"No-holds-barred portrait of an American family..." SF360
"★★★ 1/2" STAR TRIBUNE
"a Minnesota family’s rawest and most intimate moments"
THE ONION
-
"Mark Wojahn’s searing sophomore feature..." 7X7.COM
TRAMPOLINE is Mark Wojahn's Documentary he made in 2010. It is a vunerable and intimate story of a family in Minnesota being torn apart by the stress of their daily lives. Their world is a roller coaster of teen parties, third-degree burns, unemployment, drugs, and marital strife. The central character is the mother, Osla, whose pluck and spirit and will to protect her children helps them rise and overcome their circumstances.
TRAMPOLINE is the true story of a year in the life of a family. It centers on a mother in Minnesota, Osla, who is fighting to save her family from their stepfather, Nathaniel, who is challenged by extreme family circumstances. Even though they have been married for 12 years, Osla struggles with Nathaniel to co-parent her four teenage children; Chanel, Wolfgang, Tabitha and Johann.
Nathaniel is primary grade schoolteacher and the breadwinner of the family. She attempts to balance him and the checkbook while desperately trying to make ends meet as she is about to lose her part-time job. The children all have big personalities and half of them are into taking pills or smoking dope. While high on valium, their youngest daughter is rushed to the emergency room for setting her leg on fire. Their oldest son, Wolfgang is bipolar and is fighting an addiction to drugs. Soon enough he is kicked out and is living in a house where they throw keggers to raise money for rent. The baby of the family, thirteen year old Johann, is into burning things around the house and breaking curfew.
Simply, their life is a roller coaster and midway into the filming, Nathaniel starts to have a mental breakdown and is accused of having "a secret life with friends". Soon he is talking about a separation and removes his wedding ring. This throws the family into an tailspin, and we all wonder will the parents break up?
TRAMPOLINE is stranger than fiction. Its' a true story of the drama of raising kids. The experience will leave you shaking your head. You will ask yourself, did I just see that?
SHOP
You can watch online or buy the film on DVD.
The dvd has many special add-ons the on-line stream does not. For example there are; Deleted scenes, Spanish and English subtitles and a Family and Crew Slideshow. All present in a cool fold out Eco-pak dvd case designed by Amy Patrick. For the complete Trampoline expericence, buy the dvd.
DVD (99 min.USA, 2012) Personal Use
EDUCATIONAL LICENSE and SCREENING FEE
If you plan on screening Trampoline in your classroom, cinema or school's library, please buy the educational license.
EDU-DVD (99 min.USA, 2012)
Mark Wojahn promotes Trampoline on San Francisco's NBC morning show, while at SF Docfest 2010.
Trampoline T-shirt
Be fashionable like the stars of the film; Wolfgang, Chanel and director Mark Wojahn.
Choose your Men's T-shirt in Med, Large, XL and XXL. $15 plu $3 S&H in the USA
Choose your Women's T-shirt in Small, Med. and Large. $15 plu $3 S&H in the USA
Designed by Amy Patrick-Wojahn and printed in Minneapolis at Revolution Screenworks.
.Sticker Pack of 10-3x3" Black / Yellow Vinyl Sticker designed by Amy Patrick-Wojahn and printed by Deisel Fuel Prints in Portland. $5 plus $1.50 S&H.
POSTER, 11x17" Printed on Glossy Heavy Weight Paper. Designed by Amy Patrick-Wojahn
THE FAMILY
Osla Thomason, mother
Osla is living and working in Minneapolis, MN. She is a native of Australia and also lived in Costa Rica. She moved to Minnesota in 1998. She is an artist, printmaker and an arts administrator. She is the mother of five. Her oldest is living in Australia and is not part of the movie. In her words, "bought a new house, painted it inside and out, and works at an art college. She continues to paint, sew, and charm the town with her fabulous fashion sense and her sassy shoe collection".
Nathaniel Kuster, stepfather
During the filming, Nathaniel was a teacher a the Minneapolis Public Schools and was finishing his PHD in Policy Studises and the U of MN. He had been the stepfather of the children since 1992. (Spolier alert!) He is currently living and working in Bolivia. He has remarried and now has a newborn son. He declined to add any more info for this bio.
Chanel Tattenbach, daughter
At the start of filming, Chanel was just a couple of months from graduating from Soutwest High. After H.S., she attended a film class in Brighton England and took classes at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design. Chanel continues to live and work in Minnesota. She is close to a degree in film and sound recording. She DJ's web radio, is a VJ and aspires to be the next Magnum P.I.
