What would you do if you found out you only had one year left to live? InDon’t Make Me Go,single father Max—played by the charming John Cho fromNetflix’sCowboy Bebop,Searching, andSelfie—is diagnosed with terminal bone cancer and decides to use his final few months to teach his 15-year-old daughter Wally (feature debut for Mia Isaac) some valuable life lessons and introduce her to her estranged mother. However, she isn’t privy to this information. Instead, the desperate father takes her on a road trip from California to New Orleans under the guise of attending his college reunion.
Thecoming-of-age dramais set to be released by Amazon Video on July 15, and had its world premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival on June 14.Game Rantattended the premiere and had the opportunity to interview the cast and director, screen the heartfelt flick, and tune into the post-screening Q&A. Here are five things we learned at theDon’t Make Me GoTribeca world premiere.
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John Cho Can Sing
In the movie, it is revealed that Max used to be a bit of a party animal and was the lead singer in a band. This gives way to a humming some rock ‘n roll tunes during the road trip and a fun karaoke scene where the single father crones “The Passenger” by Iggy Pop. During the Q&A,John Chowas asked if he was actually singing during the scene, to which the actor enthusiastically responded, “Yes!”
Mia Isaac’s Father Taught Her How To Drive in Real Life
At the top of the Q&A, 18-year-old actor Mia Isaac shared that her favorite scenes to shoot werethe car scenes.Game Rantasked if the scenes were reflective of her real life driving express. The actor said, “Yeah, my dad taught me how to drive. It was definitely less dramatic than Max and Wally, but he taught me how to drive in the back of a parking lot.” She continued, “I liked the driving scenes because of how much fun we had together. A lot of it was improv, just because we were driving back and forth on the same stretch of land. We were eating Cheetos, listening to music, talking, and playing 20 Questions, so that was my favorite.”
The Nude Beach Scene Was Inspired By Real Life Events
In the father-daughter movie, the pair accidentally wander onto a nude beach. Totally awkward! When asked about the inspiration behind the scene, director Hannah Marks said, “We would have to ask our screenwriter, Vera Herbert, but I believe Vera accidentally ended up at a nude beach with her father. That’s where that came from.” But apparently, that is a common mistake as Cho chimed in, “That also happened to my wife when she was a kid.”
Mia Isaac’s Childhood Footage Is Used Throughout the Movie
Nocoming-of-age movieis complete without childhood footage.Don’t Make Me Gofeatures a few videos and pictures of Wally during her younger years. Marks revealed that the footage was provided by Isaac and her family. Poking fun at the young actor, she mentioned that because she’s Gen Z “all of her childhood videos were recorded on an iPhone.” The director explained, “She [Isaac] sent me hours of footage and a lot of it was with her real father, and then I erased his voice, so sorry, and recorded John’s to put it in.” Isaac added, “Yeah, and I think what is great is that everything Max says is exactly what my dad said in the actual video,” evoking a collective “aww” from the audience.
Don’t Make Me GoWas Edited Virtually
When asked about the moving editing process, Marks said that the flick was edited virtually. “It was all on Zoom. We didn’t even meet for most of it.” She gave a shout-out to movie editor Paul Frank. “We formed a bond really quickly. Paul did such a terrific job. He’s a father himself, and he really connected with [the] material and was very supportive of me. We were able to collaborate because he showed me so much love and trust, and we really had a great partnership.”
Don’t Make Me Gopremieres July 15 on Amazon Video. It screens at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival June 15 and June 19. Tickets can be purchasedhere.
