‘Equals’ reminded director Drake Doremus of childhood ADHD

TORONTO – Filmmaker Drake Doremus had a harrowing childhood experience in the back of his mind as he directed Kristen Stewart and Nicholas Hoult in “Equals,” out Friday.

The story of a futuristic society in which human emotion is considered harmful reminded him of the prescription drugs that robbed him of some of his feelings growing up.

“I was diagnosed with ADHD at a very young age and went on Ritalin and Dexedrine and all that crap, and I think maybe in a way, this is sort of my backlash against that, in a sense,” he says.

“I definitely feel frustrated by essentially growing up taking speed for a large portion of my young life. It’s kind of insane. It seems kind of ridiculous. I would never do that to my kids. God bless my parents, they were doing what they thought was best.”

But it was a subconscious awareness he had while making the film, he adds.

“It wasn’t like, ‘Oh, I have a statement to make.’ I’m not a political filmmaker and I don’t necessarily have an agenda in that sense. But yeah, I definitely feel like I can relate to what that feels like and how upsetting that is.”

“Equals” features a society in which human emotion has been seemingly eradicated genetically. Those who display feelings are diagnosed with Switched on Syndrome and are considered a danger. If they engage in “coupling activities,” they’re sent to a treatment facility.

Stewart and Hoult’s characters find themselves facing that fate as they begin to develop feelings for each other.

Though the story is set in the future, it relates to today’s world in which relationships often unfold in a disconnected manner online, says Doremus.

“It is a reflection of human beings today, very much so, in an age of Internet dating,” says the native of Orange County, Calif., whose other films include “Like Crazy.”

“There really is such a lack of organic human connection. It’s scary to think of 10, 15 years from now, the algorithms and the devices that will bring us together.”

Doremus held workshops with the cast a week before shooting in Tokyo. The goal was to try to strip down their emotions and “everything we’ve been raised with.”

“We started doing exercises where, for hours, they couldn’t feel anything and they had to have conversations — or not talk at all,” he says. “Then we did really cool truth exercises where everything was just the exact opposite and it was so honest and there were no barriers.”

Doremus shot as much of the story in order as possible so that the stars couldn’t touch each other until their characters actually did so.

In some scenes, he let the cameras linger on the two for a while as their characters discover how it feels to touch another human for the first time.

“Those are the beautiful moments and they’re both so wonderful that for me, it was easy to just linger and not interrupt,” says Doremus.

“We would do 20-, 25-minute takes where sometimes they wouldn’t even say anything and they would just get lost and forget where they are, and then I’d come in and tweak something or guide something or play a piece of music.”

Stewart and Hoult are among the most in-demand actors of today, but “neither of them are very Hollywood at all,” says Doremus.

“They’re both just awesome, cool people, so it’s funny to think about that…. They’re so talented and there’s just not that many actors working today in their mid-20s that have value and that are doing things for the right reasons, and both of them really are. They really care about the work and they care about the people and they care about the family that comes together to make a movie.”

News from © The Canadian Press, . All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Join the Conversation!

Want to share your thoughts, add context, or connect with others in your community? Create a free account to comment on stories, ask questions, and join meaningful discussions on our new site.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.
The Canadian Press

The Canadian Press is Canada's trusted news source and leader in providing real-time, bilingual multimedia stories across print, broadcast and digital platforms.