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Category: Audio + Video

482. globe trekker appearance

Published by Robert on 19 November 2012

Globe Trekker, television, Buenos Aires episode

After filming for Globe Trekker on a hot & steamy February afternoon earlier this year, producers couldn’t give me a firm estimate about the release date. I guessed October… just about right. The Buenos Aires city guide episode aired in Europe at the end of October & at the beginning of November in the US.

I liked that the segment focused on important figures other than Eva Perón. Obviously her life (& death) story draw many people to the cemetery. But after years of documenting & guiding there, it’s refreshing that Roca could share a little of the spotlight along with Firpo & Rufina. And that’s my patented Rufina casket lid slide move. No copying!

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Globe Trekker appearance, Robert Wright

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Globe Trekker appearance, Robert Wright

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Globe Trekker appearance, Robert Wright

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Globe Trekker appearance, Robert Wright

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Globe Trekker appearance, Robert Wright

Look for the episode on your local cable or PBS station! Or download the episode!

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475. “destinos” television series

Published by Robert on 31 July 2012

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Destinos series

Who else learned Spanish by watching the tv series “Destinos” besides me? There must be a few people who remember the scene filmed inside Recoleta Cemetery.

Produced in 1992, 52 30-minute episodes of “Destinos” taught viewers Spanish grammar & conversation in the format of a telenovela/soap opera. Lawyer Raquel Rodríguez is hired by Don Fernando to uncover a family mystery. As Raquel seeks clues in Spain, Argentina, Puerto Rico & México, the series does a good job of exposing learners not only to fantastic scenery but also region-specific variants of the language.

In Episode 12, Raquel travels to Buenos Aires to meet with Arturo. At 16:50, he takes Raquel to Recoleta Cemetery & reveals more about his family’s past. Dedication plaques shown in the episode are only props,& the exact location of filming was easy to find since there are only four diagonal walkways in the cemetery… looks pretty much the same today, except for the new sidewalk tiles placed in 2003:

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Destinos series

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires

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457. globe trekker filming

Published by Robert on 26 February 2012

Globe Trekker, television, Buenos Aires episode

In January 2012, the folks at Pilot Film & Television Productions contacted me about helping them with a new Buenos Aires episode of Globe Trekker. Of course I agreed. The idea was to show the production crew around the cemetery… essentially give them a tour of the highlights. Evidently I passed the test, because they wanted me to appear on camera with their presenter. Excellent!

The producers returned earlier this week & brought the camera crew with them. We ended up filming 3 hours inside the cemetery—much more than I originally thought—which will be edited down to a few minutes. I wonder what will be kept, what will be cut & most importantly, how I will look/sound on television 🙂

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Robert Wright, Judith from Globe Trekker

Judith, the presenter, filmed a short intro first then we did a bit about Aramburu & Eva Perón. Roca came next, followed by Firpo, Rufina & eventually Eva Perón. Unfortunately there was no time for Liliana. Even though that doesn’t sound like much, we had to do several takes for each tomb plus scenes of us walking through the cemetery. We left with the security guards hounding us out.

Since I had no idea which tombs they would request or how much time they wanted to spend on each, everything I said during the taping was completely ad-libbed. And although lifetimes & influence are difficult to sum up in a few words accurately, I think I managed to do ok.

The only way to know will be to see the final result. The producers could not give me a release date, but they will send me a DVD when it’s finished. Or maybe I’ll see it on cable tv first! I’m guessing October-ish & will definitely post some screen captures in this blog.

Recoleta Cemetery, Globe Trekker crew, Judith, Robert Wright

Many thanks to the Pilot crew & the crash course about working in front of the camera!

Update (Nov 2012): The show has been released… read about it in this post.

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414. la noche en vela

Published by Robert on 27 March 2011

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, La Noche en Vela, videoprojection

Typical for an election year, cultural offerings in Buenos Aires have increased over the past few weeks. Incumbent officials provide a few months of frenetic activity in an attempt to erase 3.5 years of neglect. Last night in conjunction with Earth Hour, the city sponsored “La Noche en Vela” (Candlelight Night) with different cultural activities across the city. Recoleta Cemetery participated with an announced video projection on the entrance gate beginning at 21:00. Ironically, entrance gate lights had been shut off to support Earth Hour but a multimedia show which undoubtedly used more electricity replaced them.

Although starting on time, someone had made a big PR mistake. Instead of projecting on the main gate, the show took place on a smaller service entrance. Much less engaging. In the beginning, various images of vaults displayed while an actor dressed as a caretaker paced back & forth ringing a bell. Eventually the caretaker character appeared in the video, opening the gate for spectators to look inside. More vault images raced by like a passing train while a women desperately tried to escape her inevitable death. As she laid to rest—accompanied by a cat—more still images were projected. Videos below are from various moments of the show:

Even though the tombs of Pedro Ferré & Luz María García Velloso were incorporated into the show, there was little attempt at historical narrative. The timing of the show seemed a bit off as well… certain parts went very fast while others seemed to last an eternity. Many of the crowd of approximately 500 people drifted in & out, commenting that they did not understand the purpose of the show. Perhaps an effort to incorporate information about the cemetery’s history would have been more appropriate than the overly dramatic skit. While mildly entertaining, Candlelight Night at Recoleta Cemetery could have been much better.

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384. machinandiarena

Published by Marcelo on 1 February 2010

Armando Bo, Recoleta Cemetery

María Teresa has laid in the Machinandiarena family vault since 1985, but her husband arrived a few years earlier. Producer, director & actor Armando Bó, one of the most interesting personalities of Argentine cinema due to his symbiotic union with —it’s impossible to speak about one without mentioning the other— the unrivaled Argentine erotic  diva, Isabel “Coca” Sarli.

Armando Bo, Recoleta Cemetery

Armando was already famous for producing & acting in “Pelota de trapo” (1948), a master work which can be compared to the best in the Italian Neorealism genre. But he discovered Isabel Sarli —Miss Argentina 1955— & created an  amazing 27 films where cheap melodrama & syrupy love ballads mix with fantastic landscapes & exotic tropical locales. It all served as a backdrop for the voluptuous body of Isabel, who in spite of her professed shyness filmed some of the most steamy scenes ever in Argentine cinema… often in the nude, bathing in every river or lagoon appearing the movie. Armando Bó & his son, Victor, were the men in her movies, making for a strange, incestuous love triangle. But despite his well-known affair, Armando never left his wife, María Teresa.

Who better to explain that strange relationship than John Waters? The video clip below contains his introduction to the movie “Fuego” (1969) as part of his television series “John Waters presents movies that will corrupt you.” Following the intro are selected scenes from movies containing the Bó-Sarli duo… ending with the phrase which has turned into Coca’s trademark: “¿Qué pretende de mí?” meaning “What do you want from me?” It’s pretty obvious.

Armando Bó had numerous problems with censorship in Argentina, & all of his movies were shown with entire sections cut. He passed away three years before the end of the last military dictatorship & its oppressive censorship. One important detail about the Machinandiarena family vault… it is not common to see a side door like this one, used to place caskets inside without having to navigate the narrow main door:

Armando Bo, Recoleta Cemetery

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