THE TOUCH Directed By Jane Clark

Indie Express: Tell us about your film?           

Jane: THE TOUCH IS A TRAGIC ROMANCE, BASED ON THE TRUE LOVE AFFAIR BETWEEN RENEE VIVIEN, WHO WAS A WELL-KNOWN LESBIAN POET  IN THE EARLY 1900’S, AND KERIME, A MARRIED ISLAMIC WOMAN MARRIED TO A TURKISH DIPLOMAT.

IE: How did you come up with the idea for the film?

J: I WAS ASKED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE HBO SHOUT OUT CONTEST IN WHICH THEY REQUESTED A SCRIPT THAT COULD MAKE A 5 MINUTE MOVIE AND IT HAD TO BE GAY OR LESBIAN CONTENT. I WANTED TO TAKE A SHOT, BUT DIDN’T HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT TO WRITE ABOUT. I HAVE THIS PERIOD LESBIAN ROMANCE  WRITTEN BY NICOLE CONN (CLAIRE OF THE MOON, LITTLE MAN) AND I THOUGHT, OKAY, I SHOULD DO SOMETHING THAT IS REPRESENTATIVE OF THAT. MAYBE IT WOULD HELP ME FIND MONEY FOR THAT. SO I GOOGLED LESBIAN WOMEN OF HISTORY. I FOUND RENEE AND THE STORY OF KERIME, AND THEN I READ HER POETRY AND FEEL UPON “THE TOUCH.” THE STORY CAME TOGETHER AS SOON AS I READ THAT POEM – SO ROMANTIC AND TRAGIC AND SEXY.

IE: How did you assemble your production team?

J: I CALLED A DP I’VE WORKED WITH BEFORE FIRST AND GOT HIM ON BOARD. I RELY ON HIM TO BRING HIS CREW AND GRIP AND ELECTRIC. IT WAS GOING TO BE A REALLY SMALL CREW THIS TIME, I HAD VERY LITTLE MONEY AND WANTED TO PUT AS MUCH OF IT ON THE SCREEN AS POSSIBLE, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE PERIOD ASPECT COSTS MONEY ANY WAY YOU CUT IT. THEN I CALLED MY HAIR/MAKE UP AND WARDROBE PEOPLE I WORKED WITH BEFORE. NONE WERE AVAILABLE WHEN I NEEDED THEM, BUT THEY GAVE ME REFERRALS. I ALWAYS TRY TO WORK WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE REFERRED. THERE’S MORE ASSURANCE THEY’LL BE GOOD. IN THE END THERE WERE ONLY 12 OF US ON SET INCLUDING MY ACTRESSES. I DID THE PRODUCTION DESIGN, CRAFT SERVICE, AD’ING – RIDICULOUS IN RETROSPECT AND I NEVER WANT TO DO IT AGAIN…(SHE SAYS NOW!)

IE: How did you find your cast? 

J: CAST IS HUGELY IMPORTANT TO ME. I WAS AN ACTOR FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND LOVE IT AND I LOVE ACTORS AND DIRECTING ACTORS AND WATCHING THEM GO THROUGH THE PROCESS, AND BECAUSE I REALLY REHEARSE MY ACTORS AND AM VERY SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT I WANT, I NEED ACTORS WHO CAN TAKE THE DIRECTION EASILY.

SO I PUT A CALL OUT IN BREAKDOWN, WHICH IS MY USUAL ROUTINE. MY FRIEND, CATHY DEBUONO CAME OVER TO HELP ME. SHE READ WITH THE ACTORS DURING THE FIRST AUDITIONS. WE SAW MAYBE 60 RENEE’S AND ABOUT 40 KERIMES’S. I WAS BEGINNING TO DESPAIR WHEN TRACI SHOWED UP TO READ FOR KERIME…ON THE WRONG DAY, IN HER LITTLE MIDDLE EASTERN OUTFIT, AND I WAS LIKE, YOU AREN’T ETHNIC. SHE KEPT INSISTING SHE WAS, BUT I SAID COME BACK AND READ FOR RENEE. THE FIRST READ-THRU I WAS PRETTY SURE SHE WAS IT. BUT THE THIRD TIME I GAVE DIRECTION, I COULD TELL CATHY WAS, HMMMM HOW SHOULD I SAY…GETTING A LITTLE HOT? WHEN TRACI LEFT CATHY SAID THAT’S THE ONE, ABSOLUTELY. AND I HAD TO AGREE.

