Sunday, November 22, 2015

Bright Blue Gorilla - Guest Blogger: Tsvetelina Valkova

My First Feature Film as a One-Person Sound Team

 Sunday, hard to wake up, I fill my coffee cup and I'm at the door. That's how my first day shooting "Mr Rudolpho's Jubilee" started. And because we are in Berlin the transportation system doesn't work always I'm waiting in the pitch-black morning for the S-Bahn... It sounds a bit like a beginning of a horror story but believe me it wasn't.
Don't get me wrong, Berlin is amazing. Berlin is my magical place full of unicorns and creatures from different planets, but waiting for the train at 6am is something that can drive you mad. 
Shooting Mr. Rudolpho's Jubilee in Berlin. The movie has a great cast topped by Francesco Mazzini and Christiane Paul.
If you want to know what it is to be a sound recordist I can try and explain. Horrible, long hours, most of the time no pay. But, in the end, being on a film set is the most rewarding feeling that you can get. Especially on a set like “Mr. Rudolpho’s Jubilee”. Most of my friends are wondering how can I invest so much time and energy in something that doesn't pay my rent, and living in a society that revolves around money I need to go a bit in depth about the creators of the film. Michael and Robyn are two nomad Americans who packed their bags 25 years ago and started to travel the world. In my opinion they don't need much, they need their guitars, the passion that they share and the magical worlds that they create. Michael is a writer/director and Robyn is the producer of Rudolpho, their 6th feature film made with no money at all. Mr. Rudolpho's Jubilee is made with "just" love for the arts and great bunch of people that they met during their travels. The film itself is a romantic comedy with musical narration by Michael and Robyn. The story revolves around Mr. Rudolpho, a fashion designer, who decides to commit suicide but is rescued by a group of bohemians.  
I know Michael and Robyn from a mutual friend and I instantly liked them. A year later, here we are, creating art together. Their concept is easy: “Lets have fun and make something that we will be proud of when we are done”. But when they offered me to be a part of their team I was bit reluctant. I'm very conscientious about my work. I thought: I’m a film student (I was at the time) who really likes sound. Sound is amazing for me but I was sure I didn’t know enough, especially for a film like Rudolpho. Musical narration, at least 15 main characters, this is not what I was used to. Normally in film school we shoot short films for 2 days and we have two or three characters. How would I do it? At the end, after a lot of thought, I said yes. Up to that point, I was recording for short student films with couple of exceptions, and being given the chance to record for a indie feature film was exciting. 
On the Rudolpho set in Milan, with Enzo Giraldo and Orsetta Borghero
Film in general is exciting. You meet new people every time, you learn new cultures and ways of working. This was especially true on this set because everyone came from a different country and had a different skill set. I think we were more than 300 collaborators from 30 different countries. Michael and Robyn have one skill that really fascinates me: they believe in their projects. And with this they can get anything that they want. One thing that I learned from them is that, with asking, you can open hundreds of doors. Also, if it doesn't work out at the beginning you need to try again.  They got amazing locations like rooftop bars, tour buses, and boats and all for free, just by asking and hoping for the best. 
On location in Berlin. Michael Rothmann, Rob Rodgers, Frank Kallinowski, Winfried Goos
My hesitancy to join may sound stupid to a professional sound person, but for me a feature film was something new and scary. But when we started filming I saw that I'm surrounded by people who believe in what they do and help each other. This for me is the difference between a normal paid set, and a set where everyone just wants to make something amazing. The set itself was great most of the times. I say most because there are always frustrations and problems but the fun part is overcoming them.  
Most of the story was shot in Berlin but we also went to Italy.  We spend one magical week in Tuscany surrounded by vineyards and olive trees. The next stop was Milan. Location work was so different than what I'm used to. Normally, when you shoot you do your work and afterwards you go home and it's like a job. Being in a different country surrounded by your fellow filmmakers is different. It's like a small family. And like a family you have your moments with them and fallouts but the main goal is worth it. Now when I look back I enjoyed it despite all of the problems and long hours.
Shooting at an abandoned warehouse outside of Milan. Enzo Giraldo and Valeria Anna Ferrario are in this scene.
After more than 35 practical photography days we are still at the beginning of finding out what Mr. Rudolpho’s Jubilee can be. We still need to re-record the songs and finish the edit.  I've never been to a recording studio and I can't wait to go and see how you mix a song in a studio. And soon after we will have our collaboration to show to the world. Exciting things to come!
Visit our IndieGoGo page: http://igg.me/at/rudolphomovie/x/5894693
Or the facebook page: www.facebook.com/MrRudolphosJubilee/
Bright Blue Gorilla: www.brightbluegorilla.com

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Mr. Rudolpho's Jubilee! Now in Post-Production in Berlin.

We had a fantastic and busy summer shooting in Berlin and Italy. (Berlin in spring & summer is awesome - and Italy is always Italy!) Now we're back in Berlin in post-production for Mr. Rudolpho's Jubilee! It's our 6th feature film and is a romantic comedy in Italian, German, and English - with musical narration by Bright Blue Gorilla of course! Here's a teaser. Hope you get a kick out of it!  "Remain Calm... Share Your Bananas..." Robyn & Michael