‘Z Nation’ director returns to Spokane to shoot ‘Daruma,’ which will screen at the Magic Lantern

Spokane immediately popped into Alexander Yellen’s head when he pondered where to shoot the road-trip portions of the film “Daruma.” Yellen briefly pondered locales while in his Los Angeles home while poring over his wife, Kelli McNeil-Yellen’s script.

“But it was evident where we should shoot the scenes on the road and that was Spokane,” Yellen said. “I knew I could shoot a road trip entirely in Spokane.”

Yellen is well aware of Eastern Washington, since it’s been a home away from home for the director-cinematographer since he started work on “Z Nation” in 2014. Yellen was the director of photography and also directed some of the show’s 59 episodes.

“I had some of my favorite professional and personal experiences in Spokane while with ‘Z Nation,’ ” Yellen said while calling from a Hollywood set. “ I really enjoyed coming back and shooting some of the scenes on Williams Lake Road and on the Palouse Highway. Directing part of this film in Spokane was a joy.”

About a quarter of “Daruma,” which is a drama about a bitter wheelchair-user and a double amputee veteran, was filmed in and around Spokane.

“The story has us in New York, Philly, Wisconsin and Kansas, among other places,” Yellen said. “I knew I could shoot an entire road trip movie in Spokane since you have a downtown, which is close to the mountains and you’re close to an area that’s like a desert.”

A huge plus for filmmakers is how laidback Spokanites are when it comes to filming. Locals aren’t typically so patient with film shoots halting traffic in Vancouver and Seattle. However, Yellen was pleased to shoot in a city, which typically lacks hassles.

“It was so great working on ‘Daruma’ in Spokane, since it has that small-town hospitality, even though it’s not a small town,” Yellen said. “People in Spokane are friendly by default. There’s almost no traffic. The atmosphere is welcoming and friendly.”

The same can’t be said for Patrick, played by Tobias Forrest, the “Daruma” protagonist, a cynical veteran, who learns that he’s a father. The mother of his 4-year-old child died and Forrest is the sole guardian. Just when Forrest decides to be a dead-beat dad, he learns a substantial insurance settlement is on the way, if he decides to do the right thing.

Forrest elects to give up custody of his daughter to her late mother’s grandparents. However, the stipulation is that Forrest must escort the child across the country to Rhode Island. Due to Forrest’s physical limitations and fear of flying, he opts for a long road trip. The unpredictable cross-country journey is worth the trip for film aficionados.

The trek is not as long as the 15 years it took McNeil-Yellen’s script to hit the screen.

“Sometimes it takes forever for a film to get made,” McNeil-Yellen said. “I’m just elated that the film was finally made.”

Most of “Daruma,” which will be screened Tuesday as part of the Spokane International Film Festival at the Magic Lantern with a Q&A to follow, was shot in Los Angeles, but many of Yellen’s colleagues from “Z Nation” worked on the Spokane and Southern California scenes.

“We had a lot of old friends who just came to stay with us on air mattresses,” McNeil-Yellen said. “It was such a great experience.”

It’s common for mainstream films about disabled people to feature able-bodied actors in lead roles, but the Yellens went in another direction.

The Yellens for worked with the wheelchair-using actor, Forrest, and a double amputee actor, John W. Lawson. Their disabilities are incidental to the plot.

“They’re front and center, and that’s where they should be,” McNeil-Yellen said. “But when you watch the film, the focus isn’t on Tobias in the wheelchair, it’s on Tobias.”

One of the funniest scenes in the film is when Forrest is attempting to buckle his daughter in the car and Lawson asks if he needs a hand. “Daruma,” which is a Japanese doll, that brings good luck, is not based on a real-life event. McNeil-Yellen was inspired to write the script after a relative was in a car accident and became permanently disabled.

“I noticed how the media portrays wheelchair-users,” McNeil-Yellen said. “It’s terrible. It’s either ‘poor me’ or ‘death is better than living.’ The relative who had the accident was the same person after the accident.

“I wanted to tell a story about a wheelchair-user and tell of the vices and the virtues. Tobias is wonderful in the film.”

Both Forrest and Lawson will be at the screening and so will the Yellens, who always look forward to revisiting Spokane.

“We’ll be in from Monday through Wednesday,” McNeil-Yellen said. “We’ll see as much as possible. Our old favorite restaurant, Sante (Restaurant and Charcuterie) closed. We used to love it there.

“I have wonderful memories of Auntie’s Bookstore. I had a reading there for a children’s book I wrote in 2017 called ‘Sleepy Toes.’ It was a kid’s pajama party and we had so much fun.

“We’re looking forward to reuniting with our editing team. Alex slept on (film editor) Travis Berry’s couch for a month when he was working on the film. He enjoyed being back in Spokane. We’ll have fun no matter what we do. … More people should know that Spokane and Eastern Washington is a great place to make movies.”