|
TROMA
& CANAL+ LIGHT UP THE RIVIERA
by DOUG SAKMANN
|
CLICK ON THE PICTURES TO SEE A LARGER
VERSION
| Lloyd Kaufman and the Troma
Team were selected, along with 9 other filmmakers, to
direct a live, all day webcast with Canal+, a French
Entertainment behemoth. It was a truly great experience
for both parties and the partnership went without flaw.
Yaniv Sharon (of Terror Firmer and Citizen
Toxie) and myself directed the action based on a
script the Troma Team had put together in New York City.
We had creative meetings several times a week to organize
the story. Lloyd was the narrator, and as we brought each
bit to the cameras, he would do a set up in French. |
|
The subject of the broadcast was A
Day In The Life Of The Troma Team at Cannes 2000.
We had originally planned to shoot over half the webcast
indoors but when we got to France, Canal+ told
us that everything had to be shot outside. We had to move
almost all of our shots onto the beach or along the Croisette,
(the main drag in Cannes).
|
|
|
|
We then met the guys in charge
of the webcast, Stephane and Cristophe. It was one my first
encounters with Canal+ and I was blown away. As a
Troma employee I was used to cheese sandwiches and wood
alcohol. But Canal+ had a huge tent, stage, a compound
on the beach filled with computers and other Flash Gordon
style gadgets. But Canal+ was no gang of Poindexters.
The crowning gem was their 24-hour a day open bar. Troma
was invited to come and go as we pleased. Naturally, I saddled
up to the bar next to Kabukiman and tied one on for the
ride. Lloyd and Yaniv got trashed with the Canal +
guys as the script was worked out. My copy was a mess of
scribbles; since I was the only one taking notes and I have
the handwriting of an arthritic chimpanzee. It was eventually
the script we used. |
| The day of the webcast, May 15th,
we arrived at the beach by the Canal+ Headquarters at 10:00am.
We were treated to free drinks and breakfast. It was the
first bite of food many of the Troma volunteers had eaten
since they arrived at Cannes. Paolo the Swedish intern had
trouble chewing because he'd lost most of his teeth to gout,
and all of the Tromettes were weak with malnutrition. Canal+'s
food provided much needed sustenance. |
|
|
|
Then it was time to shoot. The script involved Lloyd
going to Troma Headquarters expecting to see everyone
hard at work, but when he arrives everyone's passed out.
However, we could not shoot indoors so we had to have
the Troma Team passed out on the beach. The script evolved
into a fiesta of heavy drinking, shitting, vomiting and
sex on the beach.
The next scene was based on real Troma experience. We
searched through garbage cans looking for food. There
were croissants planted in the cans that were supposed
to be clean but some feisty members of the Troma Team
actually insisted on eating real garbage. Old habits die
hard.
|
|
The following scene was supposed to have a naked man
(Yaniv) getting pushed out of his hotel room by the rest
of the Troma Team. We couldn't shoot indoors, so Canal
+ hooked us up with a Smart Car. The idea was for me to
drive up to the Troma Team and push naked Yaniv out of
the car and onto the street. However, French cars are
quite different from American cars, so when the time came
for the shot I couldn't release the brake. The Troma Team
ended up walking up to the car and then I just pushed
Yaniv out and sat there instead of zooming away. While
Yaniv was running naked, that Colombian Coffee guy came
up with his mule and we got him in the shot. It takes
a brave man to run naked next to a mule.
|
|
PAGE 1 | PAGE
2
See
these Moments in Real Video!
|
