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SONIC MIRROR
A feel-good world music documentary with the potential to be the
next "Buena Vista Social Club."
By Bonnie J. Gordon, Jul 5, 2007
Hollywood Reporter
Jazz
rhythms are the basis of a universal language in musical documentary.
Munich
Film Festival: From dirt-poor Brazilian kids to autistic adults in Switzerland to
in-the-know Finnish jazz aficionados, Mika Kaurismaki's latest music
documentary "Sonic Mirror" follows the legendary drummer and composer
Billy Cobham as he unites them all through infectious,
can't-stop-moving rhythm.
Beautifully
photographed by Jacques Cheuiche with an eye to timeless images -- the
crashing of waves, floating of snow and gnarled hands on a drumskin --
and spectacularly engineered and edited for sound by Uwe Dresch (also a
producer and co-writer) and Oli Weiss, "Sonic Mirror" could become a
classic for music lovers of all kinds, a film they will want to own in
order to watch it again and again.
Cobham's
virtuosic playing, his wisdom and playful personality all surface in
turn. "Sonic Mirror" cuts seamlessly from a packed auditorium in
Finland, where Cobham is performing one of his compositions with an
orchestra, to a sweaty street in Brazil, where the world-famous jazz
musician gets a lesson from a cocky kid on how to hit a bass drum. Then
it's onward to a Swiss institution for autistic adults, where a music
therapist is encouraging a young man to paint a picture about Cobham.
Cobham,
still a wide-eyed explorer in the realm of the beat, guides us on our
journey. But it is the smiles on everyone else's faces that are most
deeply moving. There's the boy in Brazil, who has no Game Boy, no
computer, no iPod and certainly not the coolest new sneakers, racing to
drumming practice down his pitted street with a tremendous grin on his
face. And a psychologically damaged young man who can barely keep
himself from exploding with happiness as he watches Cobham play in the
institution's small concert room.
Then
there's Cobham, doing a drum solo in Finland with four sticks at once,
two in each hand, or tapping out the Latin rhythms he heard as a boy on
the corner of Fulton Street and Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn on the hood
of a parked car. Wherever we are, whatever we are hearing, the "Sonic
Mirror" of rhythm reflects everyone's humanity -- which for Kaurismaki
is clearly something to celebrate.
SONIC MIRROR
Marco Forster Prods., Doc Prods., Marianna Films Oy, Uwe Dresch Film Ltd, SF Swiss Television, SRG SSR idee suisse, YLE co-productions
Credits:
Director: Mika Kaurismaki
Screenwriters: Mika Kaurismaki, Marco Forster, Uwe Dresch
Producers: Marco Forster, Rose-Marie Schneider, Mika Kaurismaki, Uwe
Dresch, Madeleine Hirsiger, Urs Augstburger, Alberto Chollet, Erkki
Astala
Director of photography: Jacques Cheuiche
Music: Billy Cobham, Male Debale Brazil, Okuta Percussion Nigeria,
Tunji Beier/Espoo Big Band Finland, Swiss Mix Switzerland
Editors: Oli Weiss, Uwe Dresch
Running time 79 minutes
Filmcrew and technical Details:
Director: Mika Kaurismäki
Screenplay: Marco Forster, Uwe Dresch, Mika Kaurismäki
DOP: Jacques Cheuiche
Sound and
Music Mix: Uwe Dresch
Editor: Oli Weiss
Producers: Marco Forster, Marco Forster Productions (Switzerland)
Uwe Dresch, Uwe Dresch Films Ltd (Germany)
Mika Kaurismäki, Marianna Films Oy (Finland)
Rose-Marie Schneider, Doc Productions GmbH (Switzerland)
Co-Producers: SF Schweizer Fernsehen, Madeleine Hirsiger and Urs Augstburger (Switzerland)
SRG SSR idŽe suisse, Alberto Chollet (Switzerland)
YLE Coproductions, Erkki Astala (Finland)
Supported by: Federal Office of Culture (Switzerland)
NRW, Filmstiftung Nordrhein Westfalen GmbH (Germany)
Fonds REGIO Films, Geneva (Switzerland)
Finnish Film Foundation, Miia Haavisto (Finland)
Speed Systems, (Germany)
GB Studio Broadcast (Switzerland)
Wide Management Entreprise Sarl (France)
Musicians/Bands: Billy Cobham,
Malê Debalê (Brazil), Okuta Percussion (Nigeria) and Tunji
Beier,
Espoo Big Band (Finland) and Randy Brecker, Swiss Mix (Switzerland)
William E. Cobham sr., Peu Meurray (Tire Percussion)
Score: Andreas Schilling, Bernhard Wittmann, David Rival, Bernd Keul, Matthias Keul
Format: 35mm color, 1:1.85 Widescreen 25 Fps
Sound: Dolby Digital Surround EX
Originalversion: English, German, Swissgerman, Portugues + Music
Subtitles: English Version, German Version
SONIC MIROR - The Film
In Finland, Billy Cobham performs with the Espoo Big Band, playing his compositions for a big band, so called "Extended Works", with the famous trumpeter Randy Brecker as a special guest. The show is a jubilee of modern jazz, a music blending African and European origins.
