«Igor Tolstunov's Production Company» and Russian World Studios continue to prepare for filming a joint project – a family comedy under the working title «The Thriller Family», telling the story of a puppy who has escaped from an underground laboratory and can read human minds. To work with the dogs cast in the film, producers Igor Tolstunov and Yury Sapronov have invited one of Hollywood's leading animal trainers, Steve Berens.
Steve Berens is a widely known specialist in the overseas film industry. He is a true master of his craft, with more than 30 years of experience in this demanding but sought-after profession. His animal performers have played alongside A-list stars in dozens of films («The Mask» (1994), «The Truth About Cats and Dogs» (1996), «The Animal» (2001), «I Am Legend» (2007), «Twilight» (2008), «Grown Ups 2» (2013)), have appeared in many series and TV shows («Cougar Town» (2009-present), «Scrubs» (2001-2010)), and have starred in famous advertising campaigns (Whiskas, Pedigree, Friskies, Honda, Toyota). Mr. Berens himself occasionally plays cameo roles («Little Nicky» (2000)), and in the anthology film «The ABCs of Death» (2012) he played the lead role in one of the segments («D is for Dogfight»).
In early December Steve Berens came to Saint Petersburg to the production studio of RWS to meet his future colleagues and assess the level of the dogs' preparation for filming. According to Steve, the Russian trainers did an excellent job with the puppies and, despite a complicated script with roles that are quite challenging for animals, the dogs will handle it all.
Mr. Berens's main task on this project is to technologically set up and organise the entire process of working with animals on set; he will coordinate and correct the work of the trainers. The first step will be to build a cohesive team of dogs. After that all scenes in the script will be broken down into a specific sequence of actions which the animals will have to perform on camera.
Steve admits that «The Thriller Family» is not an easy project for him: «This is my first experience working with Russian filmmakers. Moreover, it is my first experience in a non-English-language film, where the entire working process will be organised through an interpreter. This picture is fairly complex in terms of animal work on camera. But challenging projects only sharpen my professional skills.»
Steve Berens will return to Russia early next year, when shooting of the picture begins.