Hail Marie (2021)
Episode 3: Working With Diverse Experiences
Hail Marie is a 13-minute dramedy about a newly immigrated Filipino family whose youngest son tries to win the respect of his parents by proving he can become more Western than his older, queen-like sister. The film features Darnelle David as the son, Joseph, Gabrielle Jacinto as the sister, Marie, Sigrid Pareja as the mother, and Jason Asuncion as the father.
In this episode, we talk to Arthur Rodger 'Harley' Maranan (Writer & Director), Darnelle David (Actor - Jason), Sigrid Pareja (Actor - Mom) and, Jason Asuncion (Actor - Dad)
00:00 Introductions
01:31 What is Hail Marie about?
09:41 Harley shares his experience as a Filipino-Canadian
13:18 Making a Filipino-Canadian film without a Filipino-Canadian crew
19:04 Lessons learned from Hail Marie
21:25 Cast talk about what they brought into Hail Marie
26:02 The team talk about the Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon experience
31:24 Sigrid finding the casting call for the film
34:29 Jason’s improv skills
36:59 Darnelle’s experience as a new actor
39:45 Some never before heard stories on set
43:23 Sigrid and Darnelle reflect on their first experience as actors
45:25 Hail Marie’s festival run
46:02 Food for thought
52:40 How to connect with the Hail Marie team
61:17 Conclusion and credits
For more information about the Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon, visit https://vaff.org/mamm/
Films Referenced in the Interview
Director & Writer: Arthur Rodger 'Harley' Maranan, Ruel Maranan, Marisol Maranan
Producer: Ross Branch
First Assistant Director: Liliya Roys, Lesha Jay Vescio
Director of Photography: Austin Kwok
Production Designer: Samantha Lam
Costume Designer: Lesha Jay Vescio
Key Hair & Make-Up: Michelle Watson
Sound Mixer: Rayce Vaughan
Script Supervisor: Isabella Jaramillo
Starring:
Darnelle David as Joseph
Gabrielle Jacinto as Marie
Sigrid Pareja as Mom
Jason Asuncion as Dad
Rebekah Lazar as Joanna
First Assistant Camera: Zitong Gong, Jack Bailey
Second Assistant Camera: Kirc Cohen
Steadicam Operator: Jan Ubeda
BTS & Stills: Cameron McCutcheon
Gaffer: Sam Lin
Key Grip: Jack Bailey
Grip: Osmar Wong
Art Director: Roohi Kamal
Graphic Designer: Simar Kamal
Art Assistant: Cheyanne See, Jacob Totti
Food Stylist: Autumn Ivancic
Hair Stylist: Amanda Herrera, Ivett Duong
Editor: Ian Tan
Music: Arthur Rodger 'Harley' Maranan
Colorist: Cameron McCutcheon
Sound Design: Ivan Rodriguez
Executive Producer: Arthur Rodger 'Harley' Maranan, Austin Kwok, Roger Maranan, Katherine Ouellette, Ross Branch
Special thanks to
Vancouver Asian Film Festival
Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon
Panavision, Shiun Okada, Rowan Jang, Rebekah Lazar, Nessa Aref, Montana Rosalle, Chris Thomas, Authority Media, Darcy LaCouvee, Henry Corbet, Hadron Films, Keyon Slowly