Film director Wolfgang Fisher back in Malta to introduce locally-shot Styx at Valletta Film Festival
We catch up with the German filmmaker to talk about his award-winning film and ask him: what was it like to shoot on Maltese waters?
Wolfgang Fisher is a man with a mission. When he landed in Malta for the first time, approximately two years ago, his goal was clear: to shoot his latest story, Styx, on Malta’s Mediterranean Sea. And despite the multiple logistical and practical challenges of shooting in open sea, he left two months later with the movie in the can.
Schiwago Film / Styx
Styx, which tells the story of a German doctor on a sailing trip who becomes the only person to come to the aid of a group of refugees shipwrecked on the high seas, premiered this year at the Berlin Film Festival. It opened the festival’s prestigious Panorama audience sidebar, and went on to win the Heiner Carow Prize, the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury and the Label Europa Cinemas. Now, the German director returns to Malta to introduce his film to local audiences at the Valletta Film Festival.
1. Styx has received acclaim since its release. What is special about this particular story?
We were certain that we wanted to make a very physical, corporeal film with very little dialogue. This is about a person who sets out into the open sea, a hostile environment, which can never be completely controlled and where it is necessary to be an expert. This was our point of departure: someone sets out into this world, confronts these elements, and tries to master the ensuing challenges.
Schiwago Film / Styx
2. What was your experience of filming in Malta?
We had to shoot on open water and everyone I asked advised us against it. They said “it can’t work; it’ll be hell; it’ll be a nightmare; you can’t control the sea, since it does whatever it wants.” And that’s truly the way it was. Apart from filming in Malta, we also shot near Gibraltar and that area was experiencing the worst autumn in a decade. There was nothing but hurricane winds! We also sailed between Malta and Sicily and really, truly filmed and told the story when we were sailing in rough weather. But, this project succeeded because we all subjected ourselves to this world.
Schiwago Film / Styx
3. What are you most looking forward to this time, on your return to Malta?
I am very much looking forward to presenting Styx to Maltese audiences and to coming back to Malta where our journey began!
Styx premieres tonight at 9pm at Pjazza Teatru Rjal, as part of the competition line-up to the Valletta Film Festival. For tickets, click here.