Thursday, October 17, 2024

Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Sigvar Carlmark

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

Sigvar Hjalmar Carlmark was born in Storfors, Kroppa, Värmland, Sweden on April 16, 1927. He appeared in one film as a postman in 1968’s “Under ditt parasol” (Under That Parasol). The film has a western scene so is loosely classified as a western.

Carlmark was married to Gunborg Viola Andersson from 1953-1987 and was the father of one son and two daughters. He died in Karlstad, Värmland, Sweden on April 11, 1987 a week short of turning 60.

I can find no other biographical information on him.

CARLMARK, Sigvard (Sigvar Hjalmar Carlmark) [4/16/1927, Storfors, Kroppa, Värmland, Sweden – 4/11/1987, Karlstad, Värmland, Sweden] – film actor, married to Gunborg Viola Andersson [1931-2017], (1953-1987), father of one son and two daughters.

Under ditt parasol – 1968 (postman)

New Swedish Blu-ray release of “Shalako”

 








Shalako

(1968)

 

Director: Edward Dmytryk

Starring: Sean Connery, Brigitte Bardot

 

Country: Sweden

Label: Retro Film

Blu-ray

Region: B

Resolution: 1080p

Aspect ratio: 2.35:1

Language: LPCM 2.0 English

Subtitles: Swedish

Running time: 112 minutes

Release date: October 14, 2024

Former BC resident hits Amazon Prime, Apple TV with first feature starring role

The Record Live

By Penny LeLeux

September 3, 2024

Woody Almazan, raised in Bridge City, and a former actor, as a teen, in many of Orange Community Players' productions, is hitting the big time with his first starring role in a feature film. "The Ecstasy of Gold: The Treasure of Jesse James" dropped on Amazon Prime and Apple TV Tuesday 

"In 90 days it will be on Roku, Tubi and Peacock," said Almazan. "Everywhere but Netflix."

The film is a "spaghetti" western. A genre made famous by Clint Eastwood. The term was used for westerns that were produced and directed by Italians. This film is by Federico Alotto.

Almazan said the funny thing was the Italians came here to shoot the film in Austin instead of the actors going to Italy.

The synopsis of the film list on IMDb is as follows: "Colt Turner returns home eager to embrace his beloved partner Annie. His homecoming is met with a tense atmosphere, as Colt holds valuable information about the location of a legendary load of gold: the treasure of the famous Jesse James."

Almazan plays Jake Johnson, the leader of the bandits Colt formerly ran with. He said this may have been his "funnest" project to date. "I really got to be mean, romantic at times and funny," He said he really enjoyed playing the villain. Though stunts have been a big part of his career, Almazan said he really didn't have to do a lot of stunts in the film, though he was the fight coordinator (uncredited) in the film. He said crediting stunts isn't a big thing in Italy. He did ride horses in the film.

Almazan moved to Houston from Bridge City several years ago doing stunt work and bit parts in multiple shorts. In 2019 he came back to Orange County for his first starring role in "Shhh," an action romcom short film that was shot in Orange and Bridge City. The film received several awards in the festival circuit and even got Almazan a "Best Actor" nomination in a festival overseas. Following that role, Almazan started picking up more parts and even signed with a talent agent.

In April 2023, Almazan moved to Austin to find more acting opportunities. "The Ecstasy of Gold" is the first western out of production for Almazan. It started filming the summer of 2023

"It was shot during the hottest week of summer, June I think," he said.

He found out when they had the red-carpet premier in Austin a few months ago that the director and producers really hadn't thought of him as the villain. They had already looked at a couple of people, but they were blown away by his audition. They rewrote the part to better suit him. "I had no idea," he said.

Almazan hopes this leads to more starring roles in the future. He has a few other projects in the works. He has a guest starring role in "Old Wild Mob" produced by the same production company as "Ecstasy" that should be coming out in a few months. A short film, "Bloody Tears" is currently in the festival circuit and another feature, "Death Bike," a horror comedy is set to finish shooting in Houston as soon as schedules allow. He is also in the upcoming season 2 finale of the Paramount series "Lioness."

He was also recently reunited with his "Shhh" co-star, Reese Ravencraft, also an Orange County native. They recently shot a proof of concept for "Chasing Faith," a faith-based film that is being pitched to Angel Studios by Studio 220 Film in Jefferson County.

Almazan hopes to continue getting larger projects and syndicated series in the future. He is currently looking for a new agent.

Just a little fun fact... "The Ecstasy of Gold" is also the title of a musical composition by Ennio Morricone that is part of the music track of "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," another famous Spaghetti Western featuring Clint Eastwood that was directed by Sergio Leone.

[Submitted by Michael Ferguson]


Special Birthdays

Elli Parvo (actress) would have been 110 today but died in 2010.



Wednesday, October 16, 2024

 


RIP Joan Franco Basque actor, cinematographer and photographer, Joan Franco Prado died on October 14 in Las Negras, Andalucia, Spain. He was 65. Born on April 21, 1959, in Viorio, Álava, Spain, he was an actor, an extra, and played different technical roles behind the camera. "He was a great cameraman and photographer: I learned a lot from his knowledge and experience," says Diego Pérez Cano, director of 'The Interrogation', a film in which Franco was deputy director. He participated in several shoots in Oasys MiniHollywood. "He was a stalwart of the park, always willing to support new projects in exchange for nothing, and giving you a smile," says José María Rodríguez Linde, manager of the town of Tabernas. And along the same lines, from the Café-Bar Ambrosio, home of the Almeria Western museum-cinema: "He was always willing to collaborate altruistically with his characteristic and sarcastic smile". Prado appeared as a drunk and was the cinematographer on 2019’s “Arizona 1878 una historia del Viejo oeste”.

