Christians in Cinema

Writer: For One More Day

I had lunch with a friend and co-worker today. We’ve both experienced a lot of death and tragedy in our lives. As we talked, I remembered coming back to my college dorm room after my mom’s funeral. When I walked into the room, the first thing I saw was a partially-finished letter to my mother. I saw her in the hospital, then had to return to school. She died two days later.

She’s been gone for several years, yet there are still moments when I wish I had just a little bit of time with her. And, even now, several years later, I’m learning things about my mother that I didn’t know when she was alive.

If we believe there’s a bigger picture, our behavior changes.

What would you do if you had one more day with someone who has already died? Would it change you or the way you remember that person? That’s the question explored in the new movie “For One More Day.” Premiering on ABC this Sunday, December 9, 9:00 PM Eastern & Pacific, it’s the third film based on a book by author Mitch Albom. Produced by Oprah Winfrey, it follows in the tradition of “Tuesdays with Morrie” and “The Five People You Meet in Heaven,” creating a thought-provoking film about the relationships in our lives.

I had the chance to talk with Mitch for a few moments about the book and film.

Angela: What was your inspiration for the story?

Mitch: My writing routine is to get up and work in the morning. Usually I call my mom to see how she is doing. She lives in Philadelphia and I live in Detroit; we have a nice relationship. One morning I called her and we had a great conversation! I was laughing as we hung up.

Then this wave of sadness hit me as I realized there will come a day when I can’t make that phone call. It made me wonder, what will that day be like? I had almost a physical wave of depression. I recognized the strength of that emotion and immediately stopped writing the book I was working on at the time. I started to write “For One More Day,” which were the first words out of my mouth. When that happens, I know that I will say “Give me one more day. One more phone conversation. One more chance to get it right.”

Ideas and themes aren’t really a problem for me. I never have writer’s block. I think it’s because I came to writing late – I was almost 40. There are many things I talked about with Morrie (Tuesdays with Morrie) that still resonate in my mind. They’re all waiting in my head to be written. I like to create entertaining stories, books and movies, but that have thought-provoking moments. I want the reader or viewer to walk away – not feeling like they were hit over the head with a message, but that I gave them something to think about.

I believe that people who die aren’t 100% gone; that they’re always part of your lives and in your heart. Perhaps you will get to see them again. The son gets to spend one day with his mother, and she shows him a lot of the things he missed in his life.

The message I’m really trying to get across is that I believe we have souls and I believe in heaven. The earthly message is that you shouldn’t wait to say things to people you love while they’re here. If you have issues with someone, clear them up and don’t keep secrets. We often say, “One day we’ll clear all this up. One day we’ll have this discussion.” You don’t always get that one day, and in this story, Charlie wishes he could have that time.

Angela: What did you mother think about the book?

Mitch: She had no idea I was writing it. She didn’t know until I gave it to her. When the first run was printed, I got the first copy off the press and took it to her in Philadelphia. I told her there were lots of things in the book that I should have said. It’s a very personal book because many things in the book and movie happened to me, and my mother recognized that.

It’s actually the first book I’ve written that was inspired by someone real in my life who lived to see the printing of it! I wrote “Tuesdays with Morrie” after he died, so he had no chance to see it. If I get to see him later in the afterlife (I hope), I want to ask him, “How do you think I did? How well did I represent you?”

Angela: Who inspired “The Five People You Meet in Heaven?”

The people we love may die, but the affect they have on our lives remains a part of us.

Mitch: My uncle. He told me one time that he loved the ocean, and he used to think that the waves hit the shore and ended. But then he realized that no, the waves are part of the ocean, and that made me think of how our lives are related. We may die, or people we love may die, but the affect they have on our lives remains a part of us.

Angela: Your stories have common themes of failure and redemption, and some elements of faith. How does your faith affect your writing?

Mitch: My faith is strewn throughout my life, not just my work. In order to write about the things I do – people you meet in heaven, having one more day with someone you love, even Tuesday meetings with Morrie – I have to believe in some sense in something bigger than myself. If we just believe we’re here on earth, then turn into worms when we’re done, there is very little to guide our behavior.

If, however, we believe that there’s a bigger picture, some sort of divine presence, or a God, something that comes after our life, then all of a sudden our behavior changes. The things we do on earth have more significance in relationship to after our death.

We all have to deal with what happens after life, and I’m not trying to say this is exactly how it works – please don’t take me literally – but it’s my way of exploring what might happen.

I do believe we all have significance, and even if we don’t get it, we’re significant somehow.

Angela: This is the third film based on one of your books. Are you satisfied with the production?

Mitch: I wrote this screenplay, but filmmaking is definitely a director’s medium. I didn’t spend a long time on the set, so I wasn’t sure what I’d see with the finished product. I’m happy to say it was very beautiful, moving and personal. There are some really beautiful moments with the two stories running concurrently; Charlie as a boy and as a man. It’s great to see how much you believe the younger actor growing into the older. It was a fascinating process to see 4 different actors handling 2 different roles.

Angela: Thank you for your time, and sharing your stories with us.