|
|
|
|
[INTERVIEWS
> Nonny De La Pena]
|
|
03/31/03
|
| |
|
Interview
with Nonny De La Pena, director of the
compelling documentary "The Jaudiced Eye"
|
 |
|
Director
Nonny de la Pena and Cinematographer Bestor Cram shooting
their latest documentary collaboration, Mama/MAMA
|
|
| |
| Filmmaker Nonny De La Pena began her career as
a journalist as a CNN intern and later became stringer for Time
Magazine and a corresondent for Newsweek Magazine. Deciding
to pursue documentary film, Nonny became an Associate Producer
for HBO and her first film "Death on the Job" was
nominated for an Academy Award. Now a Producer/Director/Writer
with her own production company, Pyedog Productions, Nonny continues
her tradition of investigative journalism for BBC's Omnibus
& Inside Story, A&E's Investigative Reports, HBO's America
Undercover and The Discover Channel, among others. |
 |
|
Nonny's most recent and hard hitting documentary
"The Jaundiced Eye" chronicles the decade long trials
and emotional traumas incurred by a gay Michigan man, Stephen
Matthews, and his straight father, Melvin Matthews, who were
both wrongfully accused by Stephen's ex-girlfriend and her
boyfriend of molesting Stephen's son. "The Jaundiced
Eye" is currently screening on the film festivals circuit
and is available on home video from Vanguard Cinema.
|
| |
| iR:
How did "The Jaundiced Eye" begin? How did you
find the story? |
| |
| When Stephen lost his appeal --both Stephen
and Melvin were sentenced in the first trial and sentenced
to 18 to 35 years in jail -- he had to return to Michigan
that very same day. Stephen had not told many of his Los
Angeles friends of his legal woes and so to many of them
it was as if Stephen had just disappeared. |
| |
| About three years later, Stephen had become
desperate and he wrote a letter from prison to one of
his Los Angeles friends who had become a lawyer begging
for help. This friend was taking an evening Spanish class
with a friend of mine, and they had planned to have dinner
together after class on the day that Stephen's letter
arrived. The lawyer told my friend that he was sorry if
he wasn't the best company -- the letter had disturbed
him greatly. When my friend heard the details, he told
the lawyer that I was an investigative journalist and
that he should take the story to me. I immediately began
researching the case and soon put together a proposal
for a film. |
| |
| Fortunately, my producer Amy Sommer saw the
value in the project as well and within a few months we
had begun principal photography. |
| |
| iR:
How did you gain the trust of Stephen and Melvin Matthews,
your subjects? They seem incredibly open and committed
to the documentary. |
| |
 |
|
Stephen
and Melvin discussing their ordeal
|
|
| |
| I researched the story thoroughly -- read
every scrap of material surrounding the case and investigated
every imaginable lead -- so Stephen knew that I had invested
time and effort before I came to Michigan. I came to the
table fully knowledgeable of his ordeal and without any
agendas which I think helped him to open up. At one point
during my first research trip to Monroe, before I began
filming, someone close to the sheriff's department tipped
me off that there was a rumor going around that I was
running a porn filmmaking company. I had to write a letter
to the sheriff with recommendations from police officers
I had worked with in the past on other projects. This
"accusation" may have also made him more comfortable with
me since I could easily imagine the types of attitudes
he confronted as a gay man and a father. |
| |
| Finally, Stephen spent a lot time with myself
and my crew and even though he saw that we interacted
with respect and as much humor as possible, he sometimes
got tired of us hanging around. In fact, a scene that
is one of the most insightful in the films depicts Stephen
and his father Melvin fighting, illustrating how different
the two are and how unlikely it was that they could have
acted as partners in crime. It came out of Stephen's frustration
with us hanging around all of the time and he didn't have
enough energy left to keep his guard up or make a pretense
about his relationship with his father. Finally, I believe
that my gratitude to everyone who participates in my films
comes across and this ultimately heightens the trust. |
| |
| iR:
Do you feel that the documentary skews toward Stephen
and Melvin's point-of-view? How did they finally react
to the finished documentary? |
| |
| After seeing the film, many people tell
me that they are shocked that Stephen and Melvin were
tried. However, many also tell me that they think the
men might be guilty. If everyone felt the same way after
seeing the film, I think you could said that I had skewed
the story so I feel that I was fair in portraying the
type of emotional response that these cases elicit.. Even
Stephen and Melvin donıt like parts of the film. The differing
reactions the film make me feel that I was objective.
