The Sundance Film Festival is continues through the weekend. In the lead-up to the awards Saturday, M.L. continues its series profiling this year's filmmakers. Beginning last week Movieline posted details about this year's U.S. and World Competition and NEXT films and filmmakers in their own words. In today's round Dawn Porter (Gideon's Army), Zhao Qi (Fallen City), Shaka King (Newlyweeds), Daniel Hoesl (Soldate Jeannette) and Jacek Borcuch (Lasting preview their films.
[Related: WATCH: Get To Know 5 Sundance Film Festival Filmmakers (And Their Films) AND SUNDANCE: Directors Tease 'Dirty Wars,' 'Fire In The Blood,' 'God Loves Uganda,' 'A Teacher,' 'Narco Cultura']
Gideon's Army by Director Dawn Porter [U.S. Documentary Competition]
Synopsis:
In 1963, the landmark Supreme Court decision Gideon v. Wainwright guaranteed all defendants facing imprisonment the right to a lawyer. Now, every year millions of Americans facing trial rely on fewer than 15,000 public defenders, and the country’s justice system hangs in the balance. Gideon’s Army confronts this crisis head-on, tracking a group of young southern public defenders hell-bent on protecting the sanctity of human liberty.
Taut, visceral filmmaking plunges us into the unbelievably demanding lives of three fledgling public defenders in Georgia and Mississippi. Not only are they juggling hundreds of cases independently, but their offices don’t have adequate resources, and their salaries barely cover personal expenses—including six-figure law-school debts.
As all three lawyers harness ingenuity, perseverance, and adrenaline to fight for their indigent clients, we wonder: How long can they keep working in a constant state of emergency? Will they find the moral support to sustain this higher calling? And if not, what happens to our democracy? [Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival]
Responses by Director Dawn Porter
The Gideon's Army quick pitch:
More than 12 million will be arrested this year and many will join the one in six Americans with criminal records. If you have a criminal record in addition to facing prison, you cannot vote, you are not eligible for public housing or federal student aid. With the cost of imprisonment so high, who are the lawyers who stand between a defendant and incarceration?
Gideon’s Army follows three young public defenders who are a part of a small group of idealistic lawyers in the Deep South who are challenging the assumptions that if you are poor and get arrested then you are automatically guilty. Backed by mentor Jonathan Rapping, a charismatic leader who heads the Southern Public Defender Training Center (SPDTC), they struggle with long hours, low pay and staggering caseloads so common that even the most committed often give up their first year. Nearly 50 years since the landmark Supreme Court ruling Gideon vs. Wainwright that established the right to counsel, can these courageous lawyers revolutionize the way America thinks about indigent defense?
…and why it is worth seeing at Sundance and beyond:
Americans are fascinated with crime, and yet few know the truth about how the criminal justice system really works. Gideon’s Army presents a rare true look at the criminal justice system from the vantage point of the accused. With more than 2.3 Americans incarcerated it is likely that at some point you or someone you love will interact with the criminal justice system. We all have a stake in having a fair and just system – unfortunately that’s not the system we have. The Sundance Film Festival, with all the attention it garners, will create a great platform for discussion on the film’s subject matter before it makes its big broadcast debut on HBO later this year.
About accessing courts and jails:
It is not easy to film in court or in prison so we had to spend many weeks gaining access to jails and courtrooms in the American South. We were lucky to be able to film in jails in Mississippi and Atlanta and also in courtrooms in Jackson, Gainesville, and Atlanta. The true workings of the legal system are surprising and we were able to spend an extended period of time in court documenting what really happens.
While we were filming one of our characters decided to go skydiving. By luck, our second cameraman is also a skydiver, and he convinced the skydiving facility to allow us to rig a camera on the plane so we got some fabulous footage of her in the air. It became a favorite scene.
