Going into an interview for the film FELT, I expected a candid interview with the star and director, but I got something not just candid, but brutally honest. Be sure to check out my review of the film and then head out to the film when it’s available in your area (showtimes available at the official site)!
Tackling a subject such as this takes a lot of trust in both sides. How did you two come together and decide to tell this story?
Jason Banker: Well, I met Amy by chance in San Francisco and saw the artwork that she was making. We made a short video really quickly and she wore the naked woman suit in the video. And to me, it had a lot of layers, that were interesting and that I wasn’t really sure where it was coming from or where we could go with it. After we shot that video, like a year, because I live in New York and she is in San Francisco, I called her and asked if she wanted to work on a film with me. I didn’t have any idea right off the bat what that would be, but (it would be) to unpack some of that world. With my film style, I like to make these hybrid documentary/horror films, so I said that I wanted to go to a darker place with what this could be and I don’t know where this could go or how it would happen, but if we start shooting, we’d figure out how that is. That’s where I came from at least.
Amy Everson: For me, I was at a point in my life where I was just really unhappy. I had a shitty job and everything in my life was…not good. It was a good excuse for me to do something and be creative. And he gave me this opportunity. “What story would you like to tell?” So I was taken aback by this openness to collaborate. “I’m down for whatever,” and we developed this relationship and conversation from there, ultimately informing the film.
I definitely think that it paid off. What drew me in was how at first you handled the depression aspect that Amy’s characters depression manifested itself.
It was very obvious early on that Amy had experienced a horrible situation sexually. She doesn’t quite admit it but she alludes to it. You do a great job of showing subtle ways of how sexual aggression can impact without showing the full act. Why the more subtle approach?
AE: I think, for me, at the time, I was willing to just put everything out there. And I hadn’t really addressed my trauma, and it wasn’t even just one specific thing, but I’ve had a lifetime of shit happen to me. We could reenact every little thing for the story, but we said “rather than reenact things from your past, how about show how it informed your present?” Which I think was a better decision, not just for the film, but for me as well. How going through that shit would have been triggering and traumatizing. And it was important to the story telling that we don’t exploit sexual violence as a plot device. We should explore the culture that breeds an environment that enables sexual violence and the ramifications of the horrific acts. I think that the film tackles that pretty well. From the perspective of making the film, it is more subtle, and rather than just show the act, I think in reality, it’s important to believe someone when they say they’ve been through something. Rather than say “prove it!” forcing them to exhibit what they’ve been through and get some sick pleasure from seeing other people suffer. I think it was a great decision for my sanity as well.
JB: From the beginning, Amy and I had the conversation of just going there, and this is why I like the way that I work. I don’t like to force anything. If something doesn’t feel right, you just don’t do it. You brainstorm and throw ideas out there, but it’s about finding the right balance. When you are working with someone so intimately, those kind of things are important in maintaining an energy throughout the film. And like Amy said, the decision was a good one both for the film and for her.
AE: And with that energy and trust, it made the whole thing more honest and a more palatable film for the topic.
As a fan of tragic stories, all the way back to Greek tragedies, the moment of catharsis in a story is so important to me. And you did a great job with building towards it in having that ultimate cathartic moment. When creating the story did you know that it was going to go there first or did it evolve naturally in the telling of it?
JB: It wasn’t natural. At the beginning, we didn’t know where we were going. We didn’t know what the ending was. We didn’t even know what the beginning was. And it evolved.
AE: I think that the way my life was at the time, and where it was heading, there was nothing but tragedy from day one of the shoot. It was how we were trying to show this rut that my character and I were in. It was actually things developing in my life that informed the ending. I mean, it’s still shit. Shit keeps happening, but I do see the film as a tragedy, so the very end just made sense, in the progress of the costumes, and more and more how it embodied the past transgressors. And I want it to appear as a tragic ending rather than a triumphant moment, as that would be a misread of the overall message.
Amy’s artwork, using different mediums, was really intriguing. Amy, How much of your characters artwork was your own?
AE: Yeah, most of it was stuff that I already had, or was made during the course of filming. We threw it all in there. Everything from my room and everything in it, costumes and everything, was my stuff. Even the vagina party was something that I’ve had before, but it was recreated for the film, with me building it.
I really appreciated that scene where he brings your character in, blind-folded, attaches that umbilical belt, and how it was leading to a safe place. Giving your character a re-birth. It was on the upswing of the film, rather beautiful.
Jason, you’ve worked with Onur Tukel a decent amount lately. How has your experience with him helped with this project?
JB: Onur is an amazing film maker, and we actually couldn’t be more of polar opposites. It’s weird, because by my nature, I’m a very collaborative person and I love working with highly creative people. That’s what I get from working with him. While I’m not working with him on the story or anything, it’s nice to be working with someone that is THAT creative. He can turn out a script in just a few days that is 120 pages long and is perfect. He writes dialogue, and I don’t. Like I said, totally different. But the collaboration with him is just another example of an artistic shared experience.
Thank you guys for sharing your story about the making of the film, and thanks to Amy for sharing your own story as well. You guys did something really beautiful and thought provoking.
AE: Thank you so much. We really appreciate that!
FELT is being released by Amplify Releasing limited theatrically starting June 26th, 2015 and will be available on VOD July 21st, 2015.
The post FELT interview: Director Jason Banker, star Amy Everson appeared first on The Blood Sprayer.
