No Lifetime Movie

I went in to this year’s Overlooked Film Festival almost certain I’d get to hear to very interesting directors speak. I ended up with my fourth choice film by a director (Joseph Greco) of who I have never heard. Sometimes you just don’t get what you want. It happens to me a lot.

I was assigned the 2006 film, Canvas, starring Joe Pantoliano and Marcia Gay Harden, and after a little web research it started to become clear that I was about to see something similar to a M.O.W. or an Oxygen miniseries. What I ultimately received was much better than I could have imagined.

While Roger was not going to be in attendance, his wife Chaz Ebert sprung onto the stage and, doing her best to fill her husband’s shoes, presented the short film about Dusty Cole. I did not know him personally, but from the documentary it seemed as thought I was the only one. He was the wildly outspoken Hollywood insider who loved to live on the outskirts. Cowboy hat, cigar, and glass of Crown Royal in hand, this man seemed to be so passionate about film and the production process that his funeral looked something like that of a fallen war hero. The director and “adopted” son of Dusty spoke a few words and after Mrs. Ebert seemed to choke back a few tears, Canvas began to play.

I’ll spare you a complete review, but this movie was pretty fantastic. It told the semi-autobiographical story of a 10-year-old boy, his father (Joe Pantoliano), and his schizophrenic wife (Marcia Gay Harden).

Canvas greatly differed from any other film dealing with such a sensitive, yet widespread, subject as mental health. We all know Me, Myself & Irene, and Running With Scissors, but Canvas was something that felt a lot more close to home. It wasn’t stylized, Hollywood-ed out, or glittered up in any sort of way. It felt real.

It felt so real in fact, that I sacked up and finally asked a question this year at a Q & A. Trembling and stuttering, I fumbled a few sentences together about the election, the importance of healthcare, and this film’s importance on reducing the stigma surrounding mental health in the U.S.

What I got was a very direct answer as the director explained what he was doing with the film, taking it around to various agencies, speaking out against mental health issues not getting the same help as physical health issues; things that need to get done, now.

Then “Joey Pants”, as he came to be called throughout the night, took the microphone and talked about how he had recently dealt with similar issues and this film helped him set up NoKiddingMeToo.org, an organization devoted to reducing common mental help stereotypes. Asking this question led to a meet and greet after the room had cleared to shake hands with Mr. Pantoliano, get a picture, and even an invite to an extended interview! Stay tuned, details to follow…

-Matt Telles

Redefining Mental Illness

With popcorn popping, a live organ player playing and ticket holders arguing squatter rights, The Virginia Theater in Champaign was in full swing Thursday night for the 10th Annual Roger Ebert Film Festival. The only person missing was Roger Ebert.

"It's unsafe to travel with the hip fracture and he needed to put his health first," said wife Chaz Ebert.

Joseph Greco's Canvas starring Joey Pantoliano and Marcia Gay Harden was Ebert's pick for the feature film Thursday. The movie focused on the struggles a man and his son experience while his wife is suffering from a mental illness.

"This subject matter is rarely seen," said alum Karol Ng. "Usually you see movies making fun of schizophrenia, like Me, Myself and Irene, so this is a pretty big deal for a movie to get such an accurate representation."

Greco wrote this independent film as part of a childhood experience, as his mom was mentally ill. Pantoliano is the president of the No Kidding, Me Too organization where the goal is to remove the stigma of mental illness.

"We want to have the brain have equal rights as the kidney as the heart," said Pantoliano. "If Chris' mom had breast cancer in the movie instead of schizophrenia, we wouldn't even have a movie."

The actors worked beforehand with the mentally ill in order to accurately portray and interact with people afflicted with a mental illness for the movie. All the artwork seen in the movie, mainly the canvases which patched the sail, were created by mentally ill people.

"Mentally ill people can be characterized as nutty when they are just wired differently. They see the world differently," said Urbana resident Heidi Weatherford. "Some of the most creative people are mentally ill."

Though Greco went through many hurdles to have the film made, such as three hurricanes hitting Florida when they wanted to film, trouble finding a leading actress and budget problems, the team eventually was able to film the movie in 27 days with the same script Greco originally wanted.

In order for the audience to fully appreciate the festival, Ebert has been known to pick a diverse group of movies either for their caliber of film or subject matter, said Marianne Krajacic, who travels from Chicago to attend the festival.

"I'm so glad that mental illness is coming out of the closet. It's long been over do," said Krajacic. "Robert Ebert is a genius for picking this film."

-April Dalhquist