Jen Gatien (far left) with cinematographer Ken Kelsch, Joseph R. Lentol, and director Abel Ferrara. “Hounddog was the first script I fell in love with and just like other types of first love, I fell hard for the script,” says Jen Gatien, a producer who stands behind challenging and independent films, touching upon many social issues that concern us today. Always in search of powerful and meaningful projects, Gatien keeps adding new films to her production list on a frequent basis. A former resident of the Chelsea Hotel, Gatien decided to make a documentary film about this prominent artists’ abode and its residents upon witnessing the change in the Hotel’s administration in 2007. Working with director Abel Ferrara, she became the initiator behind dozens of honest and enlightening interviews with artists from Ethan Hawke to Dennis Hopper and Gerald Busby. In this interview, Gatien shares with us what draws her to a script or project, how she dealt with the opposition against the film ‘Hounddog,’ how she finances her films, and many other interesting details. F.A. When and how did you begin your career as a film producer? J.G. I studied film and anthropology at Columbia and graduated not knowing what path to take. I considered writing and directing but then realized my strengths were in curating people and projects. F.A. You produced one of Abel Ferrara’s most recent films, “Chelsea On The Rocks”, a documentary about the Chelsea Hotel where you were also a resident. Did your experiences and personal relation to the Hotel influence/affect the way this production unfolded? If so, in what way? J.G. The idea for a documentary came to me the very day that Stanley Bard- who had managed the hotel for over 40 years-- was told to leave by partners. It was devastating. I wanted to capture what Stanley had created while simultaneously filming the new regime and their tactics in removing long time residents. Abel is a fearless director and it was a dream to work with someone with such a stellar filmography. I asked him to be an interviewee for the film as he had spent years at the Chelsea Hotel, and he decided to direct it-- who else could have gotten so many people to share their lives than a Chelsea regular? F.A. Can you tell us a little bit about how you took up the project “Hounddog” and how you found the necessary funding for it? What made this project appealing to you? J.G. Hounddog was the first script I fell in love with and just like other types of first love, I fell hard for the script. Powerful, haunting, beautifully written, I think Deborah Kampmeier did a stunning job as did Dakota Fanning. The challenges of that film were relentless, but it is a film I am very proud of. F.A. “Hounddog” stirred some controversy amongst audiences who criticized the fact that Dakota Fanning’s 12 year-old character Lewellen gets raped in the film. What was your reaction to these criticisms and how did you deal with them as a producer? J.G. I never thought the film would get the backlash it did for bringing something so prevalent to light. Our biggest critic was a Catholic organization who in no way speaks for all Catholics, but the fact that he had a problem with exposing sexual assault when the church has a history of covering it up was surprising. Even worse, however, was that the criticism came BEFORE anyone had even seen the film. It was a media storm of reaction to a film no one had even seen yet. Before the controversy hit, we had aligned ourselves with RAINN (Rape Abuse Incest National Network) who showed the film to victims and supported the project. Their stamp of approval meant the world to the film as it gave a voice to so many silenced victims of abuse. F.A. What qualities do you look for in a script/story to say "I'll invest my time in this make it a movie"? J.G. When I read something that haunts me, then I meet with the director. If we connect in a meaningful way where I know this person has to make this film and who I can see myself working with for months (and in most cases, years), then I jump in. The script has to resonate with me or the subject of a documentary has to have a story that must be told. F.A. In these financially difficult times, do you go about raising funds for a film project the same way you did several years ago, or are there any alternative methods that producers could rely on to finance their films these days? J.G. I have scaled back my budgets since Hounddog-- it remains the biggest film that I have produced. And while it was wonderful to work on such a large scale, it is really tough to raise millions of dollars. After producing for several years, I have the resources and experience to make films for less and if the talent love the script as much as the rest of the crew, then the budget can be adjusted to make the film possible. F.A. What do you think of online film promotion and distribution? Do you think the Internet is or will be a profitable platform to promote and distribute feature-length movies? J.G. I am not precious about the film I produce-- whatever methods make sense, the goal is always to get the films seen. Online, video on demand, whatever the next wave is for audiences, I just want the films to have a life. F.A. Lastly, can you tell us about some of your latest projects? What can we expect to see from DeerJen Films in the near future? J.G. I am currently shooting a feature film called MESKADA on the RED camera in upstate New York and shooting a documentary with the team behind "Cocaine Cowboys." For more information on Jen Gatien or her production company DeerJen Films, go to www.filmannex.com/DeerJen Interview by Eren Gulfidan