Are We Done Now?

“Suffering ceases to be suffering when we find meaning.” - Viktor Frankl

BACKSTORY

The creation of Are We Done Now? has been truly life-changing for my collaborators and me.

At the risk of sharing too much information, I feel it is important that I share the story of the process here, because in many ways, in the case of this film, the process is the story.

After over 3 years of developing, writing, prepping, financing, shooting, and editing, we’re thrilled that it’s time to complete our final post-production and send our completed film out into the world to share with audiences.

In March of 2020, as Vancouver went into our first lockdown, I began teaching acting classes on zoom. My students and I, rattled and uncertain as all of us were, found great comfort and camaraderie in connecting weekly. Along with the plays and film scripts we were working on, deep and revelatory discussions took place. As the world changed forever, everything that was bubbling up in people’s psyches was rising to the surface and everyone wanted to talk and listen.

In May of 2020, one of my students, Favour Onwuka, came to zoom class the day after George Floyd was killed. She was the only Black student in the group, and it was a particularly emotional class, obviously especially for Favour. Her resiliency and willingness to be present in class was very powerful, but it was clear that she didn’t want to talk about her feelings that night. She wanted to work, so that’s what we did.

Shortly after that, in another zoom class, my student Elliott Ramsay spoke very eloquently about the Black Lives Matter movement and his/their own identity, not only as a person of colour, but as a non-binary individual exploring gender identity. Elliott’s sense of humour and openness to share and hear other opinions made our group discussions about race and gender not only illuminating, but safe and accessible to everyone.

One night, another young student in class, Natalie Farrow, shared that she wanted to be a TikTok star. Breaking down in tears, she admitted to the group that she really wanted to connect with people, “for real” on social media, but as a “straight white person,” she was afraid that no one wanted to hear her opinions. She was terrified that she’d say the wrong thing, offend other people and get “cancelled” if she commented on current events online or in person. Everyone in class encouraged her to speak her mind, and although appreciative of their support, she remained cautious in all subsequent discussions.

Twice weekly, for many months, myself, these students, and many others, continued to meet on zoom for class. And it occurred to me that these complex stories about the social issues and mental health challenges that these students were sharing as Covid-19 took hold, needed to be shared beyond our zoom screens. I wanted to help tell their stories, and tell mine, too. I had made two Telefilm supported feature films, Moving Malcom (2003) and Down River (2013), both of which played at festivals all over the world, were released theatrically in Canada, and won numerous awards. But in this fast-changing world, where did my voice fit in? Did audiences want to hear from me about pandemic times and the incendiary issues of race, gender, and toxic social media?

THE PROCESS

I set up zoom meetings with Favour, Elliott and Natalie, and asked them if they’d consider working together to create a project about the times we live in. They were all immediately onboard. It was determined that I’d be the writer/director of the project and they would act, playing versions of themselves. I would finance the project, direct, and write the scripts, based on our discussions. They, and other actor/collaborators, would all be credited as story consultants and paid as actors for the shoot. When any profits were made from the project, they would also be paid their fees as story consultants. These characters were inspired by them, and while I was writing the actual scripts, the rule was, they had final approval on what ended up on the page, and what would be said on set when we shot. If there was anything they wanted changed, they changed it. Not a single word would appear on screen that they had not okayed in the scripts or revised before or during shooting.

Needing a central character to connect the dots, I wrote a part (inspired in part by a long-time therapist of mine) for Gabrielle Miller, who I had worked with on my 2013 feature Down River. Supporting characters were written for other veteran actors I had also worked with including Camille Sullivan, Jennifer Spence, Jay Brazeau, and Marci T. House. All these performers were also brought on with the agreement that they would be actors and story consultants in the project and would have final word on what was in the script, and what they said and did in front of the cameras when we filmed. After many weeks of discussions, interviews and improvisations over zoom, the scripts took shape as a web series, 6 x 12-page episodes. We called the project Trigger Me.

THE SHOOT

Kimi Alexander and Troy Mundle, long time acting students of mine with producing experience, came onboard to help me produce the project as well as join the cast in supporting roles. Yipeng Ben Lu came on as executive producer with Jack Ong and Gosha Wen. We registered Trigger Me Productions Inc. Jack, Tony and I each invested $10,000 to get the ball rolling with a 10-day shoot.

After reading the scripts, RAW Camera gave us all the camera gear we needed at a very generously reduced rate.

In October of 2020, a tiny but mighty crew, led by cinematographer Emma Djwa and her all-female camera team, began shooting in my home, my acting studio, and the homes of various cast members. We were all wearing masks and adhering to Covid protocols, but it was often stressful and admittedly risky as Covid was raging across the city of Vancouver, and home tests were not yet available.

The resulting footage was bristling with truthful stakes because the actors were sharing dramatized versions of their own lives, blurring the lines between scripted and documentary approaches. The performances were hilarious, spontaneous, and disarmingly raw and revelatory.

