The synopsis of Harper Finch given to me by one of the directors, Matthew Toronto, is enough to give a full understanding of what this film is about without giving too much away.
I recommend Harper Finch for those who like psychological thrillers where you are into the story to figure out what is going to happen, and why.
Synopsis: Driven by obsession, a young mental patient forcibly attempts to rekindle his relationship with an emotionally fragile fellow inmate. When she rejects his advances, the confrontation quickly escalates into a violent battle for survival and sanity. From the executive producer of Sundance Audience Award winner, Crown Heights and the writer/director of Netflix's Face 2 Face.
Matthew Toronto was at the festival and we were able to talk. I didn't get around to asking him if the title was a tribute to Harper Lee and Atticus Finch—I'll let you decide. He was kind enough to tell us a little more about Harper Finch and himself.
What was the inspiration for Harper Finch?
The inspiration for Harper Finch came as a result of a childhood with two psychologists for parents. My brother, Aaron and I (Aaron co-wrote the film) were always fascinated by the mind and human psychology. In fact, Aaron became a licensed therapist and has many years of experience working with people experiencing a variety of trauma and mental illness. In fact, the original idea for the film was his. When we pitched it to my old friend Jonathan Baker, it resonated with him too because of several personal friends who have struggled with similar kinds of issues that our protagonist is struggling with. Then we were off to the races.
What project(s) do you have coming up you're excited about?
We have a lot of different projects going on right now. My brother and I are currently developing a feature film with Jonathan Baker inspired by some of the same themes in Harper Finch. It examines the reality-bending effects of our media driven world on the human psyche. We are also raising money for a film about our Grandfather who ran a mission in Czechoslovakia during the Nazi takeover and had to face down Gestapo agents to protect his family and his missionaries. Besides that, we have developed two series. One chronicles the struggles of a high school basketball team on a Native American Reservation. The other is based on our last feature film, Face 2 Face, now streaming on Netflix. I write and produce with my wife as well. She and I just landed a development deal for a comedy series we created. We also have two other series and another feature waiting in the wings. And finally, I just finished a really great draft for a passion project of mine. It's a feature about a provincial German theatre company struggling to survive in the face of the ruthless political machine in the early days of Hitler's rise to power.
What was your early inspiration for pursuing a career in film?
I spent years as a theatre artist, performing and directing and have always loved story telling. One year, while I was teaching in the theatre department at Penn State, I lost out on directing a huge job in New York City because the producers didn't really know my work. As I was lamenting over this loss I said to my wife, "I wish I could put my directing in a box and send it to people, so they can see what I can do." She said, "honey, that's called a movie." (This was back when DVDs were still a thing.) Well later that year, I asked my brother to write a movie with me about brothers. That was our first feature, The Pact. Well, we loved making movies so much, we never stopped and never looked back.
What would be your dream project?
I've written my dream project, it's the film I talked about earlier called Propaganda. It's a love letter to theatre and deals with what it means to be a true artist. I want to make it with a world class cast and crew. All I need to do is raise the money. That's my dream project right now, but I really never stop dreaming.
What are some of your favorite pastimes when not working on a movie?
I have three kids. They are my favorite pastime. I love to play sports with them. They're all performers so I love to watch them do that too. Besides that, I love musical theatre. I still sing and dance when I have the chance. But there's nothing better than putting on a cast recording and singing through it with my whole family. I love sports too. We play a lot of volleyball. I was a gymnast in high school. I don't do that so much anymore, but I still follow the sport and love to watch!
What is one of your favorite movies and why?
The Matrixis, hands down, my favorite movie. The action and special effects still hold up so well today. But most of all, I just love the story. It takes you down this amazing rabbit hole and grapples with spiritual questions of great depth. I vividly remember the feelings I felt watching it in the theatre. I have never enjoyed a film so thoroughly in my life.
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