PRESS KIT: Download the Let Him Be Press Kit here (2MB PDF)

PETER MCNAMEE

By Jason Whyte, www.efilmcritic.com

Describe your movie using in a paragraph or less. This is your “Pitch” to get people to come out and see the film at VIFF.
Let Him Be is a fascinating and intriguing feature film about two undergrad film students, Tim Bennett and Kathleen Joyce, who think that they have discovered a long thought to be dead rock icon living in a remote part of Canada. The man is older now but the resemblance to John Lennon is uncanny.  Could it be him?  The film documents their quest from start to finish as Tim wants no one to question or doubt the incredible discovery they have made.  Proving it to the world would take cameras – many types of cameras.  And it is through these cameras that the audience along with Tim gets to experience first hand the possibility that history deceived us?

Is this your first film in the VIFF? Do you have any other festival experience? If you’re a festival veteran, let us know your favourite and least-favourite parts of the festival experience. Do you plan to attend VIFF for the screenings?
This is my first feature film and our first time at VIFF. Myself, Carol Wright-Producer, cast members: Kathleen Munroe, Sean Clement, Nathan Fleet & Sarah Bennett-Kneebone will all attend the Wednesday night screening.  Everyone with the exception of Kathleen Munroe will also be at the Friday night screening.

Could you give me a little look into your background (your own personal biography, if you will), and what led you to the desire to want to make film?
I am originally from the UK.  I immigrated to Canada in 1987. My background is in music production. I worked as a recording engineer/ producer with some of  England’s biggest rock stars as well as being involved in sound design and production for radio and TV.

I fell into film/video production shortly after arriving in Toronto. I started an independent record label and ran into problems on our first music video for one of our acts. So much so that I decided to finish it myself. It never struck me as being that difficult and as John Ford the American Director from the fifties once said “Directing is just common sense” . Shortly after that I met my producer, friend and business partner Carol Wright who, at that time  was VP of Marketing for BMG Canada.  She needed assistance with her company’s conference video and asked me if I could help out. It was a great creative and commercial success for BMG which resulted in my producing many tv and radio spots for them as well as many of their corporate presentation videos.  I went on to work on more mainstream tv commercials and corporate marketing and communication productions for many other national & International record & entertainment companies.

I’m a gut up rather than a head down kinda guy. I trust and follow my instinct implicitly, and believe that filmmaking is a collaborative process.  I have found that I get the best from everyone I work with if I like, trust & believe in them and the work that they do,

The desire to make the film came from my desire to do something for myself that was longer than 30 seconds. My whole creative life was spent producing and following directions from other people. While I thoroughly enjoyed that time and was always given tremendous support for my “left field creatives” and it paid the bills…. It was time to do something for myself. Thankfully I had the support of Carol who supported the concept of Let Him Be from the outset. My idea was to make Let Him Be and throw it upon the web ala BLAIR WITCH. It was her vision and commitment from the get go to make a feature film and we did. I have a few movies in me and am currently in the process of writing another one that I will direct and developing two others that we will produce.

Growing up, you were no doubt asked the eternal question “When I grow up I want to be a …” Finish this sentence, please!
Play in a band and be a songwriter / performer

While you were making the movie, were you thinking about the future release of the film, be it film festivals, paying customers, critical response, and so forth?
While making the film all I was ever concerned about was making the film. I never thought about anything else. We never set out to make the movie for fame or fortune, those things are just the by-products. We made the film because we wanted to make a film. It was very important to Carol, Marty and myself that it was to be the best it could be within our realm of possibilities. Having said that It would never have been made at all without the unwavering support of my family, friends, and the incredible cast and crew.  The one thing about making a movie with friends and family is that you are always guaranteed one full house.

