The DOC SHOT Q&A is a new exclusive online feature by Documentary
magazine associate editor Tamara Krinsky. Through this mix of questions (some serious, some sassy) each DOC SHOT will provide a glimpse into the work and lives of those creating and supporting non-fiction film.
Andrew Lauren
Producer—This Is Not a Robbery
http://thisisnotarobbery.com/Home.html
YOUR FILM
Brief description of your film:
In 1998, after 86 years of law-abiding life, JT Rountree was caught trying to hold up a bank in Biloxi, Mississippi. Before that, he had, as he tells it, "Never even gotten a ticket for speeding." In 2003, after a six-year crime spree, a few jail terms and a love affair with a 30-year-old drug-addicted prostitute, he died at age 92 with the undisputed title of "World's Oldest Bank Robber."
Your role/credit on the film:
Producer
How did you find your subject or become involved in the film?
We met the directors at the IFP and formed a partnership. From there we took 70 hours of footage they had compiled, and collaborated on the story.
Was there a moment in this film that went a different way than you expected?
The decision to animate certain sequences was a decision that came organically out of the fact that we couldn’t get the FBI tapes of the robberies. In the end, I think they are much stronger animated in that we dramatize the re-enactment in a stylish way, without it looking like a campy re-creation, like one might see on America’s Most Wanted.
If you had had an extra $10,000 to spend on your film, what would you have used it for?
For an extra $10,000 we would have flown out our awesome band responsible for the soundtrack, Oliver Future, to accompany the movie live.
When you found out that your film had been accepted into the Tribeca Film Festival, what excited you about playing your film there?
Being from New York, it’s always special to play something in your hometown and have the chance to share it with family and friends first.
YOUR WORK
What's the first film you remember seeing as a child?
The Little Prince is the first film I remember seeing.
Tell me about a film that affected your profoundly or changed/inspired the way you do your own work.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
What would surprise people the most about your job or the way you execute it?
How much time is spent waiting. Hurry up and wait!
When you are feeling creatively stumped or burnt out, what do you do to get the creativity flowing again?
Read books.
YOUR LIFE
Daily essential read (online or off)?
New York Times, CNN.com.
What's on your TIVO or iPod right now?
Whole season of South Park to catch up on.=
What do you want more of in your life?
Time.
What do you want less of in your life?
Aggravation.
If you could add an extra hour to every day, how would you spend it?
Walking my dog Cinch in the park.
What do you want for your birthday?
A great script.
