The entire month of august passed without writing updates due to a grueling workschedule, during which exciting things happened, followed by a much needed week off. We finished the short film RGB/ZRG No.5 which was presented in Amsterdam and right now something big is brewing under the surface. The project that we’ve been working on for the past few months is finally happening, which of course means more hard work but the result will hopefully be worth it. More will be available through this website as the project progresses.

Meanwhile, there is something of importance to mention: namely that I finally managed to see an entire Harry Potter movie. Something almost unheard of within my generation (but it’s perhaps also exemplary of my own relationship with popculture, observing rather than actively participating).
Before heading off to see the final installment, I cought up with the last two movies at home. I was really curious about the whole phenomenon, more so than actually being interested in the movie itself. Not that the franchise lacks in redeeming qualities, there are quiet a few of those actually, managing to separate it from an average magnet for teenager’s money. I suppose there was just not enough that really appealed to me to partake in the hype, nothing to wholeheartedly relate to.
But then the entire generation started to weep for the end of something, on facebook, tumblr, and any other mediaoutlet, which I suspected might not have been entirely about the Harry Potter series ending. However, it was not until that moment in the movie theatre, during the pivotal scene in which one of the main characters (..spoler alert?) died, that it struck me: This collective mourning was not only about the familiar character dying or about the beloved series ending, it’s about the realisation perhaps that this also means our childhoods have come to and end as well. Not to sound too saccharine about it, but there was an undeniable feeling in the room as if something innocent was passing, and uncertain times of adulthood slowly but surely were setting in. If this was any other film, i bet such scene wouldn’t cause anyone to twitch an eye, let alone feel genuine sadness. The entire thing felt almost trancendental, even though I didn’t understand it entirely, let alone bring myself to mourn in the same way (which ironically was what saddened me eventually).

However, I did happen to see another movie, one that did manage to have this impact on me personally (and just in time before my Saturn return kicked in, making the symbolism all the more poignant).

This movie was Lars von Trier’s Melancholia. Aside from generally enjoying watching the actresses that were portraying the two main characters, the movie had left an impact long after I left the movie theatre. I don’t think I can even begin to describe it, without feeling the incompetence of translating the feeling to a few words. It’s also one of the most realistic, in my opinion at least, portrayals of such event, ever brought to screen. I just remember going for a coffee afterwards and really enjoying the moment in which I felt insignificant and just as important as everything else at the same time. A good feeling to remember.

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