KOMEDA – A SOUNDTRACK FOR A LIFE

KOMEDA – MUZYCZNE ŚCIEŻKI ŻYCIA

Krzysztof Komeda – jazz pianist and film composer. With compositions like the lullaby for “Rosemary´s Baby” from Roman Polanski, Komeda succeeded in writing his own chapter in the history of soundtracks. As a jazz pianist he gained cult-status in Poland. As a film composer he made it into Hollywood’s first ranks. But there his career came to a sudden end. Claudia Buthenhoff-Duffy’s film essay follows the dramatic life story of the musician and film composer Komeda by the means of the melodic sounds of Komeda’s music.

The film essay KOMEDA – A SOUNDTRACK FOR A LIFE is a reflection on Komeda’s soundtracks, which changed the common film scores forever. It is a contemporary document about the attitude to life in a time of social, political and cultural change after war, about work and exodus of Polish artist in the 50s and 60s. A story about how film music is created and how it affects people. Directors who worked with Komeda and who are also friends will talk about him: Roman Polanski, Jerzy Skolimowski, Henning Carlsen and Andrzej Wajda. His wife, Zofia Komeda, and his sister, Irina Orlowska, remember him.

FILM REPRESENTED BY THE KRAKOW FILM FOUNDATION

  • Genre: Dokumentalny
  • Running time: 52
  • Year: 2010

Director: Claudia Buthehoff-Duffy

Script: Claudia Buthehoff-Duffy

DOP: Józef Romasz, René Dame, Andreas Höfer, Vivien Vogel

Music: Andreas Hornschuh, Matthias Hornschuh

Editing: Ewa Will

Production company: TVP S.A., Studio Filmowe Kalejdoskop, Benedikt Pictures, Wave-line GmbH, ZDF, Schweizer Fernsehen DRS, YLE Teema

About the director:

Claudia Buthehoff-Duffy




Born in Stuttgart in 1959. She studied Linguistics, Philosophy and Psychology at Free University in Berlin. Altogether she worked for 20 years as an assistant for handicapped people. From 1990-95 she was a freelancing radio journalist covering such topics as music, kids, culture and social issues. In 1995 she organized a radio campaign from the USA for several German radio stations on behalf of black journalist and activist on Death Row Mr. Mumia Abu-Jamal – until the execution was postponed. Claudia has been active in the film busines since 2001. She finished the Kaskeline film school in Berlin with a short film, FINNEN FINDEN, then participated in Winterakademie Gera/MDM with her funded project „Glasbruch“ (now titled ‘Fragile’). She participated in several writing clinics – including ‘The hero’s journey’ with Cunningham/Schlesinger). Then Claudia worked for the German distributor Neue Visionen (in the areas of PR, promotional campaigns and funding for distribution). She also translated and subtitled a number of famous as well as new films (Noam Chomsky Portrait, The Cat On The Hot Tin Roof, Bonnie and Clyde, Taxi Driver, The Wind That Shakes The Barley).




At festivals:

Festival du nouveau cinéma de Montréal, Canada, 2010 (screening)

Polish Film Festival in America, Chicago, USA, 2010 (screening)

PLUS CAMERIMAGE 2010 - International Film Festival Of The Art Of Cinematography, Poland, 2010 (screening)

Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival, China, 2011 (screening)