Anke Kern, one of the
actors in the film said “The film is beyond what I could ever imagine! I never
thought while shooting that I am going to be a part of this rich musical indie
cinema!” A critic shared his opinion, “The film has a different style of
storytelling. It blends European classicalism with contemporary experimental
narrative. Though I expected more music in the film.”
Con Anima is a musical
drama about the struggles of a young soloist, Emma who gets injured before a
prestigious symphony concert and is trying to replace Walter, a local florist
who is a prodigious dyslexic violinist as a concertmaster in her place. The
film explores how the new generation of musicians are changing the landscape of
music while addressing the issue of the inclusivity of musically dyslexic
people into mainstream music. The cast and crew of the film are mainly German
nationals. Theatre artist Alexander Pluquett plays a blind floral shop owner,
Theodor under whom Walter, played by Felipe Ludes works as a florist. Jana
Sophie Weyer plays Emma, the soloist of the symphony orchestra. The music of
the film is composed by Winfried Vögele who also portrays the role of Frank
Schubert, the renowned symphony conductor in the film. The direction of photography
for the film is done by Eckart Reichl who has several social and political
films, documentaries, essays, and theatre films to his credit. The film is
written and directed by Manoj Mauryaa and produced by WESDM Movies, an
independent production house based in Germany that endorses and creates new age
and experimental cinema.
Was it not difficult for an Indian director to make a film in a
foreign language especially German which is considered as one of the most
highly inflected languages? “Language is required for communicating information
whereas cinema communicates emotions which surpasses all the barriers of
geographies, cultures, and languages”, says Manoj. When asked why did he chose
Germany to shoot his film, Manoj says “My film required principles of balance
and formal discipline of orchestra music and what better country than Germany
who has world-class stature in western classical music, traditional choir
singing, and orchestra performances.”
Whether it is his visual storytelling or his musical
aestheticism, Manoj’s art and cinema appeals to the universe audience. Con
Anima packs tender love between two young hearts, scintillating music, lots of
humour, and high emotional turmoil. The film is expected to be released across
Europe during Christmas.
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