By 1996 I was seriously sick of working on features, but I took a job on the The Rainmaker just to have the chance to work for Coppola. I was probably broke anyway. I was not disappointed. He was a great guy who brought wine for the crew twice a week and was always glad to tell war stories about making Apocalypse Now and other films. One day he called everyone on the crew over to see his wife Eleanor's Sony VX-1000 dv camera. An Emmy Award winner herself for the film Hearts Of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse , she was shooting behind-the-scenes documentary footage with the new Sony. Francis said "I want everyone to see this camera, because this is where the movie business is going. You can get one of these for a few thousand dollars and shoot great looking footage and edit it yourself on a personal computer. Someday this is going to replace film and I think you should think about getting something like this and doing your own productions." Good advice.
The best boy electric - a lifelong union guy - had admonished us that we all would end up working at Home Depot if we didn't get the town's production companies to go union. I figured he was probably right on some level. I told him if that was the case I was getting out as soon as possible. It's not a good idea to be at the mercy of someone else's ability to bring in work. Within 6 months David and I had our first dvcam. I figured the union racket was a bad path for a Birkenstock-wearing artsy type like me. I just didn't fit in with the bikers.
What an amazing tale you got there, Eric. I've heard you tell this story several times but it never gets old. Must have been amazing working with THE Francis Ford Coppola. (Although by that time I am pretty sure he had used up every inch of being creating 3 of the most well known films in American cinema history.)
ReplyDelete