How did this project come to fruition? If you could, please provide me with a rundown, start to finish, from your involvement.
Briefly: About 4 years ago I sent Carol a short story and some demos on which the film is based. My idea was to get a bunch of friends and industry colleagues together and bang out this 60 minute “documentary” about these two students finding John Lennon alive and well in a remote part of Canada. Throw it up on the net and see what happens? She loved the idea but said that the only way to do it justice was as a feature film! I put together a 4-minute pitch of the movie using slides and some of the demos along with a longer version of the story. I was introduced to Marty by a mutual friend and decided to pitch him the idea even though the kind of movies he makes were way out of my snack bracket. He loved the concept and said that he would like to get involved and make this movie with us. From there we went looking for money. My only condition was that all the funding came from private sources and that they put their money in and walked away. They had no creative input or any involvement whatsoever. It took us almost 2 years to find all the funding with the majority of it coming from family & friends. I began writing the script with the cooperation and guidance of a very good friend who is a professional screenwriter and we went from there.

The rest is as they say history. A detailed longer version of this story will be included at some point on the Let Him Be DVD. A documentary “the making of Let Him Be”  to be directed by Nathan Fleet who co-produced the music and appears in Let Him Be.

What was the biggest challenge in the production of the movie, be it principal photography or post-production?
There was only one real challenge and that was finding the money. Production wise it was very important to me that the film was made from the perspective of the young filmmaker and that it stayed true to his realm of possibilities. Tim Bennett played by Sean Clement is based upon me. Everything he does is based upon what I would have done in the same circumstances. All the hidden cameras and production approach were and had to be exactly as it would have been in reality. I also wanted to make the most imperfect perfect film.

Thanks to Tim Dashwood (DOP) & Tiffany Beaudin (editor) & Optix Digital Pictures in Toronto my multiple shooting format using mini dv, digital 8 and pro-sumer hi- def cameras was all edited, conformed and up-rezzed to hi def without any problems at all.

Please tell me about the technical side of the film; your relation to the film’s cinematographer, what the film was shot on and why it was decided to be photographed this way.
Tim Dashwood (DOP) did a great job both shooting the film and making all different shooting formats work technically even though the production approach was not one he was accustomed to.  It was important to me that the look and feel of the film was within the realm and never beyond the film student Tim Bennett’s abilities with his shoot from the hip approach. So much so that we only used available lighting, set ups were very quick and most scenes were shot in one or two takes in the moment.

Talk a bit about the experiences (festival or non-festival) that you have had with this particular film. Have you had any interesting audience stories or questions that have arisen at screenings?
The film premiered at the Sudbury Film Festival on September 16th. Overall I was stunned at the amount of people that stayed behind afterwards for the Q&A that “got it”. By that I mean the narrative and the film’s production style. It has a sincere simplicity and reality about it that leaves the audience pinching themselves to see if this is real or not? The shooting style , scenes and dialogue are very natural and do not appear produced or construed in any way shape or form which draws the audience into every moment. One person even commented afterwards that the credits spoiled it for her as she was convinced up until she saw them that what she was actually seeing was true. Overall it was a wonderful experience. It’s a magical feeling being in a room full of people who have totally tuned into your vision. The audience were also very interested in the music.

Who would you say your biggest inspirations are in the film world (directors, actors, cinematographers, etc)? Did you have any direct inspirations from filmmakers for this film in particular?
No-one directly but my indirect inspirations are The Cohen Brothers, Francis Ford Coppola, Billy Wilder, Cameron Crowe, Julian Schnabel, Francis Veber,  John Sayles, Sam Shephard, essentially all writer / directors…to name but a few.

How far do you think you would want to go in this industry? Do you see yourself working on larger stories for a larger budget under the studio system, or do you feel that you would like to continue down the independent film path?
As far as it wants to take me as long as I get to decide where I end up? I neither want nor see myself working under a studio system or with big budgets. It is very important to both Carol and I that we maintain creative control to make the films we want to make. Creativity is my drug and I would relish a situation where we could put out a movie every 2 years?

If you weren’t in this profession, what other career do you think you would be interested in?
Writer or psychologist.

