Jodom in the News
Do it! Do it Now! -
An Interview with Jodom Pictures' Mike Amato
By William Gynan, March 2004
Most of us remember the teacher or coach that always brought out the best in us. As an adult, you occasionally meet other special persons that have a passion, not just a desire, but a white hot passion. This passion is contagious, and their dream becomes your dream.
Michael Amato is one of these people. He's a physically intimidating man with a gentlemanly demeanor and intelligent eyes. Michael Amato has been making exceptional independent movies that are helping put New England on the Indy map.
Amato founded Jodom Productions in the year 2000, named after his two boys Joseph (10) and Domenic (11). After founding the company, Amato only had one hurdle. He had no experience or training. Four years later, he has made four movies, all of which have won critical acclaim. He is a man with a "can do" attitude and vision. Introducing Mr. Michael Amato:
WG: Tell us a bit about yourself.
MA: I'm from Western Massachusetts orginally. I lived on the West Coast for a couple of years, but I've been in the greater Boston area for the last 15 years. I have two wonderful boys, Joseph and Domenic.
WG:What are the long & short term goals of Jodom Productions?
MA: Our goal is to get one or more of our films into theatres nationwide, and in worldwide distribution on DVD. With A House Divided (AHD), I think we have a legitimate chance to do just that. I guess our main goal is to make movies that people want to see. Movies that take a slightly different path than you'd expect. Movies that make you think. Movies that make you feel something.
It is amazing that, for all the effort you put in, and for all the personal and financial sacrifices you make to do this, it can all be justified in one evening, when you finally get to show people what you've done. There is no greater feeling than standing before a sold-out house on Premiere night and having them applaud your work. I think that's what people who make films really live for, whether they are in front of, or behind, the camera. To know that you've really touched people, given them something memorable.
WG: I noticed on your website that you've received some awards.
MA: We've been fortunate to win at least one award for every film we've done. Even AHD, though not released yet, has already won two screenplay awards. We have an awards page!
WG: What members of the company have been with you since the beginning?
MA: Anthony Villa is the only actor who has been in every one of our pictures (Best Actor Award for his debut role in Kilroy Was Here). He also did our original web design and does our poster/DVD art design. Tom Sousa, Dan Gorgone, Brian Hoffman, April Cresey, Rachel Self and Kevin Vasconcelos have all been in multiple pictures for us.
The crew was originally myself and a host of volunteers, but over the years, we've added some key members who now work on every picture. Steve Sherrick is the one guy I couldn't even think of making a movie without. He has been AD, Co-Producer, Editor, Cameraman and Sound Recordist for us at various times, is tremendously talented, and pays great attention to detail. Joe Vaccariello has also been an integral part of our cast and crew on the last three films, in a variety of roles on both sides of the camera (he stole every scene in our third picture, Limelight). Mike Duca joined us on AHD. He's an Uber-Grip, because of his energy and working speed, but he also ended up lighting half of our film when we lost our cinematographer halfway through filming. He is amazing.
There's a host of others I could mention, including Colette and Eric Goodwin, who drove up from PA every weekend as part of our crew on the last two pictures. You know how they sometimes call what we do "guerilla" filmmaking? Well, these are the people that you'd want next to you if you had to go to war!
Our student film After Midnight has been the biggest winner for us so far, winning several screenwriting awards, and a Best Actress nod for April Cresey. It also got two Best Feature nominations, as well as nominations for Best Score (Luke Stark) and Best Director. I'm convinced that AHD will be an even bigger success because the story is more involved, with much richer character development.
WG: You must have a very supportive family.
MA: My wife is very supportive and understanding. It was hard enough when I was working a full time job and doing this on the side. But it's been even more stressful since I started doing films as a full-fledged career, mostly because of income concerns. It puts a lot of stress on your relationship, and you need a rock-solid foundation to survive it. AHD will be my fourth feature in as many years.
My kids have been in small parts in all four movies, which made it easier. I don't usually edit until after they've gone to bed. I've even coached their football and baseball teams for three years while both working and filming. I spend a lot of time with them, but it's a juggling act. The time commitment is like that of any small business, except other people think you're playing because it's the movies. It's not playing. You're trying to make it one of the toughest businesses there is. People don't get how hard that is
WG: I read that you had no formal training. How did you start?
MA: A famous filmmaker once said that the best way to learn how to make a film is to make one. I took him at his word. I've read a lot of great books on different aspects of filmmaking. Steven Katz ' Shot By Shot and Cinematic Motion are my favorites. Most of it has been on the job training. You can actually see the improvement in each of our films, each one showing dramatic growth in production values. AHD is about as close to a Hollywood Production as you can get without being one.
