TEMPORARY CONTEMPORARY, 14min., Switzerland, Experimental
Directed by Oliver David Brand
The powerful, vulnerable and poetic choreographies, which were created under the eyes of choreographer Jonathan Hour, form touching living counterpoints to the static emptiness of the epic, sometimes inhospitable spaces. The music, composed especially for the film, creates a unique mood in each room and gives each dancer their own musical platform. Seemingly effortlessly, the sounds are woven together over the 13 minutes, giving a whole despite their individual parts. The music was composed and designed by Simon Hauswirth and Demian Wyssmann. To be enjoyed in the cinema in 5.1 surround sound.

Interview with director Oliver David Brand

1. What motivated you to make this film?

Dance was always a big hobby for me since ever. I draw a lot of
inspiration from architecture music and fashion. It may sounds cheesy
but those are the basic elements that are included in de film. It developed out of the things that I’m passioned about not only professional but also in my private life.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to
make this film?

About 15 month.

But I had the basic idea a few years ago. I think I had the title first.
Those two words that are almost identical but have such different
meanings. But to get this kind of locations you have to know the right
people in the right positions to get access to those places. So I had to
be very patient. So the project was kind of sleeping until January 2021
when I had to do a simply kind of documataryfilm for a construction
company. And they showed me the tunnel. And knew, -now is the time
to go for this project.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Temporary contemporary

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Well, I could tell you crazy Storys about every single location. They all
where really challenging. Almost all of them where getting build or
deconstructed. It’s part of the concept. So I keept checking the
locations and the change that is happening there. Even at the day
before shooting. When we arrived we faced something that we were
not prepared for. Because non of this places are actually for dancing.
Sometimes the construction workers were watching us, and I’m sure
they had no clue what we were doing. Kind of two worlds colliding. :-)
For example: a day before the shooting they finished the floor in the
tunnel. It looked amazing. But it was very very sticky. The dancer were
almost not able to do turns on the floor. We had to change on location
parts of the choreography. Also they could not dance barefoot as
planed. They had to wear black socks. Actually the were wearing at
least 3 layers of socks because they were torn after one pirouette.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking
about your film in the feedback video?

Honestly I was deeply touched. I didn’t expect anything. Or maybe I
thought they just gonna say they liked it in general. But then I saw
that they really go deep. They had something to say. The saw the
details, my visions that I thought maybe only professionals would
recognize. It really made me very happy! I watched it 5 times in a row.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

We had a video camera at home when I was a kid. my sisters and I
always recreated certain film scenes from famous movies. Or once a
short James Bond movie. And I loved it. But back then I did not have
the ambition or the actual thought to be a filmmaker. That came much
later.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

Hmmm… „back to the future“ or maybe lalaland. -I think. :-)

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other
festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking
career?

Well I have to say I don’t have a lot of festival experience. But your
filmfestival was the most fun so far. There was communiction, you told
me what’s gonna happened. The podcast, the reaction videos a.s.o.
from the moment my film was selected, I felt like a part of the festival.

Mostly I just get a notification and a laurel from other festivals I
applied for.

So it was a very very nice experience and highly professional. I think
only live on the festival would have been cooler.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your
experiences been working on the festival platform site?

I thought Flmfreeway is really a cool tool to apply to all festivals. Its
also very easy to setup.

10. What is your favorite meal?

I love sushi

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I just finished writing another shortfall. A narrative one.

And I’m also working on a docu/fiction/musical. But that’s gonna be a longer project and also not a short film.

And in-between some corporate films. -money jobs :-)

Director Biography - Oliver David Brand

Oliver Brand has worked as Director and Producer for Bhis Company Brandpictures BmbH in Switzerland for over eleven years. Working a lot in advertising sector, he has Directed Commercials for some of the Biggest Brands in Switzerland such as the UBS Bank, Edelweiss Air, the Internationaly known Chocolat manufacture Lindt and Sprüngli and many more. He also shot several commercial Productions with Roger Federer as well Produced Documentaries for the Swiss National TV.

After several Years in Advertising, the short Dance Film "Temporary Contemprary" is Oliver's First Film Created, Directed, Edited and Produced.

Director Statement

Dance has always been a great avocation passion of mine. Which is why the idea and the concept of showing contemporary dance in places that are hardly accessible to the ordinary mortal, or are in a great state of flux, has been around for a long time. I had a clear idea of the locations. They should not just be abandoned, run-down mystical places as you know them. I wanted to show clear lines in the architecture, which radiate a certain aesthetic and tranquility. I wanted to fill these places with humanity and life in the form of dance.

At the beginning of the film you hear an offvoice that philosophically sums up the essence of the concept of the film. The screen is completely black. The viewer should be able to fully engage with the content of the text and the wonderful voice. Nothing distracts visually. No logos. No credits. I wanted to draw the audience into the world of „Temporary Contemporary“ right at the beginning for the nearly 14 minutes film.
I continue to pull this concept of "kidnapping" into the world of "dance, music and architecture" when the first images appear. I establish all locations in rotating (vortex) slow motion shots. The viewer should lose the sense of up and down, ask himself, where are we? ...what is this?
The vortex shots are later also used as a transition between locations. There however in different speed, in order to catapult the spectator from one into the new location.
With each location, however, the transitions become shorter, since only the ones that are still in the queue are shown. I break this pattern after the fourth location.

What was very special, especially for a dance film, is that the music was not created until the end.
The dancers performed on location to completely different music.
I wanted to break out of the usual approaches a bit for myself and for this film.
What happens when a performer lets you dance and then changes the music?
The composer also found the challenge extremely exciting. Hours of exchanges about mood and atmosphere went into the final product. Each location had to have its own mood, each part its own highlight, and yet everything had to come together as one.

It was an incredibly exciting project and I am extremely happy with the final result.