Let’s Do It!

 Interview with Jürgen Vogel, actor, Germany

Nominated for EUROPEAN ACTOR 2008
for DIE WELLE (THE WAVE)
directed by Dennis Gansel
written by Dennis Gansel & Peter Thorwarth

What do the European Film Awards mean to you?

I think it is important for the production company and for the film if it wants to go outside of Germany. It helps a lot to get it out to the countries in Europe. I think this is the most important for the whole project.

For me personally it is a big honour - it is very nice to get a prize like that. But winning is not the important part - I think also the nomination can stand alone and is as well very nice and very important.

It is fine to get a little bit closer to Europe because it is a very important market. And I think it is very good to take a step into the field of that industry. We all need to go out a bit more of our own country and get known in the other countries.

How do people look upon this award in Germany?

Well I don’t think the public is paying much attention. But the film industry is watching! And they are very excited about it - because it is important. It will make a stronger European film market for us. But the problem if you talk about European film is that you don’t know what that means exactly…

And how would you describe European film?

I think we should start to make European stories. We have to begin with our stories - European stories.

What’s a European story? 

It’s when we go together, and make a movie with a lot of people from different European countries. You need a good story, a good script. Someone should travel around getting people together from a lot of different nationalities.

Not so many people go and watch movies from the different countries today. And to make people go see our movies [elsewhere] I think we should feel strong in our countries first. We don’t have such strong feelings. I think it is the same in Denmark, our cinemas are full of American movies and it is a really hard fight against them. But before we can be European we have to be sure of our own nationality. Our special things, you know? Because it is very important to find out what is so special and maybe not so special - but what is our personality? What stories can we tell with our personalities? A German guy comes to Denmark, falls in love with a girl - start a story like that, like life is - more mixed-up productions. I am sure we are all open to that - to make movies outside of our own countries. Let’s do it!

***

Interviewed by Frederikke Lett in Copenhagen, December 2008