TWIS Asks — Film Festival Edition: 'No Real Than You Are' co-producer, Van Jazmin

For many Florida residents, prescription drug addiction isn't just a problem they hear about on the news — it's a reality that often hits close to home. Our state, in particular, has been hit especially hard by the epidemic. The issue is complex, and Sarasota filmmaker Vincent Dale felt compelled to explore the topic in his short narrative, "No Real Than You Are."

Inspired by true events, the film follows one teen's struggle with addiction as it examines the issue of legal pill addiction through a mystical narrative lens, weaving together Florida's history with its current drug epidemic. We recently caught up with co-producer Van Jazmin to talk about the film's subject matter and the outpouring of local participation it garnered.

The film premieres at 9:30 p.m. tonight, Tuesday April 8, at Hollywood 20. Second screening at 2 p.m. Friday, April 11. Third screening available at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 12, at Burns Court Cinema. [video id="74358587" site="vimeo"][/video]

Tell me about "No Real Than You Are." How did the idea for the film come about?

The writer and director, Vincent Dale, is from Sarasota, but he moved out to Los Angeles to pursue his film career. That's where he started working on this script. It was inspired by something that happened in Sarasota, which was the overdose death of Brandi Meshad. He couldn't get that story out of his mind, and it inspired him to start writing a story, set in Sarasota, about prescription drug addiction.

Why is the subject matter so important?

Addiction is such a complex issue. Talking about Brandi's story, when that happened, it came as a big shock in Sarasota. It brought to the forefront that this is a much more common problem than people might realize. It's sort of been kept under wraps.

How would you describe the tone of the film?

There's definitely a spiritual or mystical lean to the film. There's something mystical about Sarasota, and I think a lot of people recognize that. The film brings together a lot of issues in Sarasota that aren't always talked about. It incorporates a lot of history and folklore — stories about people like Sara DeSoto and William Whitaker were inspirations, and the film ties all these things together. It's Florida's history, combined with its modern drug epidemic. I knew I wanted to get involved after I sat down with (director) Vincent Dale and he described the concept to me. It gave me chills.

Well, I think it's partially because that's Vincent's style; he makes narrative films. He wanted to tell the story in a succinct way, and this is how he interpreted the events through his own lens. It's not necessarily the story of Brandi Meshad — it's a more general story, shown through one teen's struggle. We talked to a lot of people who were affected by addiction, and we learned just how many people are impacted by the problem. People who have seen the film have told us how realistic it is, which was very important to us. We wanted to be as authentic as possible. Maybe it will hit even closer to home than a documentary would.

It looks like a lot of local artist and creative people in town were involved. Was there an emphasis on keeping the project local?

We wanted to take advantage of all the great resources here. I've had the pleasure of working with a lot of creative people in Sarasota, so I had a good idea of who to call. Every member of the cast was local, and almost every crew member was local. There were a few small things we had to outsource, only because they weren't as available here — things like camera rentals and color correction. But we wanted to stay as local as possible. We had more than 70 actors audition for roles, so there was a lot of local support.

What do you hope people take away from this film?

I hope the story touches people. We aren't trying to be judgmental or disrespectful. We want to portray addiction as authentically as possible, and we want to start a dialogue. I want people to reassess the world we live in and maybe have a new perspective, because this isn't a black-and-white issue. It was also certainly a passion project for me, and I want people to see what these young Sarasota artists are capable of. It was crowd-funded, so this is a film people wanted to see made. I hope people can see our intention and start talking.