Searching for Hank Williams

Many people share the dream of making it in film. Many dream of making that first pivotal work, that becomes the calling card of new, fresh, and original talent waiting to be sought out by Hollywood and showered in some combination of praise and riches. Few people achieve this at any level; fewer still give it a shot. Work, family, money, pick the impediment and these films never get made, never, ever make it out of the imagination. So, if so few individuals attempt and succeed in making a feature film, what are the odds they'll make a good one? Long odds. At least six billion to one (note: odds manufactured randomly and rounded to the nearest whole number). So it is with great pleasure that I announce Aaron James Sorensen has made a really good film. His first time out. Imagine what he might do next.

Hank Williams First Nation is well paced, well acted, and above all, well made. It's funny and sad, in the places where it should be but very, very funny at times. The acting was good but not great, but you can't expect too much on a $200,000 budget and a cast of mostly neophytes. Sorensen himself sought out funding from the traditional provincial and federal sources and as expected they turned him down, one even said they wouldn't read his script, as they didn't think he could actually do it. That same person, now with a different organization wants to turn the movie into a television series. I believe her name was Irony. So Sorensen did what every other self-respecting filmmaker has to do at the beginning: He went begging for money. And he found it, all of it. So as they say on the lot, ACTION.

This is a road-trip movie that doesn't go anywhere. I'm not belittling it. The main thrust of the story takes place on the reservation as the main characters live their lives. The road trip becomes a secondary storyline about an old man's quest to visit the grave of Hank Williams in Nashville with his nephew. The irony, there's that name again, is that Hank Williams is buried in Montgomery, Alabama. But this is a story about character growth, about personal growth, about growing up whether you want it or not.

There are some shortcomings, as strong as the story is, some of the acting was strictly one note and a few of the performances did not measure up. I'm not naming names. But above else it's the humour and good natured-ness of the story that sticks with me. This is a genuinely funny film, not the one-joke potty joke we'll get in Adam Sandler's movies, but rather genuine, real humour. The kind that reinvigorates and is a pleasure to partake in. One joke in particular nearly had me on the floor I was laughing so hard: "Remember, it's Cree Nation radio, not Cremation radio." I'm just glad they cleared that up.

The tagline for the film has become something of a call to arms at festivals and such. It reads: "Hank Williams First Nation: A Canadian Film That Doesn't Stink". Now, normally I'd issue with this statement, having enjoyed many a Canadian film, some that rank with the best of filmmaking the world over. But guess what? It's true, this movie doesn't stink at all, and if you like the tagline, chances are you'll enjoy the film.

The audience was treated to a humour-filled introduction and an excellent question and answer period following the screening with the director and cast. May I add on a personal note, what a pleasure it was not having to sit through commercials prior to a movie. This may even be the start of a new trend in theatres. Previews are permitted; greed is not. Given the average price of adult admission is already way past cruel and the jumbo popcorn requires a mortgage, isn't it nice to have a local theatre that shows really good small films at reasonable prices. Kudos to the Uptown.

Some things I learned from the Q & A about the making of Hank Williams First Nation: It was shot over three weeks in Peace River, along with stops in Southern Alberta and Montana; Editing took 4-5 months; the American Film Institute (AFI) somehow heard about it, and it was accepted, one of 12 out of 3200; it was shot on Panasonic digital camera at 24 fps (frames per second) and looked so good that I'd have bet serious money that that was film stock. This movie looks this sharp. Most all, the director Aaron James Sorensen summed up a lot of goodwill when he said, "being here was so much more than Hollywood". Hey, Aaron, we like you too.

So if you want a different film-going experience, different from all the noise and fart jokes, not that there's anything wrong with that, go see Hank Williams First Nation. It'll be coming to a city near you. That's how they're selling it, one city at a time. Calgary has had such a positive response that it's been carried over another week. So check it out. It might even answer the question of when Hank Williams became Cree. And remember, if you forget everything else I written and you're still not motivated to check this little film that could, it's Cree Nation radio not Cremation radio.

Director Aaron James Sorensen greeting fans outside the theater. Behind him, Stacy Da Silva (Sarah Fox) on his left and Benard Starlight (Huey Bigstone), on his right.

Stacy Da Silva, Bernard Starlight, and Colin VanLoon (Jacob Fox) pose for a picture.

A shot of singer entertaining the crowd prior to curtain call. He's also on the soundtrack.

A fuzzy photo of Aaron James Sorensen (director) introducing the film.

The entire cast on stage after the screening, led by Sorensen.

Cast and Crew leaving the stage after a successful screening and entertaining question and answer session.
Jess Nakaska is an aspiring screenwriter always on the lookout for the next great script idea. He'll let you know if he finds it. Feel free to contact him at jessnakaska@hotmail.com.