Mirza - The Untold Story

Here’s a trailer to Mirza – The Untold Story, a punjabi film we worked on last year over a two month period.

Release Date: April 6, 2012

Starring Gippy Grewal & Mandy Takhar with Rahul Dev and Bunnu Dhillion. Music by Honey Singh.

The director, Baljit Singh Deo, wanted to create a Punjubi film with a distinctly North American large scale production value feeling. He wanted to set new standards for Indian films overseas. Principal photography was in Vancouver, BC.

We had a challenging time creating that big budget movie lighting with a minimal crew and no budget for pre-rigging. We worked closely with our good friend and cinematographer Toby Gorman to use large sources, carefully shaped single sources, and strategically placed background lights. We used condor lighting where possible for our night exteriors to save time and manpower because we had minimal time for setup and turnarounds to rig smaller lights. Throughout the show we carried a pair of 6k PAR’s in addition to our base lighting package, slush truck, and a tow generator.

Filmed on Red Epic. Produced by Inda Raikoti & Aman Khatkar. The movie has been getting a lot of attention overseas because of its cast special appearances, and non-conventional Bollywood production ways.

The Odds was our previous feature film and it was produced by Oliver Linsley who recently completed Beyond the Black Rainbow – also filmed by Norm Li…

The guy is unstoppable — with multiple independent film cinematography credits under his belt, more RED Camera owned then he has fingers on his right hand, and a private Airstar 4k balloon light to fly high in the moonlit air on helium pressure — look for a steady stream of Norm’s work to debut soon.

The Normstar (4k Tungsten Balloon Light)

Vancouver Film School’s equipment was booked by multiple graduation projects from the cinematography program. Michael was leading an inter-department collaboration between the school of business and post production code named Project Space Squid, which involved students, faculty, and alumni. The project was based on the sci-fi cosmic horror writing of HP Lovecraft, an american writer from the turn of the century.

Michael needed professional lighting to bring Lovecraft’s surreal Cthulhu Mythos to life.

VFS Entertainment turned to our grip truck to convert an unused space which had no lighting grid into a functioning green screen studio with lights and equipment. We performed lighting services while business management students oversaw the shooting of 5 short films. They were titled: C’Thulhu, Dagon, Dunwich, Erich Zahn, and Rats.

The students are maintaining a comprehensive blog of their progress in post production.

The project was overseen by VFS head of the Entertainment Business Management department, Jessica Leigh Clark-Bojin, who also produced a 7-minute behinds the scenes documentary of the production titled, The Interactive Lovecraft.

Further there are some photos taken by a student here.

The VFS press department seems to be on a roll with this project…more will follow.

TALCO crosses police tape in middle of a Vancouver police investigation following a shooting of a suspected car thief by a VPD officer in a parking lot across from a film set in Strathcona.

In what has become a media battle between the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) who shot a suspected car thief in the Strathcona parking lot across from our film set, and a photographer for The Province, Jason Payne, who was subsequently beat up by police in front of our best boy for photographing the “clean up” operation, we have been looking and finally found a photo of our truck in the midst of it all.

The VPD is spinning articles to try to rationalize the controversial shooting and the Province paper is trying to play up the assault on their photographer who’s rights were violated. Rather then confine their investigation to the parking lot where the shooting took place, the the Vancouver police (VPD) taped off the entire Strathcona neighborhood, including our 5-ton lighting and grip package truck, preventing us from completing our shooting day. They were investigating each house trying to get a handle on who had witnessed the incident in order to best spin their media story of what happened.

In case you missed the published media stories, here’s ours:

On Sunday April 5 in broad daylight an unmarked gray police cruiser carrying 4 officers in civilian clothes pinned a stolen black Ford F-350 pickup truck in a Strathcona parking lot across from our set by ramming into it. The driver spun the wheels on the F-350 trying to push free of the cruiser, but was not able to gain traction, and the rubber on his wheels started smoking. A cop shot the suspect at close proximity through the passenger window and hit him in the neck. Photographer Jason Payne of the Province arrived as they were pulling the body out of the car as did our best boy, nicholas-kandie; who then witnessed the cops physically restraining Jason and confiscating his camera.

The Ford F-350 was apparently wanted by the police already in connection with a recent hit and run incident in which a hooker was dragged down hastings street 400 block with her jacket caught in the side door.

This is the second police shooting to happen in three weeks. On March 20, Vancouver police shot and killed Michael Vann Hubbard, 58, in downtown Vancouver. Approached by two officers, he was shot after he pulled out a small x-acto blade. A witness, Adam Smolcic, who videotaped the shooting on his cell phone said  ’he was very shaky, but he wasn’t making any moves toward the police at all.’ His phone was confiscated and the video was erased by the Vancouver police prior to them returning it.

Threatened by The Province, the Vancouver Police spokesperson Constable Jana McGuinness released a diagram of what happened in the parking lot which caused the police to shoot the car thief…The scale was accurate about the size difference between the F-350 and the Police Cruiser, but we weren’t so sure about the pigmy sized cops and the gigantic protruding wheels. Even so, we decided to add our own modification to better understand the scale in terms of TALCO technicians who can single-handedly carry 18K HMI and C+stands on their shoulders, and who’s 5-ton lighting and grip package truck is larger then an F-350, a Crown-Vic Police Cruiser, and a parked car combined!

