bassistandadult-film
actressTuesdayCross
asadark rock ’n’ roll
girlwho isdetermined
tostopher. “It’savery
Scandinavianstory,”
saysTagemose. “The
mainprotagonistsare
allpowerfulwomen. So,
while it’savery rock ’n’ rollfilm,witha lotofmale
testosterone, ithassensitivityand femininepower
in it– that’s important tome.”
TagemoseandVercammen thenspent thenext
fiveyearsbringing theproject to life,with thehelpof
creative talents likecultBelgian fashiondesignerTim
VanSteenbergen. Incredibly, theentireprojectwas
fundedby twoBelgianartcollectors,who insisted
that thefilmmaintain its independence.And, the
creative talents involvedhaveastake in thefilmand
will share inanyprofits. “Swedenhasahugenumber
ofentrepreneurs, and thenewgenerationoffilm-
makersknowhow tocrowdfund theirfilmsso they
don’thave todepend
onsoftmoney from
subsidiarycompanies,”
saysTagemose. “It’s
muchmorehonest to
dependonwhat the fans
want, and itmakesbetter
filmsas thepublicwill
keepyouonyour toesas
afilm-maker.”
Theyfilmedacross
theworld,working
around thestars’ crazyagendas. In2013, as thescript
wasbeingfinished, theygot thecall that Iggywas
inMiami and ready toshootatamoment’snotice.
TagemoseandRollinsfinished thescriptand, in
days,were inMiami shooting Iggyagainstagreen
screen. “Hehad toactas ifhewas talking toGod in
achurch inFlanders,”saysTagemose.“It shows just
how talentedanactorhe is.”
JesseHughesdidhis shoot in theMojaveDesert,
at theElMiragedry lake (“Wedid63shots inone
day,working fromdawn todusk in50
o
Cheat”).
The restof thefilmwasshotprimarily inFlanders,
Belgium,where the teamgainedaccess tosomeof
thecity’smost impressivehistoric locations, from
churches toWorldWar I trenches. “We found rock
’n’ roll fanseverywhere– in thearmy, councils, and
even in thechurches,”saysTagemose. “I thinka lot
ofHollywoodproductionswouldhavehad tobuild
those locationsassets.” Inpost-production, the
disparatesceneswere tied togetherbyFrenchdigital
effectscompanyStLouis,whoarebestknown for
theirworkonChanel andDiorcommercials.
Anearly, shortversionof
Gutterdämmerung
wasshowcased lastmonth inLondon,where
Tagemose,RollinsandHughes tookquestions
from theaudience, andGraceJonesmadeaguest
appearance.The fullfilmwill start touringEurope
earlynextyear, beforeheading toLA inApril.As
Gutterdämmerung
tours theworld, itwill remain
inconstantmotion–changing in format to reflect
thecontext inwhich it isstagedandoffering the
audienceauniqueexperience.Thefilmelement
comprises 12separatescenes that canbeshifted
inorderand length, betweenwhich livemusic
performancescanbe interspersed.
Atamusic festivalwithaone-hourperformance
slot, forexample, theremaybemore focuson
thesoundtrack,whileatacinemaor theatre, the
focuswouldbeon thecinematicelements; at rock
festivals, therewouldbea live rockband; atheavy-
metal festivals theremightbe
moreguitarheroesonstage;
inabigarenapyrotechnics
couldbe incorporated; andat
galleriesandoperahouses,
thefilmedscenescouldeven
beaccompaniedbyaclassical
orchestraoroperasingers.And there’salreadybeen
a lotof interest frommore traditional artgalleries
andclassicalmusicvenues. “Wealwayswanted that,
but I’msurprised theypicked itupsoquickly,”says
Tagemose. “Theseare institutions thataremore
associatedwith thegreat classicarts rather than
Slayer–butBlackSabbathcreatesbombasticheavy
music, justasRichardWagnerdoes.”
Therearealsoplans to launchanonlinecontest
tofind talentedyoungmusicians–“Kidswhocan
play likeJimiHendrix”–andgive themexposure
throughperformingasapartof
Gutterdämmerung
.
“This ismade for the fans, thepeoplewhohave
been rock ’n’ roll addictsall their lives,not for the
people in theVIPareas,”saysTagemose. “AsLemmy
saysof it: ‘Ifyoudon’t like it…youcan f**koff.’ I
think that says itall.”
gutterdammerung.com
NorwegianfliestoStockholm,London,LosAngeles
andMiami.Bookflights,ahotelandarentalcarat
norwegian.com
Above
⁄
Grace
JonesasanAfrican
goddess fromHell
Left
⁄
HenryRollins
asanevilPuritan
priest
Opposite
⁄
Olivia
Vinallasthe“purest
girl intheworld”
n
/043
