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| VIFF ‘06 Interview – Mystic Ball director/creator/star Greg Hamilton |
Mystic Ball at VIFF (www.viff.org) |
by Jason Whyte
“One of the most joyous documentaries I’ve seen in years. Greg Hamilton is a Toronto native who discovers the passion for a Myanmar game called Chinlone, which looks like a poorly made soccer-ball yet is an inspiration for a nation-wide game in the Burmese country that Hamilton attends at least once a year. Well photographed and keeping only within the subject of the game, we see a real, honest passion in Hamilton that if you think about it hard enough, that this passion can translate over to the fans of the Vancouver Film Festival. This is a documentary that is worth seeing.” – Authors’ note on Greg Hamilton’s “Mystic Ball” which screens at the 25th Vancouver International Film Festival. We now turn our attention to Mr. Hamilton.
Is this your first film in the VIFF? (Or the first film you have) Do you have any other festival experience? If you're a festival veteran, let us know your favourite and least-favourite parts of the festival experience.
Yes, this is my first film in VIFF, and this is also the first film I've made. We had the world premiere at Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival in Toronto in May of 2006. That was an extraordinary experience; we received two standing ovations in a row which was the first time this has happened in the thirteen year history of the festival.
Could you give me a little look into your background (your own personal biography, if you will), and what led you to the desire to want to make film?
I have played music, designed jewelery, and been involved in martial arts. In the early eighties I came across Chinlone and was captivated by it. After playing it for a couple of years, it completely took over my interest in doing martial art. Because of the extraordinary feelings and experiences I had from playing it, I really wanted to share it with other people. I especially wanted to find a way to bring some respect and recognition to the people in Myanmar who had devoted their lives to this ecstatic sport. In the beginning I considered trying to take some of the players on a tour, but this was not a feasible idea for a number of reasons. Then it occurred to me that a small film could be made and this would be a good way to bring the world's attention to Chinlone.
Growing up, you were no doubt asked the eternal question "When I grow up I want to be a…" Finish this sentence, please!
"When I grow up I want to be a zoologist". I always thought that is what I was going to do, work with animals in some capacity. I was far more interested in animals and trusted them more than people. I studied zoology on my own in a serious way from about grade six.
While you were making the movie, were you thinking about the future release of the film, be it film festivals, paying customers, critical response, and so forth?
No, not really. I quickly became lost in the extreme challenge of trying to get the film made; trying to work out the story, making the thousands of decisions that it took.
How did this project come to fruition? If you could, please provide me with a rundown, start to finish, from your involvement.
It began with this great passion I have for Chinlone, and how I have always tried to get people around me to play. In the mid-eighties while living in Indonesia, I met one American guy who was also living there. We became best friends and I introduced him to Chinlone. For the next ten years we worked on a number of design projects together and then we hatched the idea of making a film about it.
What was the biggest challenge in the production of the movie, be it principal photography or post-production?
There were a few. Shooting the Chinlone sequences were very difficult as it is extremely fast, omni-directional and almost impossible to anticipate where the ball is going. I decided to use two and sometimes even three cameras as well as an 18 foot jib, which allowed us to get a good perspective into the circle of players and follow the action. Then getting the cinematographers to shoot the playing the way I wanted was another challenge. Finding and crafting the story was a huge challenge and the narration turned out to be one of most challenging things I've ever done.
Please tell me about the technical side of the film; your relation to the film's cinematographer, what the film was shot on and why it was decided to be photographed this way.
We shot on everything from MiniDV to PAL DigiBeta and Super 16mm. The majority of the film is PAL DigiBeta. We decided to use PAL because the picture is better, and we wanted to use film because we intended to use slow motion to show the playing and film would give the best results.
Talk a bit about the festival experiences, if any, that you have had with this particular film. Have you had any interesting audience stories or questions that have arisen at screenings?
We had our world premiere at Hot Docs in Toronto in May of 2006. I was very surprised at how into the film the audience got. They were laughing all the way through, which was great because we had worried that the film was too serious and didn't have enough humor. Then after it was over and we went up for the Q&A, we received two standing ovations (that seemed to go on and on) and it was the first time in the 13 year history of the festival for that. There were lots of good questions, but what was most interesting was the feeling of love energy emanating from the audience; it was palpable, extraordinary. I've never experienced so much love in a group of people except at a very special music concert. People have been coming up to me in the street in the park constantly since then and so many of them were inspired and also felt this incredible feeling of love that I was talking about.
Who would you say your biggest inspirations are in the film world (directors, actors, cinematographers, etc)? Did you have any direct inspirations from filmmakers for this film in particular?
I love Martin Scorcese, Spike Lee, Werner Herzog and Akira Kurosawa, although I wouldn't say I had any direct inspiration for this film.
How far do you think you would want to go in this industry? Do you see yourself directing larger stories for a larger budget under the studio system, or do you feel that you would like to continue down the independent film path?
I really have no idea right now. If I make another film, it will probably be an independent [film].
If you weren't in this profession, what other career do you think you would be interested in?
Something to do with music. Or, try to and add more beauty and good spirit in the world.
Please tell me some filmmakers or talent that you would love to work with, even if money was no object.
Spike Lee, Jackie Chan, Samuel Jackson.
Do you think that you have "made it" in this profession yet? If you don't believe so, what do you think would happen for that moment to occur?
Of course not. I guess I'd need to have a few successful films first.
How important do you think the critical/media response is to film these days, be it a large production, independent film or festival title?
I think critical/media response is very important, this is how people find out about films and it is natural for people to take an interest in films that other people, especially critics and media reviews recommend.
If your film could play in any movie theatre in the world, which one would you choose?
I'm not familiar enough with movie theatres around the world to make a good choice.
Do you have an opinion on the issue of "A Film by (Insert Director Here)" ? Is this something you use? Many people collaborate to make a film yet simultaneously, the director is the final word on the production.
I don't really have an opinion, but yes I think film is very collaborative and certainly the director has the final word. I don't use this myself but I see it in the media. I don't think it's a big deal, most people know that films cannot be made by one person.
What would you say to someone on the street to see your film instead of the latest blockbuster playing at the Paramount?
I think this film is special and they might get a different experience from what they would get seeing yet another blockbuster. They'll get to see something they've never seen or even heard of before. They will see another kind of beauty than they've ever seen as well.
No doubt there are a lot of aspiring filmmakers at film festivals who are out there curious about making a film of their own. Do you have any advice that you could provide for those looking to get a start?
Be passionate about the subject. Of course this needs to be real and natural, so make sure there is some chemistry between the subject and themselves. Dare to dream and then follow that vision of what you really want the film to be. Find good people to work with who can understand your dream. Stay with it, persevere even when things seem hopeless, and they will sometimes.
And finally...what is your all time favourite motion picture, and why?
Mean Streets. It's just such a great film. Excellent cinematography, acting and music.
The 25th Vancouver International Film Festival runs from September 28th to October 13th, 2006. To see when this film is playing, and for more information on other screenings, happenings and what is going on at this year’s VIFF, point your browser to viff.org. – Jason Whyte, jasonwhyte@efilmcritic.com
link directly to this feature at http://hollywoodbitchslap.com/feature.php?feature=1968
originally posted: 10/06/06 05:43:00
last updated: 10/06/06 05:44:57
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