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The Importance of Story: Scott Hamilton Kennedy '87
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| Scott Hamilton Kennedy '87 |
Chronicling the
destruction of the world's largest urban farm in Los
Angeles and the impassioned public battle to save it, The Garden
has been hailed by Los Angeles Times
film critic Kenneth Turan as a "potent human drama."
Q. You've said in other interviews that seeing Breaking Away in your teens was pivotal in your decision to become a filmmaker. How so?
Breaking Away is a pop masterpiece—a beautiful, personal story, with great, real characters. It's funny, charming, heart-breaking and even triumphant. And it even ends with this exciting under-dog, come-from-behind bike race. I just love all those elements: the personal, real, and quirky mixed with a great three-act structure.
Q. Did you further develop your interest in filmmaking at Skidmore?
Skidmore was great. I was advised by a couple of filmmakers I respected to not go to film school, but to get a liberal arts education. Learn about the world and yourself, and that will inform your story-telling. So that's what I did. I think the combination of my theatre major and English minor—plus a year abroad studying the same in London—gave me a great foundation that I carry with me today. (That sounds like a pitch for Skidmore, but it's true.)
Q. How and when did you decide to do a documentary about the struggle for control over the country's largest urban farm?
It was through my co-producer, Dominique Derrenger, who saw a PBS piece about the garden. We had been looking to do a project together, and he said, 'I think we've found something here', and he was absolutely right. It had so many elements of a great story. He sent me a transcript, and even with that you could see so many elements. I was on a plane and got off in LA, and went right to the garden, and we started shooting the next day. So I guess you could say that there was no pre-production on this film.
Q. Tell us about the shooting of the film. How long were you there?
Our first day of shooting was February 18, 2004, and our world premiere was at the AFI Silverdocs Film Festival on June 18, 2008. (Yikes!) I did 90 percent of the shooting, but Dominique and others shot as well. Our approach was to attempt to capture as much of the story as it was happening as possible. We love the pulse that that brings to a story.
Q. What lessons have you learned in the making of The Garden and your other films that might be helpful to students or alumni who themselves want to make documentaries or embark on careers in filmmaking?
If you want to make money, don't go into documentaries! Seriously, it's all about story. In documentary/non-fiction or narrative/fiction filmmaking, story is everything. And we have to be ruthless critics with our own work from inception through final cut: Is this story worth telling? Why? Who are the characters? Is there conflict? Is there the potential for change and surprises through the course of the story? And on and on. Story, story, story!
Tags: alumni, scott hamilton kennedy
