Paris Trip, Day 2

(It is recommended by the author that you read Paris Trip, Day 1 before you read this post)

March 27, 2012.  It was the start of my second day in Paris, filming for my Joel-Peter Witkin documentary, “Joel-Peter Witkin: An ObjectiveEye”.  I was awoken by the smell of freshly baked bread, as the aroma from the bakery below the hotel was beginning to creep in through my open window.  I couldn’t imagine a better way to wake up.

When I booked this trip, I made it a point to try to get a hotel as close as possible to the BnF, and Baudoin Lebon’s gallery.  Luckily for me, they are not far from one another.  The location of the hotel was great, not only were we close to our shooting locations, we were also within walking distance to many great bars, restaurants, cafés, and local shops.  We were not staying in the tourist part of town, so there was no bombardment of tourist shops, McDonalds, or any other hints of western civilization. 

The agenda for this day was to interview Baudoin Lebon in his gallery, and from there we would shoot close-up B-Roll footage of the new works from Witkin before the official opening later that evening.   Most of the staff working at Baudoin’s gallery, we had met the prior evening at the opening of the exhibit at the BnF, and a special thank you goes out to Elodie Hodge and Hélène Cardalliaguet for all their help.  After the interview with Baudoin was complete, he was nice enough to offer an invitation for my crew and I to join him at his house for a celebratory dinner after the gallery closed that night.  We gladly accepted his gracious invite.  When B-Roll footage was wrapped up, the boys and I decided to get some lunch.  We chose a local spot, and I found myself eating a  cheeseburger that cost me 19 euro, and drinking Coke in a bottle… So much for the authentic French experience.

We got back to the gallery an hour before the official opening, and we started to get the gear ready.  Ernesto Galan was going to be capturing the footage from inside, while Nickolas Rossi and I were going to be outside for some “man on the street” interviews.  Once again the crowd came and there was definitely no shortage of footage.  Nickolas and I were able to capture some good interviews outside.  Some memorable ones are a woman named, Clementine, a photographer named, James, and a student named, Martin. 

As things began to wind down at the gallery, we packed up the gear, and got ready for the after-party dinner.  Baudoin’s house was only a block away, and we made our way over there after we dropped the gear off in the car.  When I walked inside of Baudoin’s house, I instantly knew I was out of my element.  His house was beautiful and magnificently decorated with many great pieces of art.  I had no idea what I was getting myself into. 

Taking the quick tour of the house I was able to spot where the essentials were.  In the dinning room there was a large spread of a variety of high quality cheeses, fresh bread, and plates of blood sausage.  Towards the kitchen area there was a table with a butler standing behind it.  On the table were many glasses of champagne and wine.  I chose the champagne, as did Ernesto and Nickolas.  The rest of the people invited began to show up in one big group, and within the crowd of people was Martin, the student we had interviewed earlier.  It turns out he began to talk to Witkin before the gallery closed, and soon found himself invited to the party.  I was quite impressed with Martin’s social skills, as I talked with him throughout the evening, I found him to be quite entertaining.

I think I was on my fifth glass of champagne when I took a moment to observe what was going on around me.  A couple of days prior to that moment, I was in the United States, stressing out and was a nervous wreck from preparation for the trip to Paris, and yet here I was… at a major art dealer’s house for a private party, drinking the finest champagne France has to offer, and surrounded by good company.  Those in attendance included Joel-Peter Witkin, and his son Kersen Witkin, Joel’s twin brother Jerome, and his son Christian Witkin.  Along with the four Witkin boys, there was also Baudoin’s family, and many of Witkin’s closest friends.  Once again, I felt as if I were dreaming.  It was a pretty surreal moment for me, as I never would have imagined myself in such a position.

After the party was over, the boys and I decided to go get more drinks.  With a stomach full of champagne and blood sausage, what would be better to put on top it?  Scotch.  There was a bar that was still open down the block and we preceded to have our own little post celebratory toast to the end of another beautiful day in Paris.  However, it was shortly after that first toast, when I realized how important the hotel selection was.  It is safe to say by the end of the night, I was drunk, and thank Christ it wasn’t too far of a walk back to the hotel from the bar.

Stay tuned for Paris, Day 3