Sustainable producer Antonio Saillant maintains a close friendship with his mentor Ted Kotcheff, former executive producer of NBC's “Law & Order: SVU”, as well as director and producer of Wake in Fright and acclaimed films, First Blood, Fun with Dick and Jane and Weekend at Bernies.
It all began when Saillant became Kotcheff’s mentee and Saillant shadowed Kotcheff in his persona whose directorial style and creativity is well respected in the film industry. Saillant, along with many peers, have stated that Kotcheff has great vision, compassion and a deep understanding of every possible detail in film making. Saillant's intrigue and determination led him to work with his mentor Kotcheff, absorbing every detail of a director‘s job. To date, Saillant remains an ardent fan of Kotcheff's works.
Newly restored Wake in Fright is an outrageous Australian film classic that was screened at Film Forum some time ago. Saillant worked diligently on the restored version of Wake in Fright and played a key role in publicizing the film which was believed to be lost for many years.The film’s editor, Anthony Buckley, was able to locate the last remaining print of Wake in Fright in a storage depot, scheduled for destruction in just weeks. It took considerable work to salvage the print and restore the film so that it would run smooth and clean. The materials were then restored frame-by-frame at Sydney’s AtLabDeluxe with the aid of the National Film and Sound Archives of Australia.
It all began with Saillant's idea to present Kotcheff with a perfect gift for his 80th birthday celebration. Saillant approached Kotcheff's wife, Laifun, about doing a screening of Wake in Fright. Together, they located a decent film print with the aid of the National Film and Sound Archives and obtained permission to screen it. Saillant and Laifun secured The Museum of Modern Art in New York City for the screening of Wake in Fright. Wake in Fright was not an immediate hit. It languished.
Enter Tony Timpone, editor emeritus of Fangoria and co-director of international programming of Fantasia Film Festival. As per Saillant's invitation, Timpone had attended the screening of Wake in Fright in New York City at the MOMA and took a liking to the film. Timpone then met with Saillant to discuss the possibility of screening Wake in Fright in Fantasia Film Festival. Thereafter, Saillant and Kotcheff met in Kotcheff's office where Saillant pitched the idea of bringing Wake In Fright to Fantasia Film Festival. At first, Kotcheff seemed hesitant but Saillant insisted it would create a buzz with a new audience of film makers around the world. Kotcheff agreed.
Timpone screened Wake in Fright at his Fantasia Film Festival, and an audience immediately began to build. In Germany, Wake in Fright was screened at the Oldenburg Film Festival, along with other Kotcheff films like Who is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? His later films included The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1973), Fun with Dick and Jane (1977), First Blood (1982) and Weekend at Bernie’s (1988).
Saillant's persistence of Wake in Fright paid off big and created a domino effect. Australians were attracted to the amazing qualities of the film made in their own Outback. An explosion of interest has now established and the film played in New York, LA, and Texas.
Kotcheff’s continued success landed this past weekend at the Fantasia Film Festival where he reunited with Timpone to receive the inaugural Canadian Trailblazer Award as well as present screenings of THE APPRENTICESHIP OF DUDDY KRAVITZ and FIRST BLOOD.
For More Information on Thinking Smart Article email Antonio at [email protected].
