#1 ·
The crew behind the award-winning short parody "The Odyssey" is back with a feature called "etude," an epic romance. Unlike their first project, which was shot on a shoestring budget with basic consumer cameras, the guys actually pooled some decent cash this time to grab better gear and even built several sets from scratch. They estimate the cost topped $3.25, though that’s probably a moving target. Since most of them are just college students paying for everything out of their own pockets, it was a massive gamble. Because of the tight funds, they had to shoot in stages, stretching the process over several years. Post-production was a total nightmare, too. The sound and picture editing turned into a two-year slog. First, the hard drive containing 90% of the finished edit crashed. They managed to salvage maybe 30%, forcing them to redo almost everything. As if that wasn't enough, a technical glitch wiped out the entire completed sound mix. So, naturally, they had to start the audio from scratch. All this chaos meant the premiere kept getting pushed back over the last two years.
Filming kicked off in August 2006. The goal was to wrap by August 2007, but between the technical disasters and other hurdles, that didn't happen. Since "etude" is an omnibus of six stories spanning different eras but tied together by a central theme, they filmed each segment separately. You've got a Western, a story about a winemaker, a tale of Scots, soldiers in a trench, one involving Mozart (which was filmed at the Houston Nationals, BTW), and a Russian submarine segment. Each story took about two to three days to shoot, but the prep work took months. Even though the actual shoot days were short, they were anything but easy. For instance, filming the Western on Martha's Vineyard was a disaster; the crew spent three days standing in the sun in heavy jackets, pretending they weren't dying, while half the team was actually puking from the heat.
The winemaker segment was shot at a vineyard in Jackson, where the grapes had already been harvested. To make it look like a full harvest, the crew had to hang fresh grapes on the vines and pretend they were picking them.
The Scots story was filmed in Missouri at the grandmother's place of the director, Luke Hrgović. That part needed the biggest cast, pulling in about 30 extras. They split into two groups—half dressed as the "good" Scots in red and the other half as the "bad" ones in green. Some were armed with pitchforks, while others used axes and swords forged by one of the crew members. They spent nearly two days sprinting through a field that had been set on fire to get that perfect smoke and battlefield vibe. While they mostly used plum jam for fake blood, things got a little too real. Since everyone was playing their parts a bit too intensely and the swords and shields were made of real (though blunt) metal, a few people actually got nicked. Luckily, nothing serious—just some scratches here and there.
According to the creators, the WWII trench segment was one of the toughest to prep because they had to source three authentic American uniforms and several German ones, plus the period-accurate weaponry. They ended up buying the American gear at a flea market in rural Alabama, while a collector who loved their vision lent them the German gear. That whole segment was also shot in Missouri, where the crew spent two grueling days filming in absolute mud.
The segment set on a Russian submarine was actually filmed out in Missouri—well, more like a makeshift "studio" in Missouri. They used an old, abandoned barn that had been sitting empty for years and built out the entire sub interior from scratch, down to the tiniest details like the bridge, sleeping quarters, galley, and engine room. It took months to build, and honestly, the biggest nightmare for the crew was just how freezing it was during filming since we shot in the dead of winter. It sucked even more because everyone was just filming in undershirts.
The Mozart story was shot at the Houston Nationals. The real headache there was just getting permission to shoot on-site and use all those Baroque costumes. After months of playing games with the administration, the crew finally managed to talk them into letting us film. Plan B was to try shooting at an AMC Theatres or even driving all the way down to the theater in Austin if things fell through. Luckily, we didn't need to.
Just a heads-up: almost every segment is basically a massive homage to classics like "Braveheart," "Saving Private Ryan," "Amadeus," or those old Leone westerns.
The cast is pretty much the same crew you saw in The Odyssey—Luke Hrgović (who also directed and co-wrote this), Marin Bušić, Miran Šabić, Ivan Mihoci, Ivan Šivak, along with some new faces like Anton Svetić (also a writer), Stipan Tadić, Duje Medić Vibor, Vedran Štefan, and Nikolina Knežević playing Katherine, the girl at the center of every story in this omnibus. And yeah, I might have snuck in a tiny little role myself, haha...
So, after three years of absolute post-production hell, our indie feature "etude" finally has a premiere date! It’s going down on 17.01.2011 at AMC Theatres. I don't have the exact showtime yet, but I'll post it here once I do. You're all invited to come hang out. There might be another screening at the local multiplex too, but we haven't nailed down the date or time yet.
Over the next week, I'll be teasing some trivia, stills from the movie, and winemaker screenshots Behind The Scenes, hoping to keep you guys interested.
Official Facebook page
ETIDA - Scottish trailer —some crappy YouTube upload replaced the original audio because of copyright strikes.
