I’m very happy being behind the camera: Jason Hall

By Sugandha Rawal

New Delhi, Nov 18 (IANS) Jason Hall started his career in showbiz as an actor and then went on to write and produce films. Now, he will be making his directorial debut with "Thank You For Your Service". The filmmaker says he feels qualified for his new role and has no aspiration to come in front of the camera.

"I'm thrilled to have been given the opportunity to bring this story to the screen and couldn't feel more prepared or qualified to do it. It's a subject near and dear to my heart," Jason told IANS over an email from Los Angeles.

Asked if he will get back to acting, Jason said: "Ha ha. Probably not. If I couldn't find the right type for a part -- I might -- but I'm very happy being behind the camera."

Jason entered the business as an actor in the late 1990s, and did some acting jobs in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Providence", "Game Day", "Play Dead", "Miss Match", "CSI: Miami" and "American Sniper".

He transitioned to screenwriting with the 2009 movie "Spread", starring Ashton Kutcher, and followed up with "Paranoia" and went on to get an Oscar nomination for writing Bradley Cooper starrer "American Sniper".

At the moment, Jason is enthused about getting hard-hitting "Thank You For Your Service" -- which deals with post-traumatic stress disorder, on the big screen. Reliance Entertainment will be releasing the film in India on November 24.

Jason hopes to usher in a real change with his cinematic endeavour.

"As we enter the 17th year of conflict in the Middle East, I hope to promote discussion on the topic of how to bring our warriors home," he said.

"Thank You For Your Service" is a story of struggles that a group of soldiers undergo when they return from Iraq and have trouble getting back into civilian life with their families. It is based on a book of the same name by David Finkel.

Actors Miles Teller, Haley Bennett, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Amy Schumer, Joe Cole, Kaye Lyn Sheil and Beulah Koale among others have brought the story alive on the silver screen.

Jason says he wants to make the most realistic depiction of soldiers coming home with the film.

"That was the goal. This is a story that cuts to the truth of what it's like for these men and women who return from combat with a moral injury. We shot the movie in 42 days in Atlanta and Morocco. Both were fantastic places to shoot and we worked hard to make them resemble Kansas and Iraq," the filmmaker said, adding that he hopes that the audience finds "a new understanding of the sacrifice our veterans make and are inspired to start a conversation with the veteran in their life".

He feels it is very important to open the door to a conversation with the veterans.

"I hope this film leads people into doing that. Reach out to the veteran in your life and welcome him home, see if you can start a conversation. Believe it or not, our desire to understand them makes a difference," said the 45-year-old.

"Thank You For Your Service", according to Jason, is a hard-hitting and honest depiction of "what it's like for some of these men and women to come home".

"I do think there's a lack of awareness (about PTSD) and I hope this film brings the civilian population closer to understanding the veteran sacrifice," he added.

Jason has already started working on his next.

"I'm doing a project called 'The Virginian about George Washington' and the story of his maturation into a leader."

(Sugandha Rawal can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in)