Documentary filmmaking is one of the few arenas where
disagreement is a compliment. |
| |
| iR:
I notice that Stephen's ex-girlfriend's interview is shot
in silhouette. How cooperative were the other parties
i.e. Stephen's ex-girlfriend and her boyfriend/husband
then? |
| |
| It was very, very difficult to get the participation
of the boy's side of the family. That interview was shot
on our very last day. The voice of the husband actually
came from an audio cassette from our first meeting. After
that he would not come near me, even dropping his wife
off on the corner in freezing weather so we could not
speak to him at all. Interestingly, I realized after I
met Stephen's son, he did not know the details of the
case at all and had no grasp of the factual evidence.
One of the most tragic aspects of this case is the number
of victims the investigation alone created. |
| |
| iR:
How long did it take to complete the entire filming?
What format did you shoot the documentary on and what
was the process like? How long was post-production? |
| |
| We shot the film over a period of about nine
months, during key moments in the case. We used digibeta
cameras and shot in widescreen. We also shot in the dead
of winter and the heat of summer and I am not exaggerating.
It was over a hundred degrees at one point, and around
30 below with wind chill at another. The most amazing
day was when the mayflies hatched. It was like a snowstorm
of bugs and when you'd run from the car into the hotel,
you'd still find them inside your clothes, beneath your
shirt, etc. We spent seven weeks on the off-line edit
and about another month on other post-production needs,
like sound, titling and the on-line. |
| |
| iR:
What was the reaction at festivals? Do you feel the
reaction differs between more mainstream festivals (like
Toronto) and gay and lesbian film festivals? |
| |
| The main difference is size. The gay and
lesbian film festivals tend to be a smaller community
and that tends to make the reaction somewhat more personal.
However, I found that audiences in both types of festivals
understood that this was a story that was about civil
liberties for all. I think people of all walks of life
understand that the application of prejudice over the
facts endangers all of us. The support for the film was
tremendous. |
| |
| iR:
As a filmmaker, are you happy with how the film has
been exposed and exhibited? What were your expectations
for the documentary, and were they met? |
| |
| The film had a limited theatrical run --
San Francisco, Berkeley, San Jose, Toronto, Los Angeles,
New Orleans, Chicago and New York. It aired on the Sundance
Channel and has just been released on DVD by Vanguard
Cinema whose efforts got it into many of the larger "main
stream" retail outlets. We had incredible reviews in the
New York Times, Variety, Los Angeles Times and Premiere
among others. It has been an independent filmmakers dream
and the main reason is because my producer Amy Sommer
works so hard and has gotten us involved with such good
partners. I feel a great kinship with producers and distributors
who refuse to take "no" for an answer this attitude
reminds me of my investigative self!! |
| |
| iR:
What is the current or upcoming project you are working
on? |
| |
| Working with producer Amy Sommer and editor
Greg Byers again, we have just finished a new documentary
called Mama/M.A.M.A. Our film questions the validity of
Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy, arguing that in many cases
doctors over-medication of infants and over-reliance on
lab tests may be the real cause of the childrens' illness
rather than abuse by their mothers. www.munchausenmovie.com
is the filmıs website for more information. |
| |
|
I have also just started a new film on the civil liberties
violations that are on the rise under the Bush administration.
.jpg)
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
For festival screenings and cable
showings of "The Jaundiced Eye," check out
it's official website:
|
 |
|
|
|
| |
| |
| "The Jaundiced Eye" is available now
on VHS & DVD from Vanguard Cinema: |
|
|
| |
|
|
