Meet the Filmmakers: Thomas G. Miller--'ONE BAD CAT: The Reverend Albert Wagner Story'

Over the next few weeks, we at IDA will be introducing our community to the filmmakers whose work will be represented in the DocuWeek^TM Theatrical Documentary Showcase, August 8-14 in New York City and August 22-28 in Los Angeles. We asked the filmmakers to share the stories behind their films--the inspirations, the challenges and obstacles, the goals and objectives, the reactions to their films so far.

So, to continue this series of conversations, here is Thomas G. Miller, director/producer of ONE BAD CAT: The Reverend Albert Wagner Story.

Synopsis: Meet renowned African-American outsider artist Reverend Albert Wagner--outrageous and unforgettable. Miraculously transformed by religion at age 50, Albert was called by God to paint, and he used this gift to renounce a life of sin and inspire others. Still, controversy surrounds the Reverend's work, which at times provokes unexpected religious and racial tension in both the Black and White communities.

IDA: How did you get started in documentary filmmaking?

Thomas G. Miller: I first got interested in documentary filmmaking while I was at the USC School of Cinematic Arts getting my MFA in 1994. My previous occupation was as a pediatrician, and I had been consulting with Sesame Street, some children's museums and some universities with curriculum concerning children's issues. I thought I would go into children's television when I finished USC, but I took their large production class in documentary, editing one of the three projects that semester. I fell in love with the form as people were so passionate about their projects, and I discovered that "real" people had more interesting stories than fictional characters. I also loved that as an editor, you were really the writer in documentary, which was much harder but also much more creative. I've been working on documentary projects ever since.

IDA: What inspired you to make ONE BAD CAT: The Reverend Albert Wagner Story?

TGM: There were a number of reasons I was inspired to make this film. The first was that it was the first time anyone offered me a job as the director of a feature documentary, and it happened to take place in the town I grew up in, which was fantastic. Also, I am interested in telling stories about people who have undergone a major upheaval in their life, as I have, and Reverend Wagner's story was like that. Just as I had to have a tracheotomy and subsequently retire from pediatrics and begin another career, Albert Wagner came to a turning point in his life as well. He was a highly successful, talented, gregarious man who let his indulgences lead him to the edge of the abyss. Like me, he made a choice about how he was going to live the rest of his life. So this film is about Albert's spiritual and artistic transformation during his personal quest for salvation.

In addition, Albert lived and painted only a mile from the two hospitals where I practiced, yet I had never heard of him. As a White man, I was afraid to venture into that impoverished, African-American neighborhood where the riots had broken out when I was a teenager. By making the film, it was a chance for me to overcome yet another obstacle, my fear of "the hood." I discovered a community that was trying to rebuild and overcome decades of neglect, drugs, poverty and violence. I witnessed how racism-institutional and internalized-was still playing a major role in Albert's life, art and community. I also encountered racism among the White clientele that purchased the majority of Albert's work. Albert Wagner, his art and his story serve as a microcosm for how complex race relations remain in our society.

IDA: What were some of the challenges and obstacles in making this film, and how did you overcome them?

TGM: I think the biggest obstacles for me in making the film was dealing with the main character, Reverend Albert Wagner. When the project began I knew little of his early life and did not know too much about primitive art. When we met Albert, he was 81 years old and very ill. He was also confined to his bed, with little energy to move around. When he talked, he was very weak and it was difficult to understand him. In interviewing him I discovered a past that was full of deceit and adultery, and that included a felony conviction for child molestation. So here I was trying to make a film with the main character who was not likeable, and was immobile and incomprehensible at times. To overcome his character flaws we had to really deal with his past and the present, and show his transformation through religion and art. We also discovered his writings and used a narrator to read his words instead of listening to Albert. We also had to subtitle him quite a bit. We also discovered many archival tapes and photographs of Albert when he was mobile, so one got a feeling of the man before he was confined to his bed.

Another big obstacle I had to overcome was my fear of the impoverished, drug-infested area where Albert lived. I learned to really love his house, family, friends and neighbors while we shot there for 18 months. While making the film it was also sobering to re-evaluate my own heretofore-unrecognized prejudices as I conquered my insecurities about filming in Albert's East Cleveland neighborhood.

A further obstacle I had to overcome was that I felt that each time we came to Cleveland would be the last time he would be alive. So I was constantly trying to figure out if we had shot enough material with him in case he had passed away before we came back again. I also had to constantly think about what I was shooting and what I needed to shoot in case his death was part of the film. How would his death affect the story?

IDA: How did your vision for the film change over the course of the pre-production, production and post-production processes?

TGM: When we first started making the film, I thought it was going to be a nice gentle biography of an aging artist, who grew up in the segregated South and migrated to Ohio in the 1940s and became a successful artist. Once in production I realized that was not going to be what this film was about. In order to understand his art, one had to understand his full background, the good and the bad. So instead of a straight biography, the story changed, asking the question, "Can a person be saved from past transgressions through their art?" In answering this, we also had to delve into the subject of racism in "outsider" art--both internalized by the artist and evinced by the Black and White communities who bought his art. I had not expected to go in this direction as I started making the film, but once in post-production, it became obvious that this is a subject we had to deal with in the film.

IDA: As you've screened ONE BAD CAT: The Reverend Albert Wagner Story--whether on the festival circuit, or in screening rooms, or in living rooms--how have audiences reacted to the film? What has been most surprising or unexpected about their reactions?

TGM: Audiences have been very supportive and enthusiastic about the film, and we even won one audience award for best film in the entire festival during our festival run. They have loved the vibrant colors and beauty of his artwork. Some of the artwork, especially the sexual nature of his early work, has shocked some of the audiences. In one screening there was a woman who had been raped, and she loved Albert's work and felt he was redeemed through his art and preaching. She even wanted to know where she could buy some of his work. Many people with an appreciation for primitive art have expressed surprise that they've never heard or seen any of Reverend Wagner's work before. I have also been surprised about how many people have been able to deal with Albert's checkered past and even if they don't think he was redeemed, have still appreciated his art.

IDA: What docs or docmakers have served as inspirations for you?

TGM: I've enjoyed many docs over the years by many filmmakers covering many subjects. I think some of the ones that I really admired have been The UP Series, Crumb, Hoop Dreams, Times of Harvey Milk, Sherman's March, Brother's Keeper and Harlan County, U.S.A.

ONE BAD CAT: The Reverend Albert Wagner Story will be screening at the Arclight Sherman Oaks.

To view the DocuWeek schedule in Los Angeles, visit http://www.documentary.org/content/docuweek-los-angeles.

To purchase tickets to DocuWeek at the ArcLight Sherman Oaks, visit www.arclightcinemas.com.