Icebreakers

A large vessel crosses the frozen Baltic Sea. Passengers are in transit dreaming of desire and cabaret artists are desiring to dream. Between attraction and repulsion, the ferry is at the crossroads of an amusement park and a film studio.

Director's Statement:

I am fascinated by spaces and their relation to film. Capturing an empty room with a camera can give us access to a multitude of invisible stories that are hidden in the objects and forms that compose it. Passenger ferries are pompous vessels with an undeniable aura. Cruises like the one in Icebreakers invite everybody to perform and dream, yet target a certain class. By embarking on them I wanted to explore our desires and cravings. Icebreakers is the portrait of a place shaping what we ultimately long for. But how far does our consciousness reach ? The ferry is a microcosm that renews itself every night and while its passengers are changing, the place remains the same. We never leave it since we are in its belly, as if we were trapped. Its attraction force is so strong that our eyes want to look at it constantly. I wanted to recreate this feeling of gazing, like tourists gaping at sights.