The Hate Destroyer

we were in Germany. With Irmela. Shooting our first, exciting feature film.

And what happened then? Well, life happened. And some boring industry stuff.

Vincenzo, one of the two authors, has become a father, and now is happy, and tired, and happy again. Maybe a little sleep-deprived, but always smiling.

We have finished our documentary tv series, and the second season is just started.

Economically... uh, it is true that this is a very difficult film to do, and the funding is never enough.

BUT

Finally, in May we started the post-production of The Hate Destroyer!

Yep. And it is a sort of pantagruelic work.

We shot A LOT of great images, and even if we wrote a solid and convincing treatment, it is still difficult not being lost in Irmela's story.

Anyway, we are having an awful amount of fun.

In the end of August, or early September, we are going to screen the first version of the film to whom contributed with workforce, donations and suggestions.

We are also going to write a sort of post-production diary: not everyday, but sometimes we will post our doubts, observations and vents on this blog.

So, stay tuned, because The Hate Destroyer is coming!

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

On the other side, we have been her shadow 'til 7pm, when we brought her back at the hotel.

VINCENZO'S DIARY

Today is the opening day of the FLOW festival, with more than 20.000 people. Irmela is one of those, with her special VIP badge reserved for the artists.
She hasn't realized yet what is happening to her. She is giving interviews without rest, and everyone wants to speak with her or taking a picture hugging and standing by her.

Meanwhile, she smiles being shy, and she repeats: "But all of this is for me? Really?".

Tomorrow she will be on the main stage, right before Nick Cave.

And tomorrow will be a great day for our movie, too.
I let you with this picture. Please note that the guy with horizontal stripes on his shirt is Paavo Arhinmäki, the finnish Minister of Sports and Culture. He is 37 years old, he is nice and funny with everyone, and he fights against every form of modern racism. And then I still think that, just two years ago, our italian minister of Culture was this guy.  Damn.

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

Early today, Thursday the 8th of August, we have finally landed in Helsinki!

This country really loves Irmela, and Finnish people and organizations are helping hard our documentary film.

Another photodiary today.

Enjoy!

Irmela, just landed at the Vantaa Airport. Pretty excited, but she still doesn't know how many people are waiting for her.

Three interviews already booked for the first day. A starlet.

She knows when it's time to be serious, but she wants to have fun too.

Here you can find her into an artwork of Matti Hagelberg.

Irmela can't believe that she is going to be on that stage on saturday, before Nick Cave.

She thinks that is a bad joke from Vincenzo and Fabrizio.

But it is true, and we can't wait to see her face when she will be on there!

A short briefing with the staff...

and a good nap, because the day is long, the amount of people to see is astonishing, and the atmosphere here is very friendly and relaxed.

We feel very positive here. This is an awesome energy, that we surely will fit in the film.

Thanks, Finland. And thank you Elise, because you made this happen.

SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

Vincenzo, Irmela and Fabrizio are packing for the tomorrow's travel.

Ola is already organizing the whole next week of shootings.

Elise, in Helsinki, is working hard to organize the "The Hate Destroyer" point at the Flow festival, with people from the No Hate Speech Movement.

In this picture, you can see the preparation of the 20 meters, anti-hate wall, made by pictures of neonazi graffiti taken and destroyed by Irmela in her many years of activity.

Ant this is the wall, made by three different part, one of each day of the festival.

What is going to happen there?

SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

While Vincenzo and Fabrizio are doing the first shots with Irmela

cleaning Birkengrund (a big red swastika today. Creepy),

let me introduce what is going to happen in Finland with Irmela.

And please, follow the links, they are hiding a lot of surprises!

She has been invited to the FLOW festival in collaboration with the No Hate Speech movement and she will create an anti-hate work of art together with the festival guests in Suvilahti.

Also participating to the anti-hate wall are artists Jani Leinonen, Katja Tukiainen, Ville Andersson, Sampsa Indrén, Jenni Hiltunen, Rauha Mäkilä, Matti Hagelberg, Nora Helsinki, Sami Lukkarinen and Kauko Röyhkä.

Jani Toivola, the congressman of the green party, will also join the group of destroyers.

Finland’s Minister of Culture and Sport, Paavo Arhinmäki, will participate to the wall opening.

Well, that's something!

THE HYPE is GROWING!

 PS. Artpiece by Sanntu Mustonen for Floe Festival 2011.

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

VINCENZO'S DIARY

Today fieldtrip to Irmela's house, then back to Berlin downtown, chasing sunsets.

Irmela today was very worn out. The Bad Nenndorf manifestation has been very strenuous for her.

Sometimes we forget that she is almost seventy years old. And there are not many people her age who can travel 700 kms in three days, have a 5 hours sit-in and demostrate a whole day agains neonazis.

So, we changed our plans, leaving her two free days to recover energy and enthusiasm.

Helsinki is in a few days, and we need the best Irmela ever.

Go Irmela!