WG: What was your biggest challenge in the making of House Divided?
MA: Budget. We wanted to focus more on dramatic lighting, and that takes time, crew and money. We wanted to focus on keeping the camera moving. That takes time, crew and money. A larger crew is also expensive to feed! And I had to finance it all myself.
Acting. We went through a grueling audition process that lasted 8-12 weeks. We wanted to make sure we found the best acting talent New England had to offer. And find them we did - not just the leads, but the supporting roles as well. I think low-budget films are often hurt by a lack of talent in the supporting cast. We don't have that problem on this film.
Locations. If I told you beforehand about some of the locations needed for AHD (mansions, barns, corn fields, cabins, coffee houses, etc.), you would guess that this would be an expensive movie to make. But we've found some amazingly generous individuals and businesses that opened their doors to us at no charge. Quite frankly, the independent film community would cease to exist without the help of people like that. The quality of our locations really shines on this film. The mansion and barn in particular are practically their own characters.
WG: Can you tell us a little about AHD?
MA: It consists of three linked stories. It's a whodunit where the prime suspects include a Kennedyesque Senator and the multiple personalities in one woman's mind (his wife, who has Dissociative Identity Disorder/DID). We see her childhood when each of her identities is formed (and why). Finally, there's the detective on the case, whose wife has her own psychological issues. When you peel away all of the plot twists and story devices, it's a tale about love and what we do when the person we care about is in pain. The inspiration for the story came mainly from my fascination with mental illness, perhaps because of my own upbringing.
WG: If a writer autobiographically, how many personalities do you have?
MA: Unfortunately for those who live and work with me, I just have the one personality. But many of my films do have elements that are autobiographical. In AHD, the detective's wife has schizophrenia. My mother has fought that disease her whole adult life, and in fact, a scene in the movie comes straight from an event that occurred during my childhood.
My first film, Kilroy Was Here was about a man who reaches a certain point in his life and decides he needs to leave his mark on the world before he dies. That's about as autobiographical as you can get. My other two films, though less so, are about issues that are very interesting to me, namely the impact of violence (After Midnight) and our insane fascination with celebrity (Limelight). Honestly, if a subject isn't important to you, why would you pour a year or more of your life into doing a film about it?
WG: Many viewers will be viewing Schizophrenia and DID first hand through AHD. What do you hope they will walk away with?
MA: They are often confused with each other, but the former is biological and manifests itself in early adulthood, while the latter is psychological and typically appears during childhood. In layman's terms, schizophrenia is a kind of rewiring of the brain that typically involves hallucinations or the hearing of voices. The afflicted person feels persecuted, betrayed or despised by others, or feels that others are telling them what to do. With DID, the person affected actually manufactures distinct identities of their own, usually in order to deal with a desperate situation, such as extreme abuse.
To answer your question, I hope that people come away from this with a better appreciation of mental illness, and the havoc it wreaks - not only on the afflicted, but on their family as well.
WG: This Script gives the actors a great opportunity to distinguish themselves. How did your cast bringing inspiration to life?
MA: The part that is very personal to me is the schizophrenia suffered by the detective's wife, Vicki. Pamela McIntyre, who plays her, went through several sessions with me and watched videotape of people afflicted by schizophrenia, in order to get the nuances down. Her performance during the breakdown scene is still very hard for me to watch, because it cuts so close to the real thing. She was masterful.
Likewise, Liz Rose - who plays Laura as an adult, and Andrea C. Ross, who plays her as a child, did a superb job of making each of Laura's identities distinct. We rehearsed quite a bit and traded footage to make sure that each actress had similar mannerisms, so that, for instance, when the audience sees Laura make a gesture, they know at once which identity she is. We also show these identities as separate people, i.e., as Laura sees them in her own mind. So the actresses who played them as individuals had to master the same mannerisms. It was quite a challenge, but comes through nicely on film, I think.
Equally inspiring were the performances given by Anthony Villa, who plays Detective Nick Roncarati, and Peter Brown, who plays the Senator. I think it's hard for an actor to give a strong performance opposite such scene-stealing characters as Laura and Vicki. But both actors do a wonderful job of portraying wounded men who are used to being in control of a situation, but now find themselves faced with something they cannot control. Their performances were critical, because we want to make the point that it's not just the person afflicted who suffers from mental illness.
WG: Seeing how personal the movie was to you, was it painful for you at times?
