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By: AFP
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Endless winters, sparse pines emerging from an infertile soil, few sheep and even fewer people: the Baltic island of Faro is not just a natural film set for Ingmar Bergman, but his sanctuary and final resting place.
in the Baltic Sea, the coastline of Faro is dotted with limestone rocks with distinct forms (AFP / Gaël Branchereau)
The Swedish filmmaker, who would have been 100 years old on July 14, died on July 30, 2007.
Bergman is buried alongside his wife Ingrid von Rosen in a site that has been transformed into a place of pilgrimage for his admirers
. Explored Faro for the first time in 1960 while trying there He discovered pebble beaches, rock formations, peat bogs and meager pastures, harbors, church and lighthouse of the island.
"It was love at first sight. He wrote about Faro Exploration which lies just at the northernmost tip of Gotland, Sweden's largest island, and stretches over 110 square kilometers.
Until 1998 , Faro was forbidden to foreigners as a protected military zone
"This is your landscape, Bergman. It corresponds to your most intimate imaginations of shapes, proportions, colors, horizons, sounds, silences, lights and reflections, "he wrote in his autobiography" The Magic Lantern "
Oscar in the best foreign language film category, Bergman filmed "Persona" (1966), "Shame" (1968), "The Passion of Anna" (1969) and "Scenes of a Marriage" "(1973) on Faro.
He also directed two documentaries, paying tribute to the workers he employed at his estate, who would also set up tracking rails to track down shots and play extras. Some well remember the napalm fires set up to represent the horrors of war in "The Passion of Anna."
According to a local tradition, Bergman paid well, so that when visitors asked where was his house,
– "Molière and the gold helmet" – [19659007] When Bergman discovered the Hammars beach in 1966 while filming "Persona", he decided to build
He spent several years there with Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann, who later talked about his memories of the day. dark winters while Bergman isolated him.
The artist also bought a barn and a truck of film reels from Stockholm, including several of his favorite works – including "Molière" (1978) by French director Ariane Mnouchkine. "Golden helmet" by Jacques Becker (1952) as well A few years after the death of the fifth and last woman of Bergman, Ingrid, in 1995, he sold his apartment in Stockholm, where he settled definitively In Faro in 2003.
a Lutheran priest, Bergman got acquainted with local pastor Agneta Soderdahl, whom he described as having a beautiful voice
"He once said to me:" I knew you could sing well, but not very well, "she said." AFP, laughing at the memory while she was standing outside the only church in the city. " Island
Describing Bergman as a "skeptical believer", she says that he was seeking to break free from his religious education of "condemnation, punishment and morality". footprint of his entire life
His grave is now under the trees of the only cemetery on the island, at a small distance from the other inhabitants that he learned to love and who loved him .
– "Bergman Safaris" – [19659027] In a documentary, he predicts a slow decline in the island's population with decreasing numbers of fish and seals.
While locals thought him pessimistic, "the future was right," said Kerstin Kalstrom, Bergman's housekeeper.
"Farmers sell their land to rich tourists and land becomes too expensive for young people."
But hope is not lost, she smiles: "The island has registered four births in 2018!"
Less than 500 people live there all year, tourism has become vital for Faro, which is not negligible for Bergman.
Thousands of visitors come every summer to visit the Bergman Center, a cultural association that was created in 2009 to focus on his life and accomplishments.
Every year in June, he hosts "Bergman Week" where visitors watch screenings or performances, listen to a reading or attend a conference related to his work. actor Willem Dafoe and German filmmaker Wim Wenders
There is also the "Bergman Safari" which explores his filming locations, including a part of a reconstructed decor of "Persona".
And the massive house in Hammars Beach has been turned into a residence
Next month, Franco-Danish director Mia Hansen-Love will start shooting her own film called "Bergman Island", inspired by her residence in the home of l & # 39; artist.
Tags: Faro, Ingmar Bergman, Manila Bulletin, Manila Entertainment Bulletin, mb.com.ph, wife Ingrid
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