ETIDA - Western Trailer
etude - WWII Trailer
etude - winemaker Trailer
PLOT
IMAGES
Filming kicked off in August 2006. The goal was to wrap by August 2007, but between the technical disasters and other hurdles, that didn't happen. Since "etude" is an omnibus of six stories spanning different eras but tied together by a central theme, they filmed each segment separately. You've got a Western, a story about a winemaker, a tale of Scots, soldiers in a trench, one involving Mozart (which was filmed at the Houston Nationals, BTW), and a Russian submarine segment. Each story took about two to three days to shoot, but the prep work took months. Even though the actual shoot days were short, they were anything but easy. For instance, filming the Western on Martha's Vineyard was a disaster; the crew spent three days standing in the sun in heavy jackets, pretending they weren't dying, while half the team was actually puking from the heat.
The winemaker segment was shot at a vineyard in Jackson, where the grapes had already been harvested. To make it look like a full harvest, the crew had to hang fresh grapes on the vines and pretend they were picking them.
The Scots story was filmed in Missouri at the grandmother's place of the director, Luke Hrgović. That part needed the biggest cast, pulling in about 30 extras. They split into two groups—half dressed as the "good" Scots in red and the other half as the "bad" ones in green. Some were armed with pitchforks, while others used axes and swords forged by one of the crew members. They spent nearly two days sprinting through a field that had been set on fire to get that perfect smoke and battlefield vibe. While they mostly used plum jam for fake blood, things got a little too real. Since everyone was playing their parts a bit too intensely and the swords and shields were made of real (though blunt) metal, a few people actually got nicked. Luckily, nothing serious—just some scratches here and there.
According to the creators, the WWII trench segment was one of the toughest to prep because they had to source three authentic American uniforms and several German ones, plus the period-accurate weaponry. They ended up buying the American gear at a flea market in rural Alabama, while a collector who loved their vision lent them the German gear. That whole segment was also shot in Missouri, where the crew spent two grueling days filming in absolute mud.
The segment set on a Russian submarine was actually filmed out in Missouri—well, more like a makeshift "studio" in Missouri. They used an old, abandoned barn that had been sitting empty for years and built out the entire sub interior from scratch, down to the tiniest details like the bridge, sleeping quarters, galley, and engine room. It took months to build, and honestly, the biggest nightmare for the crew was just how freezing it was during filming since we shot in the dead of winter. It sucked even more because everyone was just filming in undershirts.
The Mozart story was shot at the Houston Nationals. The real headache there was just getting permission to shoot on-site and use all those Baroque costumes. After months of playing games with the administration, the crew finally managed to talk them into letting us film. Plan B was to try shooting at an AMC Theatres or even driving all the way down to the theater in Austin if things fell through. Luckily, we didn't need to.
Just a heads-up: almost every segment is basically a massive homage to classics like "Braveheart," "Saving Private Ryan," "Amadeus," or those old Leone westerns.
The cast is pretty much the same crew you saw in The Odyssey—Luke Hrgović (who also directed and co-wrote this), Marin Bušić, Miran Šabić, Ivan Mihoci, Ivan Šivak, along with some new faces like Anton Svetić (also a writer), Stipan Tadić, Duje Medić Vibor, Vedran Štefan, and Nikolina Knežević playing Katherine, the girl at the center of every story in this omnibus. And yeah, I might have snuck in a tiny little role myself, haha...
So, after three years of absolute post-production hell, our indie feature "etude" finally has a premiere date! It’s going down on 17.01.2011 at AMC Theatres. I don't have the exact showtime yet, but I'll post it here once I do. You're all invited to come hang out. There might be another screening at the local multiplex too, but we haven't nailed down the date or time yet.
Over the next week, I'll be teasing some trivia, stills from the movie, and winemaker screenshots Behind The Scenes, hoping to keep you guys interested.
Official Facebook page
ETIDA - Scottish trailer —some crappy YouTube upload replaced the original audio because of copyright strikes.
ETIDA - Western Trailer
etude - WWII Trailer
etude - winemaker Trailer
PLOT
MOZART - SCOTLAND: Mozart falls for an Empress's daughter named Katherine, whom he’s never actually met—he just fell for her portrait. To prove his love, he decides to write an opera, even though she doesn't give him the time of day. The opera itself tells a story about Scots where the hero falls for a girl from a rival clan who also happens to be named Katherine, and since their love is forbidden, war breaks out.
WWII (TRENCHES) - RUSSIAN SUBMARINE: A soldier in the trenches writes a story fueled by his love for a woman named Katherine. She isn't actually into him, but he can't see it. He writes this tale about a submarine called the Katherine and a captain who is obsessed with his sub. But then a mutiny breaks out between two factions on board, and things turn violent.
WINEMAKER - WESTERN: This winemaker loves his vineyard and harvests grapes to make a special vintage called Katherine. When people ask why he named the wine that, he starts spinning a Wild West tall tale about how some outlaw cowboys kidnapped a woman named—try to guess it—Katherine, and a heroic cowboy set out to save her. He tracks them down near a little St. Andrew's Church, and a shootout follows.
IMAGES