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

Tomorrow, Vincenzo and I will be like the Jake and Elwood brothers for one night.

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

Today is a day of rest, so this post won't be long as the yesterday's. It is sunday, indeed. Well, aside of the 5 hours travel by train, back to Berlin, we have done nothing at all. An abundant meal nearby the Zoo, a quest for a laundromat, two words about the schedule, and then we played around a lot.

Tomorrow we will go to Irmela's house, plannign the remaining few days before the new Finnish adventure. Obviously, there will also be her three cats: Coco, Cherry and Minta, and I'm going to dose myself up with antihistaminic drugs.

Sleep tight, and see you tomorrow!

VINCENZO'S DIARY

As promised, here's the picture for you!

You have to admit, it is impossible finding a woman with such a humor and energy!

Please note that, when we took this picture, she was just being dead-weight drugged away from a sit-in by the police!

Today, nothing important happened, we are just getting ready for the next days.
As in a previous post I suggested you a turkish restaurant, today I suggest you NOT TO GO to the Hotel Berolina in Berlin. Really a bad, bad deal.

Anyway, if the moquette of our room won't choke us during the night, tomorrow we will be still here, telling you what is going on with this documentary, that is incredibly growing everyday on our hands.
My choice for today's soundtrack is Inner City Blues by Sixto Rodrigez, one of my heroes.

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

VINCENZO'S DIARY

What an incredible day.

So many things happened today, that is almost impossible to tell you all.

But don't worry: many of those will be in the movie!

Today really wasted us. The sun cooked us like two lobsters. But we are extremely satisfied.

Now, back to Berlin, to go on shooting with Irmela. When she saw us early today, she rushed agaist us, and warmly hugged us. I have to admit, I cried a little.

Anyway, tomorrow you will find here a very special picture. A prize for those who are following our adventures on this blog.

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

Let's start with the bad news: I can tell you only one, because I don't want to take the risk of being unpopular.

When the parade was almost over, I came back to Vincenzo, who stayed with Irmela all day long.

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

VINCENZO'S DIARY

Here we are in Bad Nenndorf, 350 kms away from Berlin. And it's hot like hell.

Irmela will come here tomorrow, so we cannot give you the picture with her, smiling, like we promised yesterday.

Today, this town is very busy preparing the antifa demonstration. Streets are a colorful explosion.

In every corner you can see posters and billboards, reminding you that neonazis, here, are not welcome.

Right before sunset there was a long parade, ended with speeches from activists, volunteers and antifascists.

Imagine: almost a kilometer-long row of people, made by families with kids, teenegers, adults, old people, holding each other hands. You can really feel a positive and pacific atmosphere. But I'm wondering what will happen tomorrow.

Police is already here: they are a lot, patrolling the streets.

There are barriers everywhere, to avoid any contacts between the two demonstrations.

Tomorrow morning we will try again to have the authorization for shooting the neonazi parade. Not easy at all. But this doesn't scare us.

Well, this doesn't scare us now.

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

Today Irmela ditched us. She went visit a friend, and she will join us tomorrow.

But we will welcome her with open arms. Our hype is raising: meeting her and shooting two big demonstrations the same day.

Tomorrow the German police should give us the authorization to jump the barricades for shooting the neonazi parade. We hope that, this time, the German efficiency won't ditch us.

Good night!

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

VINCENZO'S DIARY

Ok, we can almost say that today we tested all the Berlin public transportation network. And it works great.

We crossed Berlin from east to west, and then south to north, without rest. Last stop: Marzhan, hunting for a sunset between skyscrapers.

Tomorrow we will meet Irmela. That means: wake up at daybreak, travelling with seven different baggages, made of bags, suitcases,, backpacks and so on.

But, as always, the enthusiasm wins against the strain.

And finally, tomorrow we will post a picture of Irmela smiling!

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

VINCENZO'S DIARY

Today the sun is making fun of us.

As soon as we push REC on our camera, the light turns upside down and we have to start again. Well, tomorrow will be easier.

We still haven't manage to meet Irmela. Maybe tomorrow, or maybe directly to Bad Nenndorf.

This evening we started to watch the daily footages, and it was exciting. It was like seeing the very first minute of the film coming alive.

We were moved.

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

After a long and warm shower, I feel great! (It comes into my mind the old guy in "La Haine" of Kassovitz, who felt also great, but after doing something else).

Today we woke up with a sad surprise: a weather that we can kindly define "unstable". Cloudy, rain, sun, overcast, cloudy, and sun again. 

As you can imagine, we went mad figuring out the right exposition: open the iris, close the iris, put on the ND filters, remove the ND filters. We felt like Ralph Macchio in Karate Kid: "Wax on, wax off, all the car". But, beside this unlucky conditions, we managed to shot exactly what we scheduled in the yesterday's plan, with the special bonus of a street musicians that played "Bella Ciao" for greeting us.

Dinner time: German food, and then, finally, that very desired shower.

