VODKA CLUB MEMBERS

Welcome to the Vodka Club – The lovely people below have all shown their support for this exciting social enterprise project by becoming an honorary Vodka Club Member.

Club Member 1 Dan Reed

Club Member 2 Max and Bea Edelstyn

Reasons for joining: 1) you roped me in. 2) I only feed Beatrice the best vodka on the market.

Club Member 3 Rob Liddell

“Sorry not to have sent this months ago. It’s an appropriate picture of
me mixing Vodka Martinis at Everest Base Camp. I hope it will do.
Great news about the commission.”

Club Member 4 Maia Liddell

Reasons for joining: Our grandfather came over here from Russia many years ago and I’ve never been there so I’m always fascinated by other people’s stories, and finally vodka’s great. Oh and the trailer was really interesting so I’m very much looking forward to seeing the full length version.

Club Member 5 Charlotte Hird

Club Member 6 Alasdair Liddell

I am a vodka drinker despite appearances!!

Club Member 007 Pani

Club Member 8 Gillian McIver

Reasons for joining: “film, vodka and revolution – what more could you want…”

Club Member 9 Charlie Phillips

“I would like to say that this is a project I’ve loved since the start, not just because it involves vodka and wit, but because it’s striking a blow for the rememberance of Jewish heritage in the region, but not in a depressing way that celebrates death – rather in a celebratory victorious way that uses heritage to create something new.”

Club Members 10 Jan and Zoe Bednarz

“I’ve decided to get one of these rare bottles of vodka everyone’s raving about!
My Grandad is from South East Poland (now Ukraine)… who settled in the UK after WWI, so I guess we have a shared interest in the region. Great idea for a film Dan… I’m wishing you the best of luck.”

Club Member 11 Paul Edelstyn and his 2 for 1 offer (Zach and Teggy Edelstyn)

Club Members 12 Rich Ward and Lexi Field

“Who would have thought that your discovery of the letters would lead to all of these magnificent adventures… Le’chayim! Chtob vse byli zdorovy!”

Club Member 14 Lucy Birkbeck

Club Member 15 Alec Birkbeck

Club Member 16 Greenman

Greenman likes vodka. He’s a picky bastard and wont accept just any old
booze. He actually only paid up is fifty bucks cause he thinks it might
actually be a good deal. Well, that and the fact that he’s as vain as he
is picky and will leap at any chance to boost his ego.

Club Member 17 Winifred Alford

Club Member 18

Club Member 19 Paul Harrison, Caroline Rogers and Maisie

Here’s a picture of me and daughter Maisie who you met when we
came round to dinner at Anna’s many weeks ago. I tasted the vodka
that evening and had one of those whirling head type reactions but NO
HANGOVER next day! I am looking forward to the vodka and the movie with equal relish.
You are an eloquent and persuasive speaker when food and drink and an
audience is in front of you. Good luck with everything.

Club Member 20 Robert Grant

I love this project, I guess because we all wish we had a mysterious and romantic past where we hail from rich or aristocratic blood, and here’s Dan, actually living the dream, or at least something of the dream! It has all the elements, The Russian Revolution, a great escape, the artistic great grandmother, it’s like Anastasia or Dr, Zhivago and the added bonus of coming from Russian vodka-producing stock, that connection in trying to resurrect that part of your past, the whole thing is truly inspiring.

(Robert was winner of July’s competition with a highly convincing argument about Lada cars!) We asked what the car was that’s in the film’s trailer, certain it was a Lada…

“Not really, Moskvitch were (I believe) the oldest car manufacturer in Russia until they folded in 2006. Like most Russian cars they shared parts with other Eastern European manufacturers like Opel, Lada, Skoda, Yugo Volga etc. and they built everywhere from Ukraine to Bulgaria. Anyway, it’s not a Lada – even a Russian one – because Lada have never made a car with twin headlights, but Moskvitch did.”

Well done Robert! You convinced us!