--
Fallen City by Director Zhao Qi [World Documentary Competition]
Synopsis:
The 2008 earthquake in China utterly destroyed not only physical structures but also human lives in mountain cities like Beichuan. Through the gracefully interwoven stories of three survivors from the town, Fallen City documents the struggle to rebuild amidst ruin. Meanwhile, down the road, a new Beichuan is rising. The Chinese government’s solution to the devastation of the earthquake is a completely new town where the survivors can live a better, more prosperous life in spacious flats among manicured landscapes.
As the physical structures appear at a breakneck pace, we see that people’s hearts cannot be repaired as easily. First-time director Zhao Qi gives us an intimate look at Chinese life by focusing on the people’s unshakable familial love and commitment—values not seen as often in the West. Through surprising turns, haunting visuals, and the personal and political drive to forget, Fallen City becomes a testimony to the universal human will to persevere and remember. [Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival]
Responses by Director Zhao Qi
The genesis of Fallen City and moments of neglect:
I came back to China from a very encouraging 2010 IDFA pitch only to learn that one of the protagonists, Ms. Li Guihua, had been jailed for fraud. She'd illegally applied for more flats in the new city of Beichuan. I was floored. I didn't see it coming and it would mean a radical change of her story in the film. And shooting in a Chinese prison? How would I do that? Especially since my subject was a convict whose case undermined all the start-afresh joy and rhetoric around the people's relocation to the new Beichuan. But somehow, as I delved deep into two years of footage for Li Guihua, I found her story. I also convinced a contact affiliated with the Justice System for permission to shoot inside the prison.
The great irony is that, as Fallen City turned out to be a plea to cherish family amidst China's rush for progress, I had neglected my own family in the journey. I missed three spring festivals in a row with my family. And I missed many moments with my son, who was born one year after I began filming. Once, after I'd locked myself away in the editing suite for a whole week, my wife called in and asked what was my purpose in making the film. It was then that I realized, if I had a truth (message? belief?) to give to the world, I must first practice it.
--
Newlyweeds by Director Shaka King [NEXT Section]
Tunison Clip from Newlyweeds on Vimeo.
Synopsis:
Lyle and Nina are in love—with each other and with getting high, but not necessarily in that order. Wafting through aimless days in New York smoking weed whenever possible, Lyle makes his living repossessing rented furniture from the destitute before heading home to be with his girl. Though caught in a loop of self-medication, Nina yearns for more. When mistakes in judgment escalate out of control, the happy couple find the life they have built is quickly evaporating, and the hole they have dug for themselves is growing beyond repair.
Director Shaka King’s feature debut provokes a thoughtful meditation on the habits that hinder modern relationships, navigating through the perilous and comedic with a natural ease and restraint. Craftily luring the stoner-comedy into a meaningful examination of dependency in all its forms, King confronts a community that refuses to grow up and asks the audience what it really means to be an adult. [Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival]
Responses by Shaka King
The Newlyweeds quick pitch:
A love triangle between a repo man, his globetrotting girlfriend and Marijuana.
…and why it's worth checking out at Sundance and beyond:
Compelling performances from never before seen talent and seasoned veterans alike. I think audiences are going to go crazy for Amari and Trae. They have a genuine onscreen chemistry and the plot puts them through hell so they’re given a chance to exhibit tremendous range.
Finding a charismatic and convincing stoner:
Casting the role of Nina was particularly challenging. The actress playing her needed to be charismatic, free-thinking, and well acquainted with the leaf. I didn’t want someone “playing stoned.” I wanted a world traveling psychedelic woman…someone who would go to the jungle for three months on a whim. I auditioned some amazing actresses, but most came off a little too square. Trae was introduced to me through a friend of mine who was helping me cast extras. She showed me a photo of Trae that linked to a blog featuring an interview about her personal style…a style she’d shaped traveling the globe. Once I discovered that she’d studied acting at The New School and possessed technique, casting her was a no brainer.
