HOW IT WAS WORKING WITH MICKEY ROONEY
Interview by Marco De Luca with Roger Steinmann, writer/director

MDL: How was it working with Hollywood-legend Mickey Rooney?
RS: Easier than I thought at first. Mickey (or ‘Mick’, as he allowed to call him), is a director’s actor. After all what I heard about him, driving directors crazy with being moody and ad-libing all the time, I couldn’t experience a lot of these difficulties. With PARADISE, he was in a perfect mood. And what I especially appreciate with him: Mick was offering different options of how to play a scene. This makes him a complete treasure.

MDL: But Mr. Rooney is well known for ad-libing.
RS: OK, he tried. But then one is able to proof to be a director and charm and whisper and convince, what ever it needs, that the scene and film will be what it needs to be. And after all, it was me who wrote the script.

MDL: Mr. Rooney plays a dual-role. Did he like the story and script?
RS: Apparently, otherwise he wouldn’t obviously have accepted the role(s). You might remember: We had some difficulties to cast this one part. These older actors have a crux: some are too old and therefore retired, others doesn’t need our quite small money, then again others aren’t easy to locate, being maybe even without an agent, and the remaining intact rest is kinda busy. – So with Mr. Rooney, we were extremely happy to get him. After all, he was to play a dual role, sometimes from scene to scene alternating his character. As well physically, he had to change make-up and costumes. But Mick is very fit, very energetic. Everybody knowing him, will confirm this very unusual power within this short body.

MDL: In one scene, Mr. Rooney sings and plays the guitar. How did it come to this? Was it a previously composed song?
RS: No, not at all. Knowing that Mick is a full blood entertainer, I simply asked him over the phone at our very first conversation, if he could think of anything for this romantic family-scene. At once, Mick was singing into the phone an immediately created song. Created at once! I only had to direct him into a little bit less sounding western tunes, and after a few minutes, we had our song “Family”, the one which is in the film now. That’s why Mick deserves all the credit for it.

MDL: At the first shooting day, Mr. Rooney shocked you to death…
RS: Yes, he did, by exclaiming that he haven’t learned his lines. He said that he’s just glanced over the script. Insisting that he better get into his trailer and to get to learn them, he laughed “Son, I did 300 films [including tv-films] in my life. Don’t you worry!”. I tried to remain calm. We were going ahead to the first scene [when Simon meets Patricia as a little girl], and Mick knew EVERYTHING! He even altered the dialogue to the better. I asked him. “Son, just before the scene is about to be shot , I’m going very concentrated over the lines, and then I know them.” Well, that’s called extreme powerful short-memory, because after some hours, he wouldn’t be able to remember these lines again. ”And Son, you’ve written the most complicated script I’ve ever seen in my life!” He laughed again. Well, what he meant was, that I’m including always all kind of details for camera, costumes, set-dressing, etc. They were in italic, so I’m asking the actors to disregard them. Well, Mick was paying attention to everything, professional as he is.

MDL: How was Mr. Rooney between the takes?
RS: Very much as described in Arthur Marx’ Rooney-biography. Mick is a big mouth. When he’s in the mood, he talks to everybody, being it the producer or a set dressing assistant. Well, that’s rare as most actors and surely stars not only show their power in being selective, but as well tend to be introvert when they are off work. Not so Mick: As described in the biography, especially by his numerous wives, he always is “on-stage”. He loves the public. And he loves to tell tales when one is eagerly listening. I recall telling him, that my two beloved Rooney- movies (well, of the ones I’ve seen) are “Breakfast At Tiffanys” and “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World”. He exclaimed immediately “Both of them are bullshit!” Irritated, I asked him why. Of the first: “This Chinese character I had to play is totally off. I did a favour to my friend Blake Edwards. They didn’t find anybody else or anybody famous being such exotic.” And about the latter film: “Within the premise lays a big error. The USD 350,000.00 is by far too low an amount to make a these guys chasing and killing each other. It should have been ten or hundred times of it to make it work!” [“Mad World” tells how a group of ordinary individuals get into a greedy craziness when they get to know a dying gangster’s hiding place of his loot.]
And having asked him about how it was working with Marilyn Monroe, he confirmed that she had her first walk-on [appearance] in one of his movies, and even more, that he has created her stage-name from Norma Jean Baker to the immortal ‘MM’. Wow, Mick!

One of my memorable scenes of "Paradise" was the fighting scene between Barbara Carrera and Dee Wallace Stone. Besides that it was very emotional for both of them to express their anger for each other (screaming and yelling), it was sometimes hard not to get too emotional with the hand-held camera, but have them play the scene. (This scene was entirely shot with a hand-held camera, playing for about three minutes.)
Another scene was with the nurse, Lilyan Chauvin, while Dee Wallace Stone was laying in bed. "I lit the scene very contrasty to stimulate the action of the scene with shadows, which Roger liked a lot. Roger wanted to use a very wide angle lens to make the scene even more dramatic.
It is the DP's most important task to help translate the director's vision and framing to help the script, which means the DP has to be very involved with the script, from the very beginning of production. At the end of the last day of filming Barbara Carrera, she gave me one of the most cherished compliments of my career when, with a big kiss she said, "Ruurd I loved the way you lit me".

I wish Roger all the best on the premiere of PARADISE and look forward working on his next feature, it was a great experience!

MDL: How did you get to Ms. Carrera?
RS: For the role of the diabolic Katherine Hiller, we were looking at several actresses with a sexy Spiderwoman-appeal in order to get a strong counterpoint [early on in Act I] to the sweet innocence of Patricia Paradise. Without a doubt, Barbara Carrera owns these exotic attributes. We were lucky that she accepted this rather small role. Because at our very first meeting, it turned out that she had a strong passion for the role of Patricia. She fell in love with the script, and felt strong about being the one and only Patricia for this film. She gave her conception of how she would play it and made a big plea to alter our casting idea. Indeed, it would have been an interesting switch to see a dark haired angel opposite to a blond devil maybe in the person of Dee Wallace Stone. We didn’t go with Barbara’s conception, and I’ve to admit, we’ve rather typecast these two roles. But eventually, Barbara fulfilled her small part very well.

