The Whispering Source, 2022
In Filip Preis’s latest wrok, that is also his film debut, everything starts and ends in a source. It is the source that brings shiny-skinned characters to life and tells a tender story about queer community.
Pieces of armour, swords and daggers, flowers and nudity, and the soundtrack filled with choirs, mandolin, sea waves and flutes. Overabundance seems to be the rule of Preis’s world. Elements and sceneries from fairy tales bring more than just a relaxing effect — the artist adds an erotic touch by changing the eponymous whispers of the source into a cramped labyrinth. Whispering is sharing a secret. It is talking from up close, straight into the ear. It is intimacy — both sexual and emotional.
Preis usues visial cliches with great consciousness. The dense symbolism, sentimental landscapes or cottagecore stylisations add humour to the film. The seemingly solemn atmosphere often gives space to raciness and subtle jokes. The fairy tale costume serves as a form of tender gaze towards the artist’s close people. Blood on lips is either fruit juice or visibly fake blood. The sun sets, but never effectively enough to disappear behind the horizon.
The source in the title is a sea, then saliva left after a kiss, and later some dew drops on grass. It is omnipresent like a story, because Preis’s film is also a tribute to storytelling as a way of creating worlds as well as to great storytellers, including one of his significant inspirations — Maya Deren.
Text: Michał Grzegorzek
Translation: Ola Jakubczak
Curator: Michał Grzegorzek
Directing/DOP: Filip Preis
Production: Ganna Grudnytska, Joanna Manecka
Music: Ernest Borowski
Set assistance: Bartosz Janisz, Karolina Kobielusz, Siim Oja, Michalina Sobieraj, Arkadiusz Ukleja
SFX Make-Up: Sophia Kalinowska-Werter
Characters: Ernest Borowski, Dominik Depowska, Tosia Leniarska, Mac Lewandowski, Katarzyna Odo, Paulina Pawłowska, Natalia Piotrkowicz, Bartosz Roborecki, Jakub Stępień, Natalia Szczepańska, Emma Szumlas
Special thanks to: Aleksandra Szajnecka, Magda Staniszewska, Marta Konieczna, Łukasz Sidorowicz, Krzyżogryf Brotherhood from Bytów
The work was commissioned by Teatr Nowy in Warsaw as a part of the Visual Arts project.
Previously displayed at Teatr Nowy in Warsaw as a part of the Solarium Nowego Teatru series (21—23.12 / 27—30.12.2022).
The Whispering Source is available to see per request. Please reach out to filippreis@gmail.com for access.
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