On his further search for his musical roots, Billy visits Malê Debalê, an afro-Brazilian music group - bloco afro - located in the suburbs of Salvador, Brazil, where music plays a very important part in peoples everyday life; their identity continues to be strongly influenced by music. Here, Billy meets young musicians and percussionists, he learns how they play and live music within their community. Malê Debalê is not just a musical group but also a cultural entity, and it continues the philosophical Yoruba tradition, brought from Africa to Brazil by the slaves. SONIC MIRROR reflects the social realities of survival and the creative integration of new musical influences with traditional music. Music becomes the mirror of consciousness sustaining identity.
Okuta Percussion group from Nigeria also comes from this Yoruba tradition, and still lives in and from it. Billy and the Okuta group have already performed in a therapeutic context in the past. In Rubigen, Switzerland, they carefully developed a presentation that could be accepted by autistic persons leading them to join the musicians and dancer at some point within in performance, confirming the healing power of music and rhythm.
Different
worlds, but what may seem like an odd combination at first glance, are
yet connected through music in a mystical and secret way. The relation
between the collective and the individual consciousness becomes obvious
when, in a fantastic final, the symbiosis is achieved. Music is
emotion. Music is communication. Music is identity. Music becomes a
true universal language to express hope, love, ambition and joy. SONIC
MIRROR is a film full of vibrancy and compassion, authentic and
hypnotic from the first to the very last moment.
The Search for Identity in Autism... Sonic Mirror (by Thomas van der Stad)
In
the archaic cultures of the past, rhythm and sound had their ritual
part in the life of the individual. Man could envisage himself as an
element within the whole cosmos. The interior world of the human
organism was pervaded by spheric sounds and rhythms. Man experienced
himself to be in unison with the world, pervaded by the cosmic
heartbeat.
In
subsequent cultures during human development, man felt himself to an
increasing extent being separated from this cosmic oneness, and was led
to himself.
In the film SONIC MIRROR, which brings this archaic experience to life, music can be understood as a nonverbal means of expressing oneself, which makes it possible to balance the invisible interior world with the outside world via rhythm and sound.
The concert of Billy Cobham and Okuta Percussion in November 2005 was the attempt of a jazz musician and an African percussion group to hold a musical dialogue with people who cannot express their mental potentials, i.e. people of the autistic sphere.
Autism is a drastic development disorder. The word has its origins in the Greek word <autos> which means <self>. This term has become the synonym for being inwardly oriented, having a lack of interaction and identification with the environment to the point of isolation and being cast to oneself. The fact that such an isolation can result in a loss of identity has been shown by biographical stories by autistic people in contemporary literature.
The fall into the depths of this lack of identity from early childhood onwards prevents the development of self-competence, i.e. certain phases of development are only partially realised or fail to be integrated into the overall development. The dialogue with oneself is mostly related to internal processes and specific experiences, and thus rarely understandable for the outside world. The lack of self-perception and the resulting loss of social context leads to excessive reactions which erupt into massive aggressive and auto-aggressive behaviour patterns.
In the context of the film itself, a way of expression is mentioned which offers autistic persons an extended means of expressing themselves, and helps them advance their sphere of communication: this method is called facilitated communication. If the various methodical approaches succeed in activating the individual potential of the person, then the aggressive behaviour patterns diminish considerably. Subsequently, a clearly defined self-competence emerges together with decision-making and responsibility which also has its effects on the social context.
In music, there is the possibility to step outside oneself, a process which can be compared to a resonance between what is me and what I have to tolerate on the one hand, and what is not present yet and still has to come - which has still to be developed - on the other hand.
It is a difficult process to reconcile this area of conflict, and it makes nonverbal means of expression necessary which exceed mere verbal understanding; in this process, music sounds the mental field of expression and tries to stimulate the human being as a resonance body by melodic improvisations and interactive singing.
To form this resonance body is the central feature of the joint work of autistic and non-autistic persons, in order to achieve a better understanding of each other!
Thomas van
der Stad, April 2007
Area manager Autism and Multiple Disablement in the
Bärau/ Langnau i. E. homestead
Raffaelstiftung (Home for the Autists, Switzerland)
The Raffael Foundation has been
founded in 1989 by parents of autistic children who wanted to offer to
their disabled children a home with intelligent possibilities for
living, working and leisure. Since 1993 the home has been in
Konolfingen, can receive 20 autistic persons, mostly young adults and
has its own workshop. The Raffael Foundation has made surprising
progress in understanding and care taking of autistic persons,
integrating as well artistic proposals to enhance their quality of live
and social competences. Unfortunately, the Raffael Foundation will be
closed down for financial reasons in July 2007 and integrated into
similar institutions in the area within the canton of Bern.
Autism
http://www.autismspeaks.org/
Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that typically lasts throughout a person's lifetime. It is part of a group of disorders known as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. The diagnosis of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade. It occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. The core deficit is learning social interactions, autism impairs a person's ability to communicate and relate to others. It is also associated with rigid routines and repetitive behaviors, such as obsessively arranging objects or following very specific routines. Symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe. One milder form of the disorder is known as Asperger Syndrome. Other developmental disorders that fall under the Autism Spectrum Disorders are Rett Syndrome, PDD NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder), and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder.
