MY, MY, HEY, HEY Directed By Shannon Hart-Reed

Shane: Tell us about your film?

Shannon: My, My, Hey, Hey - A Let's Talk-umentary, is part story-telling and part
documentary; a brief history of rock and roll parallels the story of a
father and son relationship torn apart by Jimi Hendrix's rendition of the
Star Spangled Banner at Woodstock in 1969.

How did you come up with the idea for the film?

A couple of weeks before a contest submission deadline, a group of us
decided to enter a short film competition. The film needed to contain an
original song, be less than 7 minutes in length and highlight communication
breakdown. We had the song - a spoken word song about the history of rock
and roll written and performed by a friend of mine (former Nitty Gritty Dirt
Band member, Chris Darrow) - but we had no idea where to go with it. In a
search for ideas, we set up interviews with hip, local musicians to record
their own personal inspiration and insights into rock and roll. We also set
up an interview with a childhood mentor of the associate producer of the
project. This mentor (Kevin "Lee" Christensen) was an avid rock and roll fan
and his life experiences followed the song very well. When he told us about
his experience with Jimi Hendrix playing the Star Spangled Banner, we knew
we had our story.

We used actual cold war propoganda footage....and the fact that although it seems "kitsch" now,

it was really what parents and the US govt. were feeding kids/teens of the time. Pretty scary in reality

and it's no wonder there was such a huge revolt by teens of that generation.


Was this a school project?

No


How did you find your cast?

Co-Producer, Ali Ormiston, and Associate Producer, Eric Miller, had many
friends who were musicians and/or rock and roll aficionados - so casting was
the easiest part of the process. Jeremy Miller, the narrator in the film,
was at first just an interviewee, but he was so great during the interview,
that I knew he was the one to tell Lee's story on screen. Lee played himself
and did a great job.


How long did the film take?  (From conception to final edit)

About 10 days total of planning, shooting, animation and editing - although
for Tim Nussbaum, our After Effects guru, that meant 10 incredibly long
days.


What was the most difficult part of the shoot for you?

Trying to cram an amazing amount of great footage into one cohesive, 7
minute piece.

What are you most looking forward to at the festival?

I've developed an immense appreciation for short film filmmaking and look
forward to seeing what others have created. Plus, the film festival vibe in
general is pretty inspiring.


What made you decide to become a filmmaker?

Coming from a feature film art department background, I've always worked
behind the scenes on films and thought I would give directing a try as sort
of a personal challenge.  I hope to direct more films at some point.


What films or filmmakers inspire you?

I've had the opportunity to work with several great filmmakers in the past
and I have to say that Todd Field (Little Children and In the Bedroom) and
Quentin Tarrantino were the most amazing to me.  They have an incredible
ability to create compelling, original films and dialogue.


What is next for you?

I am currently producing two feature length films - one animated historical
WW2 documentary called Ladies Who Lunch (www.aparatfilms.com) which I am
also co-writing and one horror/suspense film called Shadows in The Dark.
Both projects are pretty intense, but really fun films to work on.


What is next for the film?

We have so much great footage left over we are trying to figure out what to
do with it - perhaps make an extended version of the film and submit that
film to more festivals.



If asked to give one piece of advice to a new filmmaker making their first
short film… What would it be?

Keep it simple.