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Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot

Competition 2018
© 2018 AMAZON CONTENT SERVICES LLC / Scott Patrick Green
John has a penchant for off-colour jokes - and a drinking problem. And so, when somebody he met at a party suggests they go on an all-night bender in L.A. he simply can’t refuse. But after falling asleep in a drunken stupor on his drinking buddy’s passenger seat, he wakes up the next morning in hospital, a quadriplegic. Becoming a wheelchair user for life at the age of 21, he now requires every last drop of his sense of humour to rediscover meaning in his existence. He is aided by Annu who brings back his lust for life, as well as Donny, a hippie whose unconventional Alcoholics Anonymous meetings draw together people from all walks of life and help them see things from a whole new perspective. John discovers beauty and humour in the depths of human experience and uses his artistic talent to turn these discoveries into brilliantly observed cartoons.
Gus Van Sant’s biopic is based on the memoirs of cartoonist John Callahan. This is a tender, melancholy yet hope-filled and life-affirming fictionalised portrait of a life of limitations. As in many of his films, here too Van Sant addresses the search for identity in the environs of social subcultures and unusual milieus.
by Gus Van Sant (Written and Directed by)
with Joaquin Phoenix, Jonah Hill, Rooney Mara, Jack Black, Mark Webber, Udo Kier, Carrie Brownstein, Beth Ditto, Kim Gordon USA 2018 English 113' Colour

With

  • Joaquin Phoenix (John Callahan)
  • Jonah Hill (Donny)
  • Rooney Mara (Annu)
  • Jack Black (Dexter)
  • Mark Webber (Mike)
  • Udo Kier (Hans)
  • Carrie Brownstein (Suzanne)
  • Beth Ditto (Reba)
  • Kim Gordon (Corky)

Crew

Written and Directed by Gus Van Sant
Cinematography Christopher Blauvelt
Editing Gus Van Sant, David Marks
Music Danny Elfman
Sound Design Leslie Shatz
Sound Wildfire NYC
Production Design Jahmin Assa
Costumes Danny Glicker
Make-Up Nana Fischer
Assistant Director Scott Robertson
Casting Francine Maisler, Kathy Driscoll-Mohler
Production Manager Dawnn Pavlonnis
Producers Charles-Marie Anthonioz, Mourad  Belkeddar, Steve Golin, Nicolas Lhermitte
Executive Producer Brett J. Cranford
Co-Producer Scott Robertson

World Sales

FilmNation Entertainment

New York, USA

Produced by

Iconoclast

Los Angeles, USA

Anonymous Content

Los Angeles, USA

Amazon Studios

Los Angeles, USA

Photos

Press Conference

Red Carpet

Kai Stänicke

© Florian Mag

The director has a bachelor’s degree in film studies and completed a production management traineeship at X Filme Creative Pool in Berlin. He then worked as an assistant director before going on to direct his own short films. The script for his debut feature film, Der Heimatlose, secured him a place in the Berlinale Talents Script Station and a Wolfgang Kohlhaase scholarship.

Filmography (Filmography)

2011 Cold Star; short film 2012 It's Consuming Me; short film 2013 Gay Goth Scene; short film 2015 Golden; short film · B.; Animation, short film 2018 Circle; short film 2019 Pace; Animation, short film 2026 Der Heimatlose (Trial of Hein)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2026