MA: It wasn't painful to make the movie at all, because, in a very sensitive way, we are shining a light on something that is typically swept under the rug. I'm very proud of that. That said, there are some scenes that will be painful. The "identities" Joan and Molly, in particular, are heartbreaking characters. And while the abuse Laura suffers as a child is mainly implied, there are some scenes that viewers may find disturbing. Andrea did a wonderful job as Little Laura, especially considering the things her character has to suffer through. If Liz is the heart of the film as older Laura, then Andrea is its soul as Little Laura. She is an amazing actress and was an absolute pleasure to direct!
WG: Can you tell me about your cast members?
MA: Dan Gorgone gives an absolutely chilling portrayal of Lyle Hackett, Laura's stepfather and abuser. The auditions were very competitive, but Dan really got the fact that Lyle is not a screamer. He is not someone who hits Laura out of anger. He is a control freak. He is very calm and measured, which, in my opinion, makes him a much more terrifying villain. Because abuse, like rape, is really about power and control. What makes Dan's performance so impressive is that he is the kindest, gentlest soul you could ever meet in person. He has incredible range as an actor.
Brian Hoffman gave a touching portrayal of Vicki's doctor. He has a scene near the end of the movie which is one of my favorite moments in the film.
Mark Scalia gave a strong supporting performance as Nick's partner, providing some comic relief and great dramatic moments. And John Shanahan was perfect as Nick's rival, the confidently incompetent O'Rourke. Mark, John and Anthony had great chemistry together, and their scenes together are priceless.
WG: One of the biggest obstacles for the Indy filmmaker is holding onto talent for the length of the production. Did you have to recast?
MA: During auditions, we tried to pick actors based not only on talent, but on whether or not we thought we could work with them over the long haul. The worst thing that can happen during filming is to have a cast member that thinks they are more important than the film. We were pretty lucky in that regard, as our very professional cast and crew was willing to do anything and everything to ensure the quality of the film. Let's face it, there are always tense, frustrating moments during shooting. If you don't have people you can count on, you're in a lot of trouble. Fortunately, we did. In spades.
We only had one casting change and that was with our lead actress. Three days before filming of her first scenes began, I decided to go in a different direction, for reasons we won't go into here. I asked Elizabeth Rose - who had read for the part previously and had already landed a supporting role - to take on the part, in addition to still playing the supporting character.
Keep in mind that the lead female character is a woman with multiple personalities. That meant Liz had to prepare to play roughly a half-dozen people. On three days notice. I worked with her beforehand to prepare her for the part. Because of the lack of notice, we were very nervous when shooting came, but she absolutely nailed it. She retained every gesture and nuance we had discussed during rehearsal, and added some great things on her own. I remember pulling her aside during a break and telling her that I felt our film had finally found its heart. She gave such a mesmerizing performance that I wondered why I hadn't cast her in the first place! She is very gifted.
WG: What advice would you give to the 18 year-old that wants to make movies?
MA: Do it. Do it now! Get a video camera, no matter how cheap it is, and get out there and start shooting something. Write a story, or find someone else who can write. Use your friends and family as actors. Use your parent's house as a location.
Your first movie will suck, and so will your next two or three. Don't worry about it. Worry about improving the quality on each film, on getting better and better. Improve on the lighting, the acting, the camerawork, the sound, the story, and your crew on each successive effort.
Read whatever you can on the subject of filmmaking. Get on the internet and find on-line communities where you can network and exchange ideas with like-minded individuals. Don't just sit around talking about making movies or listing all the things that are stopping you. Get off your ass and do it. Leave the naysayers and the reasons for failure behind and take your best shot. No one will ever believe in your ability to do this more than you do. Just accept it and get going.
WG: When will AHD premiere
MA: We are hoping to premiere in May.
WG: With three premieres under your belt, will AHD's be any easier? Any butterflies?
MA: Butterflies don't really enter the picture. I'm never really nervous on premiere night, not until the movie starts, at least! You really don't have the time. You're too busy having a breakdown because the sound guy at the premiere hall thought it would be a good idea to play your film in mono, instead of stereo (true story).
We're very proud of the fact that our premieres have a reputation for being first-class affairs. They are black-tie optional events, complete with drinks and appetizers, because we want people to feel a little bit like it's Oscar night. Since we're on the east coast, most of them will never get a chance to attend a big Hollywood Premiere. So we try to give them a taste. They really seem to enjoy the opportunity to have a night on the town. And of course, we give out free movie candy, too, which doesn't suck!
In the past, we have premiered at hotels, including the Boston World Trade Center and the Providence Westin, which people like because we block off rooms for them and they can make a mini-getaway weekend out of it. But hotel events are very expensive, and we'd like the chance to premiere in a real theatre, so we are pursuing that possibility as well this year.
WG: Thanks for the interview, Mike. I wish you continued success.
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