Wolfgang Tattenbach, son
Wolfgang was 17 when the filming began. He was in junior at Watershed academy. He has finished school, manages a hip hop band, is a gifted faux finisher and occasionally acts in local films. He currently resides in Minnesota.
Tabitha Tattenbach, daughter
Tabitha was a softmore at Watershed Academy when the filming began and graduated a year after filming ended. Tabitha decided to move back to Australia and live with her oldest sister (not in the film) and has decided to take over the world, one person at a time. She plans to go to Costa Rica to save the turtles, but until then she is persuading people to use earth friendly products, to take four minute showers and to ride bikes.
Johann Tattenbach, son
Johann was in eight grade at Second Foundation when the filming began. He has since gone onto High School but after awhile he decided school wasn't for him. He is working towards testing out with his GED and then He’s off to Australia soon to become an apprentice chef.
THE CREW
Mark Wojahn, Director/DP 
Mark is a filmmaker living and working in Minneapolis, MN. He began his film education in a teen workshop at Film in the Cities in the 1980s, attended the Minneapolis School of Art and Design, and earned a degree in Art History with a Film Studies minor at the University of Minnesota. His work has been shown widely in the Twin Cities as well as toured nationally. Mark sees film and activism as a means for building and connecting with community, for raising personal collective awareness, and for exploring the realms of consciousness and humanity.
Reviews of Mark's work have been published in Mother Jones, City Pages, the Star Tribune, and the New Art Examiner. He is the recipient of several awards, including the 2009 McKnight Fellowship for Film, 2004 Best Film of the Twin Cities (City Pages), 2003 Artist of the Year (City Pages), and a 2002 Jerome Foundation Media Arts Grant. His films include What America Needs: from Sea to Shining Sea (2003) and What America Needs: An Interior Expedition (1995). His next film, Trampoline, will be sent to festivals in the fall of 2009.
Mark lives in Minneapolis with his wife, Kitty, and their lovely daughter.
Ace Allgood, Producer 
Ace is an Oklahoma native who has lived in Minnesota since 1989. He is the owner and producer at Channel Z, a post production house in downtown Minneapolis. He has produced and directed numerous spots and features and is a local hero to independent films and filmmakers. Mark maintains that if Ace hadn’t taken him under his wing, Trampoline would not be the film it is.
Ace spends at least 15 minutes every day convincing people that Ace Allgood is his real name. He and his wife Stacey live in Minneapolis and are the proud parents of their daughter, Lila Joy.
James Stanger, Editor 
Jim has been a film and TV commercial editor in Minneapolis since 1989. He co-founded Channel Z with Ace Allgood in the 1990s and has worked for the nationally recognized Minneapolis editorial houses City Post and Fischer Edit as well. In 2006, Jim co-produced and edited the feature film Sweetland. It was the winner of the 2006 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature and is currently distributed by 20th Century Fox.
Although editing is Jim’s and Channel Z’s focus, his success directing The Chromium Hook has made him a sought-after commercial director as well. He has recently directed TV commercials for clients such as Gibson Guitars, the WNBA, Red Wing Shoes, the Minnesota Department of Tourism, and Target Market.
James lives in St. Paul with his wife, Gita, and their three beautiful children.
Amy Patrick-Wojahn, Graphic Design and Title Work 
Amy is a veteran graphic designer based in Minneapolis. Her experience includes design work for Summit Beer, Dole, General Mills, and many other top companies. She is excited to roll out the film's credit design and the design for the DVDs and film posters.
Richard Werbowenko, Composer 
Richard is an accomplished composer and musician working in Minneapolis. In his day job, he composes music for both commercial television and Hollywood productions. His work has been featured in many films, including the Oscar-winning Monster's Ball, Safe, War Dance, and others.
Jon Jon Scott, Music Supervisor 
Jon is a long time music manager and represents many local and national acts. For Trampoline, he has culled some of the most exciting new music Minneapolis has to offer. The entire crew looks forward to bringing his artists onto the soundtrack.
Michael Irei, Editor
Michael started out as an intern with this project in 2007. His work so impressed Jim Stanger that he earned an editing credit for his contributions to Trampoline. He is a recent graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art & Design.
