“I realized that this story [Shelter] is all about family, family loss, and how it influences you day to day life.” Quote by Paul Bettany
“There were a lot of unique challenges in producing the film, such as the logistical issues inherent in producing a long-term verite film in Pakistan, dealing with Urdu and Punjabi dialogue with an English-speaking editor and all the difficulties in recording, editing and clearing so many music tracks.” LongFilmTermChallengesIssuesUniqueDifficultyTrackDialogueLong TermEditorsInherentEditingPakistanClearingEnglish SpeakingUrduPunjabis Author:Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
“I never really took into account the number of homeless families. As a kid, we used to feed the hungry at my church every other Saturday, and one day this kid from my school was there. Somewhere between that moment of realization and appreciation for what my Dad sacrificed for us to have, and me becoming "Anthony Mackie" I lost it. This movie [Shelter] really made me realize that, and it was very humbling and very sickening to see that within myself.” MadeMomentsKidsSchoolUsedLostRealizingChurchNumbersBecomingDadOne DayAccountsMy DadAppreciationHungryRealizationThat MomentShelterHomelessSaturdayHumbling Author:Paul Bettany
“But the biggest challenge overall was narrowing down the complex narrative elements into a clean and straightforward story while maintaining a sense of the cultural context that makes the film special.” StoriesFilmChallengesSpecialElementsCleanComplexesNarrativeMaintainingStraightforward Author:Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
“It's so hard to keep perspective and keep things in context, and it's so easy to get distracted. This film [Shelter] reminded me how important it is to remain aware, and to keep seeing the things that are happening around the world.” WorldImportantHardFilmEasySeeingPerspectiveHappeningsAround The WorldShelterDistractedEasy To Get Author:Jennifer Connelly
“We're blessed to be worrying about the silly things that we worry about when people are worrying about where they are going to sleep, and what they are going to feed their kids every day.” PeopleKidsSleepWorryBlessedSillyGoing To SleepSilly Things Author:Jennifer Connelly
“Half of NYC's homeless populations are families.Homeless people have been ignored for too long. I'll just say this: If you are a family on the brink of eviction you are 80% less likely to get evicted if you have legal counsel. However, there is no right to legal counsel in housing court.It would cost the city $12,500 to grant that family legal counsel. Meanwhile, the average stay for a homeless family in a shelter once they have been evicted cost the city $45,000. So not only does it seem like the right thing to do morally, it's also the right thing to do fiscally.” PeopleIfsLongDoeHas BeensSeemsCitiesHalfCostCourtAveragePopulationThings To DoRight ThingGrantsShelterIgnoredHomelessHousingNycHomeless PeopleEviction Author:Paul Bettany
“An agent friend of mine who will remain nameless said you can't make a romance about homeless people; nobody wants to see them kiss. And I thought, what a repulsive, repugnant, extraordinary thing to say. I had to think about the fact that the world is probably full of other people who feel like that. The very idea that we spend time trying to humanize humans is extraordinary to me.” PeopleThinkingWorldWantFeelsTryingHumansSaidIdeasFactsRomanceMinesKissingExtraordinaryAgentsHomelessEnd TimesSpend TimeNamelessExtraordinary ThingsHomeless People Author:Paul Bettany
“I'm a guy who is married to an actress, who has three children, and lives in Tribeca. Where do you draw the line on what I am allowed to discuss?” ChildrenGuyThreeLinesMarriedDrawsActresses Author:Paul Bettany
“People have suggested that perhaps we are too affluent to be telling this story, which is amazing to me because then I wonder what story I am allowed to tell. Having been working with the homeless for the past years, I noticed lots of things about them, but one thing I really noticed was that they were probably too busy just getting though the day to make a film about themselves.” PeopleYearsStoriesPastFilmWonderOne ThingBusyHomelessToo BusyAffluent Author:Paul Bettany
“I became a documentary filmmaker because I wanted to make socially conscious films. I never studied filmmaking - everything I have learned has been on the field.” Has BeensWantedFilmFieldsConsciousFilmmakerFilmmakingI Have LearnedDocumentaries Author:Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy