Writing      Producing      Casting 1   2    3   4      Prod Design 1    2       On the Set 1    2    3   4                          next >> When it was published in 1994, A Father’s Story offered unique insight into one of this century’s most notorious serial killers. In it, Lionel Dahmer grappled with the question of how his failures as a father might have contributed to Jeffrey’s lust for sexual atrocity. The book’s eloquent, disturbing honesty was hugely appealing to writer/director David Jacobson. "By the time I’d finished reading I knew there was a movie in it for me because, not only was there an incredible suspense story, but there was a great emotional story, too." What shocked Jacobson most about A Father’s Story was how much Dahmer’s childhood resonated with his own, both having been upper middle class, suburban teenagers with scientist fathers, whose parents ultimately divorced. "There was a strong sense of emotional isolation in the book, which is a recurring theme of mine because I felt that way growing up. So Jeffrey’s story became a metaphor for that kind of isolation, because I can’t imagine anyone being more cut off from the rest of humanity." David Jacobson and Jeremy Renner on the set As he researched the subject more thoroughly – pouring over books, transcripts and interviews and reviewing Court TV’s coverage of the trial – Jacobson came to see the very common motivations behind Dahmer’s monstrous acts. "Like all people, Jeffrey needed communion with others, but given his total sense of powerlessness, he needed a closeness that didn’t threaten him. Killing and necrophilia were the terrible compromise solutions. In telling this harrowing true story, I wanted people to see the difficulties of intimacy: the need for it, the wonder of it and the terror in it." Writing every morning for two weeks, Jacobson crafted a moody, non-linear psychological crime drama that eschewed the gory conventions of drama by focusing on carefully selected events and relationships in Dahmer’s life. "In most films like this, the serial killer is an implacable evil hunted down by a righteous agent of justice. But to me, a man driven by human emotions is more frightening than a monster ever could be, because he’s shown to be one of us."       next >>