The Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2018 - But Honey, You Look Fine
But Honey, You Look Fine follows the first steps to recovery my best friend Gabby must take in her self-authored take on life with an eating disorder.
Interview with Director Jennifer Leonforte
Watch But Honey, You Look Fine here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Making But Honey, You Look Fine was an impulse decision. As a part of my university curriculum, I was tasked with developing pitches for potential documentaries to make in the following year. At the time, Gabby had just gone into hospital two weeks before we started practicing pitches. Moments before I stepped in front of my class to pitch another documentary, an idea came to me out of nowhere, and I knew that I had to tell Gabby’s story, so that’s what I pitched - I was just hoping Gabby would want to make it too.
Gabby and I are both people who struggle with being emotionally vulnerable and open. We deflect and use humour to mask pain. I needed a way to to bridge a conversation between Gabby and I so that we could process what she had gone through. As a filmmaker, I didn’t know how else to help, so I used documentary as a vehicle for her and I to have a conversation, and to help her get back into therapy, knowing it was something she was struggling to do. The process of making the documentary was also therapeutic for Gabby as it forced her to reflect and talk about things she tried to bury.
I made this documentary for Gabby and I, and for her loved ones to help understand what had happened. It just so happens that this is a very familiar story to a lot of people.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
But Honey, You Look Fine is a short, 10 minute documentary that gives a heartfelt and genuine insight into the mental health of young people in the modern age. We used archival footage from when we were children as a means to explore where our mental health issues could have possibly come from - a learnt language? Possibly hereditary? We explore the realities of recovery as well, how it’s not straightforward, and that nothing is ever tied up in a neat bow. I think our story is important to watch because I can guarantee everyone will relate in some way, whether it's family, a friend or themselves. Our problems as adults can almost always lead back to something from childhood. We need to start a conversation about our children’s language and where it comes from and I think this film is a great starting point for the audience.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
One of the most important relationships in documentaries, depending on the form and style, is the relationship between subject and authors. It was important for me that I acknowledged who we were as filmmakers, so that the audience could grasp how personal this story really was, and that it was coming from genuine intentions. It developed a trust between the audience and the film that what they were experiencing was as real as it gets.
We keep this documentary personal by avoiding the larger issues and statistics of mental health and eating disorders. The numbers are always too large to fully grasp, and works against the style of this documentary. When you have a mental illness you feel alone, you don’t feel like you’re a part of a 3.5 billion sized community. It goes without saying that what Gabby describes and goes through in the documentary are experiences shared by billions globally. However, by keeping the story compact and personal, it becomes more emotionally accessible to the universal. It’s relatable. Rather than a factual piece with emotions driving behind it, and a scientific and nutritional look into the effects of Bulimia, we just keep it small and simple. It’s enough for the 10 minutes to impact the viewers and get them thinking.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Initially, the documentary was a means for me to help ease Gabby back into therapy and come clean about where she really is in terms of her ‘recovery’. Given that we only had one week to film, it turned out to be a lot harder to convince Gabby to go back to therapy and tell her close ones how much she had been struggling. Similarly, the initial plan of a day by day following tasks sort of approach didn’t give us a compelling documentary. Gabby did experience a significant arc during that week which we managed to capture on film, however I learnt a lot more about Gabby and recovery through the process, and that is that you can’t force someone to get better. Gabby needed to find her own footing. It was this lesson that surprised me the most, and changed the documentary significantly.
