00:00I wanted to know, why was it important to tell this story via flashbacks?
00:04Yeah, well, I don't consider it being flashbacks. I feel it's like a pre-sequel.
00:08You know, there's a story that's happening in the present tense with Kiara, played by Blue Ivy,
00:13and Dr. John Connie, who just happen to be both the eldest and the youngest members of our cast.
00:18And then, yes, you're seeing the story that's being told through these characters of a young
00:22Mufasa, a young Taka, aka Scar, a young Rafiki. I thought it was really lovely because in Kiara,
00:28if you're a child in the audience, you're looking, where do I see myself in the film?
00:32You see yourself in that character. And so, as she's evolving and growing from the lessons she's
00:37learning and the stories she's being told, children in the audience are doing the same
00:40thing as they're watching the film. And speaking of Blue Ivy Carter,
00:44what was it about her that made you say, yes, this is my Kiara?
00:48You know, this movie starts purely in voices, and I heard her perform my friend Matthew Cherry's
00:53novel, Hair Love, as an audio book. And I love that in this film, the actress,
01:00it's just about the voice. I don't care what you look like, how tall you are, what your hair is
01:04like. If you can communicate that emotion with your voice, you have the part. She gave a great
01:09audition. And somehow, I just felt like Kiara is the daughter of a king and queen. And I do think,
01:17in some ways, Blue Ivy is the daughter of a king and queen. And yet, she has this really wonderful
01:23humility, a self-centeredness, a self-possession that I found to be really invigorating and rich.
01:29And she just crushed this, absolutely crushed her.
01:31Did you ever think about making her sing for the film?
01:35No, that's Lin-Manuel's job. Nobody can blame me or thank me for the songs they have in this movie.
01:43But no, we didn't. Especially because, in the role that she's in, being the children's eyes
01:49and ears in this movie, she is here to receive and react, and not so much to express the way
01:58the songs do.
01:59What was it like collaborating with Lin-Manuel on this film?
02:02It was really great. I've never directed a musical, and I love knowing what I do know,
02:07and also acknowledging where that knowledge ends. And so I really leaned on Lin and expressed to him
02:12how I wanted to make sure the songs were serving the narrative, and not distracting from it,
02:19not taking away from it. And he really embraced that. And together, we sort of worked on,
02:23why do we need a song here, and how is it advancing the story we're telling?
02:27And obviously, this is a really big franchise that you've stepped into.
02:30So do you see yourself continuing doing those type of films, or go back to more indie-type films?
02:36Why can't I do both? Why can't I do both?
02:38You know, in the span of the time that we've made this,
02:41we also finished The Underground Railroad and put that out, a very different project than this.
02:44And we produced a film called Aftersun, directed by Charlotte Wells, and Aldrich
02:48Rhodes' Taste of Salt, directed by Raven Jackson, and True Detective Night Country,
02:52directed by Issa Lopez. So we're always doing multiple things at once. And the same way Jeff
02:57Nathanson wrote an amazing script that completely took me by surprise, if someone else did the same
03:01thing, because there's so much more story to be told here, who knows?
03:04What do you think the audience is going to be the most surprised to find out on this film?
03:09I don't know if they'll be surprised, but I loved when I first read the script.
03:13You know, there's this notion of good and evil, and we assume that
03:16Taka Asghar is evil purely because he is, and Mufasa is great purely because he is.
03:23And I love the complexity of going through their lives and showing how this choice versus that
03:28choice, this parenting versus that parenting, can kind of put you on the path to where you're
03:33evolving, but you're evolving into the worst version of yourself versus the best version
03:37of yourself. I think it's a really rewarding and rich thing to explore with these characters that
03:42are so intimately connected to so many audiences around the world.
03:46Absolutely, and what do you want people to take away after watching this,
03:49after going home and letting them marinate, what do you want them to take away from it?
03:53Oh, just that this idea of nature versus nurture, you know, and hopefully just through watching
03:58this film, especially with the deep connections we have to these characters when we walk into
04:02the cinema, this idea of nature versus nurture, and maybe looking around in our lives and seeing
04:07how there are so many people around us every day who could evolve to be their best or their
04:12worst selves based on how we treat them. And the last question, we're asking everyone,
04:17what was their favorite movie of 2024?
04:19Oh, so far, The Nickel Boys, 1,000%, 1,000%, point blank, period. You know, I watched it
04:26twice in like three days. Love, love, love that movie. Rommel Ross, he is a true visionary,
04:32a true artist. That film is extraordinary.
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