ohb

"This is crocodile Gena, he works in the zoo, as a crocodile"

The film festival is over and now in order to hold off real life for a little longer, I'm on the look out for any other up and coming events, there's one in Kerry, though I don't know if I can be persuaded to decamp to Kerry, regardless of the fruits offered.
It was great and really invigorating to feel part of something cultural again, though at times you were reminded that you are a 'volunteer' meaning a body to carry out tasks and no intellectual input was expected of you, but then again you would think it would be acknowledged that there would have to be a reason for people to give up their time, such as an underlying interest in film or the arts, though admittedly for some, it represented little more than a few free tickets and a piss up at the end.
I saw a film that was made for me last week, well two actually the first one being "Tickets". I could go and look up the programme and give you all the details to make it look like I know more than I do, but I will just retell what I remember, that being there were three directors, one of whom being Ken Loach. The story was that of a train journey being undertaken by three groups of people whose story was somewhat inter-linked but purely by encounters on the train. Now most of you will know how obsessed I am with trains and having spent days on end on them, I appreciate how relationships can develop and also how much time you have to think about your actions or in some cases inaction. This dilemma was at the core of the film, the constant battle people endure of whether or not to allow themselves to become involved in others' struggles, and if so, how much is too much. The three main characters were worlds apart which made it quite comic though there was a lot of finely masked pathos.
The second film well more documentary was about Russian animation "Magia Russica". Lads it was great and a disappointment that there were so few people there. (The guy for the interview just rang there and in true Orlagh style, I put him off till tomorrow, though to be honest I do have things to do, like go around the galleries with Marc and I would like to check my email before I talk to him, but now I have to get to Carrigtohill which may as well be in Dubai for all I know.)
This summer at camp, I gained the nickname Cheburashka. this is a Russian (Soviet) cartoon character who looks a bit like a Monchichi, but not as plasticky. Cheburashka arrived in Russia in an orange crate, lost and lonely. the man who found him was unsure of his status, being a foreigner firstly and secondly of an unknown species. Surprisingly the reason I got the nickname was due to my love of oranges and my constant attempts to weasel fruit from the cooks, (Masha and Ira) and nothing whatsoever to do with my foreigner or species status. However though this name persisted all summer I had never seen the cartoon and had learned second hand all about Cheburashka and his friend Crocodile Gena, who works in a zoo as a crocodile. This line is at the opening of the cartoon and I think its ingenious, "This is crocodile Gena, he works in the zoo, as a crocodile" So at the screening I was all excited and felt like telling the nearest person (about 8 seats away) that that was my nickname, I resisted, which was probably for the best.

posted by orlagh @ 10:22 am