Peter Krausz – The Bedrock of our MetropolisPeter Krausz – The Bedrock of our Metropolis
Ever since I started promoting my films overseas, I noticed that the cities which had a thriving film scene were the ones with plenty of enthusiasts that worked hard to provide outlets for the presentation and promotion of the arts. It’s easy to take these people for granted, but when you see so many places where artists struggle to find opportunities, you start to realise how lucky we are here in Melbourne.
We have a flourishing film community which stands out among the many cities of the world, and one of the long-time stalwarts of our indie film scene is Peter Krausz. He’s been active since 1978 in many capacities and is a member of the Australian Cinema Pioneers, but is best known for his work on radio.
We owe a great deal to Peter and others like him, who have worked tirelessly for decades out of love for the medium. Today, I’m honoured to be chatting to Peter.
DB - Thanks for taking the time to chat to me today Peter. You are best known for your work on radio, which goes right back to 1978 with the 3CR show “Media Moves Cinema Scene”. Can you tell us a bit about that?
PK – While teaching media, and being a member of the committee of the Australian Teachers of Media, I was asked, together with a few other people, to host the weekly 30 minute film program on 3CR, after the retirement of the previous host. My abiding knowledge and interest in film analysis meant I would become the ongoing host of the show, sourcing interviews and discussing media issues. After a number of years, the station moved the show to a weekend slot for one hour per week. Many filmmakers, film festival guests and other media people participated in the in-studio discussions, as well as by phone. I was at 3CR for around 12 years, covering the film waterfront, with an emphasis on Australian films.
Following that I was a film critic and film commentator for other radio stations over the last 20 years, including the ABC, 3AW, 3AK (working with great people like Yvonne Lawrence, Peter Byrne), 3KND (film reviewer for indigenous radio), eventually culminating in my own two hour weekly film show: Movie Metropolis on WYN FM, 88.9 and then also Apple FM 98.5. I am also a regular film reviewer on J-Air (Jewish Internet Radio). I enjoy the way radio operates, providing direct communication to an audience, especially those interested in film and television and the discussion and analysis of what media provides.
DB – You’ve done quite a variety of work within the film industry, including working for a number of film festivals in various capacities. Can you give us an over view of what you’ve done there?
PK – I have had the privilege of working and advising a number of film festivals over the years. My biggest involvement has been working with the Goethe Institute over 10 years, selecting films for the German Film Festival in Australia. I have an abiding, cultural interest in German cinema due to my heritage, and keeping up to date with German cinema and filmmakers has been a strong interest of mine.
I had visited Germany a number of times, on two occasions as a guest of the Goethe Institute, attending the Munich Film Festival (Germany’s second largest film festival after the Berlinale) and interviewing many filmmakers. When the GI decided to end its management of the German Film Festival, a small group of people assisted me in having a German film festival in 2017, with my role as artistic director of German Cinema Melbourne. I selected 11 Australian premieres, based on my research, and films I had seen earlier that year at the Munich Film Festival. Although there were prospects for it to continue the following year, Palace Cinemas decided they would take over the German Film Festival, and run it themselves.
I have an on-going involvement with the Indonesian Film Festival in Australia, running all the Q & As for the organization, as well as consulting with the Jewish Film Festival, Polish Film Festival and Japanese Film Festival at various levels. To further all this, I have also visited and discussed film partnerships with Studio Babelsberg in Berlin, and the Austrian Film Commission in Vienna. I also ensure strong coverage of both the Sydney and Melbourne Film Festivals.
In 2019 I was Communications Manager for BOFA (Tasmanian Film festival), selecting films and writing all the summaries of the films, as well as interviewing many of the guests of the festival. As a member of FIPRESCI (The International Federation of Film Critics), I established the International jury for the Adelaide Film Festival in 2007, working with film critics from France and Russia. This became the one and only FIPRESCI jury at the festival due to cost, and indicates that no Australian film festivals have a FIPRESCI jury, something which needs to change. I was the first Australian film critic to be selected to be part of the FIPRESCI jury at the Munich Film Festival in 2018, working with film critics from Norway and Poland. This year, it was my honour to be selected to be part of the FIPRESCI jury at the Berlinale, which was an online event, amongst 11 fellow international film critics (and the first Australian to be selected) from the USA, UK, Belgium, Latvia, and elsewhere.
