The video for Tereza’s “Kilimandiaro sans neige”, directed by Katja Restović – and judging by the photos from the shoot it is truly an artistic gem featuring top actors Judita Franković-Brdar and Frano Mašković – is expected to have its premiere in Zagreb at the formal ceremony where Tereza Kesovija will receive a French decoration for her contribution to cultural relations between Croatia and France.
Tereza Kesovija in the new video “Kilimandiaro sans neige” (Kilimandjaro Without Snow) (Photo by Nenad Šimunić)
Tereza Kesovija, a musical diva of immense charisma and an international career, has once again chosen Istria and its top artists – her trusted collaborators and friends – as the creative setting for her new music video “Kilimandiaro sans neige” (Kilimandjaro Without Snow).
That this is a great honour is evident from the fact that the song’s lyrics were written by the famous French chansonnier Serge Lama, a good friend of Tereza’s, while the music was composed by Aljoša Šerić. The music is actually that of the song “Ima te” (arranged by Goran Kovačić-Gorki), with which Tereza impressed the audience, colleagues and critics alike, and whose video was also filmed in Istria last summer under the direction of Katja Restović, an artist from Poreč with a powerful, rich and multifaceted creative signature.
The video for Tereza’s “Kilimandiaro sans neige” – and judging by the photos from the shoot, it really is an artistic jewel featuring top actors Judita Franković-Brdar and Frano Mašković – is expected to premiere in Zagreb at the formal awarding of the French decoration to Tereza Kesovija for her contribution to cultural relations between Croatia and France.
As soon as the epidemiological situation allows, it will be a great honour, but also a perfect opportunity to present this new musical-visual magic, which also showcases the strong creative bond between Tereza, Katja and Istria.
The video for “Kilimandiaro sans neige” was filmed over four days in Pula and Poreč. The location of the romantic “French” café bar is played by Pula’s “Rustico” owned by Robert Andrej, and filming also took place in Euroherc’s premises in Pula, in the Croatian Veterans’ Home, as well as in the theatre in Poreč.
Katja Restović explains that she conceived the script for this musical-visual story according to the musical atmosphere of the song.
“It’s a love story about a memory that Tereza recounts to us while she’s getting ready for a concert. The brilliant actors, Judita Franković-Brdar and Frano Mašković, with their incredible talent, masterfully portrayed the subtle build-up of falling in love, the beginning and the tragic end of a love relationship. A series of extras – as many as about twenty of them – excellent locations, outstanding camera and lighting all helped make every shot look cinematic and real,” says Katja Restović, and adds:
“I’m really looking forward to editing this video, which begins in a few days. The magic will happen precisely when I’m in my studio, putting together the images and shots, thinking and imagining – completely alone.”
Emphasizing that she always enjoys working with Tereza, Katja says there are several reasons for that. “First of all – Tereza always does everything I ask of her. She is extremely dedicated and a complete professional in her work. Her heart is also enormous – too big. I love her very much; she inspires me. I admire her for her immense talent and otherworldly energy. She is a special woman and it’s a great honour for me to work with such an artist.
I’ve always enjoyed my work. With my dear, long-time friend Josip-Pino Ružić, who is the director of photography, twelve hours on set fly by. My assistants, Patrick Darrer and Fabris Radin, are also irreplaceable – without them, such a demanding four-day shoot in two cities, with many locations and extras, would simply be unimaginable.
The key to success is actually always to live your passions, and the synergy of love, respect and support in our whole team gives us truly special energy and strength. I really love my team, each and every one of them. I love what I do. I work and live passionately, which sometimes isn’t easy, but it makes me happy,” concludes Katja Restović.
Tereza, whose video for “Ima te” was extremely impressive and left a strong impact on the audience, when asked whether she expects the same from this French version of the video, says:
“I believe that this new work of Katja’s will also make a big impression on viewers in both Croatia and France, for which this version is intended. The contract is signed, the producer is just waiting for the editing to be finished. I think this video will be even more powerful than the first – it’s simply different.
Katja decided to create a completely new drama and script that follows the story written by the great Serge Lama. I really liked her idea, and I agreed immediately. I have no doubt that this video will attract a lot of attention. As soon as Katja said she needed two top professional actors, I thought of my dear Frano Mašković from Dubrovnik, and Katja was ‘rooting’ for Judita Franković-Brdar as Frano’s girlfriend in the video. Both of them, in addition to being great artists, are wonderful people, so spending time with them was fantastic. We promised to meet again soon at my place for another lovely get-together,” says Tereza.