MDL: This certainly is visible in the ‘catfight’ scene, the last confrontation between Patricia and Katherine.
RS: Sure, and Barbara, as well as Dee [as Patricia], gave her best. Barbara knew that this is her key scene, where she really is able to show what she is up to. [In this scene, Katherine is drugged. She slips that she’s got an affair with Patricia’s husband. The scandal is, that Francis is as well her half-brother.]

MDL: Ms. Carrera is a former top-model. Was she delicate to work with?
RS: No, the contrary was the case! Despite her unique beauty, she is the one to ‘steal horses with’, as there is a say in German. She is a real pal. I remember a scene [which is cut from the final version] which we shoot at 2 AM. Everybody was tired after 14 hours of work. The scene demanded that Barbara’s character is being shot by the Mafia and she subsequently falls to the floor. She wears a splendid evening dress. Despite all the former, she fell down to the hard floor. And we needed to repeat this scene numerous times, as everybody was tired and there were some mistakes. Barbara did this painful scene without a glimpse. She is a real pro!

MDL: You got a confirmation about Ms. Carrera power by a “Star Wars”-director…
RS: Oh, yes, Irvin Kershner. Apart of “The Empire Strikes Back” he did the James Bond film “Never Say Never Again”, directing Barbara. Through her I befriended him. He just had the same good experience with her, and her part as ‘Fatima Blush’ is the one she always is best remembered for. And there, she had to perform some quite physical obstacles, as it’s an action film. – Irvin is quite an outstanding person, very cultivated. No wonder, are Barbara and he best pals. And Irvin looked over the script and gave me quite good notes, as Billy Wilder did. Both of them I thank at PARADISE’ end crawl.

MDL: Ms. Carrera is the Ambassador of Nicaragua. How is she as a person?
RS: One tends to think that she is superficial. Well, she isn’t like that at all, folks! Barbara is very philosophical, and takes her post as Ambassador very serious. She is well educated, speaks several languages [she was even living in Germany], and has lately become a rewarded painter. She showed me some astonishing paintings of stars she knew personally and she worked with: Bette Davis, Burt Lancaster, William Holden, and others.

HOW IT WAS WORKING WITH TIMOTHY BOTTOMS
Interview by Marco De Luca with Roger Steinmann, writer/director

MDL: How did you get to Mr. Bottoms?
RS: Well, I have to admit, rather through a coincidence. I mean, I knew him and his body of work, but he wasn’t considered first – which was a just a waste of time, since he’s a fine actor and he proofed it in playing five roles in our film with tremendous skill. – When we had our first shooting of PARADISE, we had Edward Albert (“Butterflies Are Free”) in the Timmy part. The concept with Edward was, to get him the first time to play with his legendary father Eddie Albert (best know for “Roman Holiday”), who of course was as well playing his father in our film. As we had to abandon that production due to the death of Ray Walston, but got into the second time around almost two years later, the Edward-family made it kinda difficult to work with. Might be, that Eddie, turning 95 now, was getting too old. Anyhow, the Alberts didn’t show up at meetings. We were on an urgent basis to replace these two actors. We got word that Timothy Bottoms would be interested for the role(s). I called him immediately, and we had a meeting in his lovely home in Santa Barbara the next Sunday. A true professional, he already red through the script and was performing his concept of how to play the parts. It came very close to what I had envisioned, and the he was cast at once.

MDL: Unfortunately, Mr. Bottoms isn’t the big star of the seventies anymore…
RS: Yes, and we all were aware of it, foremost Timmy himself. But look, what he did just in the last month. Following his several President Bush incarnations (“That’s My Bush!” as well as upcoming films), he played the lead in this years Palm D’Or of Cannes, in Gus Van Sant’s “Elephant”. The Golden Palm comes just next to an Oscar! And this film is with our Timmy, I think even in the lead. I guess, God is watching him, and returns him the big success of the seventies. Don’t forget, that he was one of the biggest young stars during this period. I’d say, he just had bad luck, but never lost his incredible talent.

MDL: Mr. Bottoms believed in the screenplay of PARADISE?
RS: Very much so. He always mentioned that if one film will mark his ‘comeback’, than it will be PARADISE. And - who on Earth is able to showcase his talents in playing five parts?

MDL: How did Mr. Bottoms prepare for these five different roles?
RS: Well, with a professional such as Timmy there isn’t much to see how he does his preparation, as he does it before he comes to the set, when learning his lines. Timmy is a quiet person between takes – just the opposite as, for instance, Mickey Rooney. Timmy likes concentration. Sometimes he seeks distractions from it and then he becomes the entertainer again. – I recall a shooting day, starting as scheduled, with Timmy as Henry as a young father. Then, we needed, not scheduled, one shoot of the older Henry, when he has a beard. Then, in the afternoon, we were shooting the scene in the park, where he is the father of little Patricia, eventually dying of a heart attack. And in the evening, Timmy was Douglas, as we had to complete the scene where he finds Patricia in the old shack. So Timmy jumped from one role into the next, from one costume and make up into the next, without any hesitation. I guess, he even liked this challenge a lot. Timmy is the perfect actor when it comes to a demanding part!

MDL: But, the first minute of meeting the real Mr. Bottoms…
RS: …I didn’t believe in him that much, yes. He was VERY quiet, was unshaven, He just did gardening work when I pulled up my car, and was accordingly not the means of a movie star. But, as soon you push the bottom of Mr. Bottoms, he is on, and can give you whatever you need. And he’s an directors actor, will trust you fully, and on the other hand is kinda lost without strong guidance. He, as I recall my idol Billy Wilder saying, is like a Jack Lemmon: You have to pull him back since he always wants to give you too much. But in an ideal collaboration, such as we had, Timmy is giving the performances one wants to watch.

ZURICH --- Within this new series, we will publish from time to time interviews Marco De Luca was conducting with Roger Steinmann in their hometown Zurich. In his function as director of PARADISE, Roger recalls his experience about HOW IT WAS WORKING WITH THE ACTORS.