Club Member 21 Emily Renshaw-Smith

Emily (picture, right) commissioned Dan to make more than a couple of films for Current TV (you can check out his lovely films here: http://current.com/users/Dan777.htm) and we know how much she loved the idea of becoming a member of the Vodka Club so… what better leaving present to send her on her way to Rare Day Productions than with her very own membership? Emily, we’re all going to miss you very much and good luck in your new job… Na zdorovia!!

On a personal note all at vodka central HQ would like to wish Emily all the very best with her new job. We all hope to see her at a vodka fuelled event very soon!!

Club Member 22 Mujinga + Cat

I don’t normally drink vodka, but anything to help an old friend. Looking forward to seeing the movie!

Club Member 23 Jess Search

Club Member 24 Robert West

Club Member 25 Maxine Boersma

Photo to come!

Club Member 26 Martha Jean Baker

Photo to come!

Club Member 27 Ed Sayers
“it’s a long shot (pun intended) but if anyone can do it….”

Dan’s note: Ed is “Ed of Stuff” for Saatchi & Saatchi and is advising us on stuff!

Club Member 28 Sophia Toumazis

“Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the Dan’s personal journey could help to transform life for people in his old family town in the Ukraine? It’s so nice to have the opportunity to support this, albeit in a tiny way. And receiving a bottle of Vodka to boot! That’s the icing on the cake!”

Club Member 29 Kim Bouwer

Club Member 30 Mark Elijah Rosenberg

Hey Dan—

I run Rooftop Films, in New York City. We showed “End of the Line,” and Christo Hird was here. He told me about your film; it sounds cool and the website is visually appealing. My grandmother was from the Ukraine, so that adds a personal interest for me. And it’s not a bad deal for a bottle of vodka, with just a few extra bucks tacked on to support an independent film. Win-Win. I’m eager to check out the drink and the film. Good luck with the rest of production.

Budmo!

Club Member 31 Ross Birkbeck

Quote me:
“What could be better than Dan with loads of Vodka?!”

“Thanks Ross – you look exhausted!”

“Yeah – this directing thing is wearing…
And I’m killing my lead actor tomorrow!”

Club Member 32 Nick Hillel

Why .. well I am definitely enjoying the ‘outside the box’ feel of the
trailer.
Also, still can’t get served in my local offy so thought I could kill
two birds with one stone.

Good luck with the next stage! Great project !

——————————————–
Creative Director
Yeast Culture

Club Member 33 Susanne Sklepek

Susanne won a membership at the launch of Artesian Magazine volume 2, which features an article by me about this project! And a very interesting article by her as well. Check it out!!

Winner of Wodka Empire Membership (thank you!!) Czech Cold War Refugee (a year before it all came down anyway) and, as pretty much direct consequence, researching on Eastern Europe and Exile  and Cinema. Cheers!

Club Member 34 Peter Wilson

Club Member 35 Garlinda Birkbeck

Club Member 36 Danny Holland

Danny’s mum Bonnie bought him membership of the club for his Christmas present. So all at the Vodka Empire wish Danny a very happy Christmas and the very best of luck in the decade ahead! Bonny, the same goes to you.

Club Member 37 Don Clark

Club Member 38 Julie Clark

Club Member 39 Nikki Parrot
Nikki was the lucky winner at the Britdoc Bar’s pub quiz which Zorokovich sponsored at 2009′s Sheffield Film Festival! (Nikki is one of the directors of Tiger Lily Films and clearly very talented at general knowledge as well.)

Club Member 40 Jules Dakin

Jules is the boss of record label Blang! (Along with Joe Murphy) Together they lord it over my musical efforts and I fear and admire them.

Club member 41 Daisy Asquith

Anything that brings together Lee Kern and my dad is good for me! Hope it goes well today.

Club member 42 Howard Ford

Club member 43 & 44 Mickey Dell & Terry Green

“We love the vodka but we love the project more and look forward to the premiere.”

Club member 45 Judy Ironside (Judy is director of the UK Jewish Film Festival!!)

