U2-loving filmmaker finally finds what he's looking for

U2 are kicking off the 30th anniversary tour behind their landmark The Joshua Tree album in Vancouver next week, but the May 12 appearance at BC Place marks another special occasion as well – one with a local angle. For the better part of a decade, BC filmmaker Patrick Stark has been working on One Life No Regrets, a documentary about overcoming his lifelong bout with stage fright. If all goes well, he'll conquer his fears by grabbing a microphone and singing along with Bono and co when they hit the stage next week. It's an ambitious, if audacious, request for one single fan to make to the biggest band in the world, and it should be noted that this will be Stark's third try, following thwarted attempts in 2009 and 2015. Next Friday, he's hoping the U2 concert takes place with him, not without him.
 

"Whatever happens on May 12, I'm very hopeful. At the same time, life is life. " Stark says, on the line from his Vancouver home. When the Westender reaches the documentarian, he's just gotten home from an early morning boxing lesson, a pastime he recently picked up with his 11-year-old son. It's a fitting workout routine, considering he's spent the last eight years fighting for the chance to perform with his favourite band.

Stark's first attempt, in 2009, had him trying to catch U2's attention by setting up a stage outside of BC Place and playing four of the Irish group's songs with some hired musicians. It didn't work.

He came heartbreakingly close to crooning with U2 at Roger's Arena in 2015, getting the okay from Bono during a meeting with the group at Chambar, only to be bumped at the last minute, when the act put together an impromptu tribute to their then-just-passed friend, blues legend BB King. Stark knows there's an outside chance they could pull the plug on this agreed-upon appearance, as well. "You just take things as they come, you know?"

Despite the zen-like approach to next week's concert, Stark has been obsessively tenacious in his pursuit of playing with U2. Now nearly 50, he'd practise singing along to their cassettes in his teens, but could never bring himself to raise his voice in public. Since starting the One Life No Regrets project in 2009, he's made strides at becoming more confident. That said, chronicling singing lessons, getting life-coaching advice from a number of music industry figures, and performing on small stages wasn’t initially part of the plan.

"In the beginning, I decided that I was just going to go from zero to singing in a stadium, because I was fearful of singing at any level in front of anybody," Stark recalls. "If I was going to do it, I was going to do it in the biggest way that I possibly could and put it behind me! I didn't realize it was going to become a lengthy, years-long journey."

Over the years, Stark has connected with local rockers like Bif Naked and Loverboy's Mike Reno to grill them on-camera about their stage experience, and tracked down U2 producers Daniel Lanois and Steve Lilywhite for advice on how to make his dream come true. Their insight has helped him plug along towards his ultimate goal, and flesh out the film's philosophical side.

"I was learning one-on-one from them, not just on performance but how they dealt with nerves and fear, and their philosophies on regret. It was really quite amazing. There was much more to this than what I thought there was in the beginning."

After absorbing those life lessons, Stark has gone on to perform on a handful of stages over the last eight years, including in front of a PNE crowd in 2014. In that sense, you could argue he's already won out over stage fright (so what's the point?). But, even after these smaller victories, he still hasn't found what he's been looking for: the thrill of performing for a sold-out crowd of thousands. Walking across the stage at BC Place raises the stakes to his liking.

"Everybody does karaoke, but how good will I feel having done karaoke? Will I feel like I've risked anything? As they say, without risk, what's the reward?" Stark explains, before adding, "Phobias have stood in the way of a lot of good things that could've happened to me. I was living a safe life, protecting myself and avoiding fear. Avoidance is such a great way to deal with phobias, but at the same time, how is that living?"

The filmmaker allows that his scheme is ridiculous, saying that, initially, in the back of his mind, he was probably trying to talk himself out of it. And he's come a long way since 2009, but, as the ultimate gig looms, he admits still got those butterflies in his stomach. "I would have to say that, even after working for so long on this, I still feel the fear. As I'm talking about it, I'm stuttering – that's the fear coming out." 

As for what song he'll sing next week, that's still up in the air. Being that the show will have U2 playing all of The Joshua Tree – Stark's favourite album – he's focusing his sights on one of its 11 tracks. From the first time he popped a cassette copy of the album into his Walkman during a late '80s family roadtrip, to making countless radio requests for "With or Without You" during his shifts at the Dawson Creek Dairy Queen, to spending time singing the songs in the lead up to the upcoming show, Stark’s had plenty of time to practise for what should be his movie's long-in-the-works final scene.

He marvels: "Just think, to go from singing in the shower and the car to singing with U2 is an epic finish. It's truly the stuff of dreams."