Cinema for me is…
Austria – Luzia Johow from Europa Cinemas on Vimeo.
Luzia in 25 frames
1. Describe yourself in ten words:
Music, spontaneous, curious, night, adventure, Francophile, running, wanderlust, connecting, optimist
2. What are your 3 best qualities and your 3 worst habits?
3 best qualities: being open-minded, being empathetic and helpful for others, my calm nature
3 worst habits: my slowness, thinking too much about things, being easily distracted.
3. What is your dream job?
Directing music videos
4. What do you like most about your country?
Its vivid and easy accessible film and music scene.
5. What is your favourite dish in your country?
Kaiserschmarrn, which is a pancake-like sweet dish with a crumble structure, sugar and roasted plums by its side.
6. What is the word or the expression in your native language that you like the most and what does it mean?
“Gschmackig” which means “well-tasting” and can also be used in an ironic way, describing something disgusting.
7. What European capital have you visited lately?
Lisbon
8. Other than your own, which European country would you love to live in?
France
9. What does Europe mean to you?
A constantly growing exchange of people, their experience and their art, also the possibility to be and work in a variety of multicultural countries, different one to the other.
10. What are the European values that you share?
Human Rights, Democracy, Peace, Respect for other cultures, Equality, Tolerance, Solidarity, support for others and many more.
11. What film made you fall in love with cinema?
Moonrise Kingdom by Wes Anderson.
12. What is your favourite cinema theatre and what do you like about it?
Actually the KIZ Royal Cinema in Graz, because it has a big screening room which honours the films in an appropriate way. I have a familiar feeling there and the team is young, but at the same time the location has a traditional and experienced shine. Most of all I appreciate the interesting events and discussions with filmmakers, and also the film festivals it hosts.
13. Where do you like to watch movies and on which platform (DVD, online, cinema, mobile phone, etc.)?
Of course my favourite way of watching movies is in a cinema, because many films I like are destined to cinema, and there is nearly no distractions. Also cinema-like locations, like a home cinema are good (here I use DVDs or online platforms).
14. Who is your movie hero?
Fantastic Mister Fox.
15. If you were a movie director which one would you like to be?
Wes Anderson
16. Briefly describe your favourite scene.
I have no favourite scene, this is just one of the many I love: Lars von Trier tells us something about the theory of fishing, while two girls are on the train, ‘fishing men’ in Nymphomaniac. In an adolescent act of competition, this scene shows the viewer serious information about men’s behaviour in the field of love. The main character plays a game with her friend, which is about having sex with as many men as possible in a train ride. As they walk through the corridor and look at all the men, in a layer we see a river with fishes. While the big fish stays at the side to stay safe, smaller fishes risk more, as they swim in the middle.
17. What are the 5 best European films you have seen in the last year?
Les Premiers les Deniers (Bouli Lanners, 2016) BE
Aloys (Tobias Nölle, 2016) CH, FR
Ja Olga Hepnarova (Petr Kazda, Tomás Weinreb, 2016) CZ
Los Feliz (Edgar Honetschläger, 2016) AT
WinWin (Daniel Hoesl, 2016) AT
18. Which is the film character that you most identify with?
Victoria from the film Victoria by Sebastian Schipper
19. What is your favourite soundtrack or song?
The Wind – Cat Stevens
20. If you had to live in a movie, which one would you like it to be?
Live Aquatic with Steve Zissou by Wes Anderson.
21. Your life becomes a bio-pic. Who plays the role of you?
Carla Juri
22. Which talent would you most like to have?
To be able to read the thoughts of people and animals.
23. What is your most treasured possession?
An old Bolex Super 8 camera and my collection of notebooks.
24. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Making a short film with which I am fully satisfied, just using a very small team.
25. What is your motto?
Don’t worry be happy.