MDL: How did it come that Ms. Stone was cast as the lead. I mean, after all, she isn’t the most famous star in the world?
RS: No, but a terrific one. Now, it’s hard to think for me to have found anybody better fitted for this demanding role. In the second and third act, she is in every scene. IN EVERY. This not only means a time-consuming, but foremost an energy-consuming issue. And Dee was very much in touch with Patricia.

MDL: Have you known Ms. Stone’s work before?
RS: Well, who on this planet doesn’t know “E.T.”? After all, just behind “Titanic”, it’s the most grossing film of all time. And there she plays the lead, means the first name within the cast list. But I remember her as well from a ‘summer’-movie, or better, THE summer movie of 1981: “10”, by Blake Edwards. I saw this movie together with some friends as a teenager. We all fell for Bo Derek, the ‘chick’ of the season. And I remember beautiful young Dee in a strong supporting role. – And this makes me, as a filmmaker, link to some great and successful fellow-directors like Blake Edwards and Steven Spielberg. By the way: Another actress of our cast played under Spielbergs direction: Lilyan Chauvin in the recent “Catch Me, If You Can”.

MDL: Apropos ‘Spielberg’: Ms. Stone mentioned something about Spielberg’s direction…
RS: Yes, and this is a flattering one: Dee said, that my direction is much more subtle than the one of great Spielberg! He only gave very rudimentary advice, but has rather concentrated on technique, such as camera issues. For him, the actors were just a necessary tool to fulfil his dream of a story telling. Well, maybe, in the meantime, he has changed his style a bit. Let me ask Lilyan, how he directed her in last years “Catch Me…”.

MDL: How did Ms. Stone approach her role?
RS: With absolute sincerity. She always was well prepared, well in time, very professional. For a Mid-European a dream to work with. She was as upset as I when other people didn’t come up with their professionalism. – But there was one issue: She didn’t like a lot of rehearsals. Just the necessary steps, sure, but everything beyond, she stalled. She wanted to keep her best moments for the very first take. Mostly, she then delivered it just perfect. The only crux was, that her leading men, Tim Bottoms and Mickey Rooney, liked a lot of rehearsing. They became better and better, their performance came into true shape. Whereas Dee got exhausted after numerous of takes, and certainly not any better. Facing this later in the editing room, there is a hell of an issue to be solved.

MDL: Ms. Stone is an acting teacher.
RS: Yes, she has numerous very devoted students. Once, I attended her class, I think, to look at some young actors to play Alan [her son in PARADISE]. There was a great feeling, how all the students were grateful about Dee’s input. She rather acts like a mom, than a teacher.

MDL: How was Ms. Stone’s approach towards the script?
RS: Well, her role IS the script, so to say. She was very much behind it, cared for it as she would have had written it herself. She came up with a lot of changes. But only dialogue changes, where she thought that Patricia wouldn’t express herself like this or that. This, her contribution, was very helpful and I really want to thank her for this.

GREGORY PECK DEAD; HE WAS OUR FORMER "SIMON" CANDIDATE
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- Gregory Peck, Oscar winner for "To Kill a Mockingbird", passed away last Thursday at the age of 87.
Mr. Peck was considered to play the dual role of Simon/Henry Sr. in PARADISE. We tried to get him for our first attempt of shooting, where the role was finally given to Ray Walston ("My Favorite Martian"), as well as for the now finished version, in which Mickey Rooney plays the dual parts.
We got our screenplay to Mr. Peck through the personal contact of our public relation manager, who was befriended with Peck's daughter at that time. But the first time around, Mr. Peck wasn't available, he was tied up in another production. And then, after Ray Walston passed away and we got the greenlight to go into the re-shooting, Mr. Peck was in bad health, not able to take on anymore roles. That was very bad for us, since he liked our story and the fact, to be able to play a dual part. This he hadn't done throughout his long film career, which made him work with the cream of the cream of directors like Alfred Hitchcock, William Wyler, and John Huston, and brought him one Academy Award and four Nominations.
As the roles of Simon/Henry Sr. required an older actor in his seventies or eighties, we were already confronted with several other veteran-stars passing away in the middle or shortly after the casting process, such as Walther Matthau, Jack Lemmon, James Stewart, Robert Mitchum, or Rod Steiger. Thanks God, energetic Mickey Rooney is still alive and kicking!

AN ANECDOTE FROM CANNES
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
CANNES --- There is this world famous red carpet on the stairs leading to the “Palais de la Croisette”, the movie world’s one and only Palace. When the films in competition are shown in the evenings, there is a tremendous horde of fans gathered to see their stars climbing to the “Olymp”. The more famous ones are announced by a speaker, though only in French what makes the foreign, and especially English, names sounding quite funny. The stars, of course, don’t have to walk from their respective accommodations but are brought by special limousines.
And here, I’ve got a my personal anecdote to share with you:
In such a rather smaller limousine, I was a all of a sudden discovering squeezed in big body Michael Madsen. He is a Hollywood acquaintance of mine, as he was once tentatively being cast for one of my projects. I was calling him. He tried to locate the source of the call. I called him again. He was blinded by the strong sun, taking then off his sun glasses. People, most French, tried to make sense whether I was calling somebody important they should know.
In the meantime, I was able to make my way through the crowd, getting to the limo. Michael lowered the window, seemingly recognizing me. People paniced, believing to miss something, and rushed to the car. The police, high alert, run by and made the car driving off. Michael and me were cut off short, leaving both of us somewhat flabbergasted. And eventually, I maybe will never know if Michael really has recognized me within this big circus… But THIS is Cannes, film fans!

So, within this jungle, we, executive producers Bruno Koller and myself (producer Markus Imthurn was unavailable this year), were trying to promote PARADISE. This is indeed a big approach as everything is just so oversized. A producer of any film just shrinks to a dwarf as there is just about every film production of the whole world present here, either in one of the three competitions or at the market.
As PARADISE is not finished yet, we were promoting with what we had, the trailer and the poster. And we tried to get Timothy Bottoms to be in Cannes to promote PARADISE as well as “Elephant”. Timothy is a lead in this film which participates in the official competition. But he was unavailable, shooting another film (again impersonating President Bush; this seems to be the part of his life).
And now we all know: Timothy hit big, very big. He achieved what just about any film artists aims for. His film won the top prize, the Golden Palm, which is next to an Oscar the worlds top film prize. Big time congrats, Timmy!

