Martin de Thurah of Academy Films, London, has directed a hauntingly beautiful film for Swiss air rescue company Rega.
Created by advertising agency Walker Zurich, “Heaven Can Wait” sees a young girl appearing to float up to the heavens following a tragic car accident, only for us to discover she is in fact being rescued and taken to life-saving treatment by the Rega air ambulance helicopter.
Shot over two days in Bucharest with Romanian service company Domino, the 16-year-old star of the film, in her first experience on camera, found herself balanced precariously 60 feet up, on a thin wooden tongue extending from a specially constructed crane platform.
Above her on the platform were the director, the DP, and a handful of technicians, lighting her, and with carefully angled hair-dryers attempting to create a flowing wind effect that would also keep her warm in the freezing conditions.
All the cast were sourced in Romania, except for the helicopter paramedic who was in fact the Rega client.
Simon Cooper, Academy producer, related, “We went to Romania expecting to use a lot of green screen for the flying shots, but in the end we were able to do it all in camera through a combination of our brilliant DOP, a very resourceful and inventive grip department, and a general willingness to make things happen on the part of the Romanian facilitating company. Our thanks to [Bucharest-based production services company] Domino [Productions] for responding positively to our constant demands with a very challenging budget, and also of course to Walker who were an absolute pleasure to work with for the first time. It was such a strong script that Martin jumped at the chance to collaborate with them, and they were really supportive of his ideas right from the start.”
The creative ensemble from Walker included creative director Pius Walker, copywriters Roger Beckett and Benn Callis, and art directors Andrew Smart and Justin Barnes.
The DP was Kasper Tuxen, Line producer was Ileana Anghel.
Editor was Russell Icke of The Whitehouse, London.
Sheriff Reports Preliminary Autopsy Results On Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa
Preliminary autopsy results didn't determine how Oscar-winner Gene Hackman and his wife died at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, but did rule out that they were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning, the sheriff leading the investigation said Friday.
The condition of the bodies found Wednesday indicated the deaths occurred at least several days earlier and there was no sign of foul play.
At a news conference, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said the initial examination by the medical examiner showed no sign of carbon monoxide, a colorless and odorless gas produced from kitchen appliances and other fuel-burning items. When it collects in poorly ventilated homes, it can be fatal.
Mendoza also said an examination of the 95-year-old Hackman's pacemaker showed it stopped working on Feb. 17, which means he may have died nine days earlier.
Hackman's body was found in an entryway. The body of his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 65, was in a bathroom. She was on her side and a space heater was near her head. Investigators said the heater likely was pulled down when she fell. There also was an open prescription bottle and pills scattered on a countertop.
Whether the pills or other drugs were a factor won't be known until toxicology tests are completed in the coming weeks.
Dr. Philip Keen, the retired chief medical examiner in Maricopa County, Arizona, said it would be unlikely for a person who tests negative for carbon monoxide initially to later be found to have been poisoned by it.
He also said the moment when a pacemaker stops working could mark the point when a person dies, but not always.
"If your heart required a pacemaker, there would certainly be an interruption at that point — and it might be the hallmark of when... Read More