The
variability is immense. From individuals who are burdened by severe to
profound intellectual disabilities to persons who are gifted and more
competent than most in the community. From those who cannot speak to
those who are loquacious. From those whose isolation is manifest by
complete social withdrawal to those who cannot stop approaching others
albeit at times awkwardly. From persons who are enchained by
self-stimulating movements, rituals and self-injurious behaviors to
those whose knowledge about circumscribed areas of knowledge or special
skills are prodigious.
Autism is the
fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S and Autism
costs the nation over $90 billion per year, a figure expected to double
in the next decade. There is no medical detection or cure for autism.
There are actually three areas that autism research is emphasizing now:
genetics, environmental triggers, and brain imaging technology.
Okuta Percussion, Nigeria
Under
the lead of the percussionists Rabiu Ayandokun, the Okuta percussion
group from Nigeria not only keeps alive its Yoruba tradition but
remains open to experiment and has performed internationally not just
classical African, Indian, and Indonesian drum music on original
instruments but also a variety of complex intersections and fascinating
musical multicultural fusions.
Tunji Beier (http://www.tunji.org/index.html) performs improvisations
and compositions drawing on various traditions that have influenced
him, especially South Indian, Yoruba and Middle Eastern traditions. He
grew up in New Guinea, Nigeria and Germany and now lives in Australia.
At the age of 10 he began to study African Yoruba drumming in Nigeria.
Malê
Debalê, Salvador - Brazil http://www.maledebale.com.br/
Malê Debalê is an afro-Brazilian cultural group and was
founded back in 1979 by the inhabitants of Itapu‹, a suburb on the sea
shore, who wanted to have their own representation in the legendary
street carnival of Salvador - Bahia.
Dancing and
music are linking the African traditions and the popular Brazilian way
of life in this community. Malê Debalê has about 4'000 members,
1'500 dancers and a percussion group with 150 drummers, or as the New
York Times wrote: "the world's largest afro ballet". In parallel to
the musical activities and calendar, Malê Debalê undertakes
continuously several cultural, political and educational programs within
the community, in particular with the youngsters.
Espoo
Big Band http://www.ebb.fi/
The Espoo Big Band
(EBB) is one of the finest big jazz orchestras in Europe. It was
founded and is conducted by Martti Lappalainen, who was elected the
Jazz Musician of the Year and awarded the Georgie-prize by the Finnish
Jazz Federation in 1986.
The EBB has been on stage at several international jazz festivals including
Detroit, Miami, New York, Montreux, Antibes, Budapest, Montpellier,
Umbria, London and Paris. Jazz greats who have performed as soloists
in various concerts with the EBB include Freddie Hubbard, Slide Hampton,
Billy Cobham, Thad Jones, Bill Watrous, Ray Anderson, Diane Schuur,
Art Farmer and Carla Bley, The New York Voices, Maria Schneider, Ray
Charles, Kevin Mahogany and Trilok Gurtu.The beginnings
of the EBB go back to the Tapiola Music School in Espoo, where experimental
jazz education was launched in 1968 by Martti Lappalainen. The Tapiola
Big Band was founded 1970 and achieved soon name and fame in Europe
by winning international contests and was known for its young skilled
players and ambitious concert programs.
Mika
Kaurismäki www.mikakaurismaki.com
Mika Kaurismäkis
first film The Liar (1980) was an overnight sensation, when first shown
in Finland; it marked the beginning of the cinema of the
Kaurismäki brothers and started a new era in the Finnish cinema.
Born in 1955, Mika Kaurismaki studied cinema in Munich, Germany, (Hochschule fŸr Film und Fernsehen) 1977-1981 and made his diplom film The Liar in 1980 in Finland. His younger brother Aki Kaurismäki, then a student of journalism, played the main role and also co-wrote the screenplay. After the success of The Liar, Mika Kaurismäki decided to stay in Finland and together with his brother and some friends he founded the production company Villealfa Filmproductions, that soon became a home of vital low- or no-budget film making; by the end of the 80s it was the third biggest film production company of all times in Finland. The Villealfa film family consisted, besides the Kaurismäki brothers, of many colleagues and friends, including the actors Matti Pellonpää and Kari Väänänen and the cinematographer Timo Salminen. Mika Kaurismäkis films of this era include among others the road movies The Worthless (1982) and Rosso (1985), the action comedy Helsinki Napoli - all night long (1987) and the environmental adventure The Amazon (1990). Aki Kaurismäki, who had worked as Mikas assistant and a screenwriter, began his career as a director, when Mika produced his first film The Crime and Punishment (1984). During the active Villealfa years, Mika co-founded the legendary Midnight Sun Film Festival (1986) and the distribution company Senso Films (1987) and the Andorra cinemas in Helsinki.
The 90s meant a gradual disappearance of the Villealfa spirit and both Mika and Aki started to produce their films through their own production companies. Mika had founded Marianna Films in 1987 and its first independent production was the award winning Zombie and the Ghost Train (1991). In 1994 Mika returned to the Brazilian jungle with Samuel Fuller and Jim Jarmusch and made the feature length documentary Tigrero - a film that was never made. The film was awarded the International Critics Award at the Berlin Film Festival in 1994.
