The other day I overheard a couple of young guys discussing the upcoming movie sequel Sharknado 2. One of the them was asking whether it had been shot in Buffalo. At first I thought that he might have been getting his “land shark” movies confused. Snow Shark was shot in Buffalo. But it turns out that certain scenes of Sharknado 2 were also shot in Buffalo (see FilmBuffaloNiagara).
Shortly after overhearing that interesting conversation, a local fashion accessories design team reached out to BRO to let us know that their jewelry was being featured in the film Sharknado 2. So there are a couple of Buffalo “hooks” that movie-goers can look out for once the film premiers on the SyFy Channel on July 30th or 31st. Sharknado 2 will hit the theaters after that.
The Buffalo jewelry and handbag design company is Vania and David. Designer Vania Escauriza Gagliardone was born in Asuncion, Paraguay where she developed a fascination for shiny objects at an impressionable young age. It didn’t take long for Vania to make her way to NYC where she met David Martinez, who hailed from Buffalo. The two fell in love, began to work with each other, and today run an acclaimed merchandise business back here in Buffalo.
Whether it’s being featured in British Vogue, or being donned by actresses Tara Reid and Vivica A. Fox in the movie Sharknado 2 (see images), there is no doubt that Vania and David are on a fervent upswing, helping to shine a light on a local fashion industry that continues to make waves.
“A cool tidbit for BRO readers,” David informed me. “Vania’s Animal Brass Shorty necklace can be see being worn by Tara Reid in the movie. She was originally going to wear her own necklace (a diamond necklace, I believe). However, when she saw the Vania & David, Animal Brass Shorty necklace, she fell in love with it and decided she would use that. But, she wanted the chain (which was brass) to be silver colored. Vania said “No problem”, and custom-made the modified necklace using a silver colored chain, specially for Tara Reid, to use during the movie.”
Here’s how the deal went down:
As for a quick backstory, Vania started the company in 2000. David jumped onboard with the operation in 2005. The two moved back to Buffalo in 2008, and have been actively promoting their lines locally…
and globally…
You can also follow the exploits of the couple on Facebook (see here).