KERIME WAS ALMOST AS CLEAR CUT. I HAD A FEW GIRLS I THOUGHT COULD DO IT, BUT NECAR CAME IN, WAS SO DAMNED BEAUTIFUL AND NAILED THE AUDITION. WHEN I PUT TRACI AND NECAR TOGETHER…OMG! REALLY, THE CHEMISTRY WAS INCREDIBLE. I DIDN’T HAVE TO THINK FURTHER.

IE: How long did the film take?  (From conception to final edit)

J: I WROTE THE SCRIPT IN ABOUT 1 DAY WITH A DAY OF REVISIONS BACK IN JAN FOR THE CONTEST (WHICH BY THE WAY I DIDN’T WIN). THEN I SPENT ABOUT 2 MONTHS RAISING THE MONEY THROUGH PRIVATE DONATIONS AND GRANTS AND DONATED SERVICES, EQUIPMENT ETC. I PREPPED IN THREE WEEKS, SHOT IN ONE AND TOOK ABOUT THREE WEEKS TO GET THROUGH POST.

IE: Tell us a little about your process of directing (writing) this film.

J: THE SCRIPT WROTE ITSELF, HONESTLY. AS SOON AS I DISCOVERED THE CHARACTERS IT GELLED IN MY BRAIN AND THEN JUST POURED OUT ONTO THE PAGE. DIRECTING FELT ALMOST AS EASY. IN WRITING IT I WAS ENVISIONING STEADICAM, A VERY FLOWING CAMERA, SLIGHTLY OFF KILTER FOR THE SCENES WHERE RENEE IS IN HER STUDY, DRINKING, CRYING, TRYING TO WRITE ABOUT HER LAST TIME WITH KERIME. AND MORE STEADY WITH THESE TWO WOMEN COMING TOGETHER AND THEN INTO EXTREME CLOSEUP FOR MOMENTS OF INTIMACY.

I ALSO WANTED HER REAL WORLD TO BE HAZY (SHE WAS DEPRESSED AND AN ALCHOLIC AND BY THAT TIME IN HER LIFE SHE WAS WASTING AWAY FROM ANOREXIA), NOT QUITE REAL TO HER ANYMORE – SORT OF LIKE AN IMPRESSIONIST PAINTING, NOT QUITE CLEAR. AND HER WORLD WITH KERIME WOULD BE SATURATED AND BEAUTIFUL AND CLEAR BECAUSE HER MEMORIES HAVE BECOME HER REALITY. ESOTERIC, YEAH, I KNOW, BUT THAT’S THE WAY I WAS THINKING.

I MEET WITH MY DP AFTER I HAVE DEVELOPED A SHOT LIST. IN THIS CASE I ALSO SHOT ALL THE OPENING SHOTS MYSELF ON A LITTLE DV CAMERA. CATHY CAME OVER AND WAS MY GUINEA PIG AND INCREDIBLY PATIENT. SHE WALKED THROUGH EACH SEQUENCE AND I WOULD TRY DIFFERENT STEADICAM SHOTS UNTIL I FOUND WHAT I WANTED. THEN I SHOWED IT TO MY DP SO HE UNDERSTOOD AND THE STEADICAM OPERATOR AS WELL. I ALSO GAVE MY DP PICTURES OF THE MOOD AND THE IMAGE I WAS LOOKING FOR. HE CAME UP WITH THE SOLUTIONS TO ACCOMPLISH THE FEEL AND I THINK HE DID A GREAT JOB.

