A Tale of Two (More) Lynches

photos and text by Chris Saunders

October 26, 2007

Anyone who even knows me vaguely knows how much of an admirer of
Lynch’s work I am. For me he’s the only creative person in any artform
who over the last 20 years (and if we don’t count Dune, 30 years) has
managed to create a body of work that no one else has come close to
equalling in its consistency & vision. Many would disagree, fair
enough, but anyway, I’m right.. After wanting to photograph him for
years, & early this year it almost happening, yesterday it
*finally*did.

A very topsy turvy day began with the guy who arranged the shoot
ringing me at the station to say he wouldn’t be at Lynch’s hotel to
meet me because his father had passed away the previous night. Oh
dear.. A great bloke who’d gone out of his way to set this up.
Got to the hotel after the extreme nerves throughout the day had
finally turned into giddyness to be told on reception that they had no
record of the meeting and they couldn’t find the guy who I’d been told
to ask for.

The guy (who had *very* deep set eyes & who Truax later says is the
epitome of a flaky Californian, though he seemed perfectly pleasant
though in a “won’t take any bullshit” way) eventually turns up &
says that the amazing room that I was told we were going to do the
shots in, (it looks like something out of Twin Peaks – The Sanderson Hotel Billiard Room)
was no longer available and that we’d have to do the shots in Lynch’s
hotel room. Also that things are behind schedule and won’t have as much
time as originally planned. *Extreme* nerves kick in as I realise that
all my military precision planning of how I’m going to do the shots has
just waved goodbye and I’ll now have to wing it. Shit…

So off we go into the lift (forgot to mention that as well as Dave
Woodcock & myself good ol’ Thomas Truax was along to help/be a
gibbering fanboy) & up to the room where we are greeted, surreally,
by Donovan. A very nice bloke, he warmly welcomes us in to a rather
nice, though very cramped, white room. Lynch is outside on the balcony,
I quickly survey the room & come to the terrible conclusion that
it’s completely unsuitable to do any sort of shot in.

Lynch comes in, “Hiya, how y’all doing?! Great to meet you!” in his
chipper, nasally voice. Shakes us all by the hand, with a cheeky smile
on his face. “So, where do you want me!?!” Er…. I’m now almost
hyperventilating thinking all this is going to be ending up with a crap
pic if I do it in here. I’m now well out of my comfort zone as far as
any sort of photographic endeavour I’ve done is concerned.

So, out on to the balcony, it has to be done here. Thing is, it’s very
cramped, full of chairs & tables, a sun lounger, & surrounded
by bushes. Not ideal at all. Start setting all the gear up. The wind
picks up & starts blowing the light over, I can’t find the flash
lead…oh dear. Eventually get set up, do a quick test shot of Dave (it
only looks adequate), and am ready to go as I’ll ever be, Lynch comes
out. Am told by his assistant “5 minutes”. Yikes…

Ok, nerves disappear, I give him the pack of American Spirit cigs I’d
gotten him as an icebreaker & start doing the shots, telling him
what to do. (Dave later tells me what I cheeky c**t I was giving David
Lynch directions ) He does as he’s asked & it comes together almost
straight way after moving the light forward. Dave on light holding
duties, Truax operating the flash behind Lynch’s head & the look of
the shot is, quite amazingly (this almost never happens), spot on
immediately.

Shots done, I thank him for his time, great to meet you etc. “Oh, can
we all have a pic taken with you?” He laughs as it obviously dawns on
him (if it hasn’t already) that this is a fanboy outing. “Sure”. Do the
shots, thank him again & he goes back into the room. I quickly scan
the back of the camera, shots look well. Then I realise – he’s a
prolific smoker, why the hell haven’t I got at least one of him with a
cig on the go? I look into the room, Lynch is being interviewed now,
and is smoking. Do some shots of Donovan, they go well.

His assistant is on the phone but keeps looking over to see if we’re
getting a shift on packing away. So we pretend to pack. Interview’s
over a few mins later. “Er…David” I say, “any chance of getting a few
of you smoking?” “But I’ve just had one!” But he comes out, picks a
half smoken cig out of a plant pot, & sits back down again. Do five
more shots, I look on the back of the camera after the 5th one &
smile. “You got that one dijnt ya?!” “Yep” I reply, “it’s a belter”.

Pack all the gear away. Truax drops a clanger with Donovan mentioning
that someone they both know (apparently the keyboard player in
Donovan’s band on the irregular occasions he has a band) is getting
married at the weekend. “He never told me!” Oh dear.. I thank Lynch yet
again, & exit to the corridor where Dave & I high five in
embarrassingly English style. And then off to the pub we went….
Phew…

I’m really chuffed, these are the first couple I’ve finished…