I look at the final draft of a screenplay as the worst possible version of the movie I’m making. I’m rewriting on set, in the editing room…I don’t stop until we print to tape. That said, if the final draft of the shooting script has major flaws it’ll keep me up at night. And about a week and a half away from shooting, two things bothered me: the character of Chico (Lyle’s foil) and the script’s ending. Chico was the only character that didn’t ring true. I couldn’t hear or see him and he came off as this trope-like lothario. Enter Colman Domingo. He brought what was missing from the character which was a sense of boisterous play. I ruined a few takes laughing on set.
The ending I wrote for the film is drastically different than the one we edited. It required a complicated jib move, 100ft. of dolly track and VFX post-production…all on a budget under $500k. And it was corny. I’d tacked on this Hollywood ending to satisfy the expectations raised by naming the film Newlyweeds. But we’d kept it so real for 70+ minutes it seemed like a cop out to have Lyle and Nina ride off into the sunset. Fortunately, in the dailies I discovered this almost surreal shot that I knew at once was the final frame of the movie and having determined that, I was able to work backwards and come up with a more satisfying, honest, conclusion.
And more about the cast:
Barden/Schnee put together an incredible ensemble. Our cast is a mix of non, fledgling, and veteran actors. The first person attached was my friend, rapper/visual artist Tone Tank, who I wrote the role of Jackie for. He set the standard for truthful behavior because he’d grown up around “Jackies” his whole life. I casted a number of non-actor friends based on their familiarity with the worlds we were creating and found all to be natural improvisers. Producer, Gbenga Akinnagbe, deserves all of the credit for bringing on board his Wire cast mates Isiah Whitlock and Hassan Johnson. He also introduced us to Amari, who he’d worked with the previous summer on a film titled Knucklehead.
--
Soldate Jeannette by Director Daniel Hoesl [World Dramatic Competition]
Synopsis:
Even though the walls are crumbling around Fanni’s opulent lifestyle, one could never tell due to her poker face and unflappable etiquette. No longer moved by the beautiful objects money can buy, and on the verge of being discovered for her conniving ways, Fanni sheds her bourgeois identity and decides to trek her way through the alpine mountains. She reaches a remote farm and meets Anna, a young woman shackled by circumstances of her own. Anna has had enough of pigs, and Fanni has had enough of money. Their mutual, yet opposing, quests toward a redefined freedom spark a newfound transformation.
Whether in crocodile heels and pearls or manure-covered overalls, Fanni’s nerves-of-steel character is superbly inhabited by Johanna Orsini-Rosenberg. In his striking debut, director Daniel Hoesl’s exacting compositions and visual style places man-made wealth in stark contrast to nature’s bounty, while leaving intact the fierce core of transgression and powerful engine of rebellion beneath his main character’s surface. With a subversive tone, this punk parable revels in the notions of relinquishing materialism and reclaiming unfettered liberty while savoring the sweet taste of revolt and reconstruction. [Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival]
Responses by Director Daniel Hoesl
The Soldate Jeannette quick pitch:
Everyone can be Soldate Jeannette when one decides to stop everything one simply does not want to do and start anew. In a society driven by materialism Fanni's cursed by money, while Anna's cursed by pigs - one of them's named Josef - on a farm, a trade that feeds us but one that is neglected by society. They literally steal the keys to liberty, crash cars and find enlightenment at a fire of burning banknotes.
…and why it's worth checking out at Sundance and beyond:
Our world is run by the religion of money and this system's run down. But there are alternatives to hamster and roulette-table wheels, there is a lot of space around it. One has to rise up and take the free space, occupy it and start picking it's grapes of a global-community.
Burning fake € notes while shooting without a budget:
It was really scary to drive around with millions of fake Euro notes, and it's so liberating to burn it. Ironically we shot this movie almost without budget, benefiting solely from the Austrian film funding system. Still, we would have shot it without money, which is possible as we operate as an artist collective, the European Film Conspiracy.
We we're shooting close to a farm where we were staying when a production assistant arrived, parked the car, got out of the car, waved to us, while we saw the car rolling downhill toward the farm. She forgot the parking brake. My car crashed against the wall, I said: "Action!" and the shooting went on. Think of giving up your car too?
