00:00What was it like being on set and directing actors?
00:03Like what was that transition like for you?
00:05It was terrible.
00:10It's Noni here for Essence News.
00:12Right now I'm joined by cast, director, and screenwriter for Native Son.
00:17Now we are so excited about this movie.
00:20From the classic literary art from Richard Wright,
00:24it's obvious like why this movie is so poignant right now.
00:28Like with everything that's going on in our current climate.
00:31What do you think Native Son adds to the conversation?
00:34I'm the director, I'll start.
00:38I think it adds something really substantive to the conversation.
00:41In particular the way that we're trying to challenge and tell the story.
00:45And when we get into this kind of micro investigation and deconstruction
00:50of the country and the times that we're living in,
00:53I think we're giving everyone an opportunity to participate.
00:56as opposed to some of this where you have good and evil
00:59and bad people and good people.
01:01This film really doesn't subscribe to that strategy.
01:05This film allows for nuance.
01:07There's a lot of conversation going on these days,
01:09but there's not so much complexity.
01:12One hundred percent, yeah.
01:13And then Ashton, for you, modernizing the role of Bigger Thomas.
01:17What was your approach to that?
01:19Well, Bigger was, he's a human being.
01:21Yeah.
01:22You know, he's a, so I played him like a human being.
01:24I took time with him.
01:25He's deep, he's perceptive, you know, he's multi-layered.
01:30And so I had to spend time with this character.
01:32I had to live in every moment.
01:35Awesome.
01:36And then Nick, so your character, Jan,
01:38so reminds me of like the social justice warriors
01:41that we have right now on Facebook.
01:43How was that?
01:46How was it playing that part in 2019?
01:49Well, I think the fact that you had that reaction,
01:52I actually take as a, as a good thing.
01:54I think Jan is very much that.
01:56And I think that he's a very committed,
01:58but ultimately kind of ineffectual activist.
02:01Social justice warrior.
02:03At least Jan is trying.
02:07He's trying.
02:08No, I mean, I don't want to,
02:09yeah, I don't want to totally cut down on Jan.
02:11Yeah, he is.
02:12He is trying and he has really good intentions.
02:14And then Sanaa, so playing the mom, Trudy, of Bigger Thomas,
02:18like how was that for you?
02:20I was drawn to this character because she is every mother,
02:25every mother that there is that worries about their child
02:29surviving and succeeding and, you know,
02:32specifically the dilemma of the black single mother
02:35and her black son.
02:37And it's a reality that is terrifying for a lot of women
02:41in this culture.
02:42And the idea of my son leaving the house every day
02:47and not knowing if he's going to come home
02:49because of the culture that we're living in.
02:51So we're going to switch gears with Kiki right here
02:53because she is one of four cover stars
02:56for Essence magazine right now.
02:57Oh, yeah.
02:58Woo!
02:59Insert cover right here.
03:00I love the story that you tell about your first role
03:04and how you were reading,
03:06you were helping a friend read for the part
03:07and you ended up getting it
03:08and now you're in Native Son.
03:10Like, you are all killer, no filler girl.
03:12Like, how are you adjusting to, like,
03:14being thrust into fame like that?
03:17Day by day.
03:19I mean, a lot is happening very fast,
03:21but in terms of, I don't know,
03:23me growing as a public figure,
03:25I feel like that's happening gradually enough.
03:28Like, I can still, I don't know,
03:29go to Target and be cool.
03:31Like, nobody like it.
03:32I know who you are.
03:34So, I don't know.
03:36I'm just thankful.
03:37Like, my introduction is, you know,
03:39a part of bringing these stories,
03:40bringing Native Son,
03:41bringing If Beale Street Could Talk to the Big Screen,
03:43introducing a lot more people, you know,
03:46to the works of Baldwin and the works of Wright
03:48and also shining light on the fact that,
03:50you know, although these stories, you know,
03:52they were written so many years ago,
03:54we're still experiencing those same things.
03:56Yeah.
03:57Nothing has really changed.
03:58And so, to be a part of two films
04:00that make us have to talk about that.
04:03Right.
04:04And thinking about techniques of modernizing it,
04:07like, what are certain approaches
04:09that you guys took to bring it to 2019?
04:11There were really quite a few things
04:13that we thought about.
04:15We thought about how we would change the story,
04:17how the story would ultimately be affected
04:19by being in a contemporary context.
04:21We thought about some of the cultural signifiers.
04:24I mean, big cultural signifiers
04:26are different than a lot of people
04:28are likely to expect, you know?
04:30So, he's kind of pushing the boundaries
04:32as to how he kind of introduces himself
04:35to the world and how he situates his blackness
04:38outside of kind of a more monolithic view.
04:40Going from being a studio rat in your own space
04:43and creating, like,
04:44these thought-provoking visual creations,
04:46what was it like being on set
04:48and directing actors?
04:50Like, what was that transition like for you?
04:52It was terrible.
04:53Honestly, it was a personal nightmare for me.
05:00Now, honestly, I see all of these folks as teachers.
05:05To me, they were very much there
05:08for this transition for me.
05:10And although I often acted like I was the one
05:12making the decisions,
05:14I was more often than not
05:15trying to be a great listener.
05:17So, they made this transition
05:19a lot easier for me than I'd expected
05:21that it would have been.
05:22So great.
05:23Well, thank you guys so much
05:24for talking to Essence at the Macro Lodge.
05:26Definitely check out Native Son
05:28when it comes out on HBO.
05:29We'll say soon.
05:30Coming soon.
05:312019.
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