Alexander Davidis is a photographer, director and producer working in the automotive industry.
Images Courtesy of Alexander Davidis
Born in Germany, Alexander graduated from the private boarding school 'Schloss Buldern', after which he studied Economics for four semesters at the University of Essen, he went on to study Social and Commercial Communications at the prestigious University of Arts in Berlin. Concluding his studies with a masters degree, he moved to New York City, where he started out under Hollywood director Marcus Nispel working for Nispel's company Portfolio Artists Network as the in-house conceptual art director.
Soon after this Alexander would turn his hand to directing and in 1997 set up his first own company. In 2006, he produced his own programs.
It was during 2008 I came across Alexander's work. After a long day at work I got home, grabbed some food and a beer and began the ritual of channel hopping on the TV. A channel called Dave was broadcasting the sight and sound of classic cars racing, putting the brakes on my channel hopping!
For the next hour I sat and watched in awe of the featured drivers and cars. This was his GT Racer series. It was different to motorsports program I had seen before. It is centred around the world of historic motorsport, it's a documentary that looks like a feature film. If your a car enthusiast then this is a must watch. In 2015, Alexander founded Davidis Films Inc, which offers specialised production services for the automotive world.
KCB: Alexander, thank you for allowing me to interview you.
AD: My pleasure. Thank you for your interest in our work.
Here are a few questions -
KCB: What was your first car?
AD: My first car was an Audi 50, which was basically the same as an VW Polo (first series) except branded Audi. I soon modified it with harder shocks and a smaller racing steering wheel.
KCB: What's your current car?
AD: For our productions we use our Porsche Cayenne S. A super versatile car which is ideal to shoot other cars from and load production equipment alike. We have a specialized rig made from aluminum pipes (speed-rail) that can slide into the back, holding the tail gate open and accommodate camera-men with their camera rigs.
Details of my 1991 Aston Martin Virage can be seen in our short film “About Car Culture”.
KCB: What's the best car you have owned?
AD: I think that would have to be my 1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage. I had a Works Service conversion with a PoW-speck front spoiler, rather than the usually fat and low Vantage-Spoiler (the only one in existence like that, I believe). That car was an absolute blast. When I had it, there were few modern cars on the Autobahn that could drive away from it.
Images from Alexander Davidis
KCB: What's the worst car you have owned?
AD: Probably my BMW 316. It was orange with beige interior. My mother had bought it for me without consulting me first after another car, a VW Beetle had died. I hated that car. I ended up totaling it, after just a couple of months. I guess it was my sub-consciousness making a decision for me.
The below photos are not Alexanders car's. Images from Wikipedia.
The below photos are not Alexanders car's. Images from Wikipedia.
KCB: Have you ever had a breakdown that you fixed and made it to your destination ?
AD: Many. But not because I am a great mechanic (or any kind of mechanic for that matter). Sometimes it was just pure luck, wiggling the right cable, sometimes it was a bystanders helping out/jumpstarting the car, sometimes it was a pro-mechanic on the other end of a mobile phone, telling me which cable to wiggle (that happens quite often with Astons).
KCB: What would be your dream car?
AD: Hmmmm, I never thought about that this way. There are so many great cars. Many I really love I don’t fit. I am just under 6”6’.
I think a 1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage, like I had but with a 6.3 liter engine would make me pretty happy. Or even a 6.3 liter Virage.
It would need to be something one can still drive around everywhere and park everywhere, that flies a bit under the radar. A mid-nineties Supercharged V8 Vantage Shooting-Break would be cool too. We will get our hands on a DB11 later this year for a shoot. Ask me then again. As you can tell, I really like big Astons (not the small boy-racer kind).
Image from Wikipedia, taken by Beltane43
KCB: If you could race for any team throughout history, who would it be?
AD: Hahaha, I would have loved to drive the Aston Martin RHAM/1 in Robin Hamilton’s team at Le Mans in 1979. I know, the car came in only 17th overall but it was such a bad-ass effort. That would have been a blast.