Our Modified McGuinness VPD diagram to Scale. If only cops could operate 18k Ballasts like TALCO technicians can, then they could use them to pin in cars too without the gun shots!

We like the scaling on ours better!

The Peter Reynolds Peewee Dolly can be pre-loaded on TALCO's 5-ton truck!

We’ve coined it the term, Reynolds Peewee dolly. This is a well machined Italian version of the American Peewee dolly, not to be confused with a cheap asian knock-off. In fact, this is the only one of it’s kind in Canada. Peter has done a nice job restoring it and it comes in sexy matte Black finish, with plush italian leather. That might be an exaggeration, but smoothness of the arm is not. In fact, the Italian Peewee dolly arm movement is much better then an actual Peewee crab dolly. We tried it ourselves and agreed.

Once the workhorse of Peter Reynolds fleet of grip trucks, the Italian crab dolly has been reconditioned like new to serve again. Thanks to him you don’t need to pay the standard $600/day for a hydraulic crab dolly. You can have a smooth hydraulic arm in a compact, full featured dolly; for less.

Reynold's hydraulic crab dolly soon to feature an 8-pack beer holder

For those not familiar with the hydraulic crab dolly — like everything American — they are a carefully controlled commodity which is only available by lease and never to own, by two manufacturers: Chapman-Leonard who makes the Peewee, Hustler, and Hybrid dolly, and J.L Fischer who makes the Fischer 11, Fischer 10.

These two giants control a monopoly. They only build so many units, so there is no supply, and it creates a demand. No one can own the dolly so there is no way to discount it. Even the rental house has to pay a lease to Chapman or Fischer every month for the privilege of renting the crab dolly to its customers. The design of the hydraulic crab dolly dates back to World War II. Originally manufactured to load bombs into airplanes, are these dolly’s really manufactured by Lockheed-Martin for Hollywood? It’s a conspiracy theory in the making.

Years ago an Italian company reverse engineered the Peewee dolly, rebuilt it with standardized machined parts for mass distribution, and outfitted it with a better hydraulic system. Chapman sued the shit out of them and banned sales in North America, crippling thier revenue and sending them out of business before they could establish a mass-production line and bring the hydraulic crab dolly to people like you and I.

Fortunately Peter Reynolds bought one of these units in their prime and brings the Italian crab dolly back to us now! In fact, TALCO can pre-load the Reynolds Peewee dolly on our truck today!

(BARNA-ALPER DEC 07) a condor rigged by TALCO lights a Delta farm set

As the SAG situation and economy combine to create a slow start to the new year for us in Vancouver, we look towards our next projects…Any takers?

At the moment we are passing our time collaborating with Brant McIlroy and Martin Testa of the innovative Brant FX company (their website is being redesigned) on a unique animatronic project completely unlike the last film we met them on over a year ago. A photo to the left shows a taste from the past as TALCO illuminates a large night exterior using a condor flying above a rural landscape supported by fog and rain towers by the effects duo, BrantFX.

They created the rain somehow without a pump truck because this was a docu-drama, not a big budget feature and the show could not afford the $3000 it would have cost to have a pump truck. They couldn’t afford a pair of 40′ trailers either with seperate grips and electrics. That’s where we came in with a carefully planned, minimal set of subrentals and our basic 5-ton package truck. Together Trounce Alley Lighting Company and BrantFX created a big budget hollywood look on a docu-drama budget. In fact, we were able to work out an arrangement to have our truck for 2 months of interviews preceding this shoot. This allowed us to push a new standard forward as far as what cinematically could be done in the confines of a docu-drama structure.

We like Brant and Martin because they have the same “can-do” attitude as us. They can literally take on any challenge no matter how immense — and pull it off for relative peanuts compared to a large studio. Like us, they have built a truck for the motion picture industry and they have the equipment and knowledge to create anything out of electronics, chemicals, metals — you name it — they’ve done it — their workshop is something straight out of Ironman.

Personally we’ve seen them cut steel like butter, use explosives, build circuit boards, weld, and experiment with rare mineral oils, all to the blaring sound of heavy metal on their studio’s sound system!

Of even more potential: the studio space BrantFX owns — when teamed up with TALCO the possibilities are endless! Whether its music videos, commercials, or anything that needs special effects and lighting — together we raise eyebrows for a fraction of a cost of the big studio outfits! We can provide everything from 20′x20′ green screens to a camera dolly and gib arm — your complete lighting and grip needs. They can provide the studio, animatronics, and effects. Good things are in the future.

Who’s going to be the first to bring us together and create million dollar results for relative pennies? We’ll keep you posted as this latest collaboration develops.

Our platform of choice is the widely established WordPress project which gained popularity over Movable Type when the later temporarily revoked its public licenses in an attempt to go fully private. In the spirit of independent filmmakers we choose to go with the purest project because the two are comparable in features.

