92 drawings of water

Estratto

The first “foreign” film I made – that is to say the first film I shot on a location outside England – was made in Venice. Who’s surprised? All the English come to Venice sooner or later, and sooner rather than later. And I suspect the very fact of English overkill in Venice created the discipline for the film of deliberately not showing the water. To make a film about Venice without showing the water is a certain sort of contradiction, a paradox, an oxymoron. I like that Dorothy Parker telegram, “Arrived late in Venice. The streets are full of water. Please advise”. Which is to observe the obvious and pretend to be disconcerted. To acknowledge what is staring you in the face and avoid it. Water is so obvious in Venice – leave it out.