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Banana Island

Caroline Schwarz // Germany // 2021 // 04:30 min

Live Action

Synopsis:
A banana island inhabitant notices that people are approaching his living space with a boat. Panicked at the thought of dealing with strangers, he begins to eat his banana island.

Three Questions for the Director

1. Short Film has a unique way of telling stories and exploring themes. What is it that fascinates
you about the short format?

Caroline Schwarz: I am passionate about abstract and condensed images. And I feel a short format of film is the perfect format for that. You are almost required to work in abstraction, to bring something across in the
short time. I love that.

2. The program your film is selected for is called “Die lange Nacht des abwegigen Films”: What
connection do you see between your film and that title?

Caroline Schwarz: I have to say, that I like the english version “long night of weird shorts” way better, since I would translate the German Word “abwegig” with “unlikely”. Although, of course, I understand why my
film is considered 'unlikely' in the landscape with it's very comic-like, surreal approach, I find it
quite depressing, that the norm of film is rooted so deeply in naturalistic, social dramas. I feel that
film can be so much more than just realistic storytelling. I consider 'weird' on the other hand, to be a
badge of honour, that I connect to everything, that stands out, lets you pause and makes you think.
All films I like are weird to me.

3. What film has inspried you most to make films yourself and what part of it do you see in your
own work?

Caroline Schwarz: I am a big Fan of Roy Andersson and his four latest Features, like, „a pigeon sitting on a branch thinking about existence“. It inspires me, that he is treating film scenes like paintings and that he
creates films on a high-end level budget, that are not strictly motivated by a narrative. It's so
refreshing. I also adore Yorgos Lanthimos and especially „The Lobster“, which creates it's own
world outside of „sci-fi“ genre justifications. This is creative and entertaining to me. I want to see
something more than well written reality. I can have that by going outside. Both Andersson and Lanthimos have a very unique approach with film, which I still find very emotional and entertaining and not purely conceptional. And this is what I strive to do with my films as well. In my own way.