OVER HERE was a collaboration between myself, the actors - most of whom are locals in Portland, with the exceptions of Ryan Harper Gray and Stephen Taylor who had both worked with me on HOMECOMING, and between myself and Portland, its setting, and the time it was made in. For America in 2006 it was finally clear to most people that the country had been had by the shrill minority of the neo-cons, and that the war in Iraq, along with many other destructive things of the present time were predicated on lies, and had brought us only very predictable tragedies, ones which returned home in the form of living vets, whose souls had been unhinged by the brutality of the war they'd been sent, and re-sent again, to fight while America was encouraged to run up the credit card and shop. In acquiescing to this governmental directive, the American public wrote for itself, and its children a massive debt which will be measured in money, in loss of power - military and cultural - and a moral quagmire which will indelibly stain our history as the Nazis did to Germany.
It was under this cloud which OVER HERE, in its modest manner, sought to address this foreign adventure brought home, and the sad consequences.
The film was made in 10 very casual days in which shooting was normally confined to a few hours, or some days none. There was no script at all, and the story, to the degree there is one, was developed in process of shooting. Being a film of tonality and atmosphere, what was important was to find the right settings, weather, light - and then to insert the actors into those and let them and myself find the appropriate cues.
OVER HERE cost about $500. Of course no one was paid. We had a good time. And we understand that being a film of this kind, in these times, it will be virtually unseen, lacking the requisit "market economy" necessities: stars, big budget, millions for advertising, appropriate "story hooks", calculations for maximum market share, and so on.
There will be better days.
