‘Power of open dialogue’
‘Sickboy’, a film by Andrew MacCormack about Jeremie Saunders and his podcasts, premieres Sunday Oct. 15 on CBC-TV
Cameraman Andrew MacCormack knew Jeremie Saunders as a talented Halifax actor who had worked across from him on several film shoots.
“Jeremie is a very charismatic guy, great on camera,” says the P.E.I.-born filmmaker who now calls Nova Scotia home.
MacCormack also knew Saunders was living with cystic fibrosis, a chronic genetic disease and that the actor and his closest friends, Brian Stever and Taylor MacGillivray, were the creators of “Sickboy”, an irreverent Internet radio podcast aimed at changing the way people view serious illnesses like brain cancer, schizophrenia, cancer, depression and epilepsy.
So when MacCormack was approached by Tim Hogan of Dream Street Pictures to direct a film on Saunders, a young man trying to remove the stigma attached to chronic illness, he sat up and listened.
“I was instantly intrigued. I was especially interested in his podcasts. So I met Jeremie and we instantly connected,” says MacCormack whose documentary, “Sickboy” premieres on Sunday, Oct. 15 at 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. NT)
Produced by Rick LeGuerrier and Hogan, with cinematography by Paul McCurdy and MacCormack, the film shows how the trio’s podcast is having a transformative effect on its many listeners as well as the podcasters themselves. It also reveals how this unconventional approach to illness is having a positive impact in all corners of the world.
“It shows the power of open dialogue. And the film is just an extension of that.”
Usually a filmmaker maintains an objective point of view, but after watching Saunders face his day-to-day challenges with humour and candor MacCormack was moved.
“I’ve learned a lot from him in just the way he lives his life. He doesn’t hold anything back.
“Jeremy is a natural performer/entertainer. And his podcasts are quite outrageous, ridiculous and silly.”
But, after listening to the episode about Saunders and his parents he quickly realized there’s a serious side.
MacCormack, a young father, wondered what it would be like to raise a child knowing they were going to die young. “How does that affect family life? Immediately I wanted to know how him living so openly and loudly with this idea of an expiry date affects the people that he loves.”
So the film is also an exploration of that theme.
“Jeremie sees his illness as a gift. We’re all going to die. But Jeremie has it drilled into his head that he’s going to die young and he’s living his life very ambitiously. So he goes for things that other people wouldn’t.”
And MacCormack believes it’s a universal story.
“There’s not one person on the planet who isn’t going to be affected by disease or sickness. And the sooner we can accept that, the easier it becomes.”
Editor’s Note: At press time, Saunders was recovering from surgery and was unavailable for a comment.