A Burnaby tailoring business is the subject of an upcoming documentary that recently won a $10,000 grant from TELUS’ STORYHIVE program.
The Apprenticeship of Raffael Cocco was one of 30 finalists selected from B.C. and Alberta. The contest called on female directors to push the limits and pitch out-of-the-box ideas.
The digital short, which will be directed by Erin Cumming and produced by Krista Kelloway, follows father-and-son duo Pat and Raffael Cocco of Seville Tailors. The 10-minute documentary shows viewers what it takes to make a dinner jacket, including all the lively musings and banter that come along with it.
“We’re going to go step by step on how it works, from the measuring to the cutting, the sewing and the pressing,” Raffael told the NOW.
For Raffael, the TELUS grant means a lot because it will allow the filmmakers to tell his father’s story. Pat emigrated from Italy to Canada when he was 12 years old, two years after he had begun his own tailoring apprenticeship.
“Those days in Italy, in the small towns, there was only elementary to Grade 5, so after that, unless your parents were well off (and) they (could) send you out of town for higher education, these were the choices – you could go work on the farm with mom and dad, or they’d send you to an apprentice like a tailor, a shoemaker or a carpenter,” Pat said. “The other choice (was), they’d send you to a monastery to become a monk. I didn’t like that idea.”
Raffael, who’s been working for his dad for the last three years and hopes to one day take over the family business, said the pair are like “an old married couple.”
Pat told the NOW he has no intentions of retiring anytime soon and that he still works six-and-a-half days a week.
“I don’t consider my job here as work,” he said.
Cumming and Kelloway have until mid-January to finish filming the digital short. From Feb. 6 to 12, fans can view all shorts online and vote for their favourite. A winner from each province will be announced on Feb. 23. They'll receive customized career training and mentorship programs, and tickets to the Banff World Media Festival. At that time, the shorts will also be made available on TELUS Optik TV's On Demand channel.
Seville Tailors is at 7229 Curragh Ave.
