When the Storm Fades

2020 • 80 minutes

About this movie

This is a dramatic feature film with comedic elements and a documentary-style adherence to authentic representation. The script is based on the experiences of The Pablos, a real Filipino family that lost their home and several family members during 2013's Typhoon Haiyan. The Pablos play themselves in scenes that reenact their quiet struggle to recover after the storm. The family’s journey is interwoven with the story of two young Canadian volunteers attempting to play a meaningful role in local efforts to recover from the storm. This white couple is learning the difference between helping and actually being helpful. The Canadian volunteers are played by Canadian Comedy Award-winning improvisers Kayla Lorette and Aaron Read. In order to maintain a uniformed authenticity in the performances approximately 90% of the dialogue was improvised. The reliance on improvisation allowed The Pablo family (who are all non-performers) to naturally re-enact some of their own experiences in the local dialect “Waray”. Director, Sean Devlin's, trust in the improvisational process was based on more than a decade of experience using collaborative improvisation in the writing and directing of live and filmed performances.