Angel of Mercy

Angel of Mercy is a film written by Fabrizia Faustinella in which she strived to argue not only the ethics of assisted suicide, but the psychological toll it may take on the assister. It is important to me, as a filmmaker, to produce female driven works for a general audience which is why I was very drawn to this idea and this script in particular as it is a very universal question for any gender, race or persuasion. In this story, Fabrizia goes past ethics but instead focuses on the people left behind, most notably, Angela, the woman who has made it her mission to assist others in their quest for peace by giving them what they need to end their life. In this story I feel there is a line being blurred so that the audience can make their own decision on whether to see Angela as the protagonist or antagonist of the film. At some point in Angela’s quest, she went from comforting and assisting someone who genuinely wanted her kind of help to persuading people who had not either considered or decided on such a final solution and with that act she begins to cause heartbreak and turmoil, which haunts her and muddies her conscience. As a female Filmmaker of Latino and Native American heritage who considers herself American, I find that I have a unique perspective that is not often showcased in films today. Though my aesthetic is much less epic, I have always aspired to be a filmmaker for the masses, like Guillermo del Toro, Cuarón and Iñárritu, who use their unique Latino voices to tell stories that the world can not only relate to, but dive into head first. Strip down the effects, famous actors and visual spectacle and films like Gravity, Pan's Labyrinth, Birdman, Children of Men and Babel, are unpretentious stories of the human condition. They ask one question: “How do I survive this world?”. With Angel of Mercy, Angela survives this world by easing the pain of others, but when her supply of patients runs dry, she begins to create her own patients, causing us to question her motives, her ethics and her humanity. In order to create a relatable film, it was important to me to have a color blind casting room. We called for any race to audition and for the role of the Dark Angel, any gender as well. I trusted my partner in crime, husband and Cinematographer, Art Ornelas, to assist me to create the look and feel I needed on the small budget that we could afford. For the Psychologists scenes, I went for a very soft, pale look versus the sharper and darker feel of the flashbacks. I wanted there to be an almost Heavenly feel as Angela attempts to explain her sins away. I have been very pleased with the success of this film. We've showcased at the Austin Indie Fest, the Mzansi Women’s Film Festival and the International Christian Film Festival. I look forward to continuing to learn and create content that represents women and Latinos in new, exciting and human stories that the world can enjoy.