San Antonio filmmaker recalls time he recorded Jimmy Buffett … – San Antonio Current

click to enlarge

Courtesy Photo / Steve Acevedo

When filming the documentary Parrot Heads, Steve Acevedo got the chance to interview Jimmy Buffett.

It had been two years since filmmaker, cinematographer and San Antonio native Steve Acevedo (Love and Baseball) started shooting the documentary Parrot Heads about the loyal fan base of singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett when he got a call to pack his bags for Key West.

The film's director and co-writer, Bryce Wagoner, had landed an interview with the "Margaritaville" singer-songwriter, and he and Acevedo, who served as director of photography, had to be in Florida the following day.

"So, I got on a plane," Acevedo told the Current during a recent interview. "We didn't have a lot of details, but the next morning we got on a boat to this private island. It turned out filming wasn't allowed on the island."

Unable to take his normal gear with him (not even a tripod), Acevedo had to get by with a small digital camera and a mic.

"I had to figure out how to shoot without gear," he said. "I had some nice, soft light coming from the windows. I used a chair to rest my elbows while holding the camera. And I put the mic on a paper towel holder. As a cinematographer, you always want the tools to make things look as good as possible, but sometimes you have to make do with what you have."

During our talk, Acevedo reminisced about shooting the interview with Buffett and what he learned about Parrot Heads during the making of the movie.

Buffett died earlier this year after a four-year battle with skin cancer. He was 76.

Parrot Heads, which was released in 2017, is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.

How did you initially get involved in the project?

I had worked with the production company on a couple of other things. Originally, we were only going to shoot for about a month, but I ended up shooting over 70 days during a two-year period. So, it ended up being a pretty big project.

Did you know anything about Parrot Heads before you started shooting?

I knew nothing about the fan base at all. I just knew various musicians have their specific fan bases, like the Grateful Dead has their Deadheads. The director and one of the producers gave me the lowdown. They were both big Jimmy Buffett fans. I learned that all these very famous songwriters like Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney [and] Gordon Lightfoot were big fans of Jimmy Buffett. When I saw the fan base, it was at another level. At his concerts, people tailgate like it's a college football game. I had never seen that done at a music show before.

So, is it safe to say that Parrot Heads are a lot different than, say, Swifties?

I mean, do people tailgate before a Taylor Swift concert? When I say tailgate, I'm talking about lots of alcohol. Lots of, probably, sex in RVs. It's pure hedonism. It's just people having fun. Most of them are white, middle-aged professionals. This was their opportunity to just let loose and enjoy life.

What was Jimmy Buffett like?

He was so nice and cool. He walked in and he was barefoot. He was basically wearing what he wears on stage a concert T-shirt and swimming trunks. He was very sincere and funny and gracious. He was appreciative of us for making the movie. I can't express to you how big of a fan our director was. He was basically interviewing his hero. I was a little bit more removed because I didn't know a lot of his music. I had only heard "Margaritaville" and "Come Monday."

Did he offer you any margaritas while you were there?

No margaritas there, but in the process of production, we definitely drank a lot of margaritas. So, I will say it was one of the most fun jobs I've ever had.

What did you think when you found out he had died?

When I heard the news, in my mind, I was just thinking about our director and how he was going to take it. The next morning, I talked to him, and he was pretty shaken up. The guy meant a lot to a lot of people. He basically created a lifestyle for people to live out.

Subscribe to SA Current newsletters.

Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter| Or sign up for our RSS Feed

Read this article:

San Antonio filmmaker recalls time he recorded Jimmy Buffett ... - San Antonio Current