Symbols More Powerful Than Dialogue in Films

Majewski held a one-day workshop on directing in the Talent Campus section of the ongoing Fajr International Film Festival at Tehran’s Charsou Cineplex on Saturday. The session was designed for students interested in expanding their skills in the fundamentals in directing and filmmaking, the festival website wrote. One of the topics he discussed was symbolism in cinema. He explained that a symbol is a physical representation - either an object or a mark - that stands in for another object or idea. “Symbolism is pervasive throughout artistic mediums, and film production is obviously no exception.” He explained that all good movies “use symbols because they are more powerful than dialogue in motion pictures”. The Polish director said he has read Persian poetry such as Ferdowsi’s long epic poem ‘Shahnameh’ (Book of Kings), and even tried to use some of the poems in the final scene of his 1999 drama/biography Wojaczec which is about the rebel Rafal Wojaczek who wrote poetry and lived on the edge before his suicide in 1971. The concluding part of Majewski’s instructions included the screening of Milos Forman’s ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ (1975), which has made use of several symbols including cigarettes, which symbolize property and freedom to the patients and keys that represent freedom and access throughout the movie.  The Talent Campus organizers awarded Lech Majewski an honorary diploma at the end of the workshop.