Kemper Harris, Assistant Editor, Camera, Driver, Snow Boss
Kemper has put almost four years of work into this project. He logged nearly all the footage, shot behind-the-scenes footage of Mark filming, edited an early trailer, and even helped remove snow when necessary. He was an invaluable part of the team throughout the project. Kemper is currently living and working on films in Michigan.
Nick Nichols, Editor (the early years) 
Nick spent all the early years on this project. Without his advice and work, this film may not have been made. He captured all the original Final Cut Pro footage and edited the original "long" trailer. Mark says that, "Nick was "Editor Numero Uno" until he got sick of him". Mark owes him a lot for all of his hard work. Nick edited Mark’s first feature, What America Needs: from Sea to Shining Sea, and recently finished the feature "There Nor There". He is based in Minneapolis and is currently editing other projects.
Reviews of the Movie
Trampoline makes it into the Onion's A/V Club!
Feeling slighted that the Coen brothers chose Texas over Minnesota for their latest film? (Sure, True Grit is a remake of a Western that takes place in Texas, but the North Country could pass for the Wild West, right?) Regardless, we still have plenty to look forward to at the box office in the coming months. With several films shot around the state recently, 2011 promises to be a big year for Minnesota. The local première of Trampolinetonight at the Heights inspired The A.V. Club to go looking for the lowdown on other upcoming, locally made films.
Trampoline
This documentary captures a Minnesota family’s rawest and most intimate moments, from financial strife to teenage drug addiction to the unraveling of a marriage. Director Mark Wojahn’s film, which opened at San Francisco’s Docfest in October, is set to music from local outfits including Solid Gold, M.anifest, and Red Pens.
For the rest of the article, go to:
http://www.avclub.com/twincities/articles/made-in-mn-5-locally-shot-movies-to-watch-for,47773/
From CITY PAGES, by Coco Mault
Local filmmaker Mark Wojahn spent a year with the Tattenbach/Kuster/Thomason household, a Minnesota family on the brink of falling apart. Through his lens, we meet parents who don't see eye-to-eye, and witness their troubles compounded from financial stress, unruly teenagers, and drug addiction. In his documentary Trampoline, Wojahn crushes any last traces of the childhood idea of a "normal" family, and throws his audience into the reality of a group of people living in extremes.
From the film's website, "The trampoline is where the children go to play and to blow off steam. It is an apt metaphor for this modern Minnesota tale. It represents the parent's and the teenager's energy, playfulness, rebellion, and mood swings." Wojahn, a 2009 McKnight Film Fellowship award winner, isn't simply part of the reality-for-entertainment's-sake movement; his purpose in making documentaries is to "explore the realms of consciousness and humanity," as well as to build and connect communities. Trampoline also includes a locally-made soundtrack with songs by Red Pens, Aby Wolf, Mystery Palace, Solid Gold, and M.ANIFEST.
The Midwest/Minnesota premier of Trampoline is this Wednesday, November 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the Heights Theatre, located at 3951 Central Avenue Northeast in Columbia Heights. In addition, there will be a Q&A after the movie with the director, cast, and crew.
http://blogs.citypages.com/dressingroom/2010/11/trampoline_expo.php
Twin Cities Daily Planet Story
TRAILERS
The trampoline is where the children go to play and to blow off steam. It is apt metaphor for this modern Minnesota tale. It represents the parent's and the teenagers energy, playfulness, rebellion and mood swings.
To embed this video, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5NpHGUNMOc. Click the embed box on the right and copy and paste the code onto your page.
2009 2-minute trailer, edited by Michael Irei, Audio and Color mixed by Pixelfarm, produced by Ace Allgood. For more information on his projects please email him at ireiproductions@gmail.com Title design by Amy Patrick-Wojahn.
At one time, we thought Trampoline could be a 13 episode documentary series. We cut 12 episodes and made this long trailer to drum up interest for that idea. Our main editor at the time was Nick Nichols. He cut this trailer with audio mixing by Hashbrown.
2006 trailer edited by Nick Nichols, produced by Paul Johnson.
Kemper Harris was the first intern on Trampoline, he logged a lot of the footage and shot some behind the scenes videos. He became one of the assistant editors of the final piece. He cut this trailer to satisfy his film school requirements.
2005 trailer edited by Kemper Harris, advised by Mark Wojahn.
CONTACT
Trampoline is a WhatAmericaNeeds production
For Screeners / Press inquires contact us at
Studio 145
c/o Mark Wojahn
681 17th Ave NE #145
Minneapolis, MN 55413 USA
phone (612)568-3178
email:
xlart2(at)gmail.com