Sturla Gunnarsson
Two years ago, actors Susan Coyne and Martha Burns, working with producer Sonya Di Rienzo, hatched the idea of Little Films About Big Moments , an anthology of 10 short works by emerging filmmakers teamed with seasoned mentors, including Paul Gross, Guy Maddin and Sarah Polley.
The students were all old hands at production (working as prop masters, sound editors, actors, writers) but none had ever directed. Little Films airs Friday on HBO. Below is a discussion between The Day I Thought I Died director David McCallum (sound editor on Cooking with Stella and Blindness ) and his Oscar-nominated mentor Sturla Gunnarsson, whose films include Air India 182 and Such a Long Journey .
DM I'd worked with Sturla before on Beowulf & Grendel. I asked him to be my mentor mainly because of the sensibility he brings to his own work, particularly to his making of Air India 182, a difficult story that he managed to tell with a lot of humanity. To make a beautiful film about something that heavy is difficult.
SG I didn't hesitate when David asked me, because he's done some really beautiful work for me over the years. I also learned something from this process. I had no idea that on the day he thought he died, that we were together. I was very distracted, and we were in a crisis moment doing the mix of Beowulf & Grendel, and I had no clue he was going through his own personal crisis. It was humbling for me, in that sometimes you get so caught up in your own thing that you don't realize what is going on around you.
DM I knew Sturla would give me an honest opinion. I also knew if he felt strongly about something, he'd make his point. What he brought to the mentoring process was honesty. He didn't let me take easy-way-outs when I think I probably wanted to.
SG David's film is about the anniversary of the day his father died. And it revolves around a moment when he contemplated his own mortality. When he showed me the script, I found it deeply moving, honest, and ultimately very life-affirming. And also quite oblique.
DM The most important thing I learned from Sturla is to let the process unfold, and not be dictatorial about it - to let things evolve.
SG Over the years, I've learned, with first-time filmmakers, that everyone thinks they have permission to tell them what to do. David thinks I'm pigheaded. All I really did was reinforce the sense in him that it's alright to be pigheaded.