Where the Condors Fly

Chilean film director Carlos Klein accompanies Russian filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky during the shooting of his latest film. They travel from antipode to antipode, from Punta Arenas, Chile, to Lake Baikal in Russia and from Villaguay, Argentina, to Shanghai, China. While doing so, Carlos Klein documents the making of ¡Vivan las Antipodas!, revealing the multi-faceted personality of Kossakovsky and conveying his artistic convictions and motivations. Kossakovsky had actually only requested Klein‘s help to look for film locations in Patagonia, but it is precisely there that Klein discovered, years ago, that he himself wanted to make films. Now the passionate, even driven, Kossakovsky helps Klein overcome his present creative crisis by allowing Klein to film him at work as he alters the reality seen by the camera to fit his ideas, welcomes magical moments and ultimately always uses his own emotions as a guide. The longer the antipodal journey goes on, the more tension which determines the working process as well as the relationship between the two directors. Where the Condors Fly is a critical and deeply humourous reflection about cinematography.  

Festivals and Awards

Dokufest International film festival, Kosovo, 2012
Santiago International Film Festival, Chile, 2012
Visions du Réel International Documentary Film Festival, Switzerland, 2012 – Special Mention

Carlos Klein

Carlos Klein was born in Santiago de Chile in 1972. The Chilean-German movie director studied audiovisual communication and filmmaking in his hometown, in Cuba and in London. For his documentary Ibycus - a poem by John Heath-Stubbs Carlos Klein was awarded “Best Director“ at the FIDOCS, Festival Internacional de Documentales de Santiago. In 2004 Carlos Klein received the award for the “Best Realisation“ with his first long documentary Tierra de Agua at the same festival. Today Carlos Klein lives in Santiago de Chile and also works as a musician. 

Selected Filmography 

Ibycus – a Poem by John Heath-Stubbs, 1997
Land of Water / Tierra de Agua, 2004
A Portrait of Rolf Gérard in his mid nineties, 2007

Information

Director: Carlos Klein
Camera: Carlos Klein
Editing: Carlos Klein, Beatrice Babin, Vadim Jendreyko
Sound: Mario Diaz, Patrick Becker, Rafael Huerta, Huang Xun
Music: Daniel Almada, Carlos Klein, Martin Klingeberg
Producer: Vadim Jendreyko  
Production Company: Mira Films
Switzerland, Germany, Chile, 2012, 90 min.