By: debbie lynn elias
I first met writer/director Stephane Gauger at the Los Angeles Film Festival 2007 where his film OWL AND THE SPARROW, debuted. One of my “Must See Festival Film” picks back in 2007 (and obviously that of festival goers as the film walked away with the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature), it is still one of my must see picks today as it now opens in theaters across the country in limited release. A tall imposing figure of a man, Stephane is anything but. When you speak with him, you quickly see the gentleness about him, his sensitivity, his enthusiasm for life and the human condition, but above all, the passion for his craft and in particular, this film. Born in Saigon, but raised in Orange County, California, he “always wanted to do a film set in Saigon.” As he told me, ” I love the country and the people. With over 8 million people in Saigon, I knew I had to do a story about them. This is the story of three of them.”
I recently had a chance to catch up and revisit with Stephane and talk a bit about OWL AND THE SPARROW.
MSD: What was the impetus to do or genesis of this project?
SG: The seed of the film basically was to tell a contemporary streets on the bustling streets of Saigon and capture the energy of the city, but at the same time, addressing alienation in the big city, but also making a statement about the modernization of a country usually associated with war films.
MSD: What was your creative development process in terms of writing the script and then directing the film? In other words, did you sit down and write and rewrite? Storyboard as you write? Write and as you direct?
SG: For a character-driven film, the development process for me was to create characters first, then construct a story and plot around them. Once the characters feel lived in on the page, the writing becomes easier. The script was written in two drafts in a couple months and I always knew it would be a blueprint. The actors that I casted in Vietnam had the liberty to change dialogue to fit their characters, and we basically go out and shoot it. I didn’t use storyboards because it was a loose film. It was cinema verite in Vietnam, which hadn’t been done before.
MSD: I would imagine you were creating very distinct visuals in your mind as you were writing? True?
SG: I knew that I wanted to capture the hustle and bustle, motorbikes constantly buzzing in the background and neon soaked nights. You don’t have to create visuals in Saigon, because it’s all around you. So I shot the film in mostly natural ambient light and kept the cameras hand-held for the most part.
MSD: I know you are well familiar with Viet Nam. How did you go about selecting locations for the shoot?
SG: I wanted the locations in the city to breathe, so I shot in a lot of alleys with food stalls and shops. I wanted to juxtapose this with the city zoo in the film, which is more serene and tranquil, an oasis from the cacophony of the streets.
MSD: Your best experience of shooting OWL AND THE SPARROW was…….
SG: Having a harmonious cast and crew. They hadn’t experienced this sort of shooting. Guerilla shooting, and they were open to it. There wasn’t a dull moment. Directing orphans to play in the film, which is very rewarding. I like kids, and I think they make terrific actors because they’re untrained, so you can develop a natural performance out of them.
MSD: The most difficult or, god forbid, worst aspect of shooting was…….
SG: Animals. We were lucky to choose an elephant that was tame, but we had an orangutan that was unruly. Kids were easy compared to animals.
MSD: You have an amazing cast. How long did it take you to find your three principals and particularly the enchanting little Han Thi Pham?
SG: I handpicked Le The Lu and Cat Ly ( the zookeeper and the stewardess, respectively) They were subtle actors, and they fit the part. And for the orphan girl Thuy, we had an open casting for ten girls to come in. We only cast her a couple days before we started shooting, and she was a real discovery. A ten year old girl who had never acted before, but was able to understand the script and give a really outstanding performance.
MSD: Strictly from an ego standpoint, how does it feel to have already had OWL AND THE SPARROW be so warmly received at the festival level?
SG: It’s nice to have accolades. It’s nice to show the film in different countries. The biggest satisfaction is showing international audiences a slice of modern Saigon life and to show the humanity of the people there.
MSD: How daunting a task is it to embark on a filmmaking journey such as this. One man, writing and directing. A foreign country. Did you have any trepidation or concerns about whether you could accomplish what you set out to do and tell the story you wanted to tell?
SG: You have to have a brazen attitude with independent film, which is to tell the story the best way you can and make the best film possible. Then you show your film to the public and hope that they’re entertained and moved. This is the hardest task, because a lot of elements can fall out of place in the making of the film, but when the casting seems right and the tone hits the right note, then you’ve made a good movie.
MSD: What would you like to see the audience take away with them when they leave the theater?
SG: There is a lot of disconnect in the world. I want people to feel that they can possibly connect, that there is love around us, even when we least expect it.
MSD: What did you take away with you from this experience?
SG: The shooting of the film was a wonderful experience since we kept the crew small and we had a synergy. I’ve learned a lot about the difficult road to distribution. I don’t think I’ll ever stop learning about the marketing and business angle of making movies.
MSD: And next up for you is…….
SG: A big soccer movie in Vietnam, with some British characters in the forefront. It’s called “SIMON AND STRANGER”, and we’re still shopping it around for financing. Then I’d like to take a shot at writing a genre film, maybe a suspense thriller that takes place in Paris. I’d like to do a love letter to that city, the same way OWL AND THE SPARROW is a love letter to Saigon, my city of birth.