Please tell me some filmmakers or talent that you would love to work with, even if money was no object.
My earlier filmmaker influences plus off the top of my head: Robert De Niro, Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Day Lewis, Jeff Bridges, Robert Downey Jnr., Larry David, Jessica Lang, Eric Idle, Kim Basinger, Warren Beatty, Michelle Pfeiffer, Julianne Moore. 

Do you think that you have “made it” in this profession yet? If you don’t believe so, what do you think would happen for that moment to occur?
No. I guess I will be working on that for the rest of my life.  I am more inspired by the journey than the destination. I am very lucky to be part of a profession that can inspire, entertain, and provoke people.

How important do you think the critical/media response is to film these days, be it a large production, independent film or festival title?
Critical media response is extremely important. I think anything that gets the word out about you and your work in any way shape or form, good or bad is better than nothing at all. Bad reviews are better than no reviews at all. I rarely consider movie reviews when deciding what to go and see. I base my decision on who the director, cast, & writer are and go from there. Having endured the creative and production process most of my life If it was inspiring enough for them to make it and be involved I am going to watch it.

If your film could play in any movie theatre in the world, which one would you choose?
Empire Leicester Square, London, England

Do you have an opinion on the issue of “A Film by (Insert Director Here)” ? Is this something you use? Many people collaborate to make a film yet simultaneously, the director is the final word on the production.
I used this term for Let Him Be as I am ultimately the person who cultivated, encouraged, and coerced everyone into joining me on the whole adventure. The way I look at it as someone has to be ultimately responsible for the vision and have the ability and where with all to realize that vision and that was me. If this movie turns out to be a flop I take full responsibility but if it is successful every one involved gets to share and celebrate that success. It only takes one person to have a dream but it takes many more than to bring it to reality.

What would you say to someone on the street to see your film instead of the latest blockbuster playing at the local megaplex? (note: “Megaplex” refers to those 20-30 screen cinemas playing nothing but large studio pictures.)
You have to see Let Him Be. It’s a great premise, that will get you and keep you til the very end. Wonderfully portrayed by actors who one day will be major stars. It was Independently financed and made for considerably less than most major pictures spend on their catering budget.

No doubt there are a lot of aspiring filmmakers at film festivals who are out there curious about making a film of their own. Do you have any advice that you could provide for those looking to get a start?
Technology today has made it never been easier to be a film maker. So do it! Having said that technology should never be your starting point. Some other bits of advice: Start with a great script, people who believe in you and it, a great cast; DOP and editor in that order. You can only learn from your mistakes. There are no rules. Nobody knows anything. Never put your destiny in the hands of anyone else. Believe and be true too yourself. 

And finally…what is your all time favorite motion picture, and why?
The Godfather – Parts 1& 2 as they are nothing short of brilliant in every aspect and because of how Coppola ultimately conquered all obstacles and succeeded after having suffered and struggled in the writing and making of every frame, and I know in smaller manner what that was like.

KATHLEEN MUNROE AS KATHLEEN JOYCE

Tell us a little about yourself?
Though I currently live in Los Angeles and am very proud of the direction in which my career is going, I am and always will be deeply Canadian, and spend as much time in Canada as I can. My heart is split between Hamilton, Toronto, and Montreal. I stay close to my family and friends from home, I speak French, I miss my parents’ dogs. When I’m not working I like to travel, read, watch movies, go out for breakfast, and write and play music.
How did you become involved with the movie?
I auditioned. I met Peter McNamee, and Martin Katz nearly a year before we shot anything, I think it was before there was a script, and even from the first stages it was clear that this would be an unconventional and collaborative production. There were a number of changes that took place during the pre-production year, the budget and scale of the shoot diminished, but the premise stayed interesting to me; it felt like a contemporary fairytale treated as a documentary; a personal and realistic rendering of a collective fantasy. As this was Peter’s directorial debut there was no material to reference to get an idea of his approaches to storytelling or shooting, so it was really just the story itself and the conviction and focus of the team that I put faith in.

