David Drake is a first-time director whose debut film, "The Long Haul," will screen at this year's Tribeca Film Festival. It stars Margo Martindale, Stephen Root, Cole Sprouse, and Yalitza Aparicio. Below, Drake discusses why the road to his first feature film was so long and deeply personal.
My debut film is called "The Long Haul," and it stars Margo Martindale. In the film, she plays a truck driver fleeing her past and the prospect of retirement. The film premieres at the Tribeca Film Festival this weekend.
My interest in trucking stemmed from working with my father. He wasn't a truck driver in the same sense as the characters in my film, but for thirty years he drove trucks out of the Hunts Point Co-op Market in the South Bronx. More than 15,000 trucks pass through the market daily. In his early years, he drove a fourteen-foot refrigerated van, then upgraded to a minivan. The market is the world's largest food distribution center and trucking hub. His day began at 4 a.m., when he went there to pick up groceries. He spent the rest of the day delivering them to restaurants, pizzerias, diners, pubs, and bowling alleys in Westchester County.
When I sat down to write this script, my father was just ending his career, so I started with a character about to retire. I really wanted the story to be about trucking, but I also wanted it to be a road trip, so I settled on long-distance trucking because it would allow me to combine both themes. The first step was thorough research. I read numerous books and firsthand accounts, listened to podcasts, watched YouTube videos about trucking, and emailed people working in the industry. I also spoke with several friends who worked as truck drivers or dispatchers.
When we finally began production, it was crucial for me to pay attention to every detail. We filmed in working truck stops and freight terminals. We collaborated with a body shop to build a roadworthy truck for interior shots. Members of our art department had parents who were truck drivers, so the cabins were designed to look lived-in and realistic.
«"Long haul"»
Perhaps the most important part was the work Margot and the other actors did with our consultants on set. Throughout the process, numerous highly experienced truck drivers were present to ensure everything was done correctly. Margot worked closely with the remarkable truck driver Dolores Lozano, who has been driving heavy trucks for decades. I can't say for sure that we did everything perfectly, but we invested a lot of time and effort into portraying the work of a truck driver as accurately as possible.
It was also quite enlightening to spend so much time immersed in this world. The trucking industry is currently undergoing significant changes. Technology and corporate consolidation are putting enormous pressure on individual truck owners. What was once a viable way for working people to make a living is becoming a struggle for survival. Profits have shrunk so much that drivers often lose money hauling freight. In the past few years, hundreds of thousands of truckers have been forced out of business, most of them individual truck owners.
The film industry is a different kind of work with different challenges, but there are broader economic pressures here, especially for those who didn't get into it through traditional routes. I'm self-taught in filmmaking. I came to filmmaking after a rather long and winding path that spanned twenty years. I didn't go to college or film school. I learned the trade in high school, moved out at eighteen, got married at twenty-one, and became a father at twenty-three. I worked a variety of jobs over the years: window washer, stamp machine operator, flyer deliverer, watch salesman, bartender. Finally, I broke into photography and started making short films in my early thirties.
I met my producers in 2019. Six years later, we were on set filming the movie. I couldn't have asked for a better team, and I still can't believe I was lucky enough to work with Margo Martindale on my debut project. She's one of those rare people whose simplicity and ease make you forget their incredible talent. With such a collaborator, directing becomes effortless. I'm incredibly proud of the film we made together and the world it sheds light on.
I'm also thrilled that the premiere will be in New York, and my family and friends will be able to attend. There's also a pleasant surprise at this festival: Hunts Point Market, where my father worked, reopened in 1967 after its original location in Lower Manhattan was torn down for redevelopment.
This old freight yard is now called Tribeca.
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