GERALD RASCIONATO- PRODUCER AND DIRECTOR OF ‘LOVE LETTER TO LOLA’
Gerald Racionato’s new feature-length film, Cage Dive is due to be released this year. This Talented Aussie filmmaker has also made quite a few short films that are extremely well written, well acted and beautifully produced and directed by Gerald. Love Letter To Lola is a true story that spans 5 decades and 3 countries. It’s a story about love, passion, sacrifice, devotion and loss told through the memories of an elderly woman. With 1950’s Brazil as a colourful backdrop, the film shows a time when life was simpler, before mobile phones, iPods, the internet and a time when Italian Immigrants were coming to Brazil in search of work. Gerardo, a hard working Italian man, was one of them who intended to earn some money in Brazil to bring back to his family. He had no idea he was going to meet the love of his life.
That story was based on Gerald’s grandparents and how they met, fell in love and the sacrifices they made in order to stay together. It’s a personal tale with great emotional meaning for the director and it was made after his grandfather died and then his grandmother died shortly after the film was finished. Gerald mixed genres with this movie and the experiment worked out just fine. It was part documentary and part drama and the two blended together perfectly.
Another of Gerald’s short entertainments is Happy Fun Time Now. It’s a Youtube reality game show. It’s Amazing Race meets Fear Factor. Two opposing teams face three crazy challenges. The winner takes all and the loser gets punished. Each episode has a different theme. In one episode the teams are participating in water sports and another finds them adventuring in a scout park. One thing is guaranteed: plenty of embarrassing moments for the participants and a whole lot of fun for the audience.
Gerald directed, edited and did the visual effects for all of the episodes. It was quite a demanding job that had a very tight deadline to make sure there was a new episode for the growing audience. Gerald had a whole team behind him and the show was much more different than anything he had directed and edited before. It was a load of fun to jump into the reality show genre. He said it was hard to keep from laughing while the players were completing the challenges. What will this entertainment mogul come up with next? We can only wait and see.
