Brief Hiatus From Filming

Posted on 5:24 PM by Rob


After some great filming these last few weeks and months, Rucksack Films and the "Ginkers" production will be on a brief hiatus to enjoy the last 2 weeks of summertime before wrapping in early fall. 


Stay tuned for details and thanks for reading...

This Weekend's Shoot

Posted on 7:12 AM by Rob


We returned to East Brunswick on Saturday, former home of many Ginkers who found themselves at the Brunswick Square Mall on a Friday night, sucking down an Orange Julius outside of Farrells, perhaps on their way from the arcade to Movie City 5 to catch a movie or maybe just a make-out session with that girl from Lit. class. 


After converting a garage into a set for the second time, we breezed through our third session with John Matthews. While John wasn't quite a Ginker, he lived through the heyday and had first-hand contact with many of them. He also retains an almost encyclopedic knowledge of all things that are Jersey and burnout / metal related. He shed light on the often confusing connection between metalheads and video gaming, choosing to remember a Journey video game, Satan's Hollow, and finally, Crystal Castle as favorites for the burnout set. 

Our next shoots will take us toward the end of filming. We have been at it for 6 months now and have amassed a startling array of footage that we now have to edit into a finished product. Stay tuned for updates here and perhaps even a mention of some clips or festivals where we plan on showing the film.

From the classroom to the screen

Posted on 11:57 AM by Rob


Herman Alber, (pictured) grew into a Ginker at the peak time of metal and burnout culture: 1983-1986.  Growing up on the outlaw rockabilly music of early Elvis and Waylon Jennings, Herman found Iron Maiden and the new metal acts to be of the same rebellious ilk and was soon forging a connection that has lasted his whole life. 

He found us through myspace and after a quick call to my sister who graduated with him, and who urged me to talk with him, I invited him to be a featured subject.
During an afternoon shoot in late January, he regaled us for several hours with the perils of choosing cheerleaders as love interests, how to safely escape a 'pit party', and the basic music pedigree of Ginkers.

From the classroom to the screen

Posted on 11:48 AM by Rob

Herman Alber, (pictured) was swept into the tide of metal burnout culture when still a young teen. He grew up as a son to a father who was steeped in the rockabilly outlaw music of early Elvis and Waylon Jennings. When it was his own time to find something rebellious, young Herman chose Iron Maiden.


Herman found us on Myspace and quickly found himself as one of our featured subjects. In an interview that spanned several hours, he held forth on the perils of "pit parties', choosing cheerleaders as love interests, and the rawness of being known as a Ginker.