Exclusive interview with director David L. Williams

David L. Williams, director of Beyond the Pole, recently took the time to answer some questions for us.  The film, which is based on a 6-part radio series, is about two explorers, Brian and Mark, that are setting out on the first carbon neutral, vegetarian, and organic expedition ever to attempt the North Pole. As a world first they have high hopes of getting into the Guinness Book of Records and, if all goes well, of saving the planet from Global Warming.  Unfortunately, they have never done anything like this before. They hadn't reckoned on the polar bears, the competitive gay Norwegians (one being Alexander Skarsgård), or on Mark's rapidly loosening grip on reality.

Williams, who co-wrote the film with Neil Warhurst, was inspired to make the film after he read James Lovelock's theories of Gaia and how the planet's ability to support us was threatened by industrialization.  This marked the beginnings of his awareness of the idea of global warming.  He later saw Al Gore's film, The Inconvenient Truth and was deeply moved, but felt that there wasn't anyone in the theater that wasn't already convinced of his argument.  So, David and his partner Helen decided to make a film for the "unconverted".

Shooting took place in both the UK and Greenland.  They spent two weeks roughing it in Greenland 800 miles from the nearest village.  Their single communal bathroom consisted of a bucket with a bin liner, riding to their filming locations for a half an hour via dogsled, and having local hunters accompany them to ward off the locals...polar bears.  David states:

"Plumbing is rudimentary in Greenland (there is none - everything freezes), so first dibs on the bucket became something of a sought after luxury. These things become extremely important by day 10 I assure you. After a full, greasy breakfast (you see what I mean about getting to the toilet first) it would be straight onto the dog sledges and out onto the sea ice. This was one of my favorite parts of the day and would have been as romantic as it sounds had it not been for the fact that working dogs can poop while they are running. There were 20 dogs pulling each sledge, and most of our journeys were at least half an hour.

Once you had resigned yourself to the mathematical certainty that this scenery simply could not be enjoyed without a liberal covering of husky number two's, then you really could sit back and enjoy the ride knowing that once you arrived at the location, you had only to snap off the frozen feces and you were set for another unforgettable days filming in the arctic circle. (As long as the hunters kept the polar bears at bay!)"

They shot on floating sea ice that they could occasionally hear cracking under their feet and weather that could change from sunny to a blizzard at a moment's notice.  There were some days, he said, that they would only get to film for 10 minutes due to the treacherous weather conditions.  There are those who suffer for their art - this one must take the cake, and David's quest to get the message out goes above and beyond.  He delivers his vision in a comical way that will also make the audience think about the environment and the future it holds.

Of course, we couldn't interview David without asking him about what it was like working with Alexander Skarsgård.  Here is what he had to say about his experience with Alex:

"Well, Alexander is a lovely guy and I'm not just saying that because you are his fans! We cast him because we lost another (absolutely excellent) actor very late in the day. I have to say, we were looking at a few and since I was already in Greenland, I said, 'Sod it! Get me the guy who has been Mr. Sweden five times!' I was purely thinking, 'Does he look like an Olympian (yes - he's 6ft 4); Has he got a gentleness to contrast with the other actor - yes; has he done comedy (yes, Zoolander) and who cares about the first 3, let's have him because we know we can sell to Sweden!'

When Alexander arrived on the ice we had already been there for some time and I think it was very difficult  for him to join so late. We all already knew each other and were a unit. He was very earnest and he wanted to know the motivation of the characters, everything about them, but to tell you the truth I didn't really want to tell him very much at all. I thought it would be very useful for him to not know us very well. To not know much about the character apart from what was there. I think initially Alexander may have found this difficult, but if you look at the scene it's very fresh. Their improvisation is wonderful. You only really get one go at improv - when it's totally real; the first time anyone speaks really is the first time anyone speaks and reacts. It's magic that is difficult for even the best actors to replicate. Alexander shines the moment he comes on because he just let go and didn't think too much. He just was. On set it can be difficult sometimes, when so many things are in your head, to know clearly when you've got what you need or what you were after. All our actors were brilliant in this film, but when Alexander was on set I always knew I had it. He was gorgeous in every sense. His fans are right to love him. He's lovely!"

Fans are begging for the film to be released worldwide, which has turned into a global fan effort.  Become a fan of the Beyond the Pole Facebook Page to keep current with information and to help get the film released.  Beyond the Pole premieres in London on Saturday, December 5 at the Prince Charles Cinema at 6:30 pm.  It also will release for a week in London early next year (dates TBA).