Since we got a distributor raising money for an US-domestic theatrical release, we are in Cannes to promote PARADISE to the press, and to find buyers in other territories. Certainly, we will experience some fun, too, but this we will let you know here in about one week...well, maybe included big shots we will meet on the famous red carpet. Who knows?!

PARADISE-DIRECTOR REMEMBERS: THE „CATFIGHT“
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- Editing a film brings a lot of memories back. That’s because the director deals with the film material over and over again. And meeting the actors a while after the shooting, brings their specific point of view to daylight.
For instance Barbara Carrera: Last week I was invited for coffee in her Beverly Hills home. The one scene that sticks with her the most was the shooting of the "catfight”, opposite Dee Wallace Stone (as Patricia). This scene is placed at the end of act 1, just before Patricia escapes from her Las Vegas-mansion. She overhears Katherine in the office, and finds her completely drugged. In this state, Katherine reveals her true hatred and jealous feelings towards her supposed best friend Patricia. And shocks her even more in opening her love affair with Patricia’s husband Francis. This confrontation ends with the “catfight”, as Katherine attacks Patricia who eventually is able to flee for good.
This particular scene was shoot in a film studio, opposed to most other ones which were set in a real, huge mansion in the Valley. I decided to shoot that particular scene with a handheld camera, and uninterrupted, in order to catch the whole intensity of the performances (though this is almost the only one handheld in PARADISE, since I personally much more prefer either a steady camera, or then smooth movements with a camera-dolly). And in order to get room for the action, and to be able to follow the fighting characters, we needed more space, thus the studio-setting.
Now, I had rehearsed this scene with the two ladies weeks before the shooting took place. With everybody well prepared, the director on the set usually just calls “Action!”. Maybe I have to balance the whole scene a bit, but hardly need to start from scratch and explain any acting details. The actors are character-driven self-prepared. They are well!
What occurred at this day, was a certain delay, which caused trouble for Dee Wallace Stone. In make-up, she was waiting to get the call for this scene. While still shooting another scene, she reminded me that I promised to let her go by the evening. I tried to calm her, though she knew, that she never will make it back to the birthday-party of her daughter’s in time.
Hours late, we eventually shoot the “catfight”. In the meantime, Dee got so in tense due to the waiting, that she really fought, instead of just acting it out. The irony was, that it was supposed to be Barbara the mean and violent one, and Dee the defensive and innocent one. Well, we have great actors, and only a viewer with a play-back-and-forward possibility (on tape) will eventually discover this emotional switch.
And: Both actresses got bruises, after all…

PARADISE falls in the same genre, that is, 'Women's Film'. Our main character Patricia Paradise is an epitome of womanhood. Despite adversities and hardships in life, Patricia Paradise's character comes out as a winner. Her journey from a wannabe singer to a successful singer/composer in Las Vegas, from her pursuit for 'Shangri-La' to turmoil in her personal life have been worth filming as this character contained the whole gamut of emotions and expressions. Little surprises that the casting of Patricia Paradise created a furore in casting circles as any actress worth her salt wanted to be a part of our movie. The role was finally bagged by our very own 'ET's' Dee Wallace Stone who has given yet another splendid performance in PARADISE. Our other supporting characters are also very much an integral part of PARADISE with women playing important roles, like that of 'Katherine Hiller', the maid 'Maria' and the 'Nurse', played by Barbara Carrera, Theresa Saldana and Lilyan Chauvin respectively. Here's wishing a great success for women based films such as our PARADISE!

EDITING OF "PARADISE"
Our postproduction goes on. We are approaching week 8 of principal editing. As we were already preparing the editing while the shooting went on, our progress is very satisfying. For us, director Roger Steinmann and myself, there was a big advantage to get the footage reviewed while we were shooting. So we could react immediately and reshoot or complete some scenes.
Our editor in charge is Jeff Wood. His assignment before PARADISE was the latest film with Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin and Jennifer Love Hewitt, "The Devil and Daniel Webster". His credits include "The Hunters Moon" with Burt Reynolds. This skilled man will elevate our footage to the artistical level we aim to achieve ever since. Currently, we are presenting Mr. Woods first achievement, a trailer at the American Film Market. Soon, we aim to present here at the official website some clips.

PROMOTING "PARADISE" AT THE AMERICAN FILM MARKET
by Bruno Koller, executive producer
Promotion has become THE essential key to success in today's film world. Upon completion of a film, what happens then usually? Well, it is shown in the movie theaters, on home video and on television. But in order to get there, a producer mixed needs to enthusiasm a distributor, who put up a specific and individual marketing campaign.
At the American Film Market, commencing in Hollywood this coming Wednesday for one week, we are present to promote PARADISE. With our footage, stills and a first trailer (that's the two minutes you see as a preview of an upcoming movie), we try to find the best suited distributor for our special film, maybe labeled "woman's film". We count, that this distributor will bring it to the film worlds next and most important event, the Cannes Film Festival this May. But in-between, we first need to finish the film in time, means having the music composed, the special effects digitally created, the sound, the negative edited, the colors timed, and a lot of other issues completed.

