Céline Roustan
When a freak accident almost kills him and leaves him blind, Nick Mullins finds his life shattered. A young adult with a passion for skateboarding, his outlook radically changes as he has to come to terms with his new way of living and learn to overcome the various challenges ahead. In his documentary short You And The Thing That You Love, director Nicholas Maher captures Mullins’ story through a surprisingly relatable and inspiring lens, crafting a film that strikes the perfect balance between being a cool skateboarding movie and a touching, empowering tale of a man driven by his passion.
Maher came across Mullins’ story in a newspaper article. Contacting him was easy, but at first, the prospect of being the focus of a documentary didn’t have much appeal for the young skater. The pair quickly built a rapport though and ultimately Mullins opened up and decided to share his story with Maher.
“You don’t have to skate or even be a sports fan to marvel at his dedication”
Through his humility and vulnerabilities, You and the Thing that You Love makes Mullins’ very specific journey genuine and universal, with elements that anyone can relate to. Maher elevates his story, but also grounds it in reality, making it all the more emotionally engaging. “You don’t have to skate or even be a sports fan to marvel at his dedication to his craft and relate to some part of his struggle”, the director reveals as he discusses Mullins and why he was inspired to capture his story on-screen.
Skateboarding plays a large role in Mullins’ life and Maher certainly injects some of the cool tropes you’d usually expect to find in skate videos, into his doc. The filmmaker doesn’t shy away from showing the harder parts of his subject’s life though, giving the film real impact, by making his overall positivity feel very organic and inspiring. As we witness Mullins recounting the details of his life-changing accident, and then the aftermath of learning how to live with a disability, we begin to understand how his passion and drive ultimately turns into the engine of his survival.
Archival footage plays a key role in painting a picture of Mullins before the accident
“The biggest challenge for me, as a director, was to put together Nick’s story with good secondary visuals”, Maher tells us about his directorial choices. While the backbone of the film, its story, is already quite engaging, Maher fleshed out his film, complementing the narrative with engaging imagery that give the film its impressive atmosphere.
The use of mixed-media makes the film much more entertaining than the traditional use of talking heads, but it’s also used in such a way that sets the tone, instead of feeling like a cheap gimmick. Since Mullins’ talks about his life before the accident, the home footage is the perfect way to get a good grasp of who he used to be.
Through its visuals, the story becomes even more emotionally engaging, with the editing playing a crucial part in shaping the story and making it so effective (as is often the case with documentaries). With dashes of humor throughout, Maher structures the film in a way that shows Mullins in an empowered yet humble light. Even the cold open appears to perfectly encapsulate the whole vibe of the film, as we’re introduced to Mullins the elements of the story are brought to the screen subtlety without ever being over-sensationalized.
There’s a certain appeal to the visual aesthetic of skate videos, but here it is Maher’s approach that truly makes You And The Thing That You Love stand out and strike a chord. We are excited to feature the film on S/W and equally excited to see what the director will do next.