In the course of the 90s Mika established his base and second home in Rio de Janeiro and started to concentrate more in international co-productions. In 1996 in Philadelphia he directed the no-budget thriller Condition Red with James Russo, Cynda Williams and Paul Calderon. His biggest production so far is the comedy LA without a map (1998), with David Tennant, July Delpy, Vincent Gallo, Johnny Depp, James Le Gros, Anouk Aimee, Joe Dallesandro etc.
The new millennium started for Mika with the production of "Moro no Brasil (2002), the praised documentary of Brazilian music. During the production of this film he also opened a live music club "Mikas Bar" in Rio de Janeiro, but gave it up later and decided to concentrate primarily in film making. In 2003 he co-founded a production company Stamina Media GmbH in Germany in order to produce Honey Baby, a road movie between Germany and Russia, starring Henry Thomas, Irina Bjärklund and Helmut Berger. Brasileirinho, a film about Brazilian choro music, premiered at the Berlinale 2005. Mika's latest film is Sonic Mirror (2007), a new feature documentary about (world) music featuring the legendary drummer Billy Cobham.
Billy Cobham http://www.billycobham.com/
Only a few times in
history has a musician been singled out as the world-class master of
his instrument. Billy Cobham is one of those few artists. For over 30
years, he has received international acclaim as the total consummate
percussionist. The legendary Billy Cobham, with his matchless,
dazzling, ambidextrous skills as a drummer, has applied the same
insistent fervor to his long list of monumental achievements. Hes an
accomplished composer and record producer.
Billy Cobham was born in 1944 in Panama, but the Cobham family moved to
New York City in 1947. He had his stage debut in performance with his
father at the age of 8. Cobham developed his seriously voracious
appetite for drumming in the highly competitive Drum and Bugle Corps.
arena with St. Catherines Queensmen, prompting him to attend New Yorks
famed High School of Music and Art to study music theory and drum
technique with seminars by such renowned talents as Thelonious Monk and
Stan Getz. Since 1980 Billy Cobham has been dividing his time between
his new home in Switzerland and the United States where he lived in New
York City and northern California until that time, underscoring his
unique internationally influenced origins as a musician.
He has performed on hundreds of records with his own groups and with some of the musics most luminary artists, such as Miles Davis, Mahavishnu Orchestra and John McLaughlin, Freddie Hubbard, Larry Coryell, Horace Silver, Peter Gabriel and many more. His trademark - biggest, fastest, explosive drumming - has energized the international stages of concerts, symphonies, big bands, Broadway, festivals, television and video. He has been a teacher of his artistry, giving drum clinics, conducting workshops and symposiums throughout the world. His stylistic influence, which has literally created a category of music, is an outstanding part of the history of modern music. He is one of the few Percussionists, specializing in the Jazz drum set to lead his own band. The award winning Cobham has custom designed trend setting acoustic and electronic drum sets and has endorsed products that he created and refined.
A
complete biography and discography can be found at Cobham's own
homepage http://www.billycobham.com/
Interview with the Director Mika Kaurismäki
March 2007
Question. When and
how did you get the idea for the film? Why again about music?
MK: In fact, the idea to make a film about Billy Cobham and his music goes back quite a long way, I thought about it for the first time already before making my films about Brazilian music "Moro no Brasil" and "Brasileirinho". Ive been always interested in rhythm and drums - even played drums in the school years - and I have listened Billy Cobhams music since then. Later I got to know him personally and the idea to make something together came up. As Billy has always traveled a lot and worked around the world in different projects, the idea was more to make a film about his musical projects than a personal portrait about him, to show music as a universal language and rhythm as one of the basic elements of human life.
Question. How did you
find the musicians for the film?
Billy Cobham obviously was the central figure from
the beginning and when we started thinking of the film, the main idea
was, that we wanted to show and mix very different situations. So
we ended up choosing three quite extreme musical situations: a classic
big band concert, afro-Brazilian rhythms in a poor neighborhood and
music as a therapy within an autistic community.
I knew that Billy had composed music, so called "Extended Works" , for a big band, and as I knew the Espoo Big Band in Finland I proposed that this could be one of the projects in the film. Also knowing Billys interest in afro-Brazilian music, we decided to bring him to Salvador, Brazil, the center of afro-Brazilian culture. As I live nowadays in Salvador, I was familiar with several musical and cultural groups - blocos afro, as they are called there. I chose Bloco Malê Debalê, because it comes from a poor neighborhood, where it has a very important role in peoples everyday life, their identity is pretty much influenced by it. And of course Malês percussive beat is very strong. Malê Debalê is not just a musical group but also a cultural entity, and it continues the philosophical Yoruba tradition, brought from Africa to Brazil by the slaves.
Okuta Percussion from Nigeria also comes from this Yoruba tradition, still lives in it, Billy had worked with Okuta for quite a long time and they had already performed for autistic people in Italy. We found this very interesting and wanted to create a project within an autistic community. Through his contacts in Switzerland, Marco Forster, one of the producers and part of the screenwriter team, found the Raffael-Stiftung near Bern, Switzerland, who were interested in working together with us. So we invited the Okuta Percussion from Nigeria to perform together with Billy for the autists.
