Burden of Dreams

:01:36

You wanted to know the story of Fitzcarraldo.

:01:40

It's a strange story-
a little bit Sisyphus-like story or...

:01:46

a story of, uh,
challenge of the impossible.

:01:49

The title itself-
I will start with that -

:01:52

uh, is derived from
an Irish name - Fitzgerald.

:01:56

The leading character's name is
Bryan Sweeney Fitzgerald.

:02:00

And since nobody can pronounce
his name in the Amazon here...

:02:04

he calls himself Fitzcarraldo, and he also
founds a town with the name Fitzcarraldo.

:02:09

There was a historical figure whose
name was Carlos Fermín Fitzcarrald...

:02:14

a caucho baron.

:02:16

I must say the story of this caucho baron
did not interest me so much.

:02:20

What interested me more
was one single detail.

:02:23

That was, uh,
that he crossed an isthmus...

:02:27

from one river system into another...

:02:29

uh, with a boat.

:02:31

They disassembled the boat and -
and put it together again on the other river.

:02:36

And, uh, that intrigued me to write a story
about big opera in the jungle...

:02:41

and, uh, about a man
who wants to bring Caruso...

:02:46

into Iquitos and build
a huge opera house.

:02:50

And he fails to -
to get the money for it...

:02:53

and so finally he decides
to make his fortune as a rubber baron.

:02:58

And, uh, he buys a territory
which is out of reach...