Nick Hamm directs Marcia Gay Harden in Gigi & Nate, a story about a family overcoming tragedy with the help of a capuchin monkey. When Nate (Charlie Roe) becomes paralyzed due to a tragic accident, his mother Claire (Harden) seeks out an unconventional service animal - a primate by the name of Gigi. As Nate and Gigi bond, the community begins to question the roles of animals in people's everyday lives, while Nate and the rest of the Gibson family must fight to retain the one thing that is giving them hope.

Gigi & Nate also stars Josephine Langford, Jim Belushi, Zoe Colletti, and Diane Ladd. The film is based on a true story and is written by David Hudgins.

Screen Rant sat down with Harden and Hamm to talk Gigi & Nate, including Gigi's diva-like antics on set, the core message of the movie, and why they were reluctant to sign on in the first place.

Charlie Rowe and Marcia Gay Harden in GIGI & NATE — Charlie Rowe and Marcia Gay Harden in *Gigi & Nate*

Nick, can you talk a bit about how you found this story of Gigi & Nate, and what made you want to bring it to the big screen?

Nick Hamm: When I was told about it, I didn't want to do it, as Marcy will testify. And I think when she was told about it, she didn't want to do it. Because you never really want to investigate your professional life when you're working with an animal. Because it's really difficult. It just doubles up everything. I mean, the normal chaos on a film set and trying to get actors to find truth in a moment is compounded by and made much more difficult when you're working with a live animal.

At the beginning, I didn't want it, but then I read it, and I worked on it and I read the story. And I started to understand the background. And I realized it was the most extraordinary, fresh, new idea. And I wanted to understand more about the relationship between an animal and a disabled person, and what that relationship can bring to both partners. And so we kind of dived in, and the movie is this wonderful debate about how we now deal with animals, how we work with animals, not just in our business, in the entertainment business, but outside of that, and our entire relationship with that. And so that's what we're trying to do, I suppose, encourage that debate and encourage that conversation.

Gigi also formed a relationship with the rest of the family and brings out good qualities in everybody. Marcia, what was it like working with the monkey? Were there any particular challenges that came up while you guys were filming?

Marcia Gay Harden: Yeah, I had to push her out of the way from my clothes. She was very adept and very intelligent, and she quickly grasped what it meant to be an actor in all the perfectly great ways. But also in some of the diva ways - she was demanding her close-ups. I was like, "Will you be in your trailer, Ms. Gigi?"

But what I also found was that there were these two stories that are happening. One is this story of the relationship between humans and animals and how we can have this synchronicity in this lovely love and caring and nurturing relationship. And the other is what happens to a family when they're met with disaster and the worst thing in the world happens. Everything a mother, a father, a kid would never want, your child is hurt, and the rest of their lives will be affected by it. You have to look at that child every day and you feel that pain for them.

It was about the human spirit, how we conquer that and choose to move on, and what we choose to do. It's sort of that sink or swim. And it's easy to say, but it's so hard to do because it's much easier to be like, Oh, I'm a victim. And that story that Nick found, it's a true story. And so that family kind of showed us what it meant to be their heroes in so many ways - everyday ordinary heroes. And there are so many of them - veterans and other people with illnesses and paraplegics. And just it showed me the blessings, honestly, it really does.

Were you guys able to work closely with the family to develop the portrayal of Nate and Gigi's story?

Nick Hamm: In the beginning, I talked to them a lot and talk to the character Ned who was somewhat based on. But the movie is based on a couple of different characters in that world, if you like. And so Charlie talked with them and researched with them. I went to the organization that supplies the monkeys and looked at how that worked.

And in the end, we really did our homework, and we really understood what this means and what this relationship means. This is a unique relationship, an absolutely unique and fresh look at what we are doing now, with our relationships with primates, with service animals, with animals, when we're destroying half the habitat that they live in.