The O’Leary Family - Courtesy of TIME Studios
In small-town New Hampshire, 8-year-old Ronan O’Leary and his family have made a commitment of radical generosity: welcoming strangers into their home and guiding them through their recovery from addiction. The guests share meals with the family and sometimes even bedrooms with the O’Leary children. This is the only life Ronan and his three older sisters have ever known. Every year, their mom asks them to choose whether or not to continue: “Are you willing to give up a year of your life, so that someone can have the rest of their life?” As the children enter adolescence, both the family and their guests are faced with difficult decisions about community, independence, and the real nature of altruism.
Salem Film Fest screening - Courtesy of Bobbie Bush Photography
BE OUR GUEST screened in-person at Salem Film Fest and is available for streaming anywhere in the United States during the virtual portion of our festival which runs through Sunday, April 3.
Salem Film Fest is happy to be collaborating with Marblehead High School on some of this year’s Blog Posts and we are grateful to MHS Teacher Connor Ryan who has been working with his students in exploring this year’s festival.
This interview with BE OUR GUEST Director Diane Tsai was written by Zoe, Summer, Caitlin, Cate, Arielle, Martha, Madeleine, Yasen, Celine, Lilly, Lia, Lauren, Griffen, and Griffin -- Marblehead High School's greatest G block AP Language and Composition class.
Diane Tsai - Courtesy of TIME Studios
Marblehead High School: How did you find the O'Learys? Were they initially interested? What were your initial hopes and concerns for the project?
Diane Tsai: I first met the O’Learys while reporting on a short video for TIME’s multimedia project on the opioid crisis (Editors note: Diane Tsai is a Senior Producer at TIME, a global news multimedia brand previously known to many when it published content as TIME Magazine). While observing their home, I was struck by how the O’Learys defied all my initial expectations. On that first trip, I surprised myself by immediately asking Lydia if she would be open to me coming back to continue filming. She said yes, amused that I found so many aspects of their lives worth documenting, because to them, it was just normal, everyday life.
My initial hopes were to simply convey what life was like in that house, because I felt that words wouldn’t be able to do it justice—I wanted others to be able to witness it for themselves. And it was apparent to me that the O’Learys had the potential to make a huge impact on the lives of the people who were living in their home, like Jenn, and I wanted to be able to watch how it unfolded. Were they naive in their ambitions, or were they onto something?
MHS: How did you make decisions about which aspects of peoples' lives to include or exclude? Were there scenes or interactions you omitted, and if so, how did you make those decisions?
DT: It was incredibly difficult to decide what to include and what to exclude. That’s the real challenge of editing, but it felt magnified when the footage spanned years and followed so many characters. We wanted to be able to share parts of everyone’s experiences, especially those who were so generous with their stories at such a difficult time in their lives. But it simply wasn’t possible, and got very confusing when we started introducing too many characters. Ultimately, in terms of the guests in the home, we wanted to depict individuals who could represent the range of journeys we witnessed. Jenn was always a clear main character, because she had such concrete goals, which she accomplished so gracefully. And Rich was representative of the people who passed through the O’Leary home who didn’t always see eye-to-eye with Jim and Lydia, and whose recovery story wasn’t a linear path.
BE OUR GUEST - Courtesy of TIME Studios
MHS: Do you think being filmed changed how the family and their guests interacted with one another? Was it difficult to get everyone's natural reactions as well as record everyone in the house interacting normally since they knew the camera was on them? How do you think the presence of the camera affected the day-to-day lives of the characters?
DT: I was very conscious of how the presence of my camera might affect the dynamics of the house, but it’s always surprising how easily people can adapt. They quickly became used to me hanging out around the house with a camera in hand, and I rarely felt that people weren’t being genuine. The few times I did get that sense, I would typically stop filming, because I think it’s very apparent onscreen when people are acting unnaturally for the camera.
MHS: How often and for how long did you film?
DT: The film spans more than three years, and I would try to visit once a month or once every two months, staying for a few days at a time. Once covid hit, it became difficult for me to travel, so our co-producer and cinematographer Jon Gourlay, who is based locally, was able to drop in for the day as needed.
Ronan - Courtesy of TIME Studios
MHS: A large part of the documentary focuses on Jennifer's journey. Is that something you, as a filmmaker, tried to anticipate? Similarly, did you anticipate that Ronan would be the dominant protagonist? How do you make those decisions?
DT: Very early on, I was struck by Jenn’s openness when talking about her struggle with addiction and admired her determination to reunite her family. The fact that Jenn found a home with the O’Learys when she was 7 months pregnant with nowhere else to go was such a remarkable story, I knew we had to keep following her journey.
With Ronan, it was a little less intentional at first, but came through in the initial footage of the house, even when I wasn’t sure who to focus on. I had always been intrigued by all four of the O’Leary children and their unconventional upbringing. While each family member has their moment in the film, Ronan began to stand out as the youngest child and only boy, who was just beginning to find his voice.
MHS: Do you keep in touch with the O'Learys?
DT: Yes, I love hearing updates on their ongoing home renovations, and am always curious to know who is currently at the house.
BE OUR GUEST streams at Salem Film Fest Monday, March 28 - Sunday, April 3. Purchase tickets to the film here.