DB – You are quite the all-rounder with all your different involvements in the film scene. You’ve also done quite a lot with organisations such as the Melbourne Film Critics Forum and The Australian Film Critics Association. I believe that there is an amazing back story there?
PK – I joined the Melbourne Film Critics Forum soon after working on radio, as being part of a collective meant the issues, roles and work of film critics could be discussed in broader forums, especially highlighting the analytical role of the critic, and the understanding of the difference between a film reviewer and a film critic. A reviewer discusses a film for an audience that has not seen the film (hence the promotional perspective of a film reviewer), and a critic discusses/analyses a film in depth for an audience that has seen the film.
When I became part of the committee of the MFCF, Jan Epstein, the Chair had tried to discuss forming a partnership with the Sydney based Film Critics Circle of Australia. This had been rebuffed many times, particularly as the FCCA regarded most Melbourne critics as amateurs, as most Melbourne film critics are not paid for their work. This attitude was completely arrogant and meant that Melbourne critics had no access to international film juries, as FCCA was a member of FIPRESCI but MFCF was not.
When I took over as Chair of the MFCF, I contacted Klaus Eder, the Secretary of FIPRESCI to discuss this situation in Australia. He made it clear that receiving payment for film reviewing was not a criteria they used, only that a reviewer/critic has an adequate background as a critic, and is a member of a professional association of film critics.
He visited Australia to try to achieve an agreement between FCCA and MFCF, as FIPRESCI prefers to only deal with one film critics Association in each country. The FCCA refused to speak to him about this issue, whereas I met him a few times. It was resolved that the MFCF had to become a national association of film critics, which I implemented by changing the name to AFCA (Australian Film Critics Association), which then meant all Melbourne based film critics had access to being on an international FIPRESCI film jury. AFCA was then registered by FIPRESCI as one of two national film critics associations, which just meant that if an application for a film jury came from both an AFCA and FCCA member, then FIPRESCI would determine the candidate selected.
There is intense rivalry and friction between the two film critics associations, something which seems so ridiculous to me, and is so unnecessary in furthering the professional recognition of film critics. Despite initial discussions with Sydney being positive, it was FCCA members like Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton that fought against recognition of Melbourne film critics. Now, Sydney based and Melbourne based film critics have equal recognition and access to international juries.
DB - Your main work currently is with the radio show, Movie Metropolis on WYN 88.9FM. Can you bring our readers up to date about the show?
PK – My weekly two hour film show covers as much as possible about film, television, streaming and DVD/Blu-Ray releases. I regularly interview both Australian and International filmmakers and talent. I review all films released in cinemas, streaming, DVD etc., and focus also on films at all the film festivals in Australia and overseas. The same show, with a few small differences, is presented on AppleFM 98.5, also a two hour show branded Movie Metropolis. I also cover/post all interviews and many reviews regularly on my Movie Metropolis Facebook page.
DB – Peter, you’ve done so much and surfed the waves of ever changing technologies. Can I ask you what your future plans are?
PK – An area I wish to develop further is my written film journalism/film criticism. I have written a number of film articles for ATOM, as well as for a number of years writing film reviews for the now defunct publication “The Melbourne Catholic”. I was asked to contribute 3 extended film articles/analyses for the book: 100 Greatest Films of Australian Cinema (Scribal Publishing, 2006). The films I wrote on were: Caddie, For the Term of his Natural Life (1927) and They’re a Weird Mob.
I also very much enjoy being a film judge. Apart from my three FIPRESCI International juries, over the years I have worked with the AFI/AACTA as a professional member, in roles such as pre-selection of films and final judging; the annual ATOM Awards; the annual JMC Academy Martini Student Film Awards, and the now defunct Fellowship of Australian Writers Unpublished Screenplay Awards.
I was invited to join the committee of the Melbourne Friends of the National Film and Sound Archive, a group, including the Canberra based Friends, which highlights the importance of our film history and film legacy. Last year, at my suggestion, they ran an online event discussing the rarely seen Australian political film “Demonstrator” (1971), where Anthony Buckley (who was the editor) and I discussed the significance of the film and how rarely Australian cinema covers our politics. I think an important role a film critic has is to promote and present independent films that would otherwise be ignored or neglected. Australian cinema is rich with films that deserve closer scrutiny and recognition, and if my radio shows can assist with this, then all the better for our film culture.
DB – Where can our readers follow your work?
PK – www.fipresci.org