GALO: So Chris, what was it like for you to move away from your anti-social personality and have that camera to talk to and express yourself to whenever you wanted?

Schoeck: I, honestly, didn’t feel intimidated by it at all. The camera, itself, is inanimate and I, for some reason, didn’t think past it and really have a concept of it materializing or becoming part of the film. I didn’t think too much about it. I kind of saw being put on that small camera as food for them to further get to know me and understand this process.

GALO: In the film, it is evident that when you are in the strongman world and you’re around your legendary predecessors, you really lighten up and look on with appreciative eyes. Was it always the intention to have these strongman idols be a part of the film, and do you think that it enriches the story?

Carroll: The initial idea, or what really came to happen, was because of Chris Rider and Chris reaching out to him and training with him. With the development that Chris made, it was only natural that he be taken to other strongmen and other parts of the community, where he was introduced to guys who all have different specialties and techniques. It is very important that these strongmen collaborate with each other and show each other techniques. All these guys like to enrich the community with the feat they do, and they are very proud of them and want to pass them on. That’s a huge part of the camaraderie that Chris experienced and it was important for us to show it in the film.

Scafuro: Part of the significance of that community is that it was something that Chris was lacking in his own life, and with his other relationships. The acceptance that he finds within them is something that really helped him become a strong person.

GALO: You mentioned that the filmmaking process is, in some ways, therapeutic for the subject. At the end of the film, Chris says that he feels that there is a difference in you, but from the filmmaker’s standpoint, what was it like to watch this person grow from the time that you had the chance encounter with him to the end of the film?

Carroll: I think we all kind of had a transformative experience with the film. Having shared these intimate and long conversations with Chris from the beginning when the cameras weren’t on, and then seeing the fruit of that conversation come out the next day in an interview or something. In the beginning, his mentality was that he was just going to be in this basement — he could have been in there for another 43 years, just down there. But because we were engaging him, I think that pushed him to get out and realize that it wasn’t a bad thing to involve other people. The evolution of him doing this very intimate and private act for himself and then putting it out there in front of people became a true transformation. Watching that was very moving and powerful, and was a constant inspiration because making a film is not easy. But seeing someone reaching out for their dream and constantly trying to obtain it was more than inspiring for a first-time filmmaker.

Schoeck: Through doing this film, I think one of the most important things that I personally got was losing my sense of alienation. Before I did the film, I got very comfortable with that feeling of alienation and almost cynical of people who were actively involved in the world. Since this film has come out, and that transformative moment has occurred on Coney Island, I have learned that life can actually be sweet and it is what you make of it, and that other people don’t bite and they have things to offer — that has really allowed me to shred my feeling of alienation. Also, through the strongman community, I have really developed this sense of connection and self-esteem, which has had an almost immediate carry over into other areas of what should be the human experience.

Scafuro: The night before the climactic Coney Island show, we spent that night with Chris, and we had a long conversation about what this process meant for him and what it meant for us, and I realized at that point that just as much as it was helping Chris grow as a person, it was also helping Dave and I grow as people. It was mutually beneficial and rewarding for all three of us.

GALO: Now, the three of you mentioned how you spent so much time together throughout the process of making this film. So, how long was this project that had the three of you intertwined in each other’s lives?

Scafuro: Dave first met Chris in December 2010, and Dave and I have known each other for about seven years. We started the process of what was going to be just a short film about Chris in January 2011, and then we finished principal photography at the end of August and the beginning of September that year. We were editing throughout the process and we wrapped at the beginning of the year.

Carroll: But you have to understand that I live in the same building as Chris. So, I get like three phones calls a day from him, we talk frequently, we smoke cigars together every now and then, and through the editing process, I still engaged in his life — this isn’t something that you do and then just walk away from it. A strong bond was created; it’s a life-long thing.

GALO: Since the three of you have established this bond through a shared experience, what is each of your next steps? Chris, are you still performing? Dave and Ryan, do you plan on tackling a new subject now that you have one feature under your belts?

Schoeck: As far as I’m concerned, this film will do a lot for my career as a professional performer. And I’m assuming that should they have great success with this film, which I think they will, it will do a lot for their careers and firmly put them on the platform with any of the best professionals.

Carroll: Just so you know, Chris is becoming a full-time strongman and has a show out on Coney Island on May 19th. It’s the third annual “Coney Island Strongman Spectacular” — the first one being the one shown in the movie. The film kind of pioneered bringing the strongmen back to Coney Island again, in a much larger capacity than it has been in a long, long time. We’re really proud of these guys that they are able to take what was started with this project and [can] just keep growing and expanding.

Scafuro: This is Dave and my first film and we plan on working together on more projects in the future. We have something in development for our next film.

GALO: Would the two of you ever consider revisiting Chris in the future for a follow-up?

Carroll: That’s an interesting question. [Pause] I don’t know. It’s funny because I was just watching the Up Series and that is such an interesting idea. Would I go back 20 years from now? Who knows? You know what; I hope I don’t have to. I hope that Chris is super successful and everyone knows it.

Schoeck: They have become such an important part of my life that I won’t let them disappear. [All three laugh]. They can go anywhere, but these days they are not going to be able to hide. This was a very important moment in my life and I’m grateful. I won’t let them forget it, believe me.

“Bending Steel” premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 20.

Featured image: Film director Dave Carroll of “Bending Steel.” Photo Credit: Dave Carroll.

Cincopa WordPress plugin