Pianist Anthony Tobin
"The Quiet", starring Edie Falco, Elisha Cuthbert, Camilla Belle, Martin Donovan, and Shawn Ashmore, was filmed in Austin and is distributed on DVD by Sony Pictures Classics. I recorded Beethoven Piano Sonatas which Camilla and Elisha play in the film.
It was important to choose parts of the music that fit the drama of the movie and to match my hand movements with Camilla's and Elisha's. I play throughout the film including the end, where I play for the closing credits. Director Jamie Babbit invited me to attend the premiere at the 2005 Toronto Film Festival.
For three weeks in September and October 2004 I worked as Piano Coach and Technical Consultant and worked almost daily with Camilla to help her prepare parts of Beethoven's Appassionata, Moonlight, Les Adieux, and Opus 101 sonatas. I taught Elisha and Camilla to play a duet for Opus 49#1 in g minor, where Camilla plays the left hand, and Elisha the right hand. In addition to working with the actresses, I consulted with Director Jamie Babbit, Producers Tom Schatz, Andrea Sperling, and Carolyn Pfeiffer about the logistics of piano playing, the filming of the broken string, position of the piano, and finding parts of the music which worked for the actresses and the plot.
This project is a unique combination of local talent, Hollywood talent, and a new production company, Burnt Orange Productions, that uses interns from the University of Texas at Austin. The program offers film and production students valuable professional experience while they are in school.