John Smithson is a critically acclaimed filmmaker, producer and co-founder of the award-winning production company Darlow Smithson Production with more than 20 years experience in high-end factual programming.
His 2003 film Touching the Void earned worldwide kudos for its gripping true account of two climbers’ perilous journey in the Peruvian Andes. Now, in Discovery Channel’s new series I SHOULDN’T BE ALIVE, Smithson turns his talent to the true stories of incredible human survival that always — at their crux — feature a wrenching moral dilemma. The series is slated to premiere in November 2005.
Q: What was the genesis for I SHOULDN’T BE ALIVE?
A: I SHOULDN’T BE ALIVE was inspired by the amazing success of Touching the Void. The combination of first-person testimony and high-quality dramatization seemed to touch a nerve with the viewing public. They are mesmerized by these great, real-life stories of ordinary people who find themselves in nightmarish predicaments, and whose lives depend on crucial life-or-death decisions.
Q: How did you find the amazing survival stories showcased in the series?
A: We first started researching for contributors by talking to publishing houses that specialize in the adventure survival genre. These contacts led to our meeting and talking to survival experts worldwide. Search and rescue organizations were constantly updating us with news from their regions and often revealed a previously untold story. In addition, we consulted with military and civilian experts, and regularly conducted newspaper searches to find the latest harrowing tales. Interestingly, our best contributors were often those who had time to process and reflect on their experience.
Incidentally, many of our “survivors” have become motivational, inspirational and culture change specialists touring on the international speaking circuit. So we also looked for the best of these speakers with an amazing story to tell.
Q: What common theme runs through these incredible survival stories?
A: The extraordinary resilience of the human spirit, the instinct and the will to survive. These are all people who just refuse to give up on life.
One interesting fact, people always seem to sing songs in extreme positions — to keep themselves going. And when they do, they always seem to be stuck on the most irritating “can’t get it out of your head”-type tunes!
Q: In capturing stories that took place all over the world, what challenges did you face during production?
A: Many! Filming in extreme environments presents huge challenges and dangers. Actors
generally have a hard time in the extreme circumstances thrust upon them. For instance, for the episode Shipwrecked Sailors, the cast was asked to jump repeatedly into cold water at night in a filming tank in Malta — with waves whipped up to look like a hurricane by jet engines, airplane propellers and wave machines… not to mention a water canon! Obviously, we had thermal blankets, warming rooms, and hot drinks available for them, but still, it was understandably pretty tough going.
During one shoot in Canada, an actress discovered a rare allergy to bear fur while filming in a cave previously inhabited by bears in the Yukon. She swelled up and had to be helicoptered out. Fortunately, an antihistamine cured her quickly.
And, overall on location, you just can’t trust the weather! On that same Canadian shoot, six feet of snow on the location research trip turned into no snow at all two weeks later. We had to travel further north and import tons of snow to get the shots we needed!
Q: How are the stories revealed and what techniques did you employ to show exactly what the survivors faced?
A: Each episode is a compilation of emotional accounts from the survivors threaded with
incredible photography from some of the most remote regions in the world and amazingly
real dramatizations. From the beginning of production, we knew we had unbelievable
stories to tell and it was imperative for us to capture exactly what happened without
stretching it for effect.
For each episode, we conducted a details interview with all the survivors to determine exactly what happened to them. We used these interviews to create the dramatizations for the actual survival scenes – using the first-hand accounts to construct the setting, mood and dialogue for each story.
The end result for each show is a polished show that is sure to leave viewers asking – what would I have done to survive?
Q: What was it like to interview these survivors who are revealing such personal — and fateful – moments in their lives?
A: It’s often quite emotional. You have to remember that these people have been through experiences that were very traumatic, to say the least. Just because they survived and are now talking on-camera, doesn’t mean you can underestimate how coming so close to death affects people. And that however sensitive you try to be, you can’t really know what it was truly like.
Any survival story is a purely personal emotional journey, and we always appreciated how difficult it might be for them to take us on that journey. Even when the event in their lives was some time ago, each interview asked them to relive that time, which was an emotionally draining experience for them.
Q: Were there any surprising revelations you gleaned from the survivors?
A: Talking and meeting with the contributors has been a remarkable experience. We were often humbled by their strength and endurance. The human spirit and its ability to survive in extraordinary circumstances releases a strength few of us know we possess.
All the people we met have a renewed love of life, and many are eager to share that love and help others fulfill their potential. We were amazed by the energy of our contributors and how they fill their daily lives, especially those who are now disabled. All of these I SHOULDN’T BE ALIVE stories really do provide an enriching, unforgettable perspective on the human condition.