I recall one specific shooting day in the desert. It was a typical hot desert day. Our official desert was Death Valley, but a film production seldom shoots an entire movie on a far away location. So we had a substitute, in our case some 50 miles outside of Los Angeles, near Palmdale. The desert was perfect, so were our two actors, Dee Wallace Stone and Timothy Bottoms. They already were identifying greatly with their roles, and the desert gave them the ideal playground.
We were already shooting some scenes with Dee as PP and Timothy in one of his five roles, as the arrogant womanizer Douglas. This specific scene marked the end of their relationship, as their fight got increasingly worse, until PP jumped out of the beautiful red convertible 60's Chevrolet. Dee went on and shouts, yells and cries at Timothy. He got more intense, what in turn provoked her again even more. We, the whole crew were witnessing one of this genuine great acting moments. Everybody, including myself, was speechless.
One has to imagine: I WAS writing the scene, creating something out of the blue. And now it came to life. No, it came to genuine unique life, thanks to our thespians! At the end of the scene, I almost forgot the command "cut", but when I said it, there was a seldom silence (as opposite to most cases where after the directors "cut" there is a busy yelling and running among the crew). After a moment, the crew broke out in unison and honest applause. Professionals know, that applause almost never is given during a shooting due to the crew's tense and exhaustion. I was so taken, that I realized just after a moment, that Dee was really crying, like in a shock. I ran over to my best girl, comforted her, and nothing else came to my mind than to tell her "Hey, Dee, it's just a movie". She was looking at me with big eyes, then started to smile.
Film freaks might have heard my line. Well, honestly, I copied it from one of the greats, of Alfred Hitchcock, who used it comforting Ingrid Bergman in "Notorious" (1946), as she got caught up with her character as well. And I still don't know, if Dee was smiling due to the situation, or due to the fact, that she instantly knew the Hitchcock/Berman anecdote.

Timothy Bottoms

In 1972, Timothy Bottoms received the Golden globe nomination for the 'Most Promising Newcomer'-Male category for his role as 'Joe Bonham' in "Johnny Got His Gun". Based on a novel with the same name, "Johnny Got His Gun", the film presents the point of view of a severely injured World War I infantryman, Joe Bonham, who struggles to live and come to terms with life. The movie was well received by film critics and audiences and the writer/director Dalton Trumbo won the Grand Prize of the Jury at Cannes Film Festival in 1971.
Timothy Bottoms has worked in over 80 movies so far and is very excited about his role in PARADISE where he is playing four different roles. Watch this space for more news on Timothy.

Theresa Saldana

Theresa Saldana received a Golden Globe nomination in 1994 for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a TV Series for her work in the hit ABC TV drama "The Commish" where she played the role of Rachel Scali. Though the award that year went to Julia Dreyfus for "Seinfeld", Theresa's work was a hit with the television audiences all over America and the series ran for 5 years from 1991 to 1995.
In a career spanning over 20 years, Theresa has worked in more than 25 movies. Her notable films include: "Nunzio", Martin Scorsese's "Raging Bull", "I Wanna Hold your Hand", "The Night Before" opposite Keanu Reaves.
Theresa Saldana plays the role of goodhearted Maria in PARADISE, which fits her amiable demeanor so perfectly.

All the Best to Timothy Bottoms and Theresa Saldana!

Next: Our other stars Dee Wallace Stone, Lilyan Chauvin and Martin Kove!

Mickey Rooney

Mickey Rooney, who plays the dual-roles of Simon and Henry Sr. in PARADISE, is one of the most accomplished actors in Hollywood and has won many awards and nominations in a career spanning well over 65 years. He won his first Golden Globe for best performance in the TV series 'Mickey' in 1964. Eighteen years later, in 1982, he won another one for the TV movie 'Bill'.

In 1939, Mr. Rooney got the Juvenile Award at the Oscars, shared with Deanna Durbin. In 1983, he was awarded a special 'Lifetime Achievement Oscar', "in recognition of his 60 years of versatility in a variety of memorable film performances. He has so far received two Best Actor Oscar nominations ("Babes in Arms" and "The Human Comedy") and two Best Supporting Actor Oscar nominations ("The Black Stallion" and "The Bold and The Brave").

Mr. Rooney also got two consecutive Emmy nominations in 1958-1959 for his works in "Alcoa Theatre" and "The Comedian" respectively. His most notable films include "Captains Courageous", "Boy's Town", "National Velvet", "Breakfast at Tiffany's", "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", "A Midsummer Night's Dream "and" The Black Stallion".

Barbara Carrera

Barbara Carrera, who plays the role of menacing Katherine Hiller in PARADISE, has won two Golden Globe nominations so far. She received her first nomination in 1976 for the best acting debut in a motion picture for her role in 'The Master Gunfighter'. Eight years later, in 1984, she received her second Golden Globe nomination for the Bond movie 'Never Say Never Again' in which she played the role of sexy 'Fatima Blush'. Her most notable films are: "The Master Gunfighter", "Embryo", "The Island of Dr. Moreau" ,"Never Say Never Again" and "Wicked Stepmother".

Next: A Golden Globe Flashback on Theresa Saldana and Timothy Bottoms.

THE CAMERAS AREN'T ROLLING ANYMORE
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- The shooting is over! The bond company has granted some few days extension into January 2003. Up to January 5, the cameras were rolling to complete a few scenes. Most of them were with Dee Wallace Stone playing Patricia as a young mother, and Timothy Bottoms as Henry, as they have found their happiness in Shangri-La.
Then we were moving again back to Las Vegas, doing a scene with Kristian Horn as Alan playing out his wildest teenage dreams. We already have had casted three of the sexiest girls to be found in Vegas. The scene will show them riding with young Alan in a convertible car, speeding down the Strip. This scene is part of a backstory, telling a nightmare for the worrying Patricia about her son. Wide desert shoots of Death Valley were the completion of our principal photography.
The post production will take place in Zurich, Switzerland whereto we will ship the whole digitalized film now.

NEWS FROM THE EDITING ROOM
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- Why do film makers spend their X-mas in the editing room? Well, because...time is money. The bond company, paying the reshoot after Ray Walston died amidst of the production of PARADISE, has insisted on finishing the shooting by December.
As it is custom during a film production, the editor assembles the footage while the scenes are being shoot. Our editor Jeff Wood was working day and night and already has had a primary cut assembled during the shooting. On December 23, he was able to present his version. Therefore we, the director Roger Steinmann, the editor Jeff Wood, and myself, spent most of X-mas in the editing room, searching for wholes within the story. As we have shoot in a frantic speed (well...), we found some spots to be completed in order to make a more comprehensive story. We will shoot them within the next days, before moving the entire post production to Switzerland.

