WAMG Interview – Holly Hardman: Director of GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN – SLIFF 2013

Holly Hardman’s documentary GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN explores the complicated world of evangelical Christian belief and culture set against a backdrop of coastal devastation and apocalyptic fear.

 In the years following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,  Hardman focused her lens on a fundamentalist cross-carrier, a fervent youth choir leader, a mother of eight who lost her home to Hurricane Rita,  and a fascinating collection of their born-again brethren along the Gulf Coast. All believe that God sent the hurricanes of 2005 to punish Americans for their unrepentant and sinful ways. And all share a desire to prepare themselves and the world for the End Times and the rapture. Unnervingly authentic, GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN analyzes  the deep, and often desperate, reasons evangelical believers have for embracing their religion. The result is a film of stunning candor and vital insight into the paradoxical world of evangelical compassion, fear, love, and intolerance.

Holly Hardman will bring GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN to the St. Louis International Film Festival on Tuesday, November 19th. The screening is at the Tivoli Theater at 7:15pm. Ms Hardman will be in attendance and answer question about the film after the screening.

For ticket information, visit Cinema St. Louis’ site HERE

http://cinemastlouis.org/good-people-go-hell-saved-people-go-heaven

We Are Movie Geeks caught up with Holly Hardman and asked her some questions about GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN before her appearance here.

Interview conducted by Tom Stockman November 19th, 2013

We Are Movie Geeks: What is your religious background and did any of your own religious upbringings come to play in the making of GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN?

Holly Hardman: I grew up in a fairly non-religious household. I thought I was Christian. I have an 11-year old daughter . When she was younger, I introduced her to what I thought was the Christian church. At the same time I had started this film and I was interested in pursuing the difference between Christianity as a whole and this group called Evangelical Christians. Where I come from there were not many Evangelical Christians, at least when I was growing up. I did not know what that meant. I could not understand why there was a group of Evangelical Christians electing George Bush president. I couldn’t understand why religious group could put a candidate over the top in an election. Of course I’ve learned a lot since then.  I was interested in why a religious group could be so tied to a political outcome.  I thought I grew up in a country where I thought there was separation of church and state! That’s how became interested in the polarization of our country on a religious basis.

WAMG:  Where does the title come from?

HH:  That’s a direct quote from the film. That seems to be the credo of most of the people we interviewed. This particular guy summed it up in one simple statement as he called it out at an outreach rally in New Orleans post-Katrina.

WAMG: How long after Hurricane Katrina did you go to New Orleans?

HH: We went in November 2005. We were the first group in Cameron Parish after Hurricane Rita. They were just starting to let people in to see their homes. We were the first outside press to be allowed in.

WAMG: What were some of the more shocking things you witnessed in New Orleans?

HH: There was so much that we filmed, but a lot of the stuff that we filmed that was the most shocking we didn’t use in the film because it went down a different avenue. Our story is not a 9^th Ward story but when we were finished with an interview, we would go over there and interview others. We wanted to get into the scandal of what had gone wrong with Katrina and this forgotten population in areas like East New Orleans and the 9^th Ward. I found some of those stories shocking in a way you would when you saw them on the news, but personally with the journey and adventure of making the film, statements like “Good People Go to Hell, Saved People Go to Heaven” seemed the most shocking. I just didn’t think a Christina could, in such a blanket way, be so judgemental about other people. The anti-gay rhetoric I found horribly upsetting as well as the taking away of the rights of women. To me, that was the horrific stuff.

WAMG: Were there people who refused to cooperate in the making of the film?

HH: People were cooperative. I think one of the reasons why is that, despite my shock and dismay at things that were said, I was very clear in my determination not to judge them. I just wanted to lay out that world and it’s up to the audience to make up their minds. There are many sections of the film that are very beautiful that are about love and compassion and people sacrificing for others. Then there’s the flip-side, the side that I still find very disturbing.

WAMG: Do you think any of them regretted being in your film? Do any think they were treated unfairly?

HH: I don’t think so. I think one of our main characters, this matriarchal character, decided that she didn’t want to be filmed anymore. She was very mercurial, very unpredictable in a lot of ways, so it was always tenuous. I think there was something in the film that really disturbed her so she has cut ties. She does not want to communicate with me anymore. It’s understandable but I don’t think she feels betrayed. It’s just that there was information that I could not ignore. I was very up front about telling her that I was going to tell the story of her family and I was going to tell it in a short, 90-minute work. There were many avenues I could have gone down that were even more scandalous. My goal was not to hurt or expose people. It was to reveal a world that I thought was fascinating. I liked everybody who we filmed. They were nice people. They meant well. If you look at an overview of the religious doctrine, I find it disturbing but these people, on an everyday level, they tend to be wonderful, hard-working, compassionate people. Then there was this disconnect between who I saw they were on a day-to-day basis and the judgments they would make and the prejudices against other, especially in the voting booth.

WAMG: Have you revisited any of the subjects of your film lately to see how they are doing?

HH: Yes, I’m in touch Lance Roe and his family, especially his daughter Heather. The film has been reviewed on Amazon and people see the title and basically review the film based on the title, which is unfortunate but it happens and it’s something you can’t control. So Heather and I were both upset because some reviewer on Amazon, someone who did not watch the film carefully at all, posted a sloppy review. Then Heather was upset, because in this review, this guy made some disparaging comments about her and her family. Very judgmental and off-base comments. She was upset and we did have an exchange talking about how we can’t control what people think and we were both hurt for different reason so we commiserated on something like that. But I’ve been in touch with that family. I would like to be in touch with the Mitsy Taylor family but I think she has instructed her family to keep a distance from me at this point because she’s a very controlling person and what she says, goes. I’ve had some good communication going with her daughter-in-law. They are all such different people from who I am, but it’s been eye-opening. I do feel the film is very much about the country, not just this segment but the whole red state-blue state divide. I’d like to think that by understanding each other, we can progress to something better.

WAMG: Amen. Can you tell me about your next project?

HH: The next project is about doctors and pharmaceutical companies and about people who have difficulties with medications they are given for the wrong reasons. And that’s about as much as I want say about that for now.

WAMG: Well, good luck with GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN and I hope you enjoy your stay in St. Louis

HH: Thank you!

Here is the trailer for Holly Hardman’s GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HELL, SAVED PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN: