Mudbirds
The Vietnam War; at a time when military hierarchies and barriers to what men in combat are able to express to each other, two medivac pilots battle the increasing traumas of what they have seen and done. In an effort to overcome the horrors of war they turn to fantasies of escape. But as humour turns to planning, reality kicks in and the soldiers are forced to choose wether to save themselves or leave their comrades behind.
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Karim TheilgaardDirector
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Karim TheilgaardWriter
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Karim TheilgaardProducer
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Danjal ArgeExecutive Producer
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Andrew MartinExecutive Producer
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Florian BonteExecutive Producer
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Karim TheilgaardExecutive Producer
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Karim TheilgaardKey Cast"Roberto Santos"
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Duran Fulton BrownKey Cast"Gary Miller"
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Mark StewartKey Cast"Medic"
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Michael KoltesKey Cast"Sgt. Marcel"
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Sonu LouisKey Cast"Soldier on Stretcher"
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Danjal ArgeEditor
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Andrew MartinCinematographer
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Florian BonteProduction Designer
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Martin Martin HallbergComposer
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Christian BechmannVisual Effects Artist
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Rasmus Leo PhöenixColourist
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Gabriel HansenSound Design
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Craig MedlinSound Design
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Peter HoareSpecial Effects
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Lisa PembertonKey Make-Up Artist
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Project Type:Short
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Genres:Drama, War, Vietnam War, PTSD, Friendship
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Runtime:27 minutes 45 seconds
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Completion Date:February 12, 2024
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Production Budget:1,000 USD
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Country of Origin:Denmark, United Kingdom
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Country of Filming:United Kingdom
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Language:English, Vietnamese
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Shooting Format:RED
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:Yes
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Student Project:Yes - Giles Foreman School of Acting
I am first and foremost an actor. I love telling stories and researching - wether it be historical figures, languages, geography or new skills etc. This is why I am drawn towards diving deep in to characters that tell stories set against unusual and challenging backdrops. Directing and acting (as well as cinematography) have always been intertwined disciplines for me as I have always had a passion for both.
Starting out, it is common to have to take on numerous jobs and fields of responsibility and so it has always been natural for me to delve in to fields outside my main focus of acting - out of necessity, out of interest and out of passion. As an actor I think it is important we challenge ourselves in our main focus by stepping out of it, thereby also gaining new perspectives and strengthening our core skills.
By combining my interests in acting, writing and directing I also wish to focus on telling stories using people and characters that challenge the mainstream perception of who "can" play what.
Diversity in filmmaking is my lifelong passion cause that I have always focused on bringing to the forefront in my creative endeavours.
"Mudbirds" was the first film I wrote and produced. I started the project while still at drama school along with a bunch of friends and people I met during my time in London. Most of us were first timers but we had a passion and I, a need to put my money where my mouth is and show that I was serious about acting and filmmaking. How could I expect others to put money on me if I wasn't willing to do so on my own development?
With basically no money and limited equipment we set out to make an ambitious period drama, war film in the coldest, wettest months of the British calendar. This being 2009, "Mudbirds" was one of the first independently produced short films shot on RED One at a time when focus on PTSD in modern war was still relatively new in cinema. The U.S.-led war in Iraq and Afghanistan was still well underway and so I felt that looking back and examining how the current climate had many ties to previous political blunders was a way of raising awareness and interest in what was going on between 2009-2011.
We completed shooting in 2009 but alas, being a first-time filmmaker I made the mistake of trusting the material was in safe hands with our editor. After two years of attempting to get a hold of the edit and material it was gone without a trace.
Many years later, through the unlikeliest of circumstances I was able to get a hold of most of the material in it's raw format again - minus the first and last scene, which incidentally also had the biggest production value in terms of extras and vehicles present in them. At this point I was now located in Copenhagen, Denmark and new to the scene. It took me many more years to find a group of people spanning Copenhagen, Roskilde, Tórshavn and Bristol that could see the potential still inherent in the material and became equally passionate about helping me complete the film I had shot all the way back at the beginning of my acting and filmmaking journey.
However, the themes of PTSD, horrors of war, mental health, the things left unsaid and men's inability to communicate their emotions to each other under extreme conditions are equally present and relevant in our current political climate. The film may be old, but no less relevant in theme.