Espoo Big Band from Finland, Malê Debalê from Brazil and Okuta Percussion from Nigeria seems like an odd combination first, but if you look closer they all are musically linked, not only by Billy Cobham but through the world music tradition.
In the film theres also the band Swiss Mix, formed by Billy Cobham and Swiss musicians, including alphorn.
Question.
Who produced the film? How did you find each other? How was it to work
together?
MK: The film was produced by Marco Forster, Uwe
Dresch, Rose-Marie Schneider and me, Marco Forster being the delegate
producer. I had worked with Marco in my previous film Brasileirinho and
Sonic Mirror was a straight continuation to this collaboration. Uwe
Dresch had worked as a sound designer in my last three films and now he
became also our German co-producer. Marco Forster finally brought in
Rose-Marie Schneider as a Swiss co-producer.
As we all had experience working together, the production went smoothly. Of course working with limited financial resources in many distant parts of the world created some practical and logistic problems, which we tried to eliminate by hiring local line producers in each country.
Having so many producers in one small film is also due to the financing structure; the film is a Swiss-German-Finnish co-production and each country contributed to the financing of the film.
Question. How did the shooting of the film go? Where did you shoot it?
MK: Like I mentioned before, this production included some logistic challenges. The film was shot in five episodes on three continents. First we shot in Finland during the April Jazz Festival in 2005, then in Switzerland and New York in August 2005, after that again in Switzerland in November and, finally, in Brazil in December 2005.
In each country we hired a local crew, only the key crew members, the director, the director of photography and the sound engineer went through the whole trip, Even if its quite a small film, a lot of people were involved. All the concerts were shot with 4-5 cameras, and in order to guarantee best possible quality, the sound was recorded on 64 tracks, all this needed a lot of preparation and planning and made the shooting somewhat challenging. Every situation was unique and couldnt be repeated. For a director its not quite easy, when you need to change crew, especially the camera operators, between the episodes, but all in all everything worked out well.
As it
was impossible to have a real script in place before shooting, I more
or less had to write the story while shooting it. Many of the people
who appear in the film, I got to know only during the shooting, so I
had to be quite attentive all the time, trying to learn abut
them, and trying to figure it out, how they would fit in and
bring the story further. Its a very interesting and challenging way to
work, but not necessarily the easiest.
Question. How was it to edit the film? Did you shoot a lot of material
this time as well?
MK: Certainly the editing was the most difficult part, but this we knew before. Its due to the very sparse script, in fact there was no real script, just an idea and vision of what the film could or should be.
The situations we shot were very different from each other and it was quite tricky to stick the story together in the editing. Of course there was a lot of research done before and we
had an overall vision of the film, but the structure and narrative were created mainly in the editing. We had a lot of material of course, some episodes, like one big concert didnt end up in the film at all, not because they werent good enough but because they didnt fit in the concept and the story we created while editing. The first idea, a film about Billy Cobham, became something more, a film about music as communication and rhythm as an universal language. It isnt a traditional music film, its not a musical, its something else, something deeper, an attempt to understand life and human being through music.
Question. Were there
any surprises during the making of this film? Did you learn something
new? Was the making of this film somehow different from the films you
have made before?
MK:
Every moment was a surprise in a way, because you never quite knew what
to expect next. Especially shooting with Adrian, Mathias, Leo, Raffael
and the other autistic people was a very special situation, because
they couldnt speak our language. I even sometimes got the feeling that
I was exploiting them, even if I knew it wasnt the case. We knew very
well, that they wanted to co-operate and be part of the film. It was a
very special and in the end very rewarding experience, where we all
certainly learnt a lot about them and life in general.
Question. Do you already know where you will make your next
film and what will it be about?
MK: Nothings 100% sure yet, but it seems that the next film will be fiction. It has been very interesting to work on the three music documentaries, but now I feel, that its time to do fiction again, hopefully in Finland and in Finnish language. Im currently working on a screenplay and if everything goes well, Ill shoot in Finland next year. It will be a story about family relationships. Ive also been offered a couple of interesting scripts from abroad, one from France, one from Germany and one from the US and Im seriously considering them as well.
Question. How do you feel now that Sonic Mirror will be shown in Nyon? What does it mean for you and your film?
MK: I believe Nyon is the perfect place to premiere Sonic Mirror. Nyon is one of the most respected documentary festivals in the world. The film is a Swiss co-production and partly shot in Switzerland, even Billy Cobham lives in Switzerland, so everything fits. Im very eager to see how the audience will respond to it.