LAST SHOOTING DAY BEFORE X-MAS
by Bruno Koller, executive producer
ZURICH/HOLLYWOOD --- Since yesterday, the main part of the principal photography is over. When I refer to 'main', I mean that, in our case, the very tight scheduled shooting is generally over. But there are some wholes, as we weren't able to complete some scenes entirely.
Though the actors and the crew has commenced their well deserved X-mas holidays as of today, our director and producer will work double shift and view what the editor has assembled so far. Then, by December 26, it will be determined, for which scenes we are in need for pick-ups. These are small set-ups for scenes, might be a close up of a face or as well only a hand, or a transition shot as one of the desert or of Las Vegas.
The production was running smoothly. Therefore, I'm relieved at this point, to wish you, in behalf of the entire cast and crew of PARADISE, a Merry X-mas.

WELCOME TO THE SUPPORTING ACTORS KRISTIAN HORN, BUDDY DANIELS, AND PHIL PETERS
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- As we approach the last week of the principal photography before Christmas, we don't want to miss to introduce the remaining supporting actors.
Kristian Horn plays young Alan, the rebellious son Patricia's. Kristian is a newcomer. But at the audition, we were immediately convinced that Kristian is our Alan, an important character of act III.
We just coudn't resisit Buddy Daniels. Almost bald with his few hairs straight-up, he perfectly characterizes the crazy business-types of Las Vegas. He is Katherine's (Barbara Carrera) right (or should we say left) hand man.
And the casting of Phil Peters bears a twist: At the one shooting day, the casted actor for the role of the lawyer hasn't shown up. As our director greets Theresa Saldana, she is accompanied by an impressive man she introduces as her husband. Roger feels instantly that this seasoned actor would be just right as the tough Vegas-attorney. Mr. Peters agreed to do this bit part, and was signed on the spot. He learned his lines while being in make-up, and a couples of hours later his scenes were already being shot.

WORKING WITH 'THE' HOLLYWOOD LEGEND MICKEY ROONEY
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- Several days of shooting with Mickey Rooney are over now. Exciting days! Here comes a younger filmmaker from far away Switzerland and is able to work with one of the most awarded actors ever in Hollywood history. Mickey's experience goes not only back to black-and-white, but as well to silent films (sound film took over at the end of the 1920's)! And he worked with everybody in the book. And now with me! WOW!!
Calming myself, there are popping up some quite unique moments with Mickey. For instance: We are shooting a scene supposedly located in Death Valley. Now, to avoid the stressful travel there for everybody including the 80-year Mickey, we've creatively found an ideal substitute in the near residents Hollywood Hills overlooking the Valley, with just blue sky in the background. As Mickey, according to the script, shouts for 'Patricia', his voice is so incredibly loud, that the residents
open their windows in checking who's endangered here in 'Death Valley'.
Or: While shooting a take, Mickey suddenly drifts away from a serious monologue adding that he was (well known) married eight times. The crew starts to mumble. Mickey breaks off in loud laughter, realizing his mistake.
Or: Having composed the beautiful song 'family' for our film, he sings and plays the guitar with it. He rehearses the song frequently, and when it comes to filming, he loves it so much, that the song becomes too long. And the arguing starts, which part he should left off.
Or... Well, I could go on for a long time here. But you get the picture. It's a happy shoot. Everybody contributes not only skill, but as well humor. And the performances are quite satisfying!

ACTION STAR MARTIN KOVE IN THE SMALL ROLE AS THE TAXI DRIVER
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- As published on November 20, Marco De Luca has found an eyewitnesses confirming that the real Ms. Paradise was last seen how she escaped Las Vegas, and this in a taxi.
Now, our creativity and flexibility allowed the recreation of this incident. We were able to enthusiast action star Martin Kove, best known as the bad guy from the 'Karate Kid' trilogy, for this rather small part.
Next week we will shoot this particular scene in Las Vegas. We've got the permit to photograph at Freemont Street, the actual place where Ms. Paradise has last been seen. Although nobody has found the real taxi driver, we are quite confident that Mr. Kove will do a perfect performance.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THE SHOOTING OF "PARADISE"
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- First a personal big 'HELLO' to our newly casted Patricia, Dee Wallace Stone. Being a seasoned and very talented actress, Dee very quickly has understood how to feel, breathe and even live as Patricia. This came to a big aid, not being able to have started the principal photography with her.
The first three days, we had to shoot around Patricia, doing scenes of the first act, with Timothy Bottoms and Barbara Carrera, playing how they've got some intimate doings together. Then we did scenes with Lilyan Chauvin, as the Nurse, and Theresa Saldana, as Maria. And then, basically, we were 'shoot out', if not Dee as Patricia would have been engaged (of course I'm talking about the character of Patricia. The real Patricia sadly enough still is missing, apparently without a trace).
Now, one has to understand the specific concept of PARADISE: The entire point of view of the second and third act (basically more than two thirds of the film) is Patricia's. That ultimately means that she is in every single scene. This first week with our complete cast, we were shooting scenes in the Las Vegas-mansion, among others, the death of Francis in the jacuzzi. This was a difficult scene, but thanks to our skilled actors, it went like butter. It was a hassle free, if not a happy five-day-week of shooting so far (Thursday was Thanksgiving, which is in the US a day off). By the way, this mansion isn't located in Vegas, but in the Valley, outside of L.A. But I promise you, it looks more Vegas than Vegas itself. Now THAT'S the magic of movies...

