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Paula Fouce Focuses on India by Don Schwartz
Paula Fouce is one of those rare birds, a spiritual doc maker living in LA. photo: courtesy P. Fouce
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER PAULA
Fouce has released four films all based in India under her Paradise Filmworks banner.
“Song of the Dunes: Search for the Original Gypsies” covers the Roma “Gypsy” people who have remained in India. Featuring major religious leaders, “Not in God’s Name: In Search of Tolerance” is a cinematic essay about religious conflict and respect. “Origins of Yoga: Quest for the Spiritual” seeks the roots of yogic traditions. “Naked In Ashes” captures authentic yogis at a time when their traditions are facing extinction.
A third generation Los Angelina, born and raised, Fouce attended Pitzer College, of the Claremont Colleges based in southern California, and received her B.A. in Fine Arts. She was trained in super-realistic drawing and ceramics. Fouce had the good fortune to attend a college that supports students’ passions. At the age of 19, she went to Nepal for formal studies where she was introduced to other forms of art including photography.
After graduation Fouce remained in the Far East working in the travel industry, leading tour groups some of which were focused on Eastern philosophy, religion, and spirituality. She also lead tours for doctors, psychiatrists, and nurses in fulfillment of their continuing education requirements. Fouce worked in China, Tibet, Bhutan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Nepal, Kashmir and Sri Lanka.
I spoke with Fouce telephonically to learn about her filmmaking experiences. I discovered she has expanded her filmmaking focus to a variety of topics.
A scene from one of Paula Fouce documentaries from India. photo: courtesy P. Fouce
CineSource: What inspired your interest in the Far East?
Paula Fouce: Eastern philosophy. And I always was interested in geography, cultures, and, of course, fine art which is fantastic in south Asia—the sculpture, paintings, bronzes, wood carving, sculpture architecture, jewelry, it goes on and on.
I’m wanting to get to the source of the river Nile: What drew you to eastern philosophy?
I was always very interested in a relationship with God, since I was born—and like many people at the time, it probably started with The Beatles and George Harrison. As explained in the book, “American Veda” by Philip Goldberg, eastern philosophies were coming into the fore—through music, clothing, many aspects of our culture at that time in the United States, and internationally.
Did you adopt any particular practice?
I’ve studied many. I’ve had Sikh teachers, Hindu teachers, Buddhist teachers, and Sufis. I got to meet His Holiness Dalai Lama and His Holiness Karmapa, and many renowned teachers. So, I’ve been exposed to many practices.
What drew you to film, and when did that happen?
My family was in the entertainment industry, including theatres and TV stations. Many of my friends were in entertainment as well, and influenced me to start writing screenplays. I had been writing a book, Shiva, which was published in Asia, with my friend Denise Tomecko. It was a natural progression from books to film—to reach a larger audience with similar messages.
At first I was writing feature scripts, and injecting comedy, and would be close to getting the film made, but you had to attach expensive talent, and it was hard. A lot of people are faced with the difficulty of getting their feature close to production, and then it doesn’t go through because of the high amount of funds that are needed.
When the digital age began, you could more inexpensively produce, and I started working on documentary films.
You have four films up on your website—all with a focus on India. Have you produced other films?
Yes. I’ve just completed “No Asylum” which is about Anne Franks’ family’s struggle to obtain visas to save themselves during the Holocaust. We’re also working on a few other films. One is tentatively named Gypsy Passage, about the persecution and discrimination that they’ve had to live through since they left India a thousand years ago. They’ve gone to the far ends of the Earth, and even inspired flamenco, which they developed with others who lived on the outskirts of society—such as the Sephardic Jews and the Moors, and, of course, the native Andalusian people.
Documentary film is a way to reach a broader audience with the same themes that you could write in nonfiction books. Although I have gone ahead and written another nonfiction book, [laughing] but that’s beside the point.
What’s the book about?
It’s called “Not in God’s Name”, it is a companion to the film of the same name about religious intolerance and how religions can be misused for political gain and other reasons.
What’s the topic of the other book?
My first book, “Shiva”, is about the yogis and yoga. I traveled with the yogis for some time in India. It was a great experience. It’s a photographic color-plate book.
Of the four films you made in India, which was the first? And what drew you to the topic?
We began with “Not in God’s Name”, and what drew me to that topic was that I got trapped in a religious riot in New Delhi, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated. I almost got killed. But, “Naked In Ashes” and “Origins of Yoga” were finished first because it was a very difficult film.
“Not in God’s Name” touched a nerve. I’m acutely aware of the destructive force that religion is. And, I don’t see any letup in that force at this time.