March
2007
SONIC MIRROR CAST
Larissa Viegas dos Santos
Bruno Santos Chagas
Nadilson
Bomfim Pereira Junior (Nêgo)
Adrian
Ryser
Raffael
Landmesser
Roger
Schwarz
Miguel Arcanjo dos Santos
Elisangela
Peu Meurray: Tire Percussion
Randy Brecker: Solo Trumpet
Chicago Beau: Master of
Ceremony
William
E. Cobham sr.
Chief
Rabiu Ayandokun
Billy
with Kids
Brito
Rasta
Thomas
Van der Stad
Billy Cobham
Joselio
THE
CREW
Jacque Cheuiche, Direcror of Photography
Mika Kaurismäki & jacques Cheuiche
Uwe Dresch, Sound
Oli Weiss, Editor
SONIC MIRROR - CREDITS
Marco Forster Productions
Marianna Films
Uwe Dresch Film
Doc
Productions
present
a film directed by
Mika
Kaurismäki
SONIC
MIRROR
Screenplay
Mika Kaurismäki
Marco Forster
Uwe
Dresch
Director of Photography
Jacques
Cheuiche, ABC
Sound
Uwe
Dresch
Editor
Oli
Weiss (ABAPE)
Cast
Adrian, Matthias, Raffael, Roger, Theo
Larissa, Bruno, Nego
William E. Cobham senior
Okuta
Percussion, Malê De Balê, Espoo Big Band
and
Billy
Cobham
A Film directed by
Mika
Kaurismäki
Producers
Marco Forster
Mika Kaurismäki
Uwe Dresch
Rose-Marie Schneider
CAST
FINLAND
Espoo
Big Band
Director Espoo Big
Band
Martti Lappalainen
Saxophone Mikko Mäkinen
Markus Holkko
Mikko Innanen
Manuel Dunkel
Janne Murto
Trumpet Lars Lindgren
Sami Pöyhönen
Teemu Mattsson
Mika Mylläri
Trombone Matti Lappalainen
Pekka Laukkanen
Valtteri Malmivirta
Janne Laine
Piano Lenni-Kalle Taipale
Guitar Jarmo Saari
Bass Eerik Siikasaari
Percussion Jari-Pekka Karvonen
Drums Eskelinen Rami
Special Participation
Concert Conductor Scott Stroman
Trumpet Randy Brecker
Master of
Ceremony
Chicago
Beau
NEW YORK
In memory of late William E. Cobham senior
Ivy Headley
Wayne Cobham
BRAZIL
Presidente Malê Debalê Josélio de Araújo
Vice-Presidente Malê Debalê
Miguel Arcanjo dos Santos
Banda Malezinho
Larissa Viegas dos Santos
Nadilson Bomfim Pereira Junior (Nêgo)
Bruno Santos Chagas
Rafael Alan dos Anjos Souza
Rogério Santos de Jesus
Flávio Augusto dos Santos
Alessandro Chaves de Souza
Felipe Chagas dos Santos
Leonardo e Anderson Barroso Santos
Paulo Ricardo Pereira Oliveira
Aléx Flávio Santos Luz
Rafael da Silva Bispo
Nadilton Araújo Souza
Rafael Santana Nascimento
Antonio Rodrigues dos Santos
Marilia Ramos Batista
Jeferson Ferreira dos Santos
Nadilson Bonfim Pereira Júnior
Adeilza Alcãntara dos Santos
Lidiane Neves dos Santos
Edinaldo Pereira da Silva
Adenilton Santos Souza
Márcio e Marcelo Augusto
Santos Queiroz
Henrique Natividade
Alan Santana dos Santos
Jonas Costa dos Santos
Jacqueline Pereira dos Santos
Renan Almeida Neves
Paulo Henrique Andrade Brito
Marcos António Santos de Jesus
Jonatas Santos de Sena
Jefferson
França da Anunciação
Banda Malê
Tradição
Edenilson Natividade de Oliveira
Roberto Souza Santana
Everton Henrique Nepomuceno da Silva
Rildon Luis dos Santos
César Silva Veloso
Davi Borges de Jesus
Josias da Fonseca Froes
Cleber Rodrigues Silva
Valnei Santos Vasconcelos
Nailson dos Santos
Josemário Sacramento
Jorge Luis Pereira de Souza
Luis Cláudio Conceição Moreira
Augusto Leal Nascimento
Flávio
Santos de Jesus
Vocals Elisangela and Shido
Conductor Alfredo Esprito Santo Costa
Carnaval
Queen
Zaira Esterfhane de Castro
Dancers Malê
Gilmar Carvalho Rodrigues
Dilene Caldas Silva
Itamar Nery
Tiago Sarmento de Jesus
Adriano Pereira Conceição Barbosa
Mônica da Invenção dos Anjos
Amanda de Souza Pereira
Rafael Santana Nascimento
Dalton
Cerqueira dos Santos
Tire Percussion Peu Meurray
Luisinho do Gêge
Drum