Describe the production / shooting experience?
The production/shooting experience for this film was unlike anything else I’d done. We shot from the hip. Having come off two seasons of a television series that had a precise production formula and worked like a fine-tuned machine, I was excited to engage in something a little more off-the-cuff. Peter would frequently refer to the script as a “roadmap,” and encouraged us to improvise and feel things out as we went along. We had a little rehearsal time before going to camera, but Sean and I, along with Peter would chat before a scene while everything was being set up, establish emotional and narrative starting and end points, and just see what happens. We’d run tape for ages, go back, try things again; it was all very loose. And because we were shooting with cameras that existed in the story, we had total physical liberty and spatial continuity. Lighting set-ups and sets would be established in a way that would enable us to move through all parts of whatever locations we were in, which really helped in establishing a sense of realism.

What did you like most and least about the process?
Though Peter was without a doubt the director, and in this case very much responsible for structure, tone, story, etc. of the film, there was an attitude of collaboration that was really exciting. The opportunity to have input and to explore possibilities within scenes with other actors-and non-actors as well…Graham Wignall, for one, is an intimidatingly sharp improviser-was definitely one of the best things about this experience. I also loved shooting in rural Ontario, and in Hamilton and Toronto, two places that are very close to my heart.
The biggest challenge came from the same loose approach to production that made the shoot fun. Ultimately when such a high degree of experimentation is allowed, some things work and some things don’t. And with collaboration, many opinions are naturally weighed, so consensus can be elusive sometimes. All in all it just takes faith in the project and faith in the vision of those in charge of the final cut to overcome those challenges.

What inspired you in the part?
Though this is certainly a character and not “me,” there were more direct links between this character’s life and my life than in most cases, so much of it came easily. Not to mention the fact that my name is the character’s name, we shot in my Toronto apartment, featured my (late) cat Lucy…etc! I studied film theory but never production. But really, as with most roles, I looked for direction and motivation in the text, in the story. I tried to draw inspiration from the truth of the situations and relationships in the script, and in the moments as they came together on set.

What was it like working with Peter McNamee?
In a word: wild. Peter has an exceptional degree of conviction and dedication to what he believes in, he is unconventional, a bit of a renegade, but one with a whole lot of heart.

Kathleen Munroe – Biography
Originally from Hamilton, Ontario, Kathleen Munroe attended the University of Toronto, where she studied briefly under director, Atom Egoyan. While still in school, Munroe booked her first role as the lead in the MTV pilot, The New Girl. Shortly afterwards, she was cast in the Showtime movie, Last Call, co-starring Jeremy Irons and Sissy Spacek. She then went on to star in several other films including Drummer Boy and the independent films Let Him Be and Eternal.Munroe has also made a name for herself in television in both Canada and the US. She has starred in several series such as the ABC Family series, Beautiful People as well as the acclaimed Montreal based series, Durham County, which has recently received an impressive thirteen Gemini nominations. Shortly after completing Durham County, Munroe relocated to Los Angeles and was promptly cast in the ABC pilot, Suspect, directed by Guy Ritchie. She has also guest starred in a number of television series including Supernatural, Moonlight and Cold Case.Most recently, in addition to a recurring role as Samantha Flack on CSI: NY, Munroe starred alongside Chandra Wilson (Grey’s Anatomy) in the Hallmark Channel movie, An Accidental Friendship (November 2008). This is the true story of an unlikely friendship between a homeless woman and the LAPD officer who befriends her. Munroe resides in Los Angeles, CA.

GRAHAM WIGNAL AS STANLEY FIELDS

Tell us a little about yourself?
I was born and raised in Liverpool and attended Quarry Bank High School the same time as John Lennon.
Prior to emigrating to Canada in the late 60′s , I spent eight years as as Steward on various Passenger Liners and travelled to many parts of the world. I am a Football (Soccer) fanatic and Vice-President of the Liverpool FC Supporters Club in Toronto. I have no formal acting experience, but once played the rear end of an elephant in a Christmas Pantomime production!!

