I saw Pamela Drynan’s excellent documentary Where I Am at the Jameson Dublin Film Festival in 2013. Where I Am tells the tragic story of American writer Robert Drake and his return to Ireland 12 years after he was almost beaten to death for being gay. It was a wonderful screening with both Robert Drake and his carer Butch, in attendance. The film seemed destined for a cinema run but this did not quite happen (there was a screening at the IFI subsequently). It seemed a perfect fit for a cinema run much like the recent successes of One Million Dubliners and Unbreakable but such is the way of these things. Ahead of its premiere on RTÉ One on Thursday 27th August I caught up with Pamela to discuss the impact of the film. I began by asking her about the release of the film and my surprise at the fact that it didn’t get a wider release.
“Yeah it screened at a Pride event but it didn’t get a wide release” she says. “It has been a slow burner but I am hoping that perhaps now it will work as well for a larger audience (on TV). I have cut it down slightly to an hour for TV but it still has a good pace to it and I think the story is very current. Even though the journey was in 2011 it still feels timeless. I am very hopeful it will resonate with audiences as it doesn’t feel dated in that sense.”
I mention that what impressed me most about the film when I saw it was the impressive low key direction, the ability to get out of the way of the story. It has a lovely simplicity which really works for it. I hope she is not offended by this. “Not at all” she laughs. “I think a lot of that was to do with working with someone who has quite a large physical disability. The whole pace was dictated by Robert. I made a conscious decision early on not to have a voiceover in the film as I wanted it to be Robert’s voice. He had learned to talk again so I thought the very least we could do was listen to what he had to say and I thought he had a lot to say. He just really wanted to tell his story. I think it was more important to observe the journey rather than try to make a more dramatic documentary.”
How does she feel audiences will respond to the film? “I think with documentaries now on TV there is now a constant twitter stream alongside it, at least you hope there is” she laughs warming to the subject. “There is that idea that you are engaging a different platform with TV which is more immediate in terms of feedback. It is interesting to now be able to have a direct communication with your audience.”
I asked her has she noticed the rise in female directors in documentary filmmaking in Ireland. I am talking of Aoife Kelleher for One Million Dubliners, Claire Dix for Broken Song and Ciarín Scott for In a House that Ceased to be. This has to be a good thing. “Yeah I am particularly looking forward to seeing Aoife’s next work” she says “but yeah you are absolutely right, perhaps it is because people are just going out and doing it. You don’t think of yourself as a female filmmaker you just think of yourself as someone who is lucky enough to be making films. I think in Ireland there is a hugely supportive community. I was lucky to have been supported by a number of female directors including Aisling Walsh who mentored me early on and I am very fond of other female directors like Anna Rodgers. I think in the wider filmmaking community female filmmakers do tend to share their advice and ideas and it is very inspiring.”
Since the attack on Robert which was in 1999, Ireland has undoubtedly changed – culminating in the yes vote in the Same Sex Marriage referendum this year. Does she think it has changed a lot? “I think it has in the time I have been here” she says, “I have a lot of gay friends and hearing their own particular stories about the pioneering work done along the way by people such as Brian Finnegan, Ger Philpott and of course David Norris. People who were trying to raise awareness in a time when it was a lot more difficult and I think now it is great that we see a wider sea change in attitudes but of course I don’t think we could say that everything is perfect. But yeah, it is certainly better. Thank goodness!”
Indeed it is hard to argue that point. I asked finally the question I had most wanted to ask from the beginning of the interview. How is Robert these days and is Butch still around (they make a superb double act in the film). “Robert is good” she says happily, “we have kept in touch with occasional email exchanges. He continues to try live a positive life. We have to remember that his injuries did rob him of his ability to write and it has been a slow process. He seems to be well supported in Philadelphia. With technology as it is now you don’t necessarily have to have things like the assisted keyboard and that has transformed how he communicates with the wider world. Although I can’t completely speak for him, the last time I talked to him he was grand. Butch still being around is great because as Robert has memory problems my emails are copied to him because Robert might think he has replied but he may not have! Butch is still quite the character and is delighted that the film is being shown on RTE. It is important to remember they loved being here in Ireland. Obviously what happened to Robert was catastrophic but he doesn’t blame Sligo or Ireland for the actions of two individuals. We were lucky to have him.”
Yes we were and we are lucky to have this excellent film that is sobering but ultimately hopeful.
Where I Am is being shown on RTÉ One at 10pm on Thursday 27th August.