‘The energy around the project is contagious and fires the imagination almost as much as the Zorokovich Vodka –  can’t wait to see the film !’

Club Member 46 Billy Abbott – Billy’s Booze Blog

Just sent some paypal monies over to you so I can join in the Vodka Club
fun.

Just watched my way through the eps on Babelgum at the moment after Tony
Harding at John Doe pinged me due to my being an occasional booze
blogger. However, it all rang a bell and it seems I was invited to join
your Facebook group a while back and think I met you last year – do you
know Louis Savy and did he drag you down to County Hall to look into
doing some music for the Sci-Fi-London film festival?

I think you were wearing a fluffy Russian hat

Anyways, sorry for rambling and happy to join the club. I’ve had a
couple of miniatures from Tony to taste and I stuck this up on my booze
blog – http://bbblog.org.uk/2010/06/zorokovich-1917/.

Anyways, not sure of a quote for the website, but I like what I’ve seen
so far and wish you luck with the rest,

–billy

–
http://bbblog.org.uk – Booze
http://cowfish.org.uk – Random
http://billyabbott.co.uk – Me

Club Member 47 Fi Watson

“I’m all for drinking creatively”….

Club Member 48 Milly Ellis
pic to come!

Club Member 49 Dr Jeffrey Tobias

pic to come

Club Members 50 Anna, Bede and Tao Hart

pic to come!
Club Member 51 Anthony Smith

pic to come!

Club Member 52 Tracey Gardiner

pic to come!

Club Member 53 Nicola Lees

“I feel obliged to join the vodka club in order to atone for my embarrassingly wooden contribution to the movie.”
Club Member 54 J Burton

Club Member 55 Salma Burton

Club Member 56 Roger Barcant

Club Member 57 Anna Haworth

Club Member 58 Christopher Hird

Club Member 59 Mark Hislop

Club Member 60 Chris Scales

Club Member 61 Steve Clay

Club Member 62 Mandana Sigouradinia

“I have had the pleasure of knowing Dan since we were teenagers in Ireland and I love the romantic story of him tracking down his ancestry and bringing history back to life… I am thrilled to be able to support this project in a small way and look forward to tasting the goods and watching the documentary. Love and best wishes! Mandana xx”

Club Member 63 Katherine Crawley

Club Members 64 Richard and Joyce Wilson

Club Member 65 Oliver Lambert

Club Member 66 Jane Callaghan

Club Member 67 Rosie Ellison

I met Dan at the Britdoc festival in 2008 and convinced him to
bring Vodka Empire, which was still in development, to Interdoc. It’s fab to
see how much it has progressed since then, and the vodka’s good too!

Club Member 68 – Shiri, Alex and Lucian

Hope our small contribution will help the success of this amazing project.
I’ve no doubt this is going to be a hit and really happy I got to know you
guys before the film is out there and everybody’s favourite.

Club Member 69 – Rosa Rogers

Club Member 70 – Rebecca Whitby

Why did I join the Vodka Club? Well it was quite late and I was also rather drunk… and to be honest I was hovering between membership of the vodka club and a cordless drill.
Looking at your picture I thought you had the look of an ‘honest thief’, so you won out over Bosch, (and the drill was quite expensive).

Club Member 71 – Jason Gerber

I joined the club because I was inspired by the newspaper article on your project and wanted to help you fulfill your dream, and to enable people to enjoy hearing the story.

Club Member 72 – Michael Norton

Club Member 72 – Fabien Mofid

I really love the concept and I’m sure many others do too. And the vodka is nice indeed! My mother wants to give the bottles as presents to friends.

 

Club Member 73 – Geoffrey Elborn

Apart from endless reviewing, he has written several biographies, and edited or contributed to many other books. He has most recently completed an idiosyncratic book on Vodka.

Club Member 74 – Pamela McIlveen

Very excited about Dan’s project and its links to Belfast. His research has uncovered sources, people and events that might otherwise have been forgotten. A fascinating story, and I can’t wait to see the film.