Yes, you’re absolutely right, and I think that is why this is such an important piece. Unfortunately, that film is probably ‘evergreen’ [a journalistic terms signifying a subject matter that is relevant over long periods of time] because it continues.
We’re in an age with a lot of reverting back to fundamentalist beliefs. And yet society has changed through thousands of years since scripture was written. Some of it does not apply today. For example, ‘I’m going to stone you. If you do a certain act, then we’re going to put you in the middle of the village and run out and stone you.’ Did you ever see that movie, “The Stoning of Soraya M.”?
No. Never heard of it.
You’ve got to see that movie—it’s not a documentary. It’s incredible. The story’s set in the Middle East. They stoned Soraya in the middle of the town—and how they actually do that, dramatized.
Religion is so beautiful, yet it sometimes misused, and it is detailed in the book, “Not in God’s Name”, and in the film.
Is there anything else you want to say about the film?
Just that His Holiness Dalai Lama and many religious and spiritual leaders were very kind to take part in the film, and to speak to the chronic situation that’s going on in the world now. It would improve if there was some way that people and regimes could rise above our divisions, focus instead on our similarities, and practice respect.
What about “Origins of Yoga”?
“Origins of Yoga” goes on a Himalayan road trip around Nepal and India, and follows yogis we met while we were there. It’s always serendipity as to who you’re going to meet when you’re driving from village to village, and encountering marvelous yogis who are living the lifestyle of having no possessions, the same way that the ancient hermits did—in caves, travelling by foot from place to place. We met a remarkable yogi, Swami Vidyanand Swaroop Brahmachari, and he ended up being the centerpiece of the film, and our guide on the journey.
And meeting and interviewing Georg Feuerstein who wrote over 40 books on yoga. Iyengar called him one of the greatest authors to distill the philosophy of yoga, even though he was German. Georg did a great service for everyone with his beautiful writings.
We all stayed in a hotel one night, and Swami Prem Swaroop Brahmachari was so sweet. He had never been in a hotel room in his life, [laughing] but he invited us all to his room when he was doing his prayers and meditation. It was just phenomenal, the energy, the focus he had on the divine at all times. It never faltered, he truly was like that.
Let’s talk about “Song of the Dunes”.
The original gypsies—the people throughout the world who are known as ‘the gypsies’ now—actually came from western India, the Punjab, Rajasthan, and parts of what is known as Pakistan today. They were captured by invading Arab armies, or they followed them as workers, and crossed continents—on the old Silk Road. In each country they would pick up various words of other languages, and musical instruments, and social customs. They lost their knowledge of where they had come from.
Along the way they became known as ‘gypsies’ because they ended up telling people they were from Egypt. And then the word “gyping” came from that. So, ‘gypsy’, to some means gyping, and cheating. And they always lived on the outskirts of society.
When we travelled to India to make this film, we met fantastic musicians who still live on the fringes. They are the gypsies who have not left. They still remain in that same social structure of long ago, at the bottom of the caste system. Unfortunately, that system is alive and well. They explained that they are outcasts, trapped between two religions—Islam and Hinduism. They’re not really accepted by either.
We thought we were just researching the gypsies, and discovered that discrimination is still going on. They’re not even allowed to enter certain temples; they have to worship outside. It was shocking in this century to witness that.
Paula, before we go on to your other films, India is the location for all four of them. Is there a specific reason why it is a focus of yours?
It was my focus for quite awhile. Its ancient civilization has so many fascinating facets—the religions, the arts. It is the cradle of many of the world’s great faiths. That’s where my interest came from. But now I’m starting to move out of India. [laughing] And doing three or four films that are not based there.
Now, let’s talk about “Naked In Ashes”. Although “Not in God’s Name” touched a nerve, this one made the most powerful impact of the four films. I’d read about Indian philosophy and spiritual practices in graduate school, but “Naked In Ashes” showed me the world to which those words referred. And, of course, it has the longest running time, 103 minutes, of the four films.
The yogis wanted to communicate their vision to the wider world through us—about ecology, for instance. They wanted to share their lifestyle and traditions, and they were over-joyed that we were interested in making a film about them. So they rolled out the red carpet. They travelled around with us, and went out of their way. They were totally dedicated to us for weeks. And then we returned on another trip, and visited them at a Kumbh Mela [pronounced kumba mayla].
What is a Kumbh Mela?
Kumbh Mela is a huge festival, the holiest of all the Hindu festivals that occur according to the lunar calendar. The really big one is held once every twelve years. The smaller ones are every three years. There are millions of people that gather at that time to take a ritual bath in the Ganges because they believe it absolves them of all sins, and they will have a higher rebirth.
