January / 2010

Vic Sarin csc Shoots
A Shine of Rainbows

by Micol Marotti

Connie Nielsen

Sarin directing A Shine of Rainbows: "If I could shoot everything I do on film I would. I'm not saying that digital is bad, but it's just a different type of art."

Kashmir-born Canadian director/cinematographer and CSC full member Vic Sarin hoped to get a bit of the luck of the Irish with his most recent film, A Shine of Rainbows. Judging by the film's sweep of awards on the 2009 festival circuit, which included the Audience Award at the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis, its U.S. premiere, first prize from the Chicago International Children's Film Festival for Best English-Language Film, and its opening night slot at the Vancouver International Film Festival, he seems to have found the elusive pot of cinematic gold.

Even the rugged and often remote region of Innishowen Peninsula in Northern Ireland, where most of the film was shot, seemed to take its cues from Sarin, providing him with idyllic shooting conditions and even a series of rainbows on command. "Once we decided to shoot in Northern Ireland," he said, "I did a site check in Donegal. The first place I looked was Five Finger Strand, which became the location for our first day of shooting because it has these unbelievable vistas, breathtaking cliffs, miles of sandy dunes and crystal clear waters. But we knew we had to be very lucky with the weather, as the rain and wind conditions could jeopardize days of shooting. As we were returning - still discussing the risks - I suddenly stopped the car and caused a traffic jam on the narrow country road because right in front of me was the most perfect rainbow. It's one of those occasions where I had to go with my instincts."

His instincts also served him well when he, and producers Tina Pehme and Kim Roberts, his partners in the Vancouver-based Sepia Films, decided to option the rights to Lillian Beckwith's book of the same name. They defied the critics who thought that the simple story of a young orphan named Tomas (newcomer John Bell), who is saved by an extraordinary woman, Maire (Danish-born actress Connie Nielsen from Gladiator and Battle of Seattle), maybe a bit too saccharine for modern, cynical audiences. She takes him to her home on the wind-swept Corrie Island, off the coast of Ireland, where she lives with her husband (Adian Quinn), and shares with Tomas the secret of the seals, the mysteries of the giant stones, her belief in magic and her appreciation of colour to help him find acceptance and a place to belong.

"I was interested in the relationships in this story," he said. "In our current global climate, which seems to be driven by negative forces, the character of Maire shows us a way to change the equation. She's a positive force in this boy's life because of her appreciation of things that we sometimes take for granted like colour, which is really a metaphor for love. The 'magic' of our physical surroundings and that sense of connection and hope in humanity were really attractive to me."



The forging of relationships also drives Sarin's cinematic philosophy. When it comes to shooting on film or opting for the more expedient and technically advanced digital format, there is no question for him. "If I could shoot everything I do on film I would. I'm not saying that digital is bad, but it's just a different type of art. When I shoot on film, it's another experience because I'm watching the actor and not a monitor.

I need to build a strong relationship with both my actors and my crew. Before we commit to film, I discuss the scene extensively and there's a lot more preparation and teamwork involved. With film shoots you need to have the work and life experience to think quickly through any problem that may arise. Film is less forgiving than digital and it's more expensive to fix."

Sarin added, "Digital has its own virtues, in that it's much quicker and when you only have 28 days, like I had on this shoot, and are restricted to shooting only seven hours a day. It would have made things less stressful knowing that you have the option to shoot more."

In addition to the special considerations made to his child actor, Sarin had to contend with another set of special circumstances for Bell's special co-star. "We used an animatronic seal for the scenes where Tomas nurses the pup back to health because there were a lot of scenes in the water and we wanted to cut down on the unpredictability of a real seal's behavior. Neal Scanlan is brilliant! He worked on the animals for the film Babe and with our seal he created an equally compelling puppet that I really put to the test. It had to withstand saltwater, and we had to be able to shoot it from every angle."

Vic Sarin's background in shooting documentary films proved useful as he tested not only his equipment but his crew by making them wade in knee deep in the chilly ocean waters. "It was like the good old days of doc film with my Arri 3 on my shoulder, the only difference is that now I have a three-camera shoot and a larger crew." Although, he added, "I never lose sight of the money involved. I've been lucky because the studios and the producers never pressure me to change my process or my vision for the film. They respect me because they know that I respect their work and the budget."

Sarin's impressive collection of awards and industry acknowledgements - including an Emmy Award for Millennium: Tribal Wisdom in a Modern World (1992), a CSC Award nomination for best cinematography for his feature Partition (2007), three Genie nominations and two Gemini Awards (Millennium and Love and Hate: The Story of Colin and Joanne Thatcher) - all attest to Sarin's respect and love of his craft.

Ironically the role of cinematographer was not his first love. "My father was a theatre owner in Kashmir. I grew up watching Gary Cooper in films like High Noon and I was equally mesmerized by James Mason in 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. I really thought that I was going to make my mark as an actor. Unfortunately there wasn't a high demand for actors with my strong accent, so I decided to pursue a career behind the camera instead." Although he experienced some barriers to becoming an actor, Sarin has not let industry stigmas stand in the way of his goals of being both a cinematographer and director of his films.

"I think a lot of cinematographers are also strong directors, but there is still a stigma in Canada that if you're a cinematographer you are a 'below-the-line' technician and therefore the opportunity to direct is never presented to them. It's hard to change roles in the industry. In the U.S. it's more open. In my case, the U.S. producers saw my work on Whale Music (1994) and when they heard that I had an interest in directing, they offered me an opportunity to try both. There's more of an entrepreneurial spirit in U.S. filmmaking, whereas in Canada we take a more conservative and analytical approach."

Sarin also takes on another Canadian 'stigma' - that all Canadian films have a type of 'look' because of our physical surroundings and our unique light. "I don't believe that it makes any difference to the film whether you shoot it in Canada or India. The perception that our natural light is different, or that pollution or haze that exists in some South Asian or European countries gives their films a softer look that we can't achieve, is incorrect. That 'look' can be achieved in Canada depending on the time of day you shoot and your lighting know-how.

"When I shot Partition - which was set in India in 1947 - the film's location was central to the plot. The story would not have been credible if audiences didn't believe they were in India. I surprise a lot of people when I reveal that some of the scenes they thought were taken on location in Kashmir were actually shot in Vancouver. It requires a lot of preparation and familiarity with your physical surroundings to know how the light will be at different times of day and how to use colour."

When it comes to colour, Sarin, like Maire in A Shine of Rainbows, spins a bit of his own magic. "For the early scenes of Tomas in the orphanage, I worked with an almost black-and-white colour palette - the colours are grey and the lighting emulates the look of greenish fluorescents. When we see Maire for the first time, she's bathed in colour and stands in sharp contrast to her surroundings. I purposefully over-saturated the colours so that as Maire begins to transform the way Tomas sees the world, there is a visual cue in the landscape and colors that underscores the emotions of the story."

"Vic's use of colour and our locations really adds another layer to the film," said Tina Pehme. "As the film really doesn't have a lot of dialogue, it was important that the landscapes and the colours reflect the characters' inner struggles and support the story arcs. And no one does that better than Vic."

"At the end of the day," said Sarin, "even after all the preparation and teamwork that goes into making a film, I really believe that even Spielberg doesn't know how it will turn out until it's up on the screen. When it all comes together it's a bit like magic and I am still mesmerized and attracted to it as much as I was when I was 10 years old watching movies in my father's cinema."

From left to right: John Bell (with the yellow coat and boats), Tara Scully and Jack Gleason. All images courtesy of Sepia Films.

Acting newcomer John Bell with his animatronic seal pup friend in A Shine of Rainbows.

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