Frank & Louis: Discussing Prison Caretaking and Alzheimer's Drama at Sundance

The Film "Frank & Louis"

• 💡 The movie "Frank & Louis" is a prison drama set in an American men's prison, focusing on an inmate serving a life sentence who becomes a caretaker for an older inmate with Alzheimer's and dementia.
• 🎯 Director Petra Biondina Volpe spent 10 years developing the story, inspired by encountering "Gold Coats" (inmates caring for others with dementia) in a California prison in 2014.
• 💰 Despite being a universal story, the film could not secure financing in the US and was ultimately financed with Swiss money, shot in the UK with American and UK actors.

Authentic Portrayal of Incarceration

• ✅ A key aspect of the film was to present a complicated and honest portrayal of incarceration, crime, and punishment, avoiding the trope of innocent prisoners often seen in studio productions.
• 🧠 The film aims to raise important questions about societal issues rather than providing easy answers, especially concerning how to deal with individuals who have committed crimes.

Actor Preparation & Performance

• 🔬 Rob Morgan prepared for his role by interviewing people with Alzheimer's disease through the Alzheimer's Association of Newburn, North Carolina, and watching related films.
• 💪 Both Rob Morgan and Kingsley Ben-Adir engaged in physical training like pull-ups and push-ups between takes to maintain a prison mindset and embody their characters' physicality.
• 🎭 Kingsley Ben-Adir's performance was praised for its subtle and transformative portrayal of a complicated man deeply affected by years of incarceration, focusing on his journey to rediscover his sense of self-worth.

Humanity Through Caretaking

• 💖 The film emphasizes how caretaking can restore humanity, drawing from conversations with Gold Coats who expressed that doing the work made them "feel human again."
• 🌱 The core message highlights the universality of caretaking, compassion, and finding dignity in helping others, even within a dehumanizing system like prison.
• 👏 The movie aims to show that men can be caring and compassionate with each other, even in the harshest environments, revealing the most beautiful aspects of humanity.

Beyond "Frank & Louis"

• 📺 Rob Morgan reflected on the unexpected global popularity of "Stranger Things," which he initially thought was an "upgraded web series" during filming.
• 🎶 For character preparation, Rob Morgan uses music as a personal shortcut, playing jazz and love songs to get into the right emotional space.
• 🎬 Petra Biondina Volpe cited Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk" as her favorite film, appreciating its visceral experience and sound design, while Rob Morgan prefers documentaries for their realism and insight.