Florida Road – An Independent Film
by Karen van Schalkwyk
“Florida Road” is an independent film produced by Sunworld
Productions and was recently shot in Durban. The film is the
directorial début of Brad Glass, an American who spends his
time between LA and South Africa.
The film includes an impressive cast of both local and
international Bollywood actors including Vicky Davis, Cornie
du Tiot, Cokey Falkow and Bollywood stars Ashmit Patel, Vipin
Sharma, Priyansh Chatterjee and Smita Jayakar.
The film is tells the story of Shann, a mid 20s Indian man
with a heart of gold and a desire to write the next great
Hollywood screenplay.
Glass says that he had been working on the story for 10 years.
“In some respects it is autobiographical. We started to
develop the screenplay three years ago when I approached
screenwriter, Fred Fontana. It was never originally going to
be an Indian film, but I had travelled around Malaysia, India
and South East Asia and a lot of those experiences influenced
the story.”
They decided to shoot in Durban as this was a perfect
location. “Part of the story is about an Indian family who
relocates to Durban so this was an ideal location. We also
shot all the locations as a true reflection of South Africa.
So even when we shot in a restaurant we would not change the
name, but kept it authentic. One of our shots is an aerial
shot across one of the spectacular beaches.”
Glass says that another great blessing was working with the
Durban Film Office (DFO). “They were extremely helpful and
efficient. We had amazing support from the City of Durban and
the residents. The enthusiasm of the local people was great.
We had considered shooting in Australia or Asia but are
extremely happy that we chose Durban as our location.”
Glass explains that financing for the film comes from private
investor. “We have investors in the States and Canada and have
applied to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for the
rebate. We are in talks with a division of Universal Pictures
who are keen to distribute the film internationally.”
One of the challenges on the shoot was language. “With some of
our Indian actors, this was their first English speaking film.
So for instance with the humour in the script they would not
necessarily understand it. As the director, however, I allow
the actors to interpret certain things. I believe, coming from
an acting background that it’s crucial to encourage actors to
be creatively free.”
Blocking a film can often restrict creative freedom. “I do not
like to block scenes and will give an actor the end mark, but
I allow them to move in the space. I think this creates a far
more naturalistic feeling, which comes across on screen.”
Glass was impressed with the South Africa actors. “They come
well prepared and needed very little rehearsal time.”
The film is cinematically and character driven. “There are no
special effects so a lot of what is on screen has to do with
the performance and the style. Dave Aenmey did a fantastic job
as our cinematographer along with Durban choreographer,
Shivani Kara. We have some great Bollywood dance scenes.”
The film was shot on two HD Red One cameras but used Panavision
lenses. “The lenses made a huge difference and the film has a
cinematic look. I was impressed with the cameras.”
Glass says that they will definitely produce more films in
South Africa. “The crews are fantastic and the locations. The
huge difference here is that it is not unionised. In the
States there is so much red tape and if you go overtime you
pay huge amounts of money. South Africa is more lenient which
makes a big difference. We shot for four weeks and never had
issues on set.”
The film is a real tear-jerker and a feel good drama. “I want
the audience to go through a rollercoaster of emotions. I
think we have achieved this.”
Copyright (c) 2010 Peter D. Marshall / All Rights Reserved
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