A physical structure determines the overall situation of this film. It takes place in two terraced flats in a small rural city in the 1980’s. The central space where the characters interact with each other are their balconies, hence the film is called Balkonas. The two balconies abut each other, giving each flat its own balcony space, divided from the other by a large, central column. This means that for the characters to talk to each other they have to lean out beyond the handrails of their balconies. From this simple location the director creates a series of situations which drive both the story and the characters’ relationships forwards. Two parallel stories emerge – while the two children fall in love with each other across the divide, the girl’s parents separate.
The space of the tow flats is very clearly set up in this scene. In the right hand side flat lives a mother with her two daughters, on the left a father and son move into to their new flat. We learn that the man is divorced. The situation unfolds as we see the girl and boy exchanging glances in close up, while the adults get to know each other, like the start of a budding love story.
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A physical structure determines the overall situation of this film. It takes place in two terraced flats in a small rural city in the 1980’s. The central space where the characters interact with each other are their balconies, hence the film is called Balkonas. The two balconies abut each other, giving each flat its own balcony space, divided from the other by a large, central column. This means that for the characters to talk to each other they have to lean out beyond the handrails of their balconies. From this simple location the director creates a series of situations which drive both the story and the characters’ relationships forwards. Two parallel stories emerge – while the two children fall in love with each other across the divide, the girl’s parents separate.
The space of the tow flats is very clearly set up in this scene. In the right hand side flat lives a mother with her two daughters, on the left a father and son move into to their new flat. We learn that the man is divorced. The situation unfolds as we see the girl and boy exchanging glances in close up, while the adults get to know each other, like the start of a budding love story.