THEN I REHEARSE THE ACTORS. WE REALLY CHOREOGRAPHED THE INTIMATE MOMENTS TO GO WITH THE POEM. EVERY STEP OF THEIR TIME TOGETHER HAD TO BE THOUGHT OUT, BECAUSE I ONLY HAD A FEW MINUTES TO SHOW THE FEAR OF BEING DISCOVERED, THE LOVE BETWEEN THEM, THE JOY THEY SHARED, THE SEXUAL ATTRACTION AND THE LOSS.

ON THE DAYS OF SHOOTING WE PRETTY MUCH AT THE POINT COULD JUST SHOOT AND NOT SPEND TOO MUCH TIME ADJUSTING THINGS.

IE: What was the most difficult part of the shoot for you?

J: 5 DAYS BEFORE PRODUCTION WAS TO START, NECAR CALLED ME AND TOLD ME SHE HAD TO GO TO HAWAII TO DO RESHOOTS ON AN EPISODE OF LOST SHE WAS IN. I HAD TO DECIDE WHETHER TO RECAST OR PUSH THE ENTIRE PRODUCTION AND I DIDN’T HAVE TIME TO SPARE, BECAUSE THE INSURANCE WAS TO KICK IN THE NEXT MORNING. IN THE END SHE AND TRACI WERE SO GREAT TOGETHER I COULD DO WITHOUT THEM ANYMORE. SO I HAD TO PUSH EVERYTHING. IT WAS A LITTLE NIGHTMARISH AND I LOST MY HAIR/MAKEUP AND WARDROBE PEOPLE WHO IN THIS CASE WERE ESPECIALLY KEY. IT MEANT THE WHOLE NEXT WEEK I WAS ON TENTERHOOKS WHETHER THE WHOLE THING WAS GOING TO COME BACK TOGETHER. UP UNTIL THE NIGHT BEFORE THE COSTUME GIRL HADN’T EVEN FOUND EVERYTHING SHE NEEDED. IT WAS EXTREMELY STRESSFUL, BUT A GOOD LEARNING EXPERIENCE AND IN THE END IT ALL WORKED OUT.

IE: Any particular moments from filming that stand out for you?

J: THERE WERE A LOT OF DIFFERENT ASPECTS TO TALK ABOUT, BUT ON A FUN NOTE, TRACI AND I SPENT THE TWO DAYS COMING UP WITH COMEDIC ALTERNATIVES TO THE FILM. IT BECAME KNOWN AS “THE TEASE” INSTEAD OF “THE TOUCH,” DUBBED SO BY OUR CREW, SO WE BUILT ON THAT AND CAME UP WITH TOTALLY STUPID ALTERNATIVES TO EVERY MOMENT. TRACI CAN BE A SILLY GIRL AND A LOT OF FUN, SO IT ADDED A LOT OF SMILES TO THE DAYS.

IE: Tell us about the film’s festival experience so far?

J: I HAVE BEEN OVERWHELMED WITH THE RECEPTION TO THIS FILM. WE’VE PLAYED ALL KINDS OF FESTS, LGBT, STRAIGHT, LITERARY FESTIVALS, POETRY FESTIVALS, A FEMINIST FESTIVAL IS COMING UP. IT HAS BEEN REWARDING AND I FEEL VERY LUCKY.

IE: What are you most looking forward to at the festival?

J: MEETING THE OTHER FILMMAKERS, SEEING SOME GOOD FILMS, HITTING A PARTY OR TWO!

IE: What has been your most interesting Q&A so far?  What was your favorite question?  How was the dialogue afterwards?

