Rotterdam: backstage at the Fall-Winter 08/09 catalogue

Only a few months have gone by and we’re already back on the road.
This time, along with some shots for our catalogue, we’re working on a Mandarina Duck business travel advertising campaign.

Rotterdam is our destination. The themes, which link back to the shoot in Leon (do you remember the city with warm architecture and cold weather?), are design, modernity and architecture.
Our traveller has changed his destination, but his interests and landmarks have remained the same.

The team hadn’t changed much, except for the producer, the make-up artist and the photography assistant, who we met there. The rest of us were the same: Luca, the photographer; Gianluca, the (indispensible) digital assistant; Roby, the stylist; Francesco, the director; Jean, the handsome model; and I as a “handywoman”!

We flew from Bologna to Rotterdam in the afternoon, and then transferred to our hotel by car. Our first surprise was the New York Hotel. In the past, it hosted emigrants from all over Europe, as they waited to board ships bound for the New World.
I found the place amazing, perhaps because my grandmother immigrated to New York many years ago. I expected a steamboat to arrive at any moment!

We had a good dinner and then everyone was off to bed to be ready for the next day!
We woke to a cloudy sky and rain. Why do we always get such bad weather? Well, we tried not to be discouraged and found a backup location to get ‘warmed-up’.

Fortunately, towards evening, the clouds broke up and there was a bit of warm light. Once again, I can’t even tell you how cold it was. This is getting to be a habit. Perhaps, for next time, we should plan to go somewhere warmer, like South America. Budget permitting, of course!

Anyway, the first day went by quickly while we watched the sky for any sign of light, ready to shoot at moment’s notice. This time we overdid it and even used real photography film!

The following day the weather was better. At least it wasn’t pouring!
We started looking for interesting points of view to shoot from. This city has so many! It’s full of modern buildings designed by the world’s most famous architects and unusually shaped monuments. All of which are intermingled with the small redbrick houses of the port area. And so, the second day slipped away quickly and it was already time to go home.

As usual, there was a pang of regret.
It’s so nice to be with such a pleasant group of people and in such inspiring cities. Anyway, our offices and desks are calling to us.
So, we said goodbye to the troupe and look forward to the next time!

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