'The Whale' screenwriter Samuel Hunter gets personal at Palm Desert screening

Award-winning playwright Samuel Hunter never thought his plays would go from the stage to the silver screen. In fact, all he ever wanted was for his work to reach Broadway.

But that all changed with "The Whale," a deeply personal play he wrote in 2012 about a 600-pound reclusive English professor who wants to reconnect with his teen daughter before it's too late. The play showed at Hunter's favorite theater in New York City, and even earned him the 2013 Drama Desk Award and the 2013 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play. He also got more than he bargained for.

At one of the performances was Academy Award-nominated directed Darren Aronofsky, who was interested in turning the play into a film. The playwright said it was "out of any realm of my expectations," but decided to move forward with the idea, even if he didn't believe it would ever come to fruition.

More than 10 years later, he found himself watching the film adaptation of "The Whale," starring Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, Hong Chau and Ty Simpkins, Sunday evening at Tristone Palm Desert 10 Cinemas. Hunter was the sole screenwriter on the project.

"The last few moments are always gratifying," Hunter said, standing tall and quietly taking in the moment at the back of the movie theater.

Palm Springs International Film Society members had the chance to watch the film Sunday before its desert-wide release beginning Tuesday. Once the screening ended, Hunter was surrounded by a round of applause with at least one attendee saying, "It was wonderful," as they exited the theater. For those who stuck around, the screenwriter participated in a Q&A.

Hunter also spoke with The Desert Sun about his personal connections to the story and what it was like seeing it play on the big screen. Palm Desert was the writer's last spot in a short California press tour he was on to talk about "The Whale."

"It's been a really special year in many ways, so it's really nice to end it this way," he said about his visit to the Coachella Valley. Hunter would spend a few more days soaking up the desert sun before heading back to New York City for the holidays.

'An act of self-therapy'

Though "The Whale" is not directly an autobiographical story, many personal details and struggles from Hunter's life made their way into the play.

"It kind of felt like an act of self-therapy to try to figure some stuff out from my own past," he said about the work.

Like the main character Charlie (played by Fraser in the film), Hunter taught expository writing at Rutgers University and struggled to connect with his students because he felt the work he was asking them to do was so anathema to his work as a playwright. At a certain point, just like Charlie, Hunter "got a little desperate" and asked his student to write something honest.

One of his students wrote a line that ended up in the play and movie, which was, "I think I need to accept that my life isn't going to be very exciting." It was a "bracing moment of honesty," Hunter said, which then later inspired him to write a play about a teacher.

There were a few different drafts, but Hunter felt like the story wasn't working. He then decided to take his own advice and write something a little more honest.

As a result, he revisited different moments from his life. Hunter grew up in Idaho (in the same town where Charlie lives) and went to an Evangelical school (much like the one that Thomas (Simpkins), a missionary, attended). But when he was outed as being gay, he had to leave his community. That resulted in depression and manifested into self-medication with food, Hunter said. Eventually, for the love of his husband and family, Hunter found "off ramps."

In "The Whale," Charlie has reached the end of his rope. His weight gain, fueled by the death of his partner, puts him at severe risk of congestive heart failure, but he refuses to go to a hospital. He's pushed almost everyone out of his life, except his nurse and only friend Liz (Chau), and his estranged teenage daughter Ellie (Sink), who carries anger and resentment toward her father for abandoning her when she was younger. Charlie is also frequently visited by Thomas, who believes his mission is to help the teacher. Hunter said even though it is an emotional story, it's also one that's "deeply rooted in joy."

Because the story was so personal, specific and different from anything Hunter had ever seen on stage before, he didn't know if it could be shared with others. But once people became interested in it, let alone Aronofsky wanted to turn it into a feature film, Hunter said it's been "wonderful" to see it find an audience.

When approached to make a movie, Hunter was worried that Aronofsky would want him to "open it up" by adding other characters and storylines.

"We just want to be with this guy, that's the whole deal here. He is front and center and we're living with him. He's not, like so many movies that deal with obesity, off to the side, not a tertiary character, not a one-note joke. He's the star, he's the hero," Hunter said. "To (Darren's) credit, early on without me saying anything, he was like let's keep it in the room, and I think there's very few people on Earth who would have the guts and the ability to do that."

Ever since the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in September, Hunter said it's been a "very head-spinning, wonderful, overwhelming rollercoaster" ride. "The Whale" has earned nominations from a number of organizations, including the Golden Globes (Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama) and Critics Choice Association (Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Young Actor/Actress and Best Hair & Makeup).

"I couldn't be happier with the way that Darren and Brendan and everybody in this cast has made this film," Hunter said. "I truly feel so much gratitude on a daily basis, and the fact that I was welcomed into the production process and was on set the entire time working with actors, it's been a dream. It's almost been like making a play, but just on a totally different scale."

Speaking about Fraser, who has had quite a career resurgence following the film's premiere, Hunter said he knew he was the perfect actor for the role following a script reading. The actor has an "incredible ability to hold deep despair and deep joy at the same moment, which is exactly what this role is," he added.

The screenwriter was not familiar with Chau's film work, but was captivated by her performance in the play "John" by Annie Baker and was excited to learn she would be involved in "The Whale." The "Downsizing" and "Watchmen" actress brought "so much depth, vibrancy and intelligence" to her role as Liz, Hunter said.

The youngest of the bunch was Sink, best known for her performance as Max in "Stranger Things" (or, to Taylor Swift fans, for playing a younger Swift in "All Too Well: The Short Film"). Even though she is in the early stages of her acting career, Hunter said: "I don't know if I've ever seen any actor that age who is in so much control of their craft."

The film has garnered controversy over the use of a fat suit and depictions of obesity. Hunter said he is "not surprised" by the reactions, especially given cinema's history of dealing with obesity, but hopes people make an effort to see the film, not just rely on a short synopsis, and approach it with an open mind.

Connecting with audiences

The best moments for Hunter during "The Whale" press tour and screenings, he said, have been connecting with people and hearing how the film moved them in some way, which occurred during Sunday's Q&A.

An educator in the audience was very emotional telling Hunter how well he portrayed a teacher trying to bring out the best in his students, as well as not giving up on his daughter, who was having a hard time at school. The audience member said she works with difficult students who many turn their backs on, and she appreciated how Charlie never gave up hope that his class or Ellie were capable of more.

Despite his busy career as a writer, Hunter said he still teaches, although it's becoming "more and more difficult."

"I normally teach a playwriting class and there's this real sense of, 'I pay good money to come to this school, so why aren't you telling me how to write a play?'" he said. The educator in the audience also said the quality of work from students has gone down in recent years.

People sharing personal moments from their lives and relating to the film in a number of ways has been a significant change from when Hunter first wrote the play and thought it would be a story only he would ever relate to. During a stop in Santa Barbara, the award winner said he spent a long time talking with a man about what he felt about the film and ended up hugging him several times during their chat.

"I've always hoped that my writing could have some utility for people, and seeing people come to me individually and express that has been unbelievably rewarding," Hunter said.

Aside from "The Whale" playing in local theaters, the Coachella Valley will have another one of Hunter's works spotlighted. One audience member noted that local theater company Dezart Performs will put on a production of Hunter's award-winning play, "A Bright New Boise," in January. Hunter was delighted with the news and said it was the companion piece to "The Whale," as both focus on parents trying to reconnect with estranged children.

Ema Sasic covers entertainment and health in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at ema.sasic@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ema_sasic.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: 'The Whale' screenwriter Samuel Hunter gets raw at Palm Desert Q&A