J: I HAD A WOMAN WHO WAS LESBIAN, TURKISH AND A “RECOVERING MUSLIM”. SHE WAS UPSET THAT I MADE A POINT TO SAY THAT KERIME WAS ISLAMIC. SHE DIDN’T EVEN THINK I SHOULD SAY SHE WAS TURKISH, THAT IT WASN’T IMPORTANT. I EXPLAINED THAT TO ME IT WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT MADE A GREAT STATEMENT ABOUT THE POWER OF LOVE TRANSCENDING SO MANY OBSTACLES – THE LEAST OF WHICH AT THAT POINT, WAS THAT THEY WERE BOTH WOMEN. SHE ALSO ARGUED THAT NECAR WASN’T TURKISH. I TOLD HER NECAR SAID SHE WAS (THOUGH TRUTHFULLY IT WOULDN’T HAVE MATTERED TO ME, BECAUSE SHE WAS HEAD ABOVE ALL THE OTHER MIDDLE EASTERN ACTRESSES I SAW). SHE INSISTED SHE WASN’T, WHICH I THOUGHT WAS PRETTY FUNNY. I TOLD HER I DIDN’T DO BACKGROUND CHECKS ON MY ACTRESSES AND I HAD TO GO BY NECAR’S WORD. IN THE END SHE THANKED ME FOR MAKING THE FILM, SAID IS WAS MOVING AND SHE LOVED IT. IT WAS VERY PROVOCATIVE DISCUSSION.

IE: What films and filmmakers inspire you?

J: I AM A HUGE FAN OF ROMANTIC DRAMAS WHICH NO ONE REALLY MAKES ANYMORE UNLESS IT IS A HALLMARK MOVIE. I DON’T HAVE A PARTICULAR FILMMAKER THAT HAS INSPIRED ME. RATHER THE COLLECTIVE IMPACT OF ALL THE FILMS I’VE SEEN IN MY LIFE. WHEN I HAD MORE TIME I USED TO SEE TWO OR THREE FILMS A DAY SOMETIMES, JUST GOING FROM MOVIE TO MOVIE. FOR THE LAST 5 YEARS I HAVE SEEN ABOUT 4 MOVIES A WEEK BECAUSE OF MY HUSBAND’S JOB. I BELIEVE THAT I ABSORBED ALL I KNOW AND ALL THAT INSPIRES ME THROUGH THAT IMMERSION IN FILM, THE GOOD AND THE BAD. IN A GENERAL WAY I LOVE ANY FILM THAT CAN MAKE MAKE ME LAUGH AND CRY IN THE SAME FILM.

IE: What made you decide to become a filmmaker?

J: I HAD A SCRIPT I WROTE FOR ME AND A FRIEND TO STAR IN (WHEN I NAIVELY THOUGHT IT WAS POSSIBLE FOR AN UNKNOWN ACTRESS TO STAR IN A FEATURE OF ANY IMPORT!) I HIRED A DIRECTOR AND WE BEGAN TALKING THROUGH THE SCRIPT AND I REALIZED THAT I HAD MY OWN OPINIONS AS TO WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE AND HOW THE SCENES WOULD WORK OUT. THAT WAS THE BEGINNING OF MY THOUGHT THAT MAYBE I SHOULD TRY DIRECTING. THERE WERE SOME INS AND OUTS FROM THAT TIME, WHICH ONLY CEMENTED MY INTEREST UNTIL FINALLY MY HUSBAND SAID, YOU WANT TO DIRECT, HERE’S A SHORT (HE WROTE). WE’LL FUND IT. GO MAKE IT AND SEE IF YOU CAN DO IT. THAT WAS MY FIRST FILM, “DOG GONE,” BASED ON A TRUE STORY OF WHAT WE DID WHEN OUR LITTLE DOG WAS STOLEN FROM OUR YARD. I STARRED IN IT ALONG WITH PRODUCING AND DIRECTING IT, WHICH WAS INSANE. IT TURNED OUT REALLY CUTE THOUGH AND WAS A GREAT LEARNING EXPERIENCE. AND MORE IMPORTANTLY  IT GOT ME HOOKED.

 IE: What is next for you?