Visually, the world was captured with a probing “fly on the wall” style. We were in our characters' homes, sharing their screens as they zoomed, FaceTimed, texted, and connected and collided on social media. As the stories proceeded, emotional doors opened, psychological walls came down, and the characters broke away from the isolation of their homes to face the outside world and each other. It was impossible to tell the difference between the actors and their characters, and that felt very right.

We wrapped on time and on budget. No one in the cast or crew got Covid during the shoot.

NEXT STEPS (A CONDENSED HISTORY FROM DECEMBER 2020 to JUNE 2023)

Singer/Songwriter Adrian Glynn supplied us with full access to his 4 albums of haunting and stirring folk/rock for our soundtrack.

Editor Franco Pante and I put together a trailer as I started to look for financing to do our post.

Richard J. Lewis, executive producer and director of HBO’s Westworld, and director of the feature film Barney’s Version, saw the trailer and came onboard as executive producer, encouraging me to rethink the project as a feature film.

I began the re-writing process, re-structuring the stories and working with the cast to write new scenes with a new concept driving the plot through 2020, into 2023.

Once the script was ready, I eventually sold my rental condo and put in an additional $30,000 of my own funds to go to camera as a self-financed feature film.

RAW Camera and Pinewood Sound and Picture Shop to deferring their fees for post-production.

THE SHOOT – PART 2

On April 15th, 2023 we got the band back together, including cinematographer Emma Djwa and her crew. An additional, more experienced producer, Bernie Yao, joined the team and we went to camera with a new script. The concept of the film, now called Are We Done Now?, was revised to the following:

“In March of 2020, a therapist and a few of her young clients agree to take part in a documentary, made by one of the therapist’s patients, about the effects of lockdown on mental health. The film is originally intended to shoot for 2-3 weeks, but as lockdown continues for months on end, the filmmaker continues shooting outdoor interviews with the subjects, eventually running out of money and halting production. Meanwhile we, the audience, continue to see into the lives of all the characters, the deeply revealing truths that the filmmaker never sees. It is only when the therapist funds the film herself that production resumes in 2023, and the “film inside the film” starts shooting again. The result is a story of how these diverse and complicated characters have made it through the worst of the pandemic, how they’ve coped, what they’ve learned, and how they’ve adapted as they move forward into our forever changed world.”

STYLE AND TONE

Stylistically, a hybrid “documentary” and “narrative” approach was utilized, with zoom lenses and two cameras to film the interview segments, and cinematic prime lenses and lighting to film the “scenes.” The interviews were not shot “mockumentary” style, there is no wink to the camera. Everything is shot completely realistically, with the actors delivering honest and utterly human performances. I am very confident that our audiences won’t be able to tell the interviews are scripted. With me stepping in front of the camera to play a version of myself as the “filmmaker” character, the interview style footage is seamlessly tied together with our previously shot “narrative footage”. In addition to the interviews, the 2020 footage is bolstered by many new scenes with a deeply satisfying, and ultimately uplifting ending.

Tonally, this film is a dramedy, all about authenticity. The characters are not lampooned or mocked, but embraced and loved, despite their many human flaws. Richard J. Lewis told me he came onboard as an E.P. because he was struck by the film’s “complete lack of artifice”. That was very encouraging to hear, as my goal as a filmmaker has always been to offer performances that are so realistic, they feel like watching real people in a documentary. I have joked that Are We DOne Now? plays as if John Cassavetes directed an ABC After School Special, and by that, I mean it’s gritty and real and at times painfully revealing, but above all it’s a celebration of the human spirit. The subject matter is relatable and topical, and truthful performances, often shot in close ups, are valued over cinematic vistas or stylized camera moves.

WHY NOW?

Now, over 3 years since lockdown started, is the right time to share this story, which chronicles our profound and sometimes comically uncomfortable shared experiences from 2020 to present day. We are far away enough from the worst of it to laugh, and still close enough to it to take it seriously and enjoy the comfort of sharing each other’s struggles and triumphs. I believe this enlightening film will not only be highly entertaining but may even help to build bridges and mend fences between races, age groups, genders, and belief systems.

IN CLOSING

My collaborators and I are totally emotionally invested in this film. As stated earlier, I, myself, have financially invested over $40,000 into the production, and was able to raise an additional $30,000 from private investors. My producing partners and myself have deferred all wages, and the cast and crew worked on primarily deferred wages, with daily honorariums paid to cover their basic living expenses. Because of their belief in the project, our gear and service providers have deferred most of their fees. There is a truly diverse and passionate community behind this film, up-and-comers working side by side with industry veterans, who want to see it finished and released as much I do. We are thrilled that Telefilm Canada has very recently come onboard to help finance our post production and we thank you for your consideration!

With sincere gratitude,

Ben Immanuel