Night cap with Biciklisti

An interview with Veljko Popovic, director of Biciklisti

 Can you tell us about cycling season? I’m assuming it’s a real event!
The spirit of the local people in my hometown is entangled with sports. It can be football, it can be basketball, water polo or cycling. It does not matter, what matters is the iconic position of the sportsman as the alpha male in the pack. He is revered, lusted after and considered to be the best of man. He knows this and is puffed up and in love with himself. I wanted to play with this idea in a comical, satirical way.

 The film is imbued with brightness and serenity thanks to the paintwork and colours. Tell us more about your animation style. Is there a particular reason you chose to give it a retro, 1920s feel?
The film is based on the paintings done by the local Split artist Vasko Lipovac. He was in love with the idea of the pre-war small Dalmatian city he knew in his childhood. This nostalgia of a simpler time is a common trait we had and I think most of my townspeople have as well.

 What other subject matter would you like to explore using animation? Are you also interested in live action or other genres?
Animation for me connects my love for painting, drawing and art with my love of cinematography and storytelling. It allows me to explore fantastic worlds, explore my imagination and impregnate my idea through every aspect of the film with the use of visual and stylistic choices and depictions of the characters and the world they inhabit. As I cannot see how any other genre would be able to do this as well as animation I am not interested in moving away from animation.

 Would you say that the short film format has given you any particular freedom?
Oh yes. The very nature of the short form is freedom. The short format allows for more exploration, more expression and it gives the author freedom to be bold and visionary. This is reflected both in the way the storyline and edit of the short film is constructed and in the way the author can approach the visual aspect of the film.

Biciklisti was shown in International Competition.