The interviews had a lot of reflection and we had fantastic archival footage and it all worked in favour of a more conventional pacing, which ultimately ended up working far better.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
I’ve heard a lot of deeply personal stories that have really stayed with me. I didn’t expect the film to encourage so many people to share their stories but the use of archival footage enables people to really reflect on their own mental health journey. I feel privileged that the audience feels like I’m someone they can share that with, although it’s a lot to take on board. It’s hard to accept compliments because I’ve seen the film thousands of time but there has been an overwhelmingly positive response. For many we’ve brought a uniquely intimate and honest story of eating disorders and suicide attempts to the screen, from a youth’s perspective. It’s something many people with similar experiences appreciate, which is great to hear.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The most surprising aspect of the feedback is the amount of personal stories I'm hearing from men who really struggle to find an outlet and something they feel comfortable opening up to. It’s becoming increasingly clear that young men need spaces and communities where they can discuss mental health and eating disorders free of judgement. Maybe they’d realise that they’re not alone, and not weaker men for admitting they’re suffering.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
What Gabby and I want more than anything is just for as many people as possible to see this documentary. More publicity only aids us in distributing this film, and hopefully helping people understand their own challenges with mental health.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Gabby and I would be stoked to bring producers, distributors and journalists on board to help us strategise the best way forward. Like I said, we want people to see this film. Being so short I feel it’s something that would do really well on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram platforms - where we could reach a massive audience. More so than that, I’m hoping to get in contact with educational boards and mental health groups who work in youth education. We want this film to have a lasting impact on those who see it, so using the film as a part of youth workshops to instigate important discussions is something we really want to do.
Gabby and I want to visit high schools and talk about what we’ve been through to help stop others going through the same thing. It’s something that has already started happening in Scotland with our film, via Into Film Scotland, and has had really impressive results.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I love making people cry! Haha, sorry that sounds bad. We want to move people. We want to strike a chord in the audience - everyone remembers being a problematic youth at one point. Everyone has dealt with having no idea what to do when your friend or family member begins to struggle with mental health. I want people to talk about their own stories after seeing Gabby's.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
The question that always gets asked and always has the most complicated answer, is ‘Is Gabby better now?’ It sparks a large conversation about what is recovery and what better means to different people. Everyone holds themselves to incredibly high standards about ‘getting over’ their mental illness when really that’s just not how it all works.
Another question that would really spark discussions is just between friends when they say, ‘do you remember when I said X? I felt so bad!’ because it means they’re analysing the language we use towards others and about themselves. We need to remember how we spoke as young people to figure out why so many of us are miserable as young adults.
Would you like to add anything else?
I think I’ve said a lot haha! Nothing other than enjoy the film!
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Something Gabby and I are hoping to develop is an ongoing project that follows both of us facing challenges we set for ourselves weekly/fortnightly/monthly, just in order to become functional young adults. Whether it be a YouTube channel, a mini series, or Instagram personalities, I think if we have a large enough audience who are already invested in Gabby's story we could make something bigger out of this. Basic things like shedding toxic behaviour/self-harming behaviours, eating regularly, exercising, sleeping patterns, socialising.
We just want to show a realistic way of young people handling young people issues. We think that our down to earth approach and the fact that it doesn't always work for us could be inspirational and educational for our peers.
Other than that, our producer Lucy Hicks and the Sound Editor Jessica Berry are both working at Cutting Edge in Brisbane. I, myself, am interning at Folklore Sound & Music whilst directing the odd music video and sound editing some short films. The cinematographer Sam Grammer is studying editing at AFTRs and currently has an assistant editing job in Sydney. Gabby is planning on leaving for Europe and the UK in August for a 2 year working holiday, and is incredibly excited!
I have a few short films up my sleeves, and some friend's short films that I might be brought on board to direct, so lots of exciting things!
Interview: June 2018
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Honey, You Look Fine
But Honey, You Look Fine follows the first steps to recovery my best friend Gabby must take in her self-authored take on life with an eating disorder.
Length: 10 minutes, 11 seconds
Director: Jennifer Leonforte
Producer: Lucy Hicks
About the writer, director and producer:
Lucy Hicks is an emerging filmmaker with a demonstrated history of producing high caliber short form projects and is skilled in independent film production.
Jennifer Leonforte is an award-winning writer, director and sound editor who has won pitching competitions in LA, and has screened her films locally and internationally.
Key cast: Gabrielle Bennett, Jennifer Leonforte, Jamus Treanor, Kaaren Bennett
Looking for: Producers, Distributors, Journalists, Buyers.
Other: https://www.jenniferleonforte.com/but-honey-you-look-fine
Funders: Self fundraised
Made in association with: Queensland University of Technology
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?
The film is being screened at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival. Keep up to date with the website to find out more. Social Media accounts coming soon!