After General Caius Martius’ titanic exploits in seizing the Volscian city of Corioles, he is given the name Coriolanus and is contentiously elected Senator. During and after the ceremony an angry mob gathers outside the parliament to protest against Coriolanus’ new title. The production was lucky enough to shoot these scenes in and around the functioning Senate building in Belgrade. I spoke to Ralph yesterday about the scene’s historical precedent:

“I think it was poignant for a lot of the extras in the angry crowd. Some of them were full of memories. They’ve protested outside this parliament on a number of occasions, most famously in October 2000 when they staged a massive demonstration against Slobodan Milosevic. There were protests for and against Milosevic outside the Senate at different times, but the real footage we are considering using in our film is from the October 2000 demonstrations.

The atmosphere in the senate chamber was fantastic. It’s totally believable because it’s the real thing.”

The production had to shoot on weekends because the Senate is still the functioning seat of parliament in Serbia. These are some images of the demonstrations that took place at the Senate building in October 2000. On the day these pictures were taken protesters breached security and set fire to parts of the building.

I was excited by what Ralph said about the use of archive footage as it’s one of my favorite filmic techniques. When used appropriately it can brilliantly enhance a film’s power and draw the audience close into the drama. There are many notable examples of newsreel and archive footage in film, especially from WWII dramas, but below are a few that immediately spring to mind:

La Haine is one of the sharpest explorations of disaffected youth, political neglect and urban violence ever conceived. In many ways it anticipated the explosion of violence and rioting in the Parisian banlieue in the mid 2000s. Its opening scenes show archive images of Parisian rioters clashing with the notoriously heavy-handed CRS, overscored with a great Bob Marley soundtrack:

The ‘back and to the left’ scene from Oliver Stone’s JFK makes for difficult viewing but it is always stirring. Here the infamous assassination footage combines well with the dramatic re-enactment.

While I felt slightly let down by Spielberg’s Munich the film dramatically opens with notorious footage of the Black September kidnappers. In so doing, the director frames the film within weighty historical precedent and draws the audience into Munich’s own drama:

Check in soon for my next set report and more exclusive Coriolanus images.

Related posts on 30ninjas.com:

• Blade of a Knife: Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog: Exclusive Concept Art and News From His New War Film, Shooting in Belgrade
• Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog: Photos From The Set
• Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog: Interviews with Actors Brian Cox, Jessica Chastain and Paul Jesson
• Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog — Understanding the “Boys and Guns” Mentality With Dragan Micanovic and Ashraf Barhom
• Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog: “There Will Be Blood” — New Photo of Ralph and Gerry, Plus an Interview From Set
• Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus Blog: Training for Coriolanus