2015 Sundance Trading Card Series: #32. Bob Tarasuk (Bob and the Trees)

Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2014 discoveries”…
Bob Tarasuk: I have been reading quite a number of true survival stories lately. ‘Unbroken,’ ‘Life in a Jar,’ and ‘Miracle in The Andies‘ are great books. I was blown away by Mark Ronson’s ‘Uptown Funk‘ performed by Bruno Mars. The video is amazing.

Lavallee: In 2009/2010 you were approached by a young European filmmaker to be the subject of a short film. Could you describe that first encounter with Diego, and ultimately how you were sold on the idea of being the titular figure in the short. 
Tarasuk: When Diego moved to The Berkshires, we quickly became friends and enjoyed hanging out at parties and at my farm. When he approached me about making the short film I naturally said yes, not really having any idea what was to come. I had a great time making the short and exploring ‘Bob’ the character. Diego and I talked a lot about the story and with his guidance things came quite naturally for me. At that time, we didn’t really talk about doing a feature film.

Lavallee: At the moment that you knew that the after the short there would be a feature, I was wondering what kind of creative work you might have down with this “character”.
Tarasuk: Approximately, two years ago Diego approached me to be in the feature, and again, I naturally said yes. While the story was created by Diego and Co-Writer Courtney Maum, Diego was great about giving me plenty of room to make adjustments, if things didn’t feel natural.

Lavallee: We imagine that this is a hybrid between fiction and docu, how much DNA would you say is you/and how much is fiction? Are you really into rap?
Tarasuk: The character of ‘Bob’ and the story are both fictional, but a good portion of the movie is inspired by events that happened in my life. They’re things that I would guess are pretty familiar to a lot of people who work in the forestry business or own farms. I enjoy all spectrums of music, but I do have an especially soft spot for really political rap music from artists like Immortal Technique. Music that powerfully expresses what’s wrong with how black people have been treated in our past and continue to be treated in the present. I find myself particularly moved by music that calls attention to the mistreatment of women and all minorities.