F2K Ep. 50 - Filmmaker Rob Burson of HELL OF A HEARTACHE

Fun 2 Know Podcast

It is the interview I conducted with director Sean Baker that planted the seed for today's episode, which is the long-delayed fiftieth episode of Fun 2 Know. It was three years ago that Rob Burson was in pre-production for his debut film HELL OF A HEARTACHE when he stumbled across the Fun 2 Know interview with Sean Baker, whose films PRINCE OF BROADWAY and THE FLORIDA PROJECT were inspirational as examples of vivid, compelling character studies made on a strict budget. Rob “friended” me on Facebook after hearing the interview and we would occasionally discuss film on-line while I was vaguely aware he was shooting a modestly-budgeted feature with a small crew near his home in Arizona. Then almost a year ago, just before X-mas, Rob asked me if I'd like to take a look at his feature, humbly asking me to keep my expectations low. Knowing the difficulties of such a limited budget I was prepared to look at the film with a forgiving eye but instead was a bit dumbstruck at the captivating, sure-footing telling of washed-up country star Bobbie Thompson and his unexpected saddling with a thirteen year old girl who may be his daughter. While the story of this pairs' relationship is humorous and engaging enough to sustain the film, HELL OF A HEARTACHE also reverberates with other ideas and themes, including modern masculinity and the lingering effects of violence against women throughout our society. Sharing the film with friends and family I'd become convinced HELL OF A HEARTACHE was a little miracle of a film, a masterful and very affecting work that somehow seemed to arrive out of nowhere with Burson, not only writing and directing with great feeling and subtly but delivering a performance any seasoned actor would be proud of. Yet, Burson hadn't acted since high school and his turn to filmmaking didn't come until he was in his late forties. We'll unravel just how this film got made in our interview, but I should first mention that all this led to the upcoming East Coast premiere of HELL OF A HEARTACHE on Thursday, December 8th at the Rotunda, on the 40th block of Walnut Street in Philadelphia, as part of the Bright Bulb screening series. Not only will we see HELL OF A HEARTACHE, currently unavailable through your favorite streaming service, but it will be followed by a Q&A with Rob, on his first trip to the East Coast. The screening is free and included is a second feature, from Australian director Gillian Armstrong, director of MY BRILLIANT CAREER and STARSTRUCK, we'll be seeing her nearly-lost 1987 feature HIGH TIDE, starring Judy Davis which also tells the story of a performer uniting with her abandoned daughter.