Press Conference: “Three Monkeys”

Meeting the press for the presentation in Competition of Three Monkeys, Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan was flanked by screenwriter Ebru Ceylan, director of photography Gokhan Tiryaki, producer Zeynep Ozbatur, and distributor Eric Lagesse, as well as actors Hatice Aslan, Yavuz Bingol, Ercan Kesal, and Ahmet Rifat Sungar. Excerpts below:

Nuri Bilge Ceylan on the title of the film:
“We tried many different names, but I think Three Monkeys is the most suitable, because in the film, there are many situations that the characters play “three monkeys,” as it is used nowadays, you know… for our pretentious behaviors, to protect ourselves – things like that. For instance, the boy somehow pretends not to see his mother… The father pretends not to hear the voice of the boss. I think we do it in life, also, many times – every one of us. We play “three monkeys”: see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. “Daydreams” is a kind of title which is expected from me. “Three Monkeys” is a kind of myth, so I wanted to use it. It’s more unexpected from me, something strange. I must say, Eric didn’t want this title, because he says it’s more difficult to sell.”

Nuri Bilge Ceylan, on the accident, which is not shown:
“We shot the accident, for instance, at the beginning. But in editing, I decided not to show it. We spent a lot of energy to shoot the accident realistically. We spent a lot of money, you know? But in the editing, I like it better if I don’t show it, because maybe we create it better in our imaginations. Like reading a novel…”

Nuri Bilge Ceylan on climate conditions on location:

“Actually, I’m like a chameleon when I’m shooting. I adapt myself to climatic conditions. It’s not easy to shoot if you depend on the weather. When the weather changes, I change the script. So I adapt.”

Nuri Bilge Ceylan on the child’s death:
“It’s not that important, but I imagine that the son drowned in the sea. Of course, I didn’t put in many clues, but he was wet, with a swimming suit, as if he was coming out of the sea, and with the sounds, I tried to help that idea. I believe, as a spectator, that his elder brother has a guilty conscience about this… I wanted to use this boy as a kind of link connecting the family members, because when they really suffer, then the boy sings to them.”

Nuri Bilge Ceylan on the process of filmmaking:
“I write everything down, but I change things. Because you never stop thinking, you know. Every night, it’s a nightmare for me, thinking what to do tomorrow. Sometimes, in the shooting, you see that what you intended doesn’t work, so you have to find a solution… I shoot a lot of alternatives. You are never sure what you are going to keep… First I shoot what is in the script. Even if I like it very much, I shoot some alternatives, to be safe. And then I try improvisation, if the actor is good at improvisation. It is sometimes – very seldom – much better than your imagination. I think this is my general method.”