BARNA-ALPER DEC 2007: a TALCO technician demonstrates his lighting and grip skills on set at TERMINAL CITY.

You can see the lighting (and a recognizable TALCO technician or two in the background) in the following Soundcheck interview video:

If you’d like to get a glimpse of the performances, heres the recording of the song “Animals” by Nickelback for Walmart Soundcheck:

WFW International supplies TALCO with large equipment as needed.

TALCO is more then capable of organizing a large scale production with circus, generators, pre-rigging crews, condors, cable trucks, and the works.

All you need to do is rent a gennie and/or a slush truck with supplemental distro, oversized lights and grip gear from a rental house using our truck as a base of tools, expendables, and expertise. In many cases you can avoid, or minimize an expensive prep day.

We have a working relationship with William F. White International Commercials Division and can arrange to sub-rent larger equipment as needed. Our experience with the rental company ensures that we get exactly what we need at the best price possible for your production.

By building our relationship through the commercials department we are able to get personal attention and bypass the hierarchy and b$ of the features world while maintaining full access to the equipment we need and the support we trust.

Our base truck package makes sub rentals easier because we already have many of the stands and support items. This means less equipment for the rental house to pull off their shelves, and less prep for us — equals more savings for you. It provides flexibility within budgets all around.

When you contract TALCO for your large scale productions, we bring business to the rentals houses in the form of subrentals — keeping everything in it’s natural order. You will not incur wrath by trying to bypass the established houses because they operate on different levels from us, and we actually work together with them. They provide the large equipment we need, and we provide the expertise and skill to create the production value the producers want. The more we can help the producers attain their vision, the larger the productions they can do in the future, and the more we go back to the rental houses for even larger equipment. This integrated concept allows us all to grow larger together.

 TALCO has an excellent truck package and a versatile set of equipment, but we cannot provide and maintain on our own the thousands and millions of dollars worth of equipment required for a large scale production. This is where the rental houses make their money. 

For smaller shows sometimes it costs so much just to have the rental houses pull the orders, and for producers to arrange for pickups, inventory, and returns — that many times the rental house will prefer you to go with TALCO and rent only the few extra things you need from them.

When you contract us you are gaining our skills, crew, expendables, and simplifying your prep time. It is a win-win situation. Having our truck on set provides confidence for us to improvise and handle any situation we encounter on set. All too often does a production stumble when it finds it is missing something obvious that is overlooked. Many times a producer wont even be aware of the shortcoming because every department improvises the best it can. But it comes at a cost in speed and efficiency. We can count on our truck and the knowledge of our tools without having to waste time with less. As a result our department runs smoother and faster so you get your shot list with time to spare. 

Lets go big together — it is within your reach — and we have the support of the industry behind us!
All you need is OUR truck and some big DREAMS!

Production managers know first-hand how much easier it is to work with TALCO and a preloaded truck then a typical lighting department and grip department, each with their own inventory lists that require prep days, transport, etc. In most cases we can accomplish with one gaffer, one best boy, and a small truck what would normally take a whole transport crew, 40′ trailers, and multiple departments and keys to organize. Producers understand immedetiatly that these savings translate directly into increased production value for every dollar spent.

My favorite film ”City of the Lost Children” (La Cité des enfants perdus) by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, for example, could not have been made in a Hollywood style. The director explains his budget was so tight that his cheif lighting technician brought in a construction crane for a shot where they needed, but could not afford a movie crane. They strapped a steady-cam operator to the bucket of the lift and that was how he got one of the final scenes which was an aerial shot ascending from the set.

It is this type of innovation that TALCO values and the “Can-do” attitude that states: where there is a will, there is way! We pride ourselves in our ingenuity under pressure and are confident in our abilities and tools to overcome any obstacle a production may face.

The City of Lost Children trailer. Separate montage from film is posted below:

Farewell Geoff Browne

Vancouver loses one of its finest spirited filmmakers in writer, director Geoff Browne of Boundless Light, known around town for his Tibetan documentary, Kall it Karma. He has moved to Los Angeles to pursue directorial projects on feature length productions.

He may be gone for now, but his name, along with TALCO, will be appearing soon on a 2-month shoot produced by Academy Award winning documentary filmmaker Malcom Clarke. Look for this highly controversial feature length docu-drama to be released within the next year making headlines big time.

TALCO is pleased to have participated in 6 weeks of interviews followed by 2 weeks of big budget reconstructions which will bring this terrifying story to life.

In the mean while, you’ll have to see Malcom’s recently Oscar nominated, Prisoners of Paradise – or perhaps even more intense his 1985 exploration of  American Vietnam vets hiding from a society in which they are no longer fit to coexist with, Soldiers in Hiding.

As for us, we are happy to have had an opportunity to work with filmmakers of such high caliber and for an extended period of time. Thanks as well to Barna Alper from Toronto for organizing, producing, and distributing this very interesting production.We look forward to working on many more amazing documentaries and we wish Geoff Browne great success abroad until we may next work with him again.