"...not even in Europe," says Adrian Goiginger about his new Berlinale film, starring Valerie Pachner, which used input from author Barbara Pachl-Eberhart, whose life it is based on, and a clown consultant.
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"...not even in Europe," says Adrian Goiginger about his new Berlinale film, starring Valerie Pachner, which used input from author Barbara Pachl-Eberhart, whose life it is based on, and a clown consultant. This article provides comprehensive coverage and analysis of current events.
"...not even in Europe," says Adrian Goiginger about his new Berlinale film, starring Valerie Pachner, which used input from author Barbara Pachl-Eberhart, whose life it is based on, and a clown consultant.
'Four Minus Three' Courtesy of Nikolett Kustos/Alamode Film/Polyfilm Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment It may sound hard to believe, but Four Minus Three (Vier Minus Drei), the new feature from Austrian filmmaker Adrian Goiginger (The Best of All Worlds, The Fox), is based on a true story full of the tears and the smiles of a clown. Valerie Pachner (The Stories, Egon Schiele: Death and the Maiden, A Hidden Life) stars in the movie, adapted by Senad Halilbašić from the bestselling book of the same name by Barbara Pachl-Eberhart, in which she shares how she overcame the death of her husband and two kids in a tragic car accident. Related Stories Movies BFI Boosts U.K. Documentary Filmmaking Funding Support by 20 Percent Movies Salma Hayek, Mexican President Back New 30 Percent Film Tax Incentive Four Minus Three world premieres in the Panorama program of the Berlin International Film Festival. The story, which is told in time jumps, follows Barbara. She and her partner Heli (Robert Stadlober) are professional clowns, living an alternative life with their two kids, until the car accident changes everything. Barbara’s belief in humor, hope, and humanity is put to the test. Stefanie Reinsperger, Hanno Koffler, and Ronald Zehrfeld also feature in the cast. Goiginger directed the film and produced it with Peter Wildling, Gerrit Klein, Martin Pfeil, and David Stöllinger. Beta Cinema is handling world sales on the movie, produced by 2010 Entertainment in Austria and Giganten Film in Germany. Four Minus Three will be distributed in Germany by Alamode Film and in Austria by Polyfilm Goiginger first read a synopsis for Four Minus Three when his second child had just been born, feeling the movie would be “too intense for me.” But after reading a first draft of the screenplay, “I realized that it was actually a film about hope and how you can overcome such tragedies.” THR talked to Goiginger about bringing to the screen a story that will make audiences cry, but also find hope, and what he learned about the art of clowning. How involved was Barbara Pachl-Eberhart in the film and its production? She was part of the whole development process, so she would read the script and then give notes. She is very smart and understood that we have to make our own artistic piece, and so we changed some things from real life and also from the book. But she was totally fine with that. It was important for her who would portray her. Luckily for all of us, she also fell in love with Valerie Pachner very early on. She visited the set on the very first day of shooting. And it was very important for me that she’d be happy with it, because it’s her story. Meeting her in real life was a big motivation for me to make this film. What really touched me from the very beginning is that there is a real happy ending to this tragic story. ‘Four Minus Three’ Courtesy of Nikolett Kustos/Alamode Film/Polyfilm What was key to getting the tone and the emotional journey right? We put a lot of thought into when the accident should happen in the film. There was one draft where it was at the midpoint, then we had one draft where it was pretty late in the film. But in editing, we finally saw where the right place for this scene was. So this film really got made three times, you could say: writing, shooting and editing. Were there any films you had seen that affected you in your work on Four Minus Three?One very influential film for us was The Broken Circle Breakdown [by Felix van Groeningen]. It has a very similar structure, also in how it is structured [across] different timelines. Tell me about the portrayal of clowning, which some may see as an unexpected element… Before I made this film, I was not very interested in clowning. I just had in mind either the killer clowns or the unfunny circus clowns. But then I did a lot of reading and research, and I got to know the whole philosophy that lies behind it. We really wanted to put that in the movie, so that it has funny [elements], but also because the art of clowning helps Barbara in her journey to fight this tragedy. Did you guys have any clowns or experts as advisors? Yes, we did. I also went on the trip with the Red Noses [Clowndoctors] in the hospital, which is also part of Barbara’s life and of the film. That was so, so, so touching, going to a real hospital with the clowns. I was in the background and saw them work with children. They gave me a lot of inspiration. We also had a French clown as a consultant, Jean Paul Ledun, who knew the real Heli before he died. It was very heavy, but also very beautiful, that he could teach Robert Stadlober, who plays Heli, how his clown was. And he helped us with staging and creating these clown se