When we shot the film, they allowed us to absorb their lifestyle. And you as the viewer really felt that you were there. And that’s what was important. We just let the yogis take the lead, and they did.
They were so open to us because they recognized that we truly wanted to capture how their world’s changing so quickly and dramatically. Nowadays yogis are walking around with cell phones [laughs]. In the old days they didn’t even wear sandals on their feet. The particular sect we covered is the oldest. Because of him, everyone allowed us to film and do whatever we wanted. There were no barriers.
We’ll look back on that film twenty, thirty years from now. I don’t even know how many of those places will still exist in their current form. I had lived with the yogis prior to making “Naked in Ashes”, because we wrote the book “Shiva” on yoga in the 1980s, so they were open to us.
Our editor, Bill Haugse, was filming when the yogis took their holy bath. There were thousands of them converging in the water of the river Ganges. Bill fell into the holy river holding one of the cameras. [laughs] We had to bring the camera back to the United States, and were able to salvage the tape. [laughs] That was lucky, and Chris Tufty our cinematographer kept his camera dry.
What happened with the film after picture-lock?
The film was very well received. We were lucky. We got a wonderful review in the “Los Angeles Times” by Kevin Thomas, and in “Variety”, and the “Hollywood Reporter”. The film attracted grass roots attention. At that time, yoga was becoming more popular. There were a lot of studios springing up, so “Naked in Ashes” garnered strong word-of-mouth. It played theatrically in 28 cities. And it broke records in Austin, and La Jolla.
Right before “Naked in Ashes”, was released there was another film released, “Shortcut to Nirvana” which was also about the Kumbh Mela. We didn’t know each other, but yogis must have been in the air because the two films came out around the same time.
Anything else you want to say about “Naked In Ashes”?
When we went to theater openings to do Q&A’s, the audiences for this film were the nicest people. They were so excited. They had read “Autobiography of a Yogi” back in the day, in the sixties, and others who had become interested in Eastern philosophy since that time. It was great to see how openhearted they were; it was like meeting a bunch of your best friends. It was like a mini-Kumbh Mela [laughs]—to connect with people who have such a yearning for this type of material.
How has it been getting your films out into the world?
It has been getting better. But for most in the documentary film world it is a struggle, of course. You’re dealing with commerce slash [laughing] your passion. To connect those two, and get a film distributed, or into festivals—it is more and more difficult. I hear there were over 9,000 submissions to Sundance this year.
Since the dawn of the digital age, with equipment and production becoming less expensive, there are more filmmakers. So it’s easier to produce a film, but to get distribution is more difficult. But now, with the advent of streaming there are many platforms you can release your work on. You just need to generate buzz and publicity to drive viewers there.
Do you have a philosophy of filmmaking?
Investigate a subject that really grabs you by the throat, or by the heart, something that’s meaningful, yet, ideally, can be covered in an entertaining manner. You don’t want to put the audience to sleep.
Choose a subject that’s vibrant, and very important to you, because you’re going to be spending two to three years of your life on it, at least. Some of my friends have spent ten years on a film. Find the one topic that you can stay focused on, and put all your passion into.
What is rewarding, is that you get to meet wonderful people when you find a subject that’s fascinating to you, and that you want the world to know about.
Such was the film we recently produced, “No Asylum”, through which we met Anne Frank’s cousin, Buddy Elias, and her stepsister, Eva Schloss, and Major Leonard Berney who liberated Bergen-Belsen, the camp where Anne Frank and her sister, Margot, died—and the Director of Bergen-Belsen, Thomas Rahe. All are amazing people who have dedicated 30, 40 or more years to a subject—in the case of Anne Frank, 70 years. It’s a gift when you meet such people and you get to share their stories with the world. It’s a great honor.
With our new film, “Gypsy Passage”, we’ve spent time with the “gypsies”, the Roma, and Ian Hancock, the foremost scholar and founder of the Roma Archives. And we’re producing a film, “The Dark Hobby”, about the exotic fish in Hawaii that are being decimated by the aquarium trade. They’re caught by methods that destroy reefs and the hierarchy of wildlife inhabiting them. It is dedicated people on Maui, the Big Island, and all over the world who are working to pass legislation to protect the fish, like Robert Wintner and René Umberger.
Thanks. When will we able to see “The Dark Hobby” and “No Asylum”?
“No Asylum” will be broadcast internationally this year. “Gypsy Passage” and “The Dark Hobby” are in pre-production.
Thanks, Paula. I want to see screeners of those films as soon as you’ve got picture-lock!
Don Schwartz is an actor, writer and blogger on all things documentary, and can be seen here or reached . Posted on Mar 19, 2015 - 12:34 AM