: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 FermÃn 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...