J:  I HAVE THREE FEATURES I AM CURRENTLY LOOKING FOR MONEY FOR. “SLATE AND KELLY,” (myspace.com/slate&Kelly) WHICH I AM WORKING ON WITH CATHY DEBUONO AND ANOTHER MUTUAL FRIEND JOHN MCLAUGHLIN. IT’S A FUN AND SWEET STORY OF TWO POLICE ACADEMY REJECTS WHO DECIDE TO GO UNDERCOVER WHEN THERE IS A SERIES OF MURDERS IN A DRAG CLUB AND THE POLICE CAN’T SOLVE THEM. THAT ONE NEEDS ABOUT $1M IN FINANCING.WE’RE HOPING TO SHOOT IT IN THE SPRING, POSSIBLY IN PTOWN.

“CYNARA” (myspace.com/cynarathefilm) WHICH IS THE LESBIAN PERIOD ROMANCE, SET IN 1930’S IN PARIS AND CAPE COD. YOUR CLASSIC SWEEPING ROMANCE, ROARING FIRES, WAVES CRASHING ON BEACHES, GALLOPING HORSES, TERRIBLY SEXY AND A WONDERFUL WONDERFUL STORY. THAT ONE NEEDS ABOUT $2M

AND

“ANGEL’S TREAD” WHICH IS A STRAIGHT ROMANCE ABOUT A WOMAN WHO FALLS IN LOVE WITH A GHOST. IT’S SPOOKY, SEXY AND THERE’S A LITTLE MURDER MYSTERY WRAPPED UP IN THIS GREAT LOVE STORY. THAT ONE’S MORE EXPENSIVE, ABOUT $4M

AND, BASED ON A TREATMENT I SUBMITTED TO A PRODUCTION COMPANY I HAVE BEEN HIRED TO WRITE AND DIRECT A SHORT FILM ABOUT A WOMAN COMING TO GRIPS WITH CHOICES SHE HAS MADE IN HER LIFE. I’M WRITING THAT SCRIPT NOW AND WE’RE SHOOTING IT IN SEPTEMBER IN NEW YORK CITY.

IE: What is next for the film?

J: THE FILM HAS A BUNCH OF FESTIVAL STILL TO COME. IT ALSO SOLD TO HERE AND WILL BE PREMIERING ON THAT NETWORK IN THE LATE FALL OR WINTER. AS SOON AS IT DOES I WILL ALSO PUT IT FOR SALE THROUGH MY MYSPACE PAGE (myspace.com/reneeviv)

IE: If asked to give one piece of advice to a new filmmaker making their first short film… What would it be?

J: SPEND MONEY ON A GOOD SOUND GUY

IE: What 5 films currently on the festival circuit are you fans of? (This is like an I Tunes celebrity playlist)

J: IT IS GOING TO BE HARD TO COME UP WITH TITLES. THERE WAS THIS GREAT FILM I SAW IN FT WORTH. A SHORT WITH TWO GIRL DOLLS, ONE STRAIGHT THE OTHER GAY AND THEY WAKE UP IN THE MORNING AFTER SLEEPING TOGETHER AND HAVE THIS EMPASSIONED DIALOGUE. IT’S IN FRENCH WITH SUBTITLES, BUT SO WELL SHOT, SO WELL DONE, SO SWEET AND FUNNY. IT REALLY IMPRESSED WITH ME. THERE’S A GREAT SHORT, THAT’S AT THIS FESTIVAL, CALLED THE BIKINI WHICH I REALLY LIKED A LOT WELL MADE, VERY ENDEARING WITH A GREAT LEADING LITTLE GIRL. I REMEMBER THAT TITLE CAUSE THEY HAVE PLAYED PRACTICALLY ALL OF THE SAME FESTIVALS WITH ME. AND THE SHORT THAT OPENED MY PROGRAM AT FRAMELINE WAS REALLY ACCOMPLISHED. HAVEN’T SEEN MUCH OF THE FEATURES, EXCEPT “MULLIGANS” CAUSE MY FRIEND THEA WAS IN THAT.

IE: What question would you like to be asked about your film?  And Why?  What is the answer?

J: I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING SPECIFIC. I AM JUST ALWAYS HAPPY TO HAVE ANY ONE INTERESTED ENOUGH TO COME UP WITH A QUESTION AND ASK IT.

IE: Thanks so much for answering our questions!  Have a great festival!!