Some strong subject matter being discussed on BEHIND THE LENS this episode thanks to ASANTE JONES talking about his latest film LIVE, director STEPHANIE WELCH talks her new documentary A DANGEROUS IDEA: EUGENICS, GENETICS AND THE AMERICAN DREAM, plus our exclusive interview with director SUSAN LACEY talking JANE FONDA IN 5 ACTS.
First up, take a take a listen to our exclusive pre-recorded interview with director SUSAN LACEY as we go in-depth into the making of JANE FONDA IN 5 ACTS. A beyond fascinating documentary, with a life as full as Jane’s Susan talks about some of the biggest hurdles starting with narrowing down themes and ultimately settling on an almost chapterization of Jane’s life focusing on her dad Henry Fonda, each husband (Roger Vadim, Tom Hayden and Ted Turner) and ultimately, the final chapter of Jane as she is today; editing hours and hours of interview footage with Jane Fonda herself; making decisions to rely on Jane’s own voice to tell her story and judiciously including only some select other interviews from people like Robert Redford, Peter Fonda, Dick Cavett and Jane’s son Troy Garrity; archival research to bring us more than the well-known and over-used photos we’ve come to know over the decades; balancing activism (and particularly the Viet Nam days) with acting and family in the story structure; collaboration with her producing partners and more.
Then actor ASANTE JONES joins us talking about his new film LIVE. A cautionary tale about the pitfalls and perils of social media and putting one’s life out there for all to see, Asante talks about the importance of this role and this film, the shooting style of writer/director Michael Greene and its impact on performance, choosing his roles and more!
Writer/Director STEPHANIE WELCH rounds out the show as we talk about her new documentary A DANGEROUS IDEA: EUGENICS, GENETICS AND THE AMERICAN DREAM. A long journey from conception to completion, the timing of this documentary couldn’t be more perfect given our current political state in the United States and the philosophies of the Trump Administration. Filled with interviews from social and anthropological figures like Robert Reich, Ralph Nader, Professor Barbara Katz Rothman, and Van Jones as well as genetic scientist like Professor Stuart Newman, Welch talks about creating a balanced narrative that shows both sides of the coin – from Gregor Mendel’s theories on genetics and inheriting traits to the genome theory to the pseudoscience that genetics determine one’s success, career, lifestyle, politics, etc. Filmmakers will find her research process quite interesting, as well as our discussion on editing a documentary of this nature and the use of graphs and animation to visually connect with the audience.
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