Artisan
Brito
Rasta
SWITZERLAND
Okuta Percussion
Rabiu Ayandokun
Sakirat Ayandokun
Ajangila Adekunle Ojegoke
Abiodun Adeniyi Ajangila
Tunji Beier
SwissMix
Bass
Peter Keiser
courtesy
of EMI Music Switzerland
Percussion
Walter Keiser
courtesy
of EMI Music Switzerland
Guitar Per Gade
Keyboard Hanspeter Brüggemann
Backliner Christian Schönenberger
Alphorn
Willy
Walter
Raffael-Stiftung Konolfingen
Thomas van der Stad
Kathrin Sollberger
Diana Aegerter
Susanne Flückiger
Thekla Huber
Claudia Lüthi
Matthias Jäger
Raffael Landmesser
Andrea Nussbaum
Theo Portenier
Adrian Ryser
Jehona Ramadani
Bernhard Schüpbach
Roger Schwarz
Martin
Schulz
Crew FINLAND
Associate Producer Ulla Zumbühl-Kaurismäki
Production
Manager
Tiina
Niiranen
Production
Secretary &
Continuity
Anna-Maija Kaurismäki
Assistant to the Producer Cenira Dias Kaurismäki
Producer
April Jazz
Festival
Martti
Lappalainen
Secretary April Jazz
Festival
Satu Munkberg
Camera Operators Heikki Färm
Rauno Ronkainen
Tahvo Hirvonen
Maria Kaurismäki
Sound Engineer Heikki Kossi
Sound Trainee Jyrki Sahla
Crane Operator Torsti Hyvönen
Crane Assistant Janne Häkkinen
Gaffer & Grip Olli Varja
Camera Assistants Antti Ruusuvuori
Sari Aaltonen
Set Design & Props Markku Pätilä
Camera Trainees Jussi Lindgren
Hanna Hurri
Still Photographer Sanna Hedström
Drum Equipment Coordinator Tuomas Kolehmainen
Catering Iida Pekkarinen
Accountant
Riikka Olin
Espoo Cultural Center
Sound
Time Viitanen
Tuomo Matikka
Lighting Henry Sneck
Stage Hannu Velander
Ari Virtanen
Crew GLARUS SWITZERLAND
Camera Operators Patrick Tresch
Maria Kaurismäki
Assistant Camera Operators / Trainees Michelle Brun
Florian Widmeier
2nd AD / Continuity Béatrice Eglin
Sound Engineer Stefan Soltau
Assistant Sound / Trainee Bruno Forster
Gaffer André Pinkus
Grip
Didier Lebel
Still
Photographer
Chris Landmesser
Assistant
to Walter Kaiser
Peter Mäder
Trainee Talina Keiser
Catering
Alexandra Freytag
Crew KONOLFINGEN + RUBIGEN SWITZERLAND
Camera Operators Patrick Tresch
Pierre Reischer
Assistant Camera Operator Orit Teply
Sound
Engineer
Ronny
Schroepfer
Sound
Engineer of Billy Cobham
Jonin Fehlmann
Gaffer/Grip André Pinkus
1st AD / Script Marie-Louise Bless
Still Photographer Matthias Spalinger
Accountant MOAC Treuhand
Marc Mahler
Insurance best solutions gmbh
Equipment Rental GB Studios
FTK - Filmtechnik
Crew SALVADOR BRAZIL
Production Manager Marilene Santiago
Director's Assistant João Rodrigo Mattos e Silva
Production Assistant Luciana Cavalcanti de Miranda Delgado
Contracts Rita de Cássia Cajaiba Soares
Camera Operators Cláudio Oliveira de Moraes
Mustapha Barat
Ronaldo Affonso da Costa Torquilho
Camera Assistants Alessandro Andrade
Dailton Pinho Barbosa
Guilherme Carneiro Filho
Grip Diogenes da Silva Batista Filho
Ricardo Santos de Almeida
Grip Assistants António Nascimento dos Santos
Edvaldo dos Santos Fonseca
Gaffer Orlando Fernandes de Souza
Gaffer Assistants Gerson Santos da Conceição
Sérgio Couto
Sound Engineer Fábio Marc Baltensberger
Sound Assistant Bernhard Wittmann
Sound Trainees Edmilson Ferreira Vitorino
Dilson Ferreira Vitorino
Security Edvaldo Rodrigues
Joseval Santos
Drivers Jo‹o Batista Monteiro
Valmende Oliveira Alves
Rubens Sousa
Rocha
Camera Rental New York &
Brazil
Camcar, Cologne
Camera Rental
Finland
P. Mutasen Elokuvakonepaja
Oy
Equipment
Rental Brazil
Brian Sewell
Philippe Guinet
Quantas
Sound Equipment Rental Ambient Recording, Munich
Toneheads
Cologne
Add.
