Santa Barbara News Press

As director Christopher Monger has observed, "Special Thanks to Roy London" tends to evoke tears from its audience. The late acting coach was widely revered and the documentary makes clear both the intensity of his clients' affection and the reasons he had such an impact on their lives.

But Saturday afternoon's screening at Victoria Hall Theatre, and the question-and-answer session that follows, promises to be a particularly intense experience.

 London, after all, is buried in the Santa Barbara Cemetery. His life partner, Tim Healey, is a longtime Santa Barbaran, and during the 1980s and early '90s, the men spent countless weekends enjoying the city as a getaway from the pressures of Los Angeles.

Moreover, it will mark London's return of sorts to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The one and only film he directed, "Diary of A Hit Man," won the festival's audience award in 1992.

 "Had it had not opened on the first day of the (Rodney King) riots, it might have had a better life," said Healey, who was one of the founders of the Solstice Parade in the 1970s. "All the advertisements had a picture of Forrest Whitaker with his arm around Sherilyn Fenn's neck and a gun to her head. I can't tell you how excited people were to go see that movie on that weekend."

There is considerable excitement about Monger's documentary, at least among the many actors who studied with London or were influenced by his work. The film mixes archival footage of the teacher explaining his philosophy with reminiscences from more than 50 of his former students.

Among them are Sharon Stone and Garry Shandling, both of whom plan to attend Saturday's screening and answer questions afterward, according to Healey. Shandling felt so indebted to London that every episode of his HBO series "The Larry Sanders Show" concluded with the credit: "Special Thanks to Roy London." That's where the documentary got its title.

A successful actor, director and playwright in the off-Broadway theater scene of the 1960s and '70s, London discovered his calling after moving to Hollywood. Initially working out of his living room, he began coaching actors -- including many who subsequently became famous.

When client Geena Davis won the Academy Award for best supporting actress in 1989 (for "The Accidental Tourist"), she thanked London in her acceptance speech. Even as his classes and coaching sessions multiplied, he expanded his focus to include directing, including two episodes of "Larry Sanders."

"Roy really wanted to transition to directing," said Healey. "He saw it as the next step."

London, who was HIV-positive, died of lymphoma in 1993, not long after his 50th birthday. Monger recalls some discussion about creating a memorial on film. "But the speed with which he died, and the communal grief was so strong, nothing happened," he said. "It was just too painful."

The idea of a documentary was revived in 2003 by a group of London's close friends, including Healey, Monger, actress Lois Chiles and producer Karen Montgomery.

"We went into this very blithely," Monger recalled. "The only thing I did right at the beginning was to have no expectations. I let the thing grow organically."

He ended up interviewing more than 50 people, virtually all of whom ended up in the film. Sharon Stone tells what is arguably the best anecdote, recalling with humor and horror the day when London nearly died in her arms. With disarming candor, the actress admits that her first thought was how special she clearly was, since this great man chose her to be present for his final moments.

How did Monger get such marvelous stuff?

"Years ago, I used to know (the great documentarian) Errol Morris," he said. "He had this theory of interviewing on film, which was, the less you said, the more uncomfortable people became, so they just started to say things (to break the silence). There was a little bit of that going on. I was clever enough to just shut up."

Once the interviews were completed, Monger spent more than two years organizing the footage and editing it down to from 41/2 hours to 90 minutes.

"There were two ways of approaching the material," Monger said. "One was to make a general biographical film. The other was to make it much more about the teaching. The biographical stuff would be there to support that.

"(We reasoned that) the first one might have a wider audience, but the second would have a more specific, more intense audience. We decided to go with the latter. Why dumb down a movie about a really brilliant guy?"

As it turned out, the filmmakers didn't need to worry. By focusing on the specifics of London's teaching, the film strikes a number of universal chords.

London taught his students that, to give a good performance, you have to allow yourself to be vulnerable; to admit you don't have all the answers; and to be open and responsive to what is happening in the moment. Those are, of course, also quite workable guidelines to living an authentic life.

"His class was not therapy," Healey insisted. Yet, he added, by urging his actors to embrace the fullness of their personalities, including their flaws, London made them happier people as well as better performers.

London had a favorite question he liked to ask actors, according to Healey: "Are you willing to learn something about yourself, through the story, while the camera is rolling?"

"What he meant was, all of your life is available to your work," he said. "If you are willing to put all that you know to bear on what you are doing, then your work will have all of the interest and color and texture that a full life has.

"That's what's exciting about a character like Ennis in 'Brokeback Mountain.' Heath Ledger brings a life to that character."

"Special Thanks to Roy London" premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York last spring; this will be its fourth or fifth festival, and most likely its last. Monger expects it to get an art-house run, at least in major cities, later this summer.

The director said he has been pleasantly surprised at how strongly "civilians" -- i.e., people outside the industry -- have responded to the film. At festivals from Texas to Europe, audiences have been deeply moved by the way London lived, and the way he died.

"I don't think the film is just about acting or showbiz," Monger said. "He was this extraordinary life force." n

 In the "Special Thanks to Roy London" screening at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, more than 50 Hollywood stars including Sharon Stone, Garry Shandling and Geena Davis talk about the revered acting coach.

"I don't think the film is just about acting or showbiz," says director Christopher Monger. "He was this extraordinary life force."

"Special Thanks to Roy London" will mark the late acting coach's return of sorts to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The one and only film he directed, "Diary of A Hit Man," won the festival's audience award in 1992. London died in 1993, not long after his 50th birthday.

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