#MARK WEBBER ACTOR MOVIES MOVIE#

#MARK WEBBER ACTOR MOVIES MOVIE#

My friend Charles in the movie was unjustly imprisoned for seven years. There’s also the reality of the majority of people in that community where I grew up - and where my mom and my brother still live - there are people in prison every day. Mark: I’ve been locked up a few times at demonstrations for civil disobedience, but the prison worked metaphorically in the film with how we imprison ourselves with pain and trauma in our own minds - how that can be a prison. Can you talk about that decision, and how it informed the film? You based much of the “drama” on real life, but Mark’s character gets out of prison, which is a fictional construction. We really tried to sit in real uncomfortable moments. The movie is very much about forgiveness and in order to forgive yourself and to love yourself, you need to listen. That’s a device in the film, to observe and listen and see what’s going on being inspired by what is going on with my mom and my brother. Mark is a changed person, and he is trying to be present and listen. There is no normal manipulation of music indicating how you are supposed to feel. In my own movies that I make, I really lean into that. I’ve always been looking at how I can bring that to my work as an actor in traditional films. Mark: I have an obsession with realism, and real vulnerability and real emotion. Can you describe your approach to the material? You often place the camera in ways that have viewers eavesdropping or observing the characters expressing themselves in a way that is honest, and real and unfiltered. I love films that push the boundaries and confines of normal filmmaking techniques. I have been compelled to put out independent films that are unique. There are also moments that play out as extended vérité, like Guillermo with his father. Mark: I call it a 50/50 split because even within scenes where dialogue is improvised, there is dialogue that is written. Because everyone is bringing themselves to their roles, it has a disarming effect. Thankfully, I’ve had a colorful upbringing and amazing family that was willing to participate in this piece of art. That coincided with a point in my life where I was doing a lot of work on myself with healing and being in a place of forgiveness. I knew that for “Flesh and Blood,” I wanted to make a movie about family. I defined it as “reality cinema,” which is using real-life relationships and building traditional narrative around it. I realized I was carving out the space in the indie film world for myself. And that’s where I like to say I found my voice as a filmmaker. Mark: After “Explicit Ills”, I made “The End of Love” with my son Isaac, when he was two. What was the motivation to make this film, a fictionalized documentary of your family’s lives, struggles and relationships? Honkala and Webber met with Salon at the recent Philadelphia Film Festival to discuss their relationship and their experiences making their affecting film, “Flesh and Blood.” Webber too, connects with his own estranged real-life dad in a critical scene. Guillermo has a very powerful heart-to-heart with his ill father. Honkala talks candidly about the mistakes she has made and being a teen mom. “Flesh and Blood” is captivating because Webber immerses viewers in the characters’ difficult lives. Meanwhile, Guillermo, who is interested in filmmaking, starts documenting his mother talking about her life and the cycles of abuse and addiction. Mark readjusts to life on the outside and grapples with his feelings of remorse about a failed relationship. Mark returns home and reconnects with his real-life brother Guillermo Santos (playing himself), a nerdy, bullied teenager who has been recently diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. There are a few fictional elements thrown in - such as Mark’s “character” being released from prison as the film opens. In the superb new film, “Flesh and Blood,” which Webber wrote and directed, mother and son play themselves. She is now running for Representative in the Pennsylvania State House. She works tirelessly as an anti-poverty activist in Philadelphia and was the Vice Presidential nominee for the Green Party in 2012. Webber, along with his single mother, Cheri Honkala, struggled with homelessness during his formative years. the World” to “Green Room.” On screen, he projects both grittiness and edginess - qualities that likely stem from his tough upbringing. Mark Webber has been acting in films for nearly 20 years, often appearing in cult movies ranging from ' Shrink' and “Broken Flowers” and “Scott Pilgrim vs.

Mark webber actor movies