Actor says 'Canvas' first step to taking apart social stigma of mental illness

CHAMPAIGN – Joey Pantoliano said Thursday night at the Virginia Theatre that he always wanted to be an actor, someone whom people would recognize on the streets.

It happened beyond his expectations. He has appeared in more than 100 films, among them "The Matrix," "Memento" and Steven Spielberg's "Empire of the Sun," and has won numerous awards, including an Emmy in 2003 for his supporting role in the HBO hit series, "The Sopranos."

Yet, "I could not feel good," Pantoliano said. "There was a hole and darkness and sadness in my heart."

That depression intensified when the actor appeared in "Canvas," shown Thursday evening at the 10th annual Roger Ebert's Film Festival at the Virginia Theatre.

Three days before the shoot, the actor learned from his wife that a good friend of his had committed suicide. He said he was devastated and drew on his grief while performing some of the scenes in the movie.

Director-writer Joseph Greco's first feature, "Canvas" is a deeply personal film about how a mother's mental illness affects her husband, portrayed by Pantoliano, and their only son, Chris, played by the remarkable Devon Gearhart, then only 10 years old.

Writing the script, Greco, now 35, drew on his own childhood in Hollywood, Fla., with a mother who has paranoid schizophrenia. He wanted to accurately portray the illness and eventually found producers who wanted to do the same – after meeting with some who had suggested having the mother killed off at the end of the movie, he said.

The film's producers included William Erfurth and Adam Hammel of Rebellion Pictures. Both joined Greco, Pantoliano and film scholar David Bordwell for the onstage discussion after the Ebertfest screening.

Pantoliano, who also came on as a producer, said they knew they needed a strong female lead to play Mary Marino and that if they could get an Academy Award-winning actress like Marcia Gay Harden, they would have an easier sell with "Canvas," which had a budget of $1 million. The actor talked her into taking the role only four to five days before shooting began in 2005 in Florida. Both she and Pantoliano invested in the film rather than take a salary.

Pantoliano, who said he is dyslexic, had decided to get involved in "Canvas" after his wife and assistant first read Greco's script. After Pantoliano perused it, he was sure he wanted to play John Marino. He told Greco to use his name and that he would co-produce.

And, he said, "I thought it was a casting opportunity to wash the stench of Ralphie out of my hair," a reference to the sarcastic, belligerent and misogynistic mobster Ralph Cifaretto, his Emmy-winning character in "The Sopranos."

"It wasn't until Joey came on board that the elements came together," Greco said. "I could honestly say it's the movie I wanted to make 100 percent."

Greco told the story from Chris's viewpoint, basing it on his own childhood. Greco said he wanted to make, rather than a documentary, a narrative fictional film that would entertain audiences.

He digressed from his own life in some ways, though. He had Chris, to forget his mother being hospitalized, sewing patches onto T-shirts and then selling them at school. In reality, Greco got into magic as a young boy.

The title "Canvas" refers to Mary Marino painting landscapes at home and while in the state hospital; she says the act of painting quelled the voices she heard in her head. At the same time, John Marino builds a sailboat in his yard, obtaining for the sail canvas with rips and tears.

Later, Mary's paintings are sewn into the sail to cover the holes. Greco said all the artwork in the movie was created by people with mental illness.

With such a serious topic, Greco said Pantoliano pushed to add humor to the film so that audiences wouldn't be turned off. It worked: At 90 percent of the film festivals at which "Canvas" was shown, it was voted the audience favorite. Bordwell said the Ebertfest audience was enthralled with the film as well.

In addition to being picked up for distribution, "Canvas" has been taken up by mental-health organizations and advocates for its realistic portrayal of mental illness.

And "Canvas" led Pantoliano to start the nonprofit organization "No Kidding, Me Too!" made up of entertainers trying to erase the stigma attached to mental illness. The group is lobbying legislators for funding and will attend both the Democratic and Republican national conventions to push for giving people with diseases of the brain the same rights as those with diseases of the kidney, liver and heart, Pantoliano said.

The actor has enlisted film-industry heavy hitters such as James Cameron, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Dillon and Harden to be on the advisory board of No Kidding, Me Too!

"We're going to walk the halls" of Congress," he said. He also plans to have the group meet with presidential hopefuls Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain.

Pantoliano himself was open on stage about his own depression, past alcoholism and addiction to painkillers. He has talked about his belief that his mother had undiagnosed bipolar disease.

"We are no longer in the closet," Pantoliano said. "It's time to tear this stigma apart with love and kindness. It's what we're doing, and it's what this movie started."

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