The script for the first episode called for a character who plays a homeless man. Although we could have dressed one of our cast members (from the middle class) in rags and have him sit by the side of the road, that wouldn’t have looked very authentic.
Then it came – Light Bulb.
There are thousands of homeless people in South Bend. Why spend so much effort to fake the “homeless look” when we could hire a real homeless man? Along with the authenticity bonus, it could help the community out in at least two ways: promote awareness of real homelessness and give an opportunity for a homeless man to act in a cool video.
I visited my friends who staff the Center for the Homeless in South Bend. I asked if there was anyone who would wake up at 7AM to sit outside in 20 degree weather for a local kids video. Without hesitation, they took me to a guy milling around in the lobby.
After I pitched the idea to him, he surprised me with the question: “What kind of homeless guy do you want to portray? Do you want an unemployed middle-class worker, someone who’s truly desperate, or a professional homeless man?”
“Professional homeless man? What’s that?” I asked.
“Someone who travels the country, living at homeless shelters because he no longer wants to be part of normal society,” he replied.
I was again surprised. “Let’s try the desperate version,” I quipped.
He got right to work, grabbed a coat, and ran outside. I followed with my digital still camera. After crossing the street into a gravel parking lot, he threw the coat on the ground and proceeded to completely kick the snot out of it.
Wham! Slap! Bam!
For five minutes he destroyed that thing, never flinching once. I snapped picture after picture, trying to capture a decent still of the mayhem in the dimly lit parking lot. Several other homeless guys passed by and laughed at the whole situation.
After the kickfest, we went back inside the shelter. He sliced the coat in several places with a pair of scissors, found a sewing kit, and bound the cuts back together. After the coat-beating and coat-surgery, he tried it on. Perfect!
The next morning, we picked him up from the Center for the Homeless and shot for two hours in freezing weather. The guy never once complained about the cold and seemed to really enjoy filming with us.
After we finished shooting, I whipped out my wallet and offered to pay him for his time. He refused. I offered lunch. He refused. All he wanted was simply a ride back home to the homeless shelter.
Definitely busted some stereotypes I had in my mind about homeless people that day.
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I commend you for using a real homeless person in your episode. It will give a true-to-life depiction of their personal experiences. I posted this on my FB wall and became a fan! I wish you much success with your endeavors.
Ibe
http://awritersinkhorn.wordpress.com
http://twitter.com/awritersinkhorn
Thank you so much for your kind words, Ibe! We appreciate having you follow our project.
I am not understanding the idea for the homeless person. Is this an idea for children to know what it is like or to know that it is happening? I just want to get an understanding for what is the concept behind it.
Hi Ardedia,
Thanks for visiting our site!
To answer your question. Yes, as you suggested, we want people to be aware of homelessness. Not to spoil too much of the show, but the homeless man plays in a scene where all the “middle class” characters passing by relentlessly complain about all their petty problems while completely ignoring the despair of the man sitting on the side of the street. When one of the characters actually notices the homeless man, some very interesting things happen…
at school now but looking forward to checking this out when i get home.