Little Known Spaghetti Western Actors ~ Emmi Carl

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

Emmi Carl was a German silent film actress she appeared in only one film and that was for the 1920 German western “Feuerteufel” (Firestarter) as Ruth the judge’s daughter. The film was directed by Phil Jutzi and starred Carl Becker.

I can find no biographical information about her.

CARL, Emmi – film actress.

Firestarter – 1920 (Ruth)

Alex Cox: "A good film is an invitation to get to know the place"

The British filmmaker begins filming the film 'Dead Mexicans' in a few days in the town of MiniHollywood in Tabernas

Diario de Almería

By Diego Martínez

October 9, 2024

Alex Cox has returned to the Tabernas Desert, 38 years later, after filming Straight to Hell in 1986. The British filmmaker will shoot a feature film of the western genre in the coming days, with which he says it will be his last film, but in a different way.

His new film proposal is based on the novel Dead Souls, by Nicolai Gogol, to make a "Western version" of an ironic and mysterious story that takes place in 1890 in Arizona. The film will be titled "Dead Mexicans".

To portray this picture, Cox intends to shoot in two locations: Tucson (Arizona) and, of course, the province of Almeria, where MiniHollywood Oasys will be one of the main sets for filming in the province.

And to learn more about the film and get to know this iconic and eclectic director better, MiniHollywood Oasys held a round table, moderated by Carlos Vives (La Oficina Producciones Culturales) and composed of José Díaz (mayor of Tabernas); the filmmaker, Margaret Von Schindler and the journalists, Carlos Juan and Manuel Carretero (Canal Sur); Pepe Cuenca (Dipalme Radio); Evaristo Martínez (La Voz de Almería) and Diego Martínez (Diario de Almería).

The production of this table was carried out by Leonardo Giménez (Armería & Atrezzo Leonardo); Andy Arche; David Miralles & El Indaliano (Un Nuevo Renacer Producciones), Diego Pérez (Proyecto Cine TV); Pablo Torres (De Torres Producciones) and Canal Sur Almería).

Alex Cox was surprised not to be able to shoot the entire film in Tabernas. "I have found that the villages are occupied with other productions. There are many shootings at the moment and others in perspective. This means that there is no possibility of shooting the entire film here, but we will be in Tabernas for a few days and then we will go to Arizona to shoot the rest of the film."

Regarding the cast of his new film, Cox stressed that "in this film there are several people who already appeared almost 40 years ago in the film that I already shot here. Unfortunately, some actors from that time are no longer here."

At the beginning of the 70s, Alex Cox visited for the first time the locations of the films that Sergio Leone had shot. "Leone's films from that era are charming and still have something special about them."

Cox explained that the first scenes he will shoot of his new film will feature a large number of people as figuration, although the final part of the film will be shot in Arizona. He also complained about the sad disappearance of the stalks throughout the desert area of Almeria. "I knew Tabernas as the place of the stalks, and almost all of them have been lost due to some bugs that have destroyed them. The film goes from a very dry desert to a desert where some green appears. In Almeria I will shoot for five days and in Arizona for two weeks".

"I really wanted Gianni Garko to work on this film, but due to his age, I can't ask him to make a film in such a short time," said Cox, who lived for many years in Tabernas. For this reason, Cox stressed that "Almeria Western Film Festival is a great support for filmmakers. What's more, the Festival introduces Tabernas and Almería to many filmmakers who do not know this wonderful environment".

"I really like the Festival that people who come can enter for free to see the film. You don't need to pay a lot of money, people are invited, and I think the atmosphere of the Festival is very beautiful, and the people who come enjoy it," he said.

He was always fascinated with the landscapes of Almeria, and more specifically the desert of Tabernas. "A good film is an invitation to get to know the place where it has been shot," says this brilliant filmmaker.

'Tabernas is a very special place, I did a lot of walks in the desert'

"When I left Tabernas I was sad, I didn't want to leave the house. I wanted to have my little place in Tabernas. Tabernas is a very special place, and I took many walks in the desert. I now live in Oregon with my wife and three dogs," recalls Alex Cox. The filmmaker also remembered Joe Strummer, leader of The Clash, of whom he said that "he was an extraordinary person with great energy. Sadly he died very young. It was really a luxury that I worked on the film Straight to Hell that I shot here almost four decades ago." I remembered that film that brought a cast of actors of great projection such as Sy Richardson, Joe Strummer, Dick Rude and Courtney Love and also appeared Dennis Hopper, Grace Jones, Elvis Costello and Jim Jarmusch. Members of The Pogues' band, Amazulu and Circle Jerks are also in the film. The film's title is based on The Clash's 1982 song of the same name. "We filmed in the middle of August in Almeria, with a lot of heat, and it also coincided with the Almeria Fair. I remember the Chochona song which had a great impact on The Pogues," says Cox. "We had so many ideas that we had to extend the filming time, and we spent four weeks"