Publications

… and is now in the cinema. No, no, we haven’t joined the ranks of filmmakers – but we feel very much at home in the cinema right now. The film ‘Flow’ has been showing since last Thursday. And in the broadest sense, the film has something to do with change and leadership.

But first things first: At the awards ceremony in February, ‘Flow’ won the Oscar for best animated film. The plot is quickly told. After a catastrophic flood, five animals save themselves in a boat: a cat, a dog, a capybara, a lemur and a bird. The five gradually learn how to find their way in the flooded world. The film by director Gints Zilbalodis is characterised by two special features.

Firstly, the type of animation, in which the animals appear rather plain against almost pompous backgrounds and backdrops. This makes them appear – it may sound paradoxical – more realistic. And secondly, the film manages without words, at least without human ones. The five animals don’t speak – they meow, bark, squeak, hiss and grunt. The director comments: ‘In some other animated films, the animals are often portrayed like humans, or rather: their behaviour is humanised. I think something gets lost in the process. Because these animals are so interesting and so funny that you don’t have to exaggerate their behaviour. That’s the great thing about cinema: I wanted the audience to feel as if they were the cat themselves.’ [https://www.ndr.de/kultur/film/tipps/Flow-Oscar-praemierte-lettische-Ueberlebensfabel-mit-Message,flow116.html]

So when you see the film, remember: you can only bring about change together – and good leadership is when each team member contributes their own skills and respects those of others. And as far as the end of the film is concerned, this is just as open as many a change and many a leadership effect.

You can watch Flow here: https://www.filmstarts.de/kritiken/302474.html

… and here flow: https://www.flow.de/

Frank Wippermann

picture: MS Office archive