Talking the importance of cast:
That's the most important thing for our work-flow as we had no screenplay. I directed the movie, but the cast lead us. So casting was first on the schedule, even before we started to think about what story to tell. Everything is derived from the casting process. I pick the talent - actors and non-actors alike. After casting I create loose arcs for the movie and started rehearsing with the actors. That allowed the characters and scenes to evolve. Same thing for locations, props, costumes and music used in the movie: in the sense of Picasso I am not looking, but finding.
--
Lasting by Director Jacek Borcuch [World Dramatic Competition]
Synopsis:
Michał and Karina fall head over heels in love during their summer holiday in Spain. Under the warm sun-soaked vineyards in the ecstasy of their thrilling new romance, everything feels carefree and innocent. But when Michał has a threatening encounter with an unsavory property owner while scuba diving, an impulsive act leads to a devastating turn.
Michał covers up what happened and suddenly returns to Poland without telling Karina the truth. Soon Karina also has something she keeps from Michał. With their secrets looming over them, their once-unbridled affection begins slipping through their hands, and their bright, innocent faces turn dark with worry.
With an immersive touch, Jacek Borcuch effortlessly captures the couple’s youthful spirit and rapture, amplifying the weight of the emotionally sobering drama that ensues. Marking a welcome return to the Sundance Film Festival (All That I Love screened in 2010), Lasting is an exploration of that rare species of love that can endure life’s pitfalls, and a terrifying reminder that one fateful minute can upend everything. [Sundance Film Festival]
Responses by Director Jacek Borcuch
The Lasting quick pitch:
Lasting is an emotional love story about Michał and Karina, a pair of Polish students who meet and fall in love with each other while working summer jobs in Spain. An unexpected nightmare brutally breaks into their carefree time in the heavenly landscape and throws their lives into chaos.
…and why it's worth checking out at Sundance and beyond:
Lasting is a piece of art. Cinematography, music, set design, costumes and all other elements of film language are composed, as to give a spectator an opportunity to experience beauty. It may not be obvious from the the beginning, and it should not be, as my intention was to create a hyperrealistic form for of the story that unfolds in front of the viewers’ eyes. A certain peculiarity is perceptible since the very first takes; something is going on, but we do not know what it is... Information is lacking, so we are left with wild guesses and speculations as if everything was taking place somewhere on a volcano about to erupt...
Searching for chemistry:
I was looking for great actors for the leads, but also for two people who would have some chemistry going on between them. When Jakub met Magda for the first time, I noticed an uncanny resemblance between them. They were almost like siblings. I thought that this was very exciting and I decided to follow up on that lead... Jakub not only had to learn Spanish and ride a 40-year old motorcycle to play the lead in Lasting, he also had to take scuba diving course. The underwater world has a great significance in the story and some of the most important secrets lie deep down there.
And more about the cast:
I worked with Jakub during my previous film, All That I Love. Even though this was his absolute debut, he played brilliantly, eluding one-sided evaluation. He was magnetic on the screen, focusing the audience’s attention on himself, despite being cast in a supporting role. Many viewers left the cinemas with his image in their hearts. Now he is becoming a star of European cinema.
Magda is a completely different story. She has pure talent, no acting school, nothing but emotions and imagination. I spent a long time looking for an actress to play this role. I auditioned several hundred actresses but I came across her completely by chance. I approached my colleague Kasia Roslaniec, and complained that I could not find a girl for my film, that I was depressed, because it just could not be possible in a country of almost 40-million inhabitants. She said she had the girl for me. She had just finished shooting her film Baby Blues, where Magda gave an amazing performance, and she was sure I would like her. She was right. When I saw her, I didn’t even do any trial shots.
Lasting is a film about youth which is made of dreams and hopes and is the absolute best there is, both in physical and vital terms. I wanted the beginning to be exceptional, dream-like and unique time for the protagonists. So that in the ensuing deconstruction, which will twist the turn of events, they are deprived of what’s best – their youth.