Karl R. Hearne and Dale Dickey EXPOSE the Dark Side of Elder Revenge in THE G

[00:00:10] Speaker A: This is our Fantasia 2024 interview with Director Carl R. Hearn and actor Dale Dickey on Vajee like. And subscribe for more content. Like. All right, Gee. So what inspired you to make a revenge film about elder abuse? [00:00:34] Speaker B: It started with the main character who was inspired by my Irish grandmother. Just a very. Someone I admired a lot but was a little afraid of. Very intense woman. And I had been reading about these elderly scams. They're not always the scams. They're actually big legal business in a lot of states. And I found it so horrifying and fascinating that the premise was basically to take this very strong character and put them in this sort of nightmarish situation and see what happened. [00:01:09] Speaker A: Yeah. So let's talk a bit about the character Van, who is quite the curmudgeon, but she has a soft spot for Emma. So could you maybe talk about their closest relationship despite not being biologically related? Yeah. And both you can answer? [00:01:26] Speaker B: Sure. Yeah. Okay, I'll go first. Basically, they do have quite a close relationship, or as close as this particular woman will allow. She's not someone who gets close to people very easily. And I would say her granddaughter or step granddaughter, Emma is about as close to her as anyone is and looks up to her quite a bit as well. [00:01:52] Speaker C: Yeah, I love that relationship. And a beautiful romande, Denis, a beautiful actress, was so easy to work with and just fall in love with. But it is a chance to see a more vulnerable, softer side of her. And, you know, I think she sees herself in Emma a little bit. And I think Emma sees, wants to be like me. Like I say in the film, I'd like to be more like her. So it's just sort of a natural. She has no one else left, so it's an important relationship. [00:02:27] Speaker A: So you already partially answered this, but is there like a real life inspiration of like Rivera's business of getting court ordered guardianship? [00:02:37] Speaker B: Yeah, no, absolutely. It's pretty well documented. I mean, there have been a lot of articles and mainstream magazines and, you know, it's a big enough business that in some states like Nevada, there's a whole lobbying system. The government is involved. There may have been crackdowns and some of the exposes have been written. But it's really a shocking thing where people can take total control of someone else's life, all their assets, what drugs are administered to them, absolutely everything, sometimes just on the order at one point of a county clerk, at least in states like Nevada. So. So, yeah, it's hard to believe, but it does take place all the time. And then there's all kinds of other quasi legal arrangements and just out and out elder scams that are in the news all the time. So this film was sort of situating in that sort of bleak world where people are sort of marginalizing and exploiting these vulnerable older people. [00:03:34] Speaker A: So getting Ed mitted into this home kind of causes Anne to, like, revisit, like, a criminal past that she had. So could you maybe talk about how the situation results in her bringing up this side of her and how her character's developed throughout the film? [00:03:57] Speaker B: Yeah, there's this backstory that's alluded to many times, but it's never fully drawn out. And it seems that, you know, she had this criminal past or was part of a criminal sort of family down in West Texas. And certain details do emerge throughout the story that come to her help, you know, to help her bust out of this what essentially is a kind of a care, but really a prison facility for people who are vulnerable. So, yeah, that's how that starts off. [00:04:36] Speaker C: Yeah, the criminal background is just, you know, when she tells that story, it's something she learned at a very early age. Saw a lot of things at a young age, and that kind of thing sticks with you. It's in your bones. And even though she's gone on to live another life, and perhaps, probably as Carla had a really wonderful relationship with Chip before we started getting older, and he went downhill. But that background comes real in handy when she decides to fight back. And I think fighting back, particularly when it involves your family, is something we can all relate to. Pretty much would do anything for your family. [00:05:23] Speaker A: Yeah. So there's like a couple relationships that developed through the film with, so Ann and Joseph and then Evan, Matt. And without revealing too much, how would you describe those two relationships? [00:05:41] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I think they're just people meeting people, in some cases, lonely, you know, vulnerable people who maybe don't have much going on and an opportunity presents itself and they meet each other and things happen from there. So that's sort of how I would characterized certainly Joseph meeting the G. You know, that's about what I'd say about that. [00:06:12] Speaker C: Yeah, I interested. My dad was recently in an assisted living, and most of the people there were in there, you know, pretty older, pretty older, 80s and 90s. But there was one couple that would always sit in the courtyard and kiss, and then I'd see him kissing another woman, you know, later in the day. It was like he was. He was the handsome guy that all the women, you know, just made Them feel good. Everybody lost their spouses and just having someone to hold your hand or have a little tenderness. And I think there is some grief having that drives her into this as well as just loneliness. And he seems like a nice guy. [00:06:54] Speaker A: Yeah. I interpreted Joseph as like, the nice one at this incredibly cruel place. [00:07:01] Speaker C: Yeah. It's like, of all the people to be here. And he's made such a beautiful home for himself there. Rocca's another lovely actor, really. I tell you, this could have been a whole different experience if we didn't have the actors that Carl brought in. And the crew. Terrific crew. And Carl, of course, director Hearn. [00:07:26] Speaker A: So what was the most challenging aspect of making a film? [00:07:30] Speaker B: I mean, there's too many challenging things to really list out. But the obvious one is money and time, which are the same thing on a film set. So we really had to scramble. And really, the crew had to go above and beyond the call just to finish our days. You know, we had a really, really tight schedule. We had shot lists that the DP and I had put together. But we were only able to get the bare minimum each time. So, yeah, it was. It was very, very challenging. Very tough shot in a Canadian winter outside. But, you know, we made it happen. We made it work. So I'm proud of that. [00:08:10] Speaker C: Yeah. Challenges. I just remember Vlad, who was our dp. Vlad and Carl, during Vlad, during lunch break, would go H in another room and be thinking about setting up the next shot. These two worked symbiotically. It was great. But time and challenging with the weather. You know, it was pretty damn cold. But once you get into the moment, you don't feel it anymore. It's challenging. A lot of challenges for me, the intimacy a scene was something new for me. But as Carl explained it, it's very important. It's decorative. It's important. The story. You don't usually see older people being into men on camera was handled very well. [00:08:59] Speaker A: And you also don't usually see older people using guns. [00:09:04] Speaker C: No. Yeah. Which is where the criminal background. You know, I love it when he goes, do you know how to use that thing? It is just like, you know, when he tells her. Yeah, but I forgot to load it. Oh, Joseph. So, no, it's like riding a bike. I personally detest guns. I don't like them. But I've handled a lot on set. So I'm pretty comfortable with that. [00:09:28] Speaker A: And I think I'll just conclude with a word that'll only be known for people who see the film. Buffalo. Okay, thanks. [00:09:39] Speaker B: All right. Thank you. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. [00:09:42] Speaker C: Going to Buffalo now. All right. [00:09:44] Speaker A: I live in Toronto, so Buffalo's, like, right across the lake. [00:09:47] Speaker C: You're right. Oh, my God. Of course. [00:09:50] Speaker B: Very convenient. [00:09:52] Speaker C: I've never been to Buffalo. Now I really want to go. Maybe the sequel will go. [00:09:56] Speaker A: Buffalo. [00:09:58] Speaker B: Yeah, let's do it. [00:10:00] Speaker A: Okay, thanks.