Behind the Scenes with Hollywood Vampires
When documentary maker Daniel Catullo from 10 Lives Content asked about our availability for a 2-day long shoot, we were able to jump on board quickly, and immediately sent over a selection of DOP reels, as he was eager to work with a professional video crew in Budapest.
He selected one of our favourites, Zoltan Devenyi, for the project – a documentary about the Hollywood Vampires’ concert in Hungary, including interviews with the stars and additional B-rolls of Budapest.
By the time Daniel and his co-producer Andrew stepped off the plane from LA, we’d arranged a meeting at their hotel. Here, Daniel shared detailed info about the band and its members, so we’d know exactly who we needed to meet and how to interact with them.
When it came to the location for the interview parts the film, Daniel was interested in a mysterious or gothic dark interior, such as a medieval-looking museum. After considering various options, we ultimately chose to film these scenes in the Corinthia Hotel’s ballroom, where all the talent and the 10 Lives team were staying. This offered both convenience and an astonishing backdrop.
The production spanned two days. On the first day, we were scheduled to record the show, conduct some small interviews at the venue, and capture general B-rolls as the stars arrived and prepared for the concert. We began the interviews at the arena just before the concert with Buck Johnson, Chris Wyse, and Glen Sobel. After that, our crew was ready and waiting for the stars to arrive at the venue, along with thousands of fans at the entrance.
But just before the show was about to begin, we received the disappointing news that it had been cancelled due to Johnny Depp falling ill. This setback left us uncertain if the second day would proceed as planned, but the producers reassured us that everything would go ahead as scheduled.
Several Hollywood Vampires had previously been cancelled due to an ankle injury sustained by Johnny Depp in May.
The next day, we set up the ballroom early, ensuring all lights were in place and conducting tests with the Jimmy Jib, per Daniel’s request. Although ultimately we weren’t able to interview Johnny Depp, we successfully filmed interviews with Alice Cooper and Tommy Henriksen. As of writing this post, Daniel and Andrew have held the remaining interview with Johnny Depp in Los Angeles, and the film is on track for completion soon.
We’d like to thank 10 Lives Content for the opportunity to collaborate with an Emmy-awarded director and to work with such iconic figures while they were in Budapest.
– A surprising story to the end:
We asked Andrew what brought them to us. Andrew said when they were searching for a film production company in Hungary that offers professional production services, they used AI (ChatGPT) to see which companies the system recommends that ticks all their needs.
