Audrey's Children
Interview with Director Ami Canaan Mann
Audrey’s Children is in theaters March 28.
Describe the film for us in your own words.
Audrey’s Children is the story of a woman who believed fervently that she could make a difference in the lives of those more vulnerable than her, and did not stop until she had seen the work through. It’s a story of unbreakable tenacity and a story of feeling that, while you may not be able to fix the broken world around you, it is possible to make a difference to those closest in your care. And that might be enough - and also, that might be plenty.
What drew you to this story?
What drew me to Audrey’s Children was what I saw as its timeliness. We are living through an extraordinary era wherein it’s easy to feel lost, not knowing how to help or not knowing if our gestures of help - our donations, our marches, our words to our neighbors - will make any kind of lasting difference.
I was raised in a household with an abusive stepfather where it was easy to believe - it was expected that I believe - my voice didn’t count and wouldn’t be listened to. To me, Audrey embodies the quality of stridently speaking out that I had to teach myself. I admire it tremendously, how she used her voice, literally and figuratively, to help others.
Audrey told me she was chronically ill as a child and spent much of that time alone in treatment. My gut instinct was that this experience was, in part, the motivation for much of her work. This drew me, too. I can absolutely identify with the instinct to take a bad situation in childhood and be determined to morph it into something positive. For me, it is filmmaking and writing fiction. For Audrey, it was saving lives and revolutionizing treatments for neuroblastoma. Needless to say, one end result is more critical! (Audrey’s!) And also I’m proud to have helped etch her story into a narrative that others can see and possibly also be inspired by.
What do you want people to think about?
Whatever their cause and whatever their passion, they should know that their efforts and voice do matter. We cannot stop fighting to heal - ourselves, our world and each other.
What was the biggest challenge in making this?
The biggest challenge in making this film was the subject matter, pediatric cancer. No one really wants to hang out thinking about kids with cancer for an hour and a half, so my approach was to try to create a world so aesthetically, viscerally luscious via production design, costume, music, camera angles, etc that the audience would feel compelled to stay with the narrative - And, in the end, they’d have sneakily been told a story about kids with cancer.
The second biggest challenge was to do that with our logistics; 23 shoot days, small budget, all live locations, period piece. But that’s the truly thrilling challenge, and I credit my incredible cast and crew for helping me pull it off.
What was the development process? How did you get green lit?
This film was an unusual in that we had a producer, Julia Fisher Farbman, who raised every cent of the budget herself through businesses, friends, family, small donations from charities, etc. This is a truly independent film. And it was made with that spirit, from its inception to its release.
What inspired you to become a storyteller?
Novels, and Laverne & Shirley! I grew up in the middle of nowhere Indiana. Read obsessively and also watched a lot of latchkey kid television. ‘Laverne and Shirley’, just one example, taught me how to be a stand-up friend, how to have moral compass, kept me company. When it occurred to me that I could also create stories for other people to help them the way books and TV helped me as a child, it was a revelation. Entertain, certainly. That’s important. But to maybe our work can provide a kind of solace, too? What a privileged position we’re as storytellers to help create that sense of kinship and comfort.
What’s the best and worst advice you've received?
The best advice I ever received was from a producer on one of the first TV directing jobs I had, Friday Night Lights. As we were walking to set during my prep, she said, “We shoot with three cameras all the time. Some directors can handle it, and some director’s can’t. Let’s see who you are.” It wasn’t advice, as such, but it’s something I think about every time I walk onto a set now - ‘This is what the situation is. Some can do it, come can’t. Let’s see who you are.’
The worst advice I ever received was a producer who suggested I make a creative compromise to an edit at the end of one of my films because, if I made the compromise now, he theorized, it would help the film be a commercial success and I wouldn’t have to make those type of compromises again in the future. The film was not a commercial success, it was probably never going to be truth be told, and I’ve deeply regretted that editing decision in all the years since. It was my call, and I made the wrong call, and I haven’t watched the film since it came out. Being a director is, for sure, knowing how to make a thousand smart compromises. We do it all day long. But the key is to know when you’re crossing a line into storytelling integrity. Storytelling integrity is priceless - And always worth fighting for.
What advice do you have for other female creatives?
Keep on trucking. Keep on fighting. Know your worth. And, specifically, make sure you’re set up to succeed. That you have all the support you need, as well as your own experience as a filmmaker to lean on.
Name your favorite woman directed film and why
Such a tough question! Happily, there are many to choose from. While I’m not a fan of ranking things, in general - Right now, at least, I’d have to say my favorite woman directed film has got to be Harlan County, USA directed by Barbara Kopple.
If the goal of a filmmaker is to capture a time and place, a spirit, a many-layered conflict, and do it with authenticity, integrity and visual acumen, than this film typifies that. It’s a thorough snapshot and speaks to a sociopolitical era which is, right now, in pointed conversation with our own sociopolitical era. Here’s to the work our female filmmakers are doing now speaking to female filmmakers in the future in a way that’s equally inspired.
Trailer
Synopsis
AUDREY’S CHILDREN tells the untold true story of visionary British physician Dr. Audrey Evans, who burst onto the scene in 1969 as the first female Chief of Oncology at the world-renowned Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Battling sexism, medical conventions, and the subterfuge of her peers, Evans developed the first Neuroblastoma Staging System, co-founded the first Ronald McDonald House for families of patients, and, ultimately, impacted the lives of millions of children and families around the world.
