The busy company is also preparing to shoot a comedy and a crime series while developing 10 projects. His philosophy is to "make films with something more than the average mainstream movies", he told FNE at Art Film Fest.
A university teacher and one of the minds behind the creation of the Slovak Audiovisual Fund in 2009, Pass is balancing big budget with art film projects such as Agave, the debut feature of the well known scriptwriter Ondrej Sulaj based on the story of the no less famous writer Ladislav Ballek. It will be period film.
"I am producing because I want to cherish the Slovak art film; it's not a film for a big audience", Pass told FNE. The previous projects were low budget, but the budget of Agave is approximately 1.45m EUR which is not a small budget for Slovakia, but according to Pass, "we´ve always tried to keep to professional standards for technical equipment, filming conditions and fees for actors. Since 1996 we´ve created 52,000 job opportunities for employees and freelancers.” Shooting took two years and finished in May 2015 with the premiere set for spring 2016. The Slovak Television is coproducing.
Trigon Production is also in postproduction with the docudrama You Can Always Begin which will actually premiere in Karlovy Vary IFF in July 2015. The film revolves around the important Slovak photographer Zuzana Mináčová who was the main photographer of KVIFF during the last 15 years. The director Matej Mináč, who is coproducing, is actually her son.
The 10 episode documentary series The Golden Lyre (The Curtains Up!) is also in postproduction with the premiere on the Slovak Television set for December 2015. It's the story of the famous Bratislava music festival The Golden Lyre which brought stars like The Beach Boys, Cliff Richard or Easy Bits to Slovakia during communism, helping people to develop a sense of freedom and democracy, which also gave strength to the people in the revolutionary days of 1989. This coproduction with the Slovak Television is directed by Peter Hledik, Vice President of Art Film Festival. Czech Television is also a partner.
Trigon Production is now shooting a docudrama about the Alexander Dubček, the leader of The Prague Spring in 1968. The project should be finished in 2016.
The company is preparing to shoot Never Give Up, by Matej Mináč in 2016. According to Patrik Pass, this comedy is about a director whose dream is to make a movie about Fellini, but never makes that movie. The film will have "the philosophical message that no ideology or government, not even a dictatorship, neither nationalism nor democracy, are interested in people whose minds are ahead of the time in which they live." The core of this story which is built on real events is the original footage shot by Mináč with Fellini saying that the culture is important for the society.
The budget is 2.5m EUR, and negotiations with private investors from Germany, France and Italy are underway. The Slovak Audiovisual Fund allotted a development and preparation grant, and a production grant application should be submitted in 2016. The Czech Television also wants to participate. Depending on the closing of the funding, shooting will start end of summer 2016 or in 2017.
Trigon Production is also preparing a crime series in coproduction with the Czech and Slovak Televisions. The main character will be played by the well known actor Juraj Kukura. Seven of the 13 episodes have already been written and shooting will be in 2016 and 2017 with the premiere on both channels in 2018. "It's going to be very appealing", says Pass .
No less than 10 projects are in development at Trigon Production including two children films, a feature drama, a comedy, one series, a docudrama about Martin Greenfield, who left Czechoslovakia and now is a prominent tailor in the USA working for presidents and Hollywood actors. The docudrama Dežo Hoffmann by Peter Hledik, also in development, is the story of the Slovak photographer who pushed The Beatles to jump in the famous picture and also photographed Charlie Chaplin and Marilyn Monroe.
When asked about the minority coproductions, Patrik Pass replies bluntly: "We have five projects shooting now and we have offers all the time, but I have to be sensitive and think of my colleagues as well. The money available in Slovakia for filming is limited and I have to consider the extent of our activities and to think of other Slovakian filmmakers, because I am not the only one on the market."
