The stories of Miami's famous and infamous sure are keeping the good people over at Rakontur busy.
Rakontur, you may recall, made the stunning documentary Cocaine Cowboys, about Miami's drug heydey in the 1980s. The Miami-based production company has several projects on tap in the coming months, says Alfred Spellman, co-owner and filmmaker.
The first is Clubland, a much-awaited, web-only television show which follows the planning and opening of Mokai, a South beach club. It will go live this month and is available for free. Spellman said that his company is in talks to sell it as a TV series to stations in Austrailia and Europe; but for the U.S. market, he's glad that the five-episode series is web-only.
"We had a lot more freedom to show the gritty reality of nightclubs on South Beach online," said Spellman. "Showing it online allows us to maintain the creative vision of the show."
The trailers and early clips of the show certainly are snarky (see the one about "How to Get into Clubland: Rule #12 — Lose Weight").
Another project, Rise and Fall, will look at SoBe's "golden age," said Spellman — the 1990s club scene. Club mastermind-cum-convict Chris Paciello has agreed to grant Rakontur exclusive interviews for that documentary.
And for fans of Cocaine Cowboys: expect a sequel this summer. Spellman said that Cocaine Cowboys II: Return of the Godmother will explore the relationship between drug kingpin Griselda Blanco and a male, er, groupie from Oakland, Calif. "It's New Jack City Meets Scarface!" the Rakontur blog promises. Can't wait! --Tamara Lush