Filmsuche

Lilias Adie

Elize du Toit // England // 2021 // 20:00 min

Live Action

Synopsis:
Lilias und die junge Maud wandern durch die Highlands, als das Gespräch auf einen eifersüchtigen Nachbarn kommt, den sie kennen. Der Vorwurf der Hexerei führt dazu, dass Lilias verhaftet und verhört und das Leben ihrer Freundin bedroht wird.

Drei Fragen an die Regie

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

Elize du Toit: I read somewhere that a short film is like a poem, and I love that idea; you can take liberties with it - be more creative and free, less literal. I like the challenge of exploring a theme or an idea in a succinct and easily digestible way. It's also just a great way to learn.


2. The program your film is selected for is called “Genre Now! Slashing the Patriarchy": What connection do you see between your film and that title?

Elize du Toit: I'm delighted my film is in this program! One of the things that drew me to the story of Lilias Adie was that in reality she was accused of being a witch by another woman in her village - witch hunting at the level of villages was mainly woman's work. I was fascinated by this and thought a lot about why a woman would do this to another woman. And I imagine that women were operating within a very rigid patriarchal structure - the church, the state, and their husbands, made the rules. They had very little power within that - but they did have the power to bring each other down. In my film, when Lilias confesses to witchcraft (the words are taken verbatim from her actual confession) I like to imagine that she is taking some control back by having fun with her confession, by giving them want they want, but in florid, bizarre detail. I like to think that in her own small way she was slashing the Patriarchy!

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

Elize du Toit: I would say Terence Malick's Days of Heaven and Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now. I never tire of watching those films. Both films have a very distinct feel - you can see a few frames, or hear some of the music, and the entire feeling of the film rushes into your being. That is what I aspire to.