How did you become involved with the movie?
Peter McNamee, our affable director, was searching for a suitable older character with a “Scouse” accent. He contacted our Supporters Club and after subsequent meetings he offered me the opportunity to be part of this unique movie experience.

Describe the production / shooting experience?
I would have to say that Peter did an excellent job during the shooting by giving all the cast and crew much encouragement. I was given the opportunity to improvise my lines whenever possible that allowed me to use typical Liverpool expressions during my scenes. The beautiful property location in rural Ontario just added an extra dimension during the making of “Let Him Be”.

What did you like most and least about the process?
In all honesty, I enjoyed every aspect of the process. The music and lyrics written for the movie were eerily reminiscent of John Lennon’s work and extremely well performed by Mark Staycer and the cast in the band.

What inspired you in the part?
From the moment Peter told me what he visualized for his movie, I was totally hooked! After all, I had followed John Lennon and his music from the time he was part of The Beatles and saw him perform in The Cavern Club in Liverpool on several occasions in the early 60′s. And yes, as I said in the movie, I did cry the day he died. That was my inspiration!
What was it like working with Peter McNamee?
As we say in Liverpool………..Peter was ” magic”! The coaching and enthusiasm that he infused into me personally was extremely beneficial to my performance.

NATHAN FLEET

photo by www.kevinthom.com
NATHAN FLEET

ARRANGER / MUSIC CO-PRODUCER & CHUCK

Tell us a little about yourself?
I have been playing guitar for about 20 years. I studied jazz for 3 years in college, receiving a diploma. I got into filmmaking in 1996 using Super8 cameras and scoring my own films. I have continued making film and scoring them. My latest short comedy “Air Knob”, about an air guitar war between neighbours, combines my filmmaking and guitar playing. The film now has a worldwide distributor.

How did you become involved with Let Him Be?
I had met the director Peter through Tim Dashwood, the Cinematographer, on a separate TV project. Fast forward a few years later, Peter remembered me and offered me a chance to co-produce & arrange the music.

Describe the production / shooting experience?
The chicken wings (Wing Machine) were great! Peter makes amazing coffee. Most of the composing / arranging work was done at my desktop, sending arrangements/mixes via internet to Peter. When it got to a point that he liked the mixes, we set up some weekend recording sessions in the “Love Club”, his daughter Sarah’s (who is also in the movie) a play room (seriously) with a Mac, some speakers and cables and recorded the tracks. It was a very relaxed way to work. It felt very organic.

What did you like must and least about the process?
I loved the chicken wings, coffee and the beautiful property where Noel’s home was filmed. Of coarse the music is what I really loved the most. I’d have to say the song Rock ‘n’ Roll really resonates with me. My least favorite part, as with all films I work on, is the time it takes to release the film to the public. It’s been a really long journey.

What inspired you in the part?
For the acting, I inspired myself. Peter’s explicit instruction was “just be Nathan”. Very easy gig. For the music Peter swore that I was channeling George Harrison at times. At that point I had never really listened to The Beatles so Peter was my inspiration. He was very easy going and encouraged a very natural “go for it” attitude rather than a meticulous, structured performance.

What was it like working with Peter McNamee?
Rewarding and inspiring. I felt like I was getting a hands on free education during the recording process. Peter’s background in the music recording industry helped me tremendously. Every time I mix my own material I always think of Peter’s mixing style. I also feel more British now.

Is there anything you would like to comment on that we have missed?
I will be directing and co-producing with Peter & Carol the making of LHB. Tentatively titled “Don’t Mention the B Word” and we are also starting pre-production work on the music for Peter’s next movie. I am very thankful for the opportunity to be involved with this film. I am anxious for it’s release because I’ve been keeping it quiet for years and I am proud to announce any screenings or releases to come.    www.nathanfleet.com