Talking about how the shoot went and whether the director set her any particular challenges, Tereza says:
“When I speak about Katja, she always has special wishes and that’s exactly why she is special. She really knows her job. She’s a genius – she always comes up with something new to impress viewers, while giving everything her personal stamp.
Sometimes she surprises me, puts me in strange situations or positions that aren’t easy to pull off, but – I trust her. I just look into her eyes and I see everything I need to. I know she does it all for a reason that only she knows, and we’ll see it later, when everything is finished. That’s the magic with which my Katja always surprises me.”
Tereza is full of genuinely heartfelt praise for working with Katja. “Working with Katja is wonderful because she is phenomenal. We give each other strength and energy, and that’s amazing. I follow her wishes and her will, because I know she works well and means well. I have complete trust in her talent and vision,” says Tereza.
Unlike the summer shoot, when temperatures exceeded 35 degrees, this one will stay in her memory for the cold. But nothing spoiled the good atmosphere and joy of filming.
“On the first day, after we arrived from Zagreb in the small hours, we all met up – the whole crew was waiting for us. Until three in the morning I was telling jokes, we had such a great time and no one showed a trace of fatigue, even though they had already filmed for a full 12 hours that day. I was late because of filming at HRT which, as usual, ran late.
You know, tiredness simply disappears when you’re surrounded by wonderful people: Judita and Frano and Patrick and my Pino, my stand-in, the beautiful Terezija. And of course my Goge, my guardian angel, my lovely Irena, who always does the best make-up because she knows my face so well. I really love them all,” Tereza says joyfully.
She adds that the video premiere will be held in Croatia. However, the date and occasion are still not known, and one of the possible options is the day she is to be awarded the Gold Medal in the garden of the residence of the French ambassador to Croatia. But this still partly depends on the pandemic situation.
The script, editing and direction of the “Kilimandiaro sans neige” video are by Katja Restović.
The camera and post-production are the work of Rose Art Kaštelir – Josip Pino Ružić and Terezija Ružić, and playback and lighting were created by David Ružić. Irena Herzeg was responsible for Tereza Kesovija’s make-up, while Terezija Ružić and Sanja Šverko did the make-up for the actors and extras. Patrick Darrer oversaw the locations and all production needs, accommodation and catering in Poreč, where locations for the set were organized by Istria Futura Nekretnine and the Poreč Open University, headed by Snježana Radetić, which provided the theatre hall for the shoot.
The institution “Eleonora” of Gianluca Pilar helped make the ambulance scene completely realistic, and Denis Rauš, Matej Vranjković and Ante Matošević faithfully portrayed emergency-service staff. For the needs of the final scene and the paparazzi photographer, professional photographers Nenad Šimunić, Giordano Cellich and Massimo Pulić took part, and additional extras included Denis Rauš, Matej Vranjković, Ante Matošević, Dino Matošević, and Maltese dogs Kike and Mimi, owned by Emily Olić.
Fabris Radin took care of locations and logistics in Pula, danced tango in the video with his dance partner Darija Udossi, and played Tereza’s private driver in the last scene. He was also responsible for the fight scene featuring Ivan Senković, Nenad Sinčić, Danijel Šimon, Matko Jurić and Sandro Špigić.
The video also features famous Croatian actors – Judita Franković-Brdar, a multiple-award-winning Croatian theatre, television and film actress known to viewers from the series “Počivali u miru”, “Bibin svijet”, “Bitange i princeze” and from many film roles (“Pričaj mi o ljubavi”, “Sonja i bik”), as well as Frano Mašković, a multiple-award-winning Croatian theatre, television and film actor whose home stage is the Zagreb Youth Theatre (ZKM). He is also known as the first Hamlet from Dubrovnik at the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, and the audience knows him from films such as “Osmi povjerenik”, “Lada Kamenski”, “Trampolin”…, explains Katja Restović.
Serge Lama is a famous French chansonnier, singer and songwriter. His best-known song is “Je suis malade”, which he wrote with Alice Dona for Dalida. The song has later been performed by many artists, including Lara Fabian. In 1971, Lama represented France at the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Un jardin sur la terre” and took tenth place.
