Falkens Öga

Up on the loft of the old whitewashed 13th century church in Skanör a pair of kestrels have long been nesting. Here they have a captivating view over the old town and a meticulous view upon the churchgoers, either their there for a christening, wedding or a funeral. Kestrel's Eye is, as the title suggests, is something unusual as a documentary through a bird's-eye view. A similar identification with the birds was created by Mikael Kristersson in the aknowledged, Pica Pica, aboutthe life of some magpies in the Stockholm suburb Vallingby. But here the camera literally delivers the birds' viewpoint: when not keeping watch over processes of man below in the churchyard, the spectator hangs poised jointly with the winged ones as they soar over the flatlands of Skane in search for food for the new-born nestlings. In order to create this remarkable feeling of presence the director made use of a hang-glider in the production. Kristersson's style isn't primarily documentary, this is not least apparent trough the lack of a voice from an explaining narrator. The composition is better described as very personal and poetic. ''Nature films are increasingly marked by standardisation, where form is governed more by TV-channels' peak viewing hours than by the substance in the films'', says the director himself, who considers lyricists such as Jan Troell, Bo Widerberg and Andrej Tarkovskij to be his greatest source of inspiration. Kestrel's Eye does not only tells us more about the imposing kestrel- as it takes shape without any dramaturgic declarations - but also enriches us with a new perspective on our own existence.

Producent
M ikael Kristersson: Manus
Mikael Kristersson: Foto
Mikael Kristersson