Insert from the movie (photo Bogdan Apetri) – Eleanor Hutchins i Milan Mumin
A random passer-by on a street in New York stops a taxi and asks the driver if he is free. And while the driver answers him that he is not, the passenger recognizes the driver Milan Mumin, frontman of the legendary rock band ‘Love Hunters’ from Novi Sad (Serbia) that was very popular during the 90s in Serbia.
That is the beginning of the movie ‘Love hunter’ that talks about the life of the Serbian rock musician in New York who drives a yellow cab while he tries to save money to record his American rock album. The movie is directed by the brothers Branislav and Nemanja Bala who also wrote the script. They met Mumin in New York and decided to make movie about him.
‘We knew who Mumin was in Novi sad, but we met him here in New York’ – says Branislav Bala, movie director. ‘He tried to record his American album, he agonized himself, he was trying to find a bass player and we did a spot for him. Since me and my brother finished the Columbian Movie Academy and since we’ve been trying to make our second movie, we recognized ourselves his story. And not ourselves, but many other people who had tried to achieve their dreams in New York bcan recognize themselves in Mumin. But, that is the life style we chose and that’s how things stand…
Branislav Bala (left), Milan Mumin (in the middle) and Nemanja Bala besdie poster for their movie ‘Love Hunter’
I think that all people in New York who are artists recognize themselves in the main character. Doesn’t matter if it’s music, movies or art… They all asked themselves how long they could go like this, especially when they are in their forties and are living with someone…’ – says Branislav
Branislav says that his brother suggested that they make a movie about the rock player from Novi Sad. “Nemanja said – Milan is here, so are we… One boy from his class had a professional camera and then we decided to make the movie. We were a small documentary crew and we were filming the movie on a low budget. The actress Jelena Stupljanin is in the movie, who has been living in New York for some time and works at a Theater, and the other American actors whom bring authenticity to the movie were found by a person who does casting professionally and knows a lot of good actors in New York.”
Insert from the movie- Jelena Stupljanin
Regarding Mumin’s acting capabilities, Branislav Bala says that he isn’t an actor, but that he is a very spontaneous person which was an advantage during the making of the movie. “It was interesting to work with actors, especially with Milan, who isn’t a professional actor and was uncertain of his moves. That was sometimes funny, because that doesn’t happen to professional actors, who do every scene the same way. His reactions were genuine, all could be seen on his face… I even think that it was an advantage that he didn’t memorize his text, instead he was listening what the other person was saying and reacted spontaneous to that.”
When asked if the movie was a biography or an autobiography the brothers say that it’s all modified to serve the story. “Every story from the taxi is a reflection of that person about love, because this is a movie about love, the same way that Mumin’s songs talk about love’. In the movie there are 2 female characters – one is the American Eleanor Hutchins in whom the main character will fall in love with, and his longtime girlfriend from Serbia (played by Jelena Stupljanin) with whom he will break up at the same time.
Insert from the movie – Milan Mumin
The movie “Love Hunter” had his premier in Warsaw few years ago at the film festival and it went surprisingly well, says Bala. “We had no idea that the people in Poland were listening to ‘Love Hunters’. When they heard that Milan was coming, some people from the1 radio came and asked him when he will play in Poland again where he had performed 15 years ago. The girls were looking at him like a rock star, and at the party after the movie he performed and it was phenomenal.
When talking about the fact if their movie about the rock player from Eastern Europe will be successful in America, the brothers say that they hope that many people will recognize themselves in the movie, because New York is the city of artists. ‘Many come to the city seeking their dream, like Milan was, and the fact that he was an immigrant only makes things harder. There are many artists, actors, musicians who try to do the same here. That’s why we decided that the American premier would be in this city’.
After New York, the movie was shown in Chicago, Miami, San Francisco, Washington and Las Vegas…
Beginning of the movie – guitar player and taxi driver at then same time
‘This is the movie about love, emotional things, a story about a passionate man who fights for his dream and through that for his identity as a person and artist. That’s why many people identified themselves with him and that’s why the audience reacted very positively. Of course, the audience was interested in Milan – where he was currently, in Serbia or America, what happened to his life, and they often ask as if the movie will have a sequel! That means that they liked the drive with Milan through the streets of New York, which makes us very satisfied’, say the brothers Bala.
Milica Puric
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Reditelji i braća Branislav Bala i Nemanja Bala i novosadska rok zvezda Milan Mumin u njujorskom filmu ‘Love Hunter’
Lovac na ljubav
Kadar iz filma – Eleanor Hutchins i Milan Mumin
Slučajni prolaznik na njujorškoj ulici zaustavlja taksi i pita taksistu da li je slobodan. I dok mu ovaj odgovara da nije, putnik prepoznaje u vozaču Milana Mumina, frontmena legendarnog novosadskog rok benda ‘Love Hunters’ koji je žario i palio 90-ih godina u Srbiji.
To je početak igranog filma ‘Love hunter’ (Lovac na ljubav) koji govori o njujorškom životu poznatog srpskog rokera koji vozi žuti taksi dok pokušava da sakupi pare i snimi svoj američki rok album. Film su režirali i scenario napisali braća Nemanja i Branislav Bala koji su Mumina upoznali u Njujorku, gde sami žive.