Photo by exfordy's Photography - http://www.flickr.com/photos/exfordy/3707759659/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10331754
KCB: What sparked your interest in cars?
AD: I guess childhood programming. My dad had some cool cars. When I was around five we (a family of four) would drive with his Volvo P1800 to France for a couple of weeks of Summer vacation. Back then we knew how to pack light….
KCB: What inspired you to
make a series based around historic racing?
AD: As soon as I saw my first historic race, which was at an Aston club-race, back in the UK in the late nineties, I thought that would look really nice on film. But it was really the people and the atmosphere that inspired me. I wanted to bring that across.
KCB: During the filming of GT Racer, were the Masters Historic team and drivers easy to work with?
AD: Yes, totally. Everybody was 100% supportive the entire time. Everybody really appreciated what we were doing. Today I think that is a typical feature among car enthusiasts. They really all support each other. That is very unusual in todays world and in a way very old school.
KCB: How many hours of racing footage was needed before you had enough to edit down for the series?
AD: I don’t know. I never added it up. And you don’t approach the filming that way. You have to shoot the entire event from beginning to end covering as much exiting stuff as you can. You are done when the event finishes and then you hope that you have enough for a story. That you’ll find out when you edit. Luckily so far it worked out every time.
KCB: GT Racer and your short films look like a feature film, what was the inspiration for making a documentary in this way?
AD: I come from film. I started out as a commercial director shooting 35mm. I am always searching for the cinematic look, the shallow depth of field. It is much harder to shoot that way but it looks so much better….
KCB: You have made short films for Keno Brothers and The Finest Automobile Auctions, how did these come about?
AD: I know Bradley Farrell (CEO at "The Finest” and former partner with “The Kenos”) for some time and we share the same deep passion for cars. When I started up DAVIDIS FILM as a production company that specializes in cars, I was looking for an adequate new office. Bradley has a great office space and a marketing/film background as well. He offered me to share the space with him. We just clicked and creatively understand each other.
KCB: Have you driven any of the cars in the films? I recognised Valentino Balboni driving the Lamborghini Miura.
AD: Some but just to move them around, not really in the films. Valentino is such a fantastic guy and so happy. Well, wouldn’t you be if you would have been a Lamborghini test-driver for a lifetime?
KCB: I would be.
KCB: Your film About Car Culture is my favorite of yours, do you have a favourite?
AD: Thank you. That makes me happy. It was just a small project we did on the side, for fun, for ourselves. I shall tell this to Adrian Mic, who shot it. He will soon be properly represented on our website. Adrian also does all our drone-work. He is fantastic, in his job and as a human being.
My favorite? That is a hard one. As an experience, shooting the Carrera Panamericana for GT Racer series was the most adventurous production we ever did. 2,000 miles through Mexico over 7 days. In terms of story it is one of my favorite as well. Its a big story and 100 minutes long. But I also have a few of the Keno Brothers films I loved: The Bizzarrini film, the one for the Competition Dayton, for the Silver Cloud, the F40, the Alvis….
KCB: The Bizzarini had a great engine noise.
KCB: Are there any cars you have not filmed that you would like?
AD: Yes, hundreds….
KCB: What can we expect next from Davidis Films Inc.?
AD: At the moment we are shooting a film for the VSCCA (Vintage Sports Car Club of America) and the Lime Rock Historic Festival. There are a number of projects that are being discussed - some are more commercial and some are more documentary-like in character. In the longer term we are developing concepts for shows/series for broadband as well as TV. We are speaking to various interest parties but I cannot give details at the moment.
I am happy to say that people are starting to understand what we are doing and where we are coming from. We are very friendly and flexible and everybody is welcome, no mater how small or big the project. Hey, we are car-people.
Thanks again for agreeing to be interviewed, I wish you the best of luck for the future.
Additional films and from Alexander and his crew members are also on Vimeo under Davidis Films Inc. (GT Racer). The GT Racer series is available on Amazon Prime and on DVD where available.