Tomorrow, maybe, we will meet Irmela. If she won't be too busy preparing her field trip to Bad Nenndorf. She is very serious on her travels, you know.

So, we are going to bed early, because tomorrow we have to be smart and ready!

Good night folks!

 SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

FABRIZIO'S DIARY

 Here we are, back to Berlin. "Finally", let me say.

This time, we are starting the real production stage of our film.

And this time, something is different. We noticed that since the landing of our plane.

This time, walking through that chaotic maze of hallways that brings you to the Schönefeld baggage carousel was almost relaxing.

Such as the nice stroll to the RE7 station, when the storm over Berlin was starting its wetty welcome.

Train, S-Bahn, and then the hotel. And we were glad to unload the over 50 kgs. of bags we are bringing with us.

A few-minutes nap, a small planning for tomorrow's work (we will be in Kreutzber), and then: out, breathing the brisky air of Berlin, that in the evening has just became sultry like the one we left in Turin.

Vincenzo had a great idea, as always: buying a brand new map of the Berlin Public transportation.

So we started to stare at the stations with different eyes: no jokes, these days we are shooting for the film!

Then, last briefing of the day, while having a great dinner in a turkish restaurant near the Bulowstrasse station. Just a few statements, no more, because it is a pity speaking of work in front of a great meal.

The day ended at the hotel, recharging the batteries for tomorrow and sending some e-mails.

So, let the journey begin, and gute nacht.

VINCENZO'S DIARY

 The landing on Schönefeld was sweet. No sun, but super enjoyable temperature.

Extremely loaded with our equipment, we tried to find a living space on this crowded Berlin.

God bless the guy who puts wheels under suitcases!

Irmela, as always, shocked our schedule. She was supposed to be still on holiday for a few days, but when we called her today she told us she is coming back early, tomorrow evening. It's two months we don't see her and, let me say, we really miss her.

So, we are happy to see her sooner.

Anyway, with our new map, we have already planned a lot of location scoutings. And at the end, as always, we will follow the suggestions that this great city will give us.

About suggestions: "SOFRAM", turkish restaurant, on Potsdamerstrasse. You definitely have to go there. Simple and extraordinary food. This place will be on of our "must".

SOUNDTRACK of the DIARY

Today ends the "THD - Helsinki live" session. And it has been great.

Finland is extremely charming, and welcomed us in a friendly and warming way.

I don't know how to explain, but these were magical days.

Maybe for the cheering people at TEDx, maybe for the great kids at the workshop,

maybe for the presence of Elise, her hosting, her translations, her joy.

Maybe for Ola and Signe, working on this documentary from Germany, while we were in Finland, partying.

Anyway, the Road to Production has just started. And it's gonna be a fireworks show.

I can't explain my happiness. Today was a wonderful day.

Irmela is really an extraordinary person.

She is able to give me a sort of positive energy that I can feel in my head, in my heart and in all my body.

Something special just happened here in Finland

We love Irmela and I'm sure that everyone will feel the same soon.

Today the big day: Irmela at the TEDx.

We are in the theater now and we are waiting for Irmela turn.

The atmosphere is really great. Only one litte problem: everyone speak in finnish.

So I laugh when other people laugh.

Dear all,

the Road to Production is finally starting!

May 8th and 9th will be the first key days, with a huge amount of events squeezed in a few hours.

On this blog, on FACEBOOK and TWITTER we will keep a live diary of what is happening in Finland.

Follow us and stay tuned!

TASTE AND ENJOY!

As it is very difficult resuming an intimate documentary in a few lines, let us know in comments, or via twitter and facebook your precious feedbacks, suggestions and, yep I know, english corrections.

Irmela Mensah Schramm is an active 67-year-old woman living in Berlin.

Since 1985 she has been going out every morning looking for stickers or racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic graffiti to permanently scratch off and erase.

All the tools she needs are in a white fabric bag with “Gegen Nazi” (i.e. against Nazi) written on it.

Swastikas, celtic crosses, invocations for new gas chambers dedicated to foreign people are, by now, her own panorama.

Irmela has become a kind of hatred catalyst and, at the same time, a hate accumulator.

After defeating a breast cancer that would have left her no more than three years of life, her activity changed and transformed in a sort of mission.

Nowadays it’s her only reason for living, to the detriment of friends and loved ones.

Alone, with her feeling of being improper, Irmela needs “to clean the world”. That world that in past denied her love, that very world in which she has never found her own space.

Through the authors first-person report, the film shows the vulnerabilities of a character that switch from moments of sensitivity to episodes of deep anger against everything that time hasn’t deleted.

THE HATE DESTROYER (Demo-version) from Fotogramma25 on Vimeo.

Teaser of the documentary film The Hate Destroyer is being screened in the Pori Art Museum's new space STAIR,

for the exibition STREET ART - THE NEW GENERATION

10.02.2012 - 27.05.2012

See the YLE video article about the exhibition (in Finnish).