"Dancing in the Collision Point Between Dreams"

SCRIPTING
Most writing is about rewriting & this screenplay underwent nine drafts before the final cut was achieved (lines were also added & dropped during shoots & the edit). This took about nine months. In the film itself, about 10% of the lines were improvised on the spot by the actors (mostly with the roles of Jari and Madeline). The story was originally inspired by my experience as a Finn raised by Finns, especially stories my grandmother shared (who this film is dedicated to) and my own private mystical experiences.

CASTING
Very little auditioning occurred for this production. Almost all the actors were cast from either having worked with me before or having come to me via strong recommendations from respected sources.

REHEARSAL
I met with principal actors 2-3 times a week for about a month to discuss subtext, ie., who are we? where are we? what’s really going on? Occasionally, we’d read from the script but mostly we explored subtext-as-everything. I rehearsed Chris Trian ("Timo") with script once a week for a month. The supporting actors (Maid, Nurse, Intern, Doctor, Lily, Young Esko) were not rehearsed at all.

SOUNDTRACK
My partner-in-crime, Sylvi, composed the lion’s share of the music and oversaw soundtrack realization. Local musicians & bands Birdsaw, LoopStation, Andy Nathan and JS Nasim also contributed generously. After posting a “Punk Rock Song Wanted” on craigslist.org, No Service (outta Rohnert Park) got the gig. Another punksong raged from The Clarendon Hills (Alameda) after a P.A. (James Hoback) raved about their live show. Ambient maestro Diatonis (from L.A.) joins us for the third time ("Tragos, "Hysteria").

SPECIAL FX
I shot all the "green screen" scenes in my living room (using wall-sized rolls of gray photography paper painted with "chroma-green" @ $50/gallon and then, lit as evenly as possible) before sending the footage to Michael McWhirter ("Tragos, "Hysteria"), who brainstormed from his Austin TX home to create all the dazzling CGI effects for the Oz dream, the Hedgehog Chess Match and the Zany Jig. Oakland CGI artist, Sam Worf ("Tragos") did all the stunning digital grading (colorization fx) and Duff from SurRealStudio (in Seattle) made the CGI "moon over water" sequences.

COSTUMES
With the assistance of her husband Brad, Heather Hanan (who also did catering) created the magnificent Hedgehog costume from scratch. Kimo Hodge was responsible for designing, stitching and manifesting the amazing Raven costumes and the spectacular "OZ" characters. Sylvi created the inspired and shredded bridal wraps she wore as "Sisu."

CREW/SOUND
I often work without an AD but the more complex scenes (hospital and dinner) demanded one and Sean Christopher (Sacramento) proved invaluable for his patience, technical know-how and low-key attitude. I also invited local soundman Malcolm Sherwood (Seinheisser ME-67 microphone w. separate ambient mic.) onboard to step up the audio quality in these big scenes. Numerous production assistants (see crew) were also indispensible in realizing shot-by-shot and scene-by-scene production goals. Script supervisor, Junichi Kakutani, deserves special mention for his meticulous note-taking & all-around positive attitude.

SHOOTING/EDITING
Shooting lasted approx. 30 days (throughout Feb/March 03) using three cameras: Canon XL-1, Canon GL-1 (both miniDV) and a Sankyo Super8 (w. hi-speed 250-400T film). After completing an offline VHS rough cut at my home in four weeks, I joined Chris Odell (editor, "Tragos" & "Hysteria") for three weeks on Apple's non-linear editing system, Final Cut Pro, to finesse and complete the picture.

SCREENINGS
Right after completing this film, I started booking one-night stands at west coast arthouse cinemas in Seattle, Portland, SF, Berkeley, Oakland, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. Sylvi and I personally travelled to each premiere. Check the SCREENING HISTORY for where "Shipwrecked Moon" has already shown.

THE DVD
For about thirteen years I was deadset against making my films available on video and dvd, probably out of some stubborn (and maybe stupid) purist sensibility for how they should only be experienced on the big screen. So this has changed. Now four of my major works are available from myself only on dvd: UNDER A SHIPWRECKED MOON (2003), HYSTERIA (2002), TRAGOS (2000/2004) and my 2004 paratheatre document ORPHANS OF DELIRIUM.

Antero Alli
writer/director/DP

VISION STATEMENT
Why I Do What I Do

FILMOGRAPHY
a list of completed works

e-mail me

VERTICAL POOL PRODUCTIONS

site map