Sound Equipment Finland
Meguru Film Sound
Oy
Making of
Director, Camera, Editing Barbara Lamber
Camera Operators Michael Gerber
Maria
Kaurismäki
Post-production GERMANY
Assistant Editor Mirko Scheel
Additional Editor Christian Krämer
Digital Touch Up Roger Kleiber
Dramaturgical Advisory Anahita Nazemi
Gerd Haag
Dialogue Editor Klaus Wassen/Floren
Foley Artist Wilmont Schulze
Foley Recordist Sebastian Stroux
Foley Editor Sebastian Pohle
Music Editor Bernhard Wittmann
Music Mix Supervisor Andreas Schilling
Music Mix, Sound Design Uwe Dresch
Re-recording Tobias Fleig
Mastering Hupert Henle
Technical Support Uli Beck
Sven Wiegand
AVID Speed Systems
Avid Coordinator Edith Jochemich
OMF Operators Hans Langlied
Bolle Baumann
Erich Zacker
Tanja Üppisch
Eric Horstmann
Foley Studio Torus
Music Edit Studio Blaufabrik
Sound Design Studio Surroundwerkstatt
Re-recording Studio Elektrofilm
Title animation Rudolf Germann
Jakob Hüfner
Datenstrudel
Accountant Sabine Engels
Knut Kürmann
Sozietät Wegener
Transcription / Translation Peter Bertges
Art Direction Online Media Frank Fischer
Fh-konzept
GmbH
Post-production SWITZERLAND
On-line Edit Stan Schlosshauer
GB Studio Broadcast
Grading Philippe Schmid
EgliFilm AG
Smoke HD Artist Laurence James
EgliFilm AG
Laboratory EgliFilm AG
Project Manager EgliFilm Luana Derungs
Subtitling David Meister
Titra
Film
SA
Post-production FINLAND
Additional Re-recording Pekka Karjalainen
Olli Pärnänen
Meguru Film Sound
Mastering
Peter Nordström
Songs
Yoruba Calling (Bernhard Wittmann)
Courtesy of AGA − RECORDS GERMANY
Conondrum (Billy Cobham)
Courtesy of WARNER / CHAPPELL MUSIC GMBH & CO KG GERMANY
Malê A Insurreição (Marcos Alafim)
Day and Night (Bernhard Wittmann)
Courtesy of AGA − RECORDS GERMANY
Essência de Amor (Dico e Neguinho da Abolição)
Quem Não Descer de Malê (J. Jô)
Red Baron (Billy Cobham)
Courtesy of WARNER / CHAPPELL MUSIC GMBH & CO KG GERMANY
Score
Andreas Schilling
Bernhard Wittmann
David Rival
Bernd Keul
Matthias
Keul
Thanks
to
Volker
Helm
Michele Cobham
Faina
Cobham
Joseph Meizer
Andreas Notter
Walter Klopfenstein (Raffael-Stiftung)
Humanus-Haus Rubigen
Ursina Huber
Jörg Minder
Maja Ruedisueli
M. Barbeley (Swiss Embassy Lagos)
M. Summermatter (BFM)
Municipality of Glarus
Hansjörg Dürst
Glarner Kantonalbank
Esther Feldmann
Jonny Tinner
Martin & Trix Lehmann
Niklaus
Mario
Sabine
Johanne
Matthias Lempert
Claudia Wannenmacher
Franz Schmitt
Boban Golubovic
Dr. Stefan Rüll
Harry Steinhäuser
Marcel Garnier
Jutta Konermann,
Sparkasse KölnBonn
Wolfgang Adenberg
Sibylle Anneck
Steffen Irlinger
Jörn Hintzer
Lili Voigt
Michael Reuter
Anette Welkers
Michael Thomas
Simone Herkendell
Michael Strauch
Tina Thiele
Hannes Eder
Michael Egli
Volker Gerke
Rainer Knauf
Martin Mertes
Anne Garnier
Katharina Stolz
Dora Geisert - Groh
Karsten Aurich
Hildegard Haselmann
Martin Block
Kevin Alamba
Celia Hummel
André Kraml
Robert Faust
GŸnter Knon
Ralf "Mosch" Himmler
Martina Horbach
Chris
Price
April Jazz Festival Espoo
City of Espoo
Juha Vilja
Olagilson Eleutério da Silva
Celso dos Santos
Cláudio de Araœjo
Delcio Silva
Ives Quaglia
Dora Dias
Carlos Eduardo de Santana
Edvaldo Rodrigues Brito
Célia Viegas dos Santos
Aristides Francisco das Chagas Filho
Billy
Esmeraldo Santos Awuimino
Jodelklub Glärnisch
Willy Walter
Kurt Annen
Friedrich Bühler
Bruno Dürrmüller
Hans Feldmann
Balz Feldmann
Anton Gisler
Hanspeter Heiz
Fridolin Jenny
Ernst Linder
Arnold Meier
Hermann Noser
René Planta
Josef Rast
Reto Schneider
Heinrich Stauffacher
Annarös Streiff
Robert Stüssi
Andreas Vogel
Beny Weber
Elfrieda Züger
Ueli
Zweifel
Glarner Tamburenverein Näfels
Martin Landolt
André Hauser
Albin Nydegger
Christian Widmer
Stefan Hösli
Pascal Genhart
Daniel Hobi
Marc Hobi
Seth Müller
Marwish Band
Martin Lehmann
Gabriel Schiltknecht
Dervis Alagic
Willi Spichtig
Soungalo Sanon Djembe
Ruth Schmid
Iris
Merki
Cultural Support in Salvador
IRDEB Bahia
TVE Salvador
Governo do Estado da Bahia
Secretaria
de Cultura e Turismo da Bahia
With the support of
Federal Office of Culture (BAK), Switzerland
NRW, Filmstiftung Nordrhein Westfalen GmbH
Fonds REGIO Films, Geneva, Switzerland
Finnish Film Foundation, Miia Haavisto
ESEK/LUSES, Finland
GB
Studio Broadcast, Switzerland
Wide
Management Entreprise Sārl, Loic Magneron
Co-producers
SF Schweizer Fernsehen:
Urs Augstburger (Pacte de lÕAudiovisuel)
SRG SSR idée suisse, Alberto Chollet
YLE Coproductions, Erkki Astala
Wide
Management Entreprise Sārl, Loic Magneron
© MMVII
Marco Forster Productions, Marianna Films Oy, Uwe Dresch Film Ltd, Doc Productions GmbH
Switzerland − Germany - Finland
www.sonicmirror.com
ISAN 0000-0001-745A-0000-V