‘Mi znali šta Mumin radi još u Novom Sadu, ali smo se sa njim upoznali tek ovde u Njujorku,’ kaže Branislav Bala, reditelj filma. ‘On je pokušavao da snimi svoj američki album, mučio se, tražio basistu i mi smo uradili jedan spot za njega. Pošto smo brat i ja završili na Kolumbiji filmsku školu i pošto već dugo pokušmo da snimimo drugi film, mi smo u Muminovoj priči prepoznali svoju priču. I ne samo mi, već i mnogi drugi koji u Njujorku pokušavaju da ostvare svoje umetničke snove. Ali, to je taj neki život koji smo odabrali i to je tako… Mislim da se u glavnom junaku prepoznaju svi ljudi koji se u Njujorku bave umetnošću. Bilo da je to muzika, film, slikarstvo… Svi su se oni pitali dokle vise ovako, posebno kada dodju u četrdesete godine, kada počnu da žive sa nekim…’ kaže oni.
Jelena Stupljanin (foto Andrija Rancic)
Branislav kaže da je njegov brat predložio da snime film o novosadskom rokeru. ‘Nemanja je rekao – tu je Milan, tu smo mi… Jedan dečko sa njegove klase imao je profesionalnu kameru i onda smo odlucili da snimimo film. Bili smo kao mala dokumentarna ekipa i snimali smo film sa niskim budzetom. U filmu glumi Jelena Stupljanin, koja već neko vreme živi u Njujorku i radi u jendom pozorištu, a ostale američke glumce koji daju nivo i autentičnost filmu našla nam je osoba koja radi kasting profesionalno i zna puno kvalitetnih glumaca u Njujorku.’
Što se tiče Muminovih glumačkih sposobnosti, Branislav Bala kaže da on nije glumac, ali je veoma spontana osoba što je bila prednost u toku snimanju filma. ‘Bilo je zanimljivo raditi sa glumcima, posebno sa Milanom koji nije profešionalni glumac i nesvestan je nekih svojih pokreta. To mi je ponekad bilo smešno, jer toga nema kod profešionalnih glumaca koji svaku scenu ponove potpuno isto. Njegove rekacije su iskrene, sve mu se vidi na licu… Mislim da je čak bila prednost to što nije memorisao tekst, već je slušao šta druga osoba govori i spontano reagovao na to.’
Nemanja Bala na premijeri filma ‘Love Hunter’ u Cikagu
Na pitanje koliko ima biografskog i autobiografskog braca kažu da je sve malo modifikovano da služi priči. ‘Svaka priča iz taksija je refleksija te osobe o ljubavi jer je ovo film o ljubavi, isto kao što o ljubavi govore svi Muminovi tekstovi’. U filmu se inace pojavljuju dva ženska lika – jedan je Amerikanka Eleanor Hutćins u koju će se glavni lik zaljubiti, i njegova dugogodišnja devojka iz Srbije (u tumačenju Jelene Stupljanin) od koje će se on u isto vreme odljubiti.
Film ‘Lovac na ljubav’ imao je premijeru u Varšavi prošle godine na filmskom festivalu i to je bilo iznenadjujuće dobro, kaže Bala. ‘Nismi imao pojma da su Poljaci slušali ‘Love Hunterse’. Kad su čuli da dolazi Milan došli su neki ljudi sa radija, pitali ga kad će ponovo da svira u Poljskoj gde je nastupao pre 15-ak godina. Klinke su ga dozivljavale kao rok zvezdu, a na zabavi posle projekcije on je svirao i bilo je fenomenlano’.
Govoreći o tome da li će njihov film koji govori o rokeru iz istočne Evrope uspeti da dopre do američkih gledalaca, braca kazu da se nadaju da će se mnogi prepoznati u filmu jer je Njujork grad umetnika. ‘Mnogi dodju u taj grad u potrazi za svojim snom, kao što je i Milan došao, a to što je imigrant samo otežava njegovu situaciju. Ovde ima mnogo umetnika, glumaca, muzičara, slikara koji pokušavaju isto to što. Zato smo odlučili da američka premijera bude baš u ovom gradu’.
Kadar iz filma – Milan Mumin i Eleanor Hutchins
Posle Njujorka, film je prikazan u Čikagu, Majamiju, San Francisku, Vasingtonu, Las Vegasu…
‘Pošto se naš film bavi najviše emotivnim stvarima, priča priču o strastvenom čoveku koji se bori za svoj san, i time za svoj identitet kao čoveka i umetnika mnogi su se sa njim identifikovali i zato je publika svugde jako dobro reagovala na film. Naravno, gledaoce je uvek najviše interesovao Milan – gde je trenutno, u Srbiji ili Americi, sta se desilo dalje na njegovom životnom putu, a često nas pitaju hoće li film imati nastavak! To znači da im je prijala vožnja sa MIlanom kroz njujorške ulice, što nam je jako drago’, kazu braća Bale.
Milica Puric