FINALLY: DEE WALLACE STONE IS OUR PATRICIA!!
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- Not since "Gone With the Wind" and its search for a Scarlett O'Hara, a film company assumingly was in such a desperate need for a female lead. But now, the desperation is over: Dee Wallace Stone saved us!
This prolific and well-liked actress is of course best know as the lead in one of the all time box office hits, Steven Spielberg's "E.T.". This film was re-released this spring and brought Ms. Stone to the attention of our writer/director Roger Steinmann. We were dealing with Ms. Stone for several weeks now, but since the script was almost entirely rewritten after the disappearance of the real Patricia Paradise on October 22, there was no firm decision possible of neither of the considered actresses. Until Ms. Stone's positive decision was on the table, we were shooting three days around the lead of a film, in which she basically appears in each scene. Today and in an extreme hurry, Ms. Stone had makeup- and wardrobe-tests, and tomorrow Monday, she will appear in front of the camera, as our Patricia Paradise. In agreement with director Steinmann, there will be some easy scenes shot, in order to make her feel home as this character. Scenes at this first day will include Patricia and Maria, played by Theresa Saldana, in the Las Vegas mansion. At Ms. Stone's second shooting day, she will meet Timothy Bottoms in one of his five roles, this day as her Vegas-husband Francis.
Welcome and good luck, Ms. Paradise, ehm...Stone!

NEW ROLES FOR TIMOTHY BOTTOMS AND MICKEY ROONEY - SHOOTING HAS STARTED WITHOUT PATRICIA
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- The last several weeks, I was in a frenzy of rewriting the script. Patricia Paradise disappearance put a new story on the map. It's thrilling how real events may influence an artist. I changed the whole structure of the script. Timothy Bottoms is playing now four or five characters! He instantly agreed to do such a tour de force of performance. Four roles are already set, on the fifth I'll write while the shooting goes on. And for Mickey Rooney, he as well plays two characters: Simon, for which he originally was signed, and, newly, Henry Sr., the father of one of Timothy's characters. What terrific actors we've got here!
Please view the "story" and "cast" regularly. We will put the updates there as soon as there are available. And since seven days now, the cameras are rolling! The first five days, the second unit team, under the command of producer Markus Imthurn, was shooting exterior scene in and around Las Vegas. And since two days, we are shooting with the actors, just except Patricia. She is still being cast, and we expect a firm answer any minute. Exciting, this Hollywood, for a Swiss like me!

DESPERATELY IN NEED TO CAST THE ROLE OF PATRICIA!
by Bruno Koller, executive producer
ZURICH --- Still no decision about Patricia yet, folks! As a second unit team under the command of producer Markus Imthurn and director of photography Ruurd M. Fenenga Jr. is shooting in Las Vegas and the desert, writer/director Roger Steinmann finishes every day pages and pages of new scenes. He'll be finishing tomorrow, in order to start Wednesday, at 7 AM, the principal photography. He needs to "shoot around" (that's the Hollywood expression) the character of Patricia, since there is still no decision yet as far as a definite one. As we "speak", some very good actresses are reading the newest revisions of the script and will decide accordingly. And we need this decisions, since there are only so few sequences where Patricia is not appearing. This is a character film about her, so she is basically in every single scene. The casting of PARADISE looks like a genuine Hitchcock-cliffhanger!

TIMOTHY BOTTOMS (PRESIDENT BUSH IN "THAT'S MY BUSH") SIGNED AS FRANCIS
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- Lucky we! Prolific and devoted character actor Timothy Bottoms, Golden Globe nominee for his debut in "Johnny Got His Gun", will play Francis Hiller. As we searching Hollywood in-side-out in order to find the best suited actor, we naturally run into some film business-like problems like money, time of shooting and lately, script changes. Even the more we are happy and proud that Mr. Bottoms accepted our offer, despite the script still being rewritten by our writer/director in the meantime. This actor looks back on a wide range of roles, from charismatic lovers to menace evils to an out-of-his-mind fellow. And exactly this excites filmmakers like us. Here, we will have more "body" for the character of Francis, encouraging Roger Steinmann even more to write the best into this role. Please check Mr. Bottoms entry at the Internet Movie Data Base for his wide filmography.
But: Who in Heaven's name will play Patricia? We've got no more than one week left to find and decide! Well, we've got a handful ladies interested, but who's the best?

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY BEGINS NOVEMBER 20 - SCRIPT BEING REWRITTEN IN THE MEANTIME
by Bruno Koller, executive producer
ZURICH/HOLLYWOOD --- Time is moving! In order of not loosing the funds granted by the bond-insurance who covered our production after the death of Ray Walston (our former actor for "Simon", replaced now by Mickey Rooney), we must terminate principal photography by the end of December.
Therefore, we definitely start shooting next week, on November 14, with a second unit team in Las Vegas and the surrounding desert, while writer/director Roger Steinmann is busily incorporating the very last events happening with Patricia and her late husband Francis. He is rewriting parts of act 2 and mostly of act 3, what naturally affect as well act 1. Consequently, the characters and their size will
shift. This will affect the already hired actors. Astonishingly, they all are willing to let adapt their roles, being open for artistic unknowns. Thanks guys!
But, we still need to cast the principals, Patricia and Francis. With our unknown ingredients, it's slightly more difficult to find big name actors. On hand, we've got a few very devoted players. We will decide by the very latest of November 15, who will play Francis Hiller. This will officially be announced by our producer at this very spot. And who will be Patricia Paradise? That's a tough one, since she is, as it seems now, in almost every scene of the film. We've only got another 10 days to decide!

GREETING TO MICKEY ROONEY
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- Despite all the turmoil in Las Vegas, there is some light on the end of the tunnel. I'm personally honored to be able to greet one of the biggest living legends of Hollywood: Mickey Rooney. He is not only one of the most awarded of all actors (with two Academy Awards, four nominations, two Golden Globes and two Emmy-nominations) but was already active at the time, when there were only silent (and black-and-white) movies! He was a successful child actor, and in 1939 named as the biggest box office star of the world!
I'm personally so honored to direct this living legend. Coming from far away Switzerland, I've seen Mickey in such classics as "Breakfast at Tiffany's", "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World", and "The Black Stallion". I saw him playing opposite such screen icons as Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and his best friend Judy Garland. And he was married to one of my all time favorite, Ava Gardner. Well, THIS is our man! And he will play the angelic Simon in our PARADISE.
Thanks, Mickey, for accepting our offer.

