Screenplay Update: Scene 31 - The Art of Favouritism
STYLE: High-gloss aesthetic. A bright, modern private museum (similar to the Heidi Horten Collection in Vienna). The camera glides over incredibly expensive paintings by Warhol and Picasso.
CAST:
- Heidi Horten: Birgit Minichmayr (in an extravagant designer suit, hung with pearls)
- The Young Reporter: A slightly intimidated man in a poorly fitting suit.
INT. PRIVATE MUSEUM - DAY
Heidi (Minichmayr) stands in front of a huge, colorful painting. She holds a glass of champagne in which the carbonation bubbles almost rhythmically.
HEIDI (with a deep, smoky voice and a slight Viennese accent) Look at that, darling. A Picasso. Do you know what's special about a Picasso? It's not just paint on canvas. It's a statement. It says: "I can afford the reality I want."
REPORTER (takes notes) Impressive, Mrs. Horten. But many wonder... where does the passion for art come from? And are there parallels to your... well... political engagement?
HEIDI (laughs quietly, a throaty laugh) Oh, come on! Politics, art... it's all the same, my dear. It's about patronage. An artist needs a frame for their work to be effective. And a party? It just needs a frame too, so it can... work properly.
She takes a step closer to a portrait of her late husband Helmut.
HEIDI Helmut always said: "Heidi, a department store is like a museum. You have to show people what they should desire." I'm doing nothing different now. I'm showing the world what a beautiful Austria looks like. And if that requires a few donations here and there...
REPORTER Critics call it influencing. Or donation splitting to bypass the Court of Audit.
HEIDI (looks at him directly, her eyes flashing coolly) Splitting? What an ugly word. I call it pointillism. Like with Seurat! Many small dots only result in the large, glamorous picture from a distance. Those who only see the individual dots have no sense of the aesthetics of the whole.
She takes a sip of champagne.
HEIDI You know, darling... art on buildings is good. But art on the state? That is the true supreme discipline.
FADE TO BLACK.