Welcome to “Short & Sweet,” our look at short films playing in Austin. This time it’s Jacob Gusentine’s documentary “I Know the End,” following the Rev. Remington Johnson, a hospital chaplain working in end-of-life care. The short screens tonight at AFS Cinema as part of the AFS Member ShortCase.
Austin Chronicle: How did you meet the Rev. Johnson and decide to focus a film on her? What about her story was compelling to you?
Jacob Gusentine: I was first introduced to [the] Rev. Johnson through Anne Lewis, a professor of mine at UT-Austin. I had expressed interest in making a film about the mental health of front-line health care workers, and Remington and I connected initially over the phone. I was immediately struck by her passion and willingness to share – she is filled with so many stories. Her perspectives and experiences working in hospice care highlighted such a significant lacking in our understanding and acknowledgment of trauma, both collective and personal.
I learned that she was also a passionate activist – she devotes so much of her time and energy to alleviating the suffering of others. I knew quickly that she deserved her own film; I wanted others to see what I saw. I also wanted to know how – how does she carry all of this? I hoped to use the film as a means to understand and share that answer. Remington is a public figure, but she is also a private figure, and both deserve the same amount of empathy and admiration.
AC: Early in the film the Rev. Johnson speaks against an anti-trans bill targeting trans athletes. It seems like since you made this film, anti-trans legislation and rhetoric has only increased. How much did that political climate influence how you made this film, and if you were to make it again today in this political climate, is there anything you would change or do differently?
JG: The film certainly began to take a different shape as I learned about the other work Remington does for her community. Some of the initial footage that I shot was at a rally in the Capitol building where Rev. Johnson joined with other faith community leaders to pray and speak in protest of such legislation. Only showing her work in health care wasn’t a full picture of her endeavors in public life, and her political work became necessary to include.
Remington has a unique and informed perspective of the intersection of health care and politics – I don’t know if a short film can fully capture that. If an opportunity arose to make the film again, I would simply make it longer, there is so much more to her work and story, especially in politics.
AC: The Rev. Johnson spoke about the toll that being around people in crisis takes on her and the sort of “snake eating its own tail” experience of secondhand trauma. Do you think that filmmakers experience something similar as they’re listening to peoples’ stories of trauma or hardship?
JG: I certainly think so. I do also believe that with filmmaking there exists a sense of distance, yet there are always risks involved. I think when someone shares something so personal and difficult and there’s a camera involved, you have to accept a certain level of responsibility. You try not to manipulate things or be too much of a middleman between a subject and the audience. But as a filmmaker it is always a blessing to share such profound intimacy with the people that you film.
AC: If you could pick anyone in the world to have as a subject for your next film, and to learn about the way you got to learn about the Rev. Johnson, who would you pick and why?
JG: Krista Tippett! She’s an award-winning journalist who hosts a public radio program/podcast called On Being that I have loved for years and years. She’s so wonderfully inquisitive about others and the world, and I think it would be quite rewarding to have the opportunity to ask her questions and share her perspectives.
AC: The Rev. Johnson talks about how after an especially difficult day at work she goes to the gym to relax and release that tension. How do you relax after a long day at work?
JG: Recently, I’ve really enjoyed painting. If the weather is nice I’ll sit on my porch and throw some paint around with some music. I’m no good, but it’s fun creating without any expectations or pressure. Good for the soul, I think.
AFS Member ShortCase, Monday, July 18, 7pm at AFS Cinema, 6406 N. I-35 #3100, austinfilm.org.
This article appears in July 15 • 2022.