Ten Minutes Older

The title refers to the length of this cinematic experiment about the power of exaltation, but also to the toddlers and preschoolers appearing before the camera. Ten minutes of their lives go by while they watch a puppet show, of which director Herz Frank shows us nothing at all. All we see are the concentrated expressions of the little kids. The director captures every movement of their mouths and eyes in detail. The emotions behind those expressions change at a quick tempo and cannot be fathomed just like that. Boredom? Excitement? Sadness? Joy? Even a smile can just as easily be a sign of relief or humor. Just as the kids watch the show, in silence and filmed in sober black-and-white, Frank lets us watch them and just as they are touched by what they see, we also attempt to understand what is going on with them. Does the performance change their lives or leave scars on their delicate souls? Art serves as a mirror for humanity, and apparently this begins when we are very little. But seldom does this reflection reveal ourselves, intensely thrilled through art.