Diary
For the last few weeks up to the start of the festival, we're providing an exclusive insight for all sehsüchte fans into the exciting phase of getting it all ready. The members of the individual sectors will report on their work, on individual moments of success, small catastrophies and big ones, worries and moments of happiness. Julia from Marketing, who's been selflessly dealing with the conception and production of the festival trailer and can look back on exciting weeks with Nora Tschirner, Florian Lukas and the thought of a possible meeting with Quentin Tarantino, made a start. But read it yourself…
Entry of 26 March 2009 by Julia (Marketing)
The sehsüchte trailer is calling: Quentin vs. Nora
Actually, Quentin Tarantino was supposed to appear in our festival trailer. This was the idea the trailer team hooked us with. "If they can really convince you that they can get Quentin, then take them," was what our team sent me off with. So we were four, sitting there in the pitch, listening to all the ideas and waiting for the Quentin arguments à la " he's the brother-in-law of the cameraman's brother's neighbour, it's all sorted out, he's standing outside the door"…
Berlinale in the forest
We couldn't really believe it, but with their "the wrong festival" story they had the most brilliant idea that grabbed you with its clarity and its humour. And that's how it was - probably more than ever before in the history of sehsüchte - UNANIMOUSLY clear after a minute's thought, these are the ones we want!
So we had to see what we could come up with. We drew up some more "dream" candidates for the trailer alongside Quentin: actors like Pierce Brosnan, Sean Penn, Johnny Depp or Tilda Swinton, them we could very well imagine too. Unfortunately we had to learn one thing very quickly - it's just not that easy. Either they hadn't the time, or the flights were unspeakably expensive.
Nora Tschirner and Florian Lukas
Quentin's assistant simply did not want to pass on our treatment, and by the time he'd changed his team for the third time, we quickly realised - we'd be better orientating ourselves across Germany. And then a vision came to us: Nora Tschirner, insanely goodlooking, strong willed and smart, and Florian Lukas, sehsüchte seasoned, character written all over his face, 10 cm smaller than Nora - wouldn't that be a dream couple? And lo and behold, they thought so too! And that took care of the first step.
But it didn't clear all the problems off the table. That's because a trailer doesn't just need actors but also a location - and we wanted to shoot at the Berlinale. Festival atmosphere, authenticity, crowds of people, cameras, swathes of red carpet - we really craved all that! But the Berlinale organisers didn't see it the same way. No room for our highly motivated trailer team, or if at all, then second row but never ever ON the red carpet! We gave it a try with Dieter Kosslick himself, begged and pleaded, but even if he was well-disposed to us, he didn't want to cross his team. And that dropped us right in it: two actors, no location.
Snow during the shooting
All that is already a few weeks back, the trailer is done. And as you can see, we've mastered everything. How, I'm going to keep that secret. We learned that, even if you're standing in the middle of the forest and its snowing, it can look like the Berlinale, Nora's got more authority than the unit manager, Florian is even smaller than you might think, quite a few extras seemed amazingly sober after three bottles of fizz, that there are cameras no bigger than a cigarette packet and Anne-Kathrin, the apprentice producer, makes the best potato soup in the world.
It was good, so here once again: warmest thanks to all concerned! Above all staunch Anne, Peter the director's unfailing good humour, Nora und Florian, who got a Berlinale up and running in the forest with Bacardi and Coke, Gregor and his ambitions, and the frozen extras - a 1000 thanks, what would we have done without you!
And all of it for our great festival!
Yours,
Julia (Marketing)
