Below, a resulting news item in French:
Here’s one in Portuguese:
And one in Russian, in which Kannenberg becomes the wordless Agent of Walkman:
I wanted to take a moment to honor the passing of Earl Cassorla, co-proprietor (with his brother Steven) of Battle Mountain, NV’s Roller Coaster Fireworks and subject of the short documentary “Boomtown”, which I had the pleasure of working on a while back.
I got to meet Earl when the film screened at the Minneapolis-St Paul International Film Festival in 2017. It’s always great to meet people in person after staring at them on my computer screen during weeks of postproduction work— especially documentary subjects— and Earl turned out to be the same softspoken, endearing presence I’d expected.
I’m happy that the film is here to commemorate Earl and Steven’s obsession and dedication. Below I’m posting the completed short, for which I provided sound edit, mix, and a couple of original musical compositions. Rest in peace, Earl.
Some stuff I’ve been enjoying recently in the TV/ streaming realm.
THE AMERICANS
(Drama/ Thriller; Originally on FX; now available on Amazon Prime)
One of the best TV shows I’ve ever seen, depicting a pair of 1980s Soviet agents posing as a “normal” American couple in the suburbs of DC. In particular the acting is quite nuanced, suggesting strong direction as well.
I’m also a big fan of the dizzyingly complex opening credits, which are broken down well here.
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THE CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA
(Horror/ Comedy; Netflix)
This show is apparently based on an old Archie comic or something. Anyway, I love what’s it’s been rebooted as: it’s kind of like an American take on Hammer horror with a fair amount of comedy sprinkled in. There’s an awful lot going on here, so it’s difficult to explain briefly. But if a campy brew of witches, demons, clairvoyance, shapeshifting, and undead stuff sounds appealing to you, then check it out. The lighting and overall production design are particularly sumptuous. And there’s a strategically placed “Night of the Lepus” poster at one point too.
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WILD WILD COUNTRY
(Documentary; Netflix)
This has been out for a while now, but if you haven’t seen it yet then do yourself a favor. Again, a sprawling narrative that’s hard to describe, and (despite its truth) even harder to believe. Netflix’s succinct decription is effective: “When a controversial cult leader builds a utopian city in the Oregon desert, conflict with the locals escalates into a national scandal.” The series apparently won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary Series. I particularly love the haunting score by Brocker Way.