PARADISE-FILMMAKERS ARE SHOCKED ABOUT THE TURMOIL IN LAS VEGAS!
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- In behalf of the whole PARADISE-team, I state that we are shocked about the recent happenings with Ms. Paradise and her deceased husband, Mr. Hiller. Within a few days, the events followed hot on each others heels. First, Francis Hiller died, at the young age of 44. Then, instead of presenting her long awaited new book "Two Worlds", Patricia Paradise disappeared from her Vegas-home just three days after her husbands death. She disappeared so far without any trace.
These events brings our film project in some difficulties. We planed to shoot within the next two weeks. But these events bring our writer/director Roger Steinmann into some "unbalanced" situations. He's got some theories about the background of Ms. Paradise disappearance and contemplates to include them in the biopic.
On the other hand, we hoped that Ms. Paradise would have finally, after her return to Las Vegas this early October, be on hand for the latest script revisions, and of course for the promotion of "her" movie.
We pray to God that she will surface soon, and this in good health!

TWO TIMES OSCAR WINNER MICKEY ROONEY PART OF "PARADISE"
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- This time, it went faster than anticipated: Out of all the great thespians approachable (just check former articles), we are especially proud to announce that the legendary Mickey Rooney was signing on for the angelic role of 'Simon'. This veteran actor impersonates the ultimate Hollywood-legend: His career goes back 75 years, out of his 82 living years! He's got on his credit two Academy Awards, and four nominations, has won two Golden Globes and bears two Emmy-nominations. This can hardly be topped!
Out of his about 300 films and TV-episodes, PARADISE will be the newest effort of this lifelong entertainer. A true gem, as Mr. Rooney was already active at the time when there only were silent pictures… For more about his unique career and life, we refer to the Internet Movie Data Base.
The whole producer team looks forward working with you, Mr. Rooney!

GREETING TO THERESA SALDANA ("THE COMMISH")
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- This issue shows how lucky we may name ourselves: As the interest in Hollywood appears quite big for the story of our film (especially among women), we got strong interest by Golden Globe nominated Theresa Saldana. Apart from long running TV-series "The Commish", she is well known for "The Raging Bull" (1980; by Martin Scorsese). At first, Theresa didn't seem to match for either of the characters in PARADISE. But getting this enthusiastic interest by this terrific actress, I decided to enlarge a smaller part of the maid especially for Theresa. The goodhearted Maria is the antagonist to the menace Katherine Hiller. Theresa's part even helps to develop the story more deeply, as Patricia confides herself now not only to the spirited but not reality based Simon but to the well-meaning Maria. This issue, dear friends of films, shows the exciting side of filmmaking in Hollywood! See her entry at Internet Movie Data Base for her filmography.

WHO CAN WE GET TO PLAY THE LEADS IN PARADISE?
by Bruno Koller, executive producer
ZURICH --- As the casting is on its way, successfully started with Ms. Barbara Carrera and Ms. Chauvin, our producer-team is in awe about who we may sign for the important leads of Patricia and Francis. Leading parts are always crucial. For the producers to get the right stars in respect of the role and name value. And for the talent, to be treated respectfully in artistic and financial regard.
Coming from Europe, we are more artistically oriented, therefore a lot of talent react enthusiastic about our unusual screenplay. Now, apart of the monetary question there is always a situation about the schedule. Just keep in mind, that at an average film set there are daily close to a 100 people present. Everybody needs to be ensembled at the same time. The bigger the stars name, the more difficult is his schedule. This difficulty we are facing for the casting of the leads who require 10 respect. 8 weeks shooting time. We are aiming for a November shooting start. Therefore several talent might already be booked. And again, they have to fit in one single schedule.

TWICE EMMY-NOMINATED LILYAN CHAUVIN BOOKED AS NURSE
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- PARADISE-casting goes on: For the smaller role of a 'Nurse', we asked Lilyan Chauvin to renew her engagement which she originally already had in PARADISE. This French born veteran actress (see her entry at Internet Movie Data Base for her filmography) was in numerous important films, such as in "The Man who wasn't there" (2001; opposite George Clooney) and "Universal Soldier" (1992; as mother of Jean-Claude Van Damme). So we are very proud that prolific Ms. Chauvin accepted our little part in PARADISE.
While we are still working hard to get the leads of Patricia Paradise and Francis Hiller cast, we promise you a surprise of an unexpected casting coup within the next few days here.

GREETING TO BARBARA CARRERA
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- I'm very happy that prolific actress Barbara Carrera has accepted our offer to play the character of Katherine Hiller. I had the pleasure to meet Barbara in one of the fanciest restaurants of Hollywood, in 'Le Dome' at Sunset Blvd., where she raved about our film project, named it "a must-see-flic for women". She loves this "multi-layered" part within this "exceptional dramatic biopic" about Patricia Paradise. Barbara has read the script so careful (which unfortunately is rather unusual in today's fast-paced Hollywood), that she suggested numerous ideas, coming directly from the source of a most unusual woman with a turbulent life, not unlike Patricia Paradise herself. I'm delighted that my screenplay provokes so much interest among Hollywood stars.

WELCOME TO OUR FIRST CAST MEMBER: BARBARA CARRERA
by Markus Imthurn, producer
HOLLYWOOD --- One secret may be revealed now: Our Katherine Hiller will be impersonated by two times Golden Globe nominated Barbara Carrera. Proudly, we welcome Ms. Carrera to PARADISE. She will play the sinister character of Katherine (for more see cast). This role has provoked some earlier controversy as the real Ms. Hiller opposed our first choice of casting in the interrupted PARADISE. But Ms. Carrera is firmly engaged for this part. On her credits are such classics as the last 'James Bond'-movie with Sean
Connery and the very last film with Bette Davis. For her extensive filmography we refer to the respective entry at the Internet Movie Data Base.

PROGRESS FOR PARADISE IN HOLLYWOOD IN SIGHT
by Roger Steinmann, writer/director
HOLLYWOOD --- In order to let the term PARADISE be faithfull, we are pushing the restart of the shooting for quite a while. Now, being myself in Hollywood, it appears that the first member of our cast is 'booked'! As the contracts are being signed any day, we reveal today as much: It's the part of Katherine Hiller (for more information go to Cast). And - why don't you participate at our new Minipoll. Let us know who we will get to play Katherine.