INTERVIEW: Meet Kasi Lemmons - the Director Who Can't be Bought!
"I can’t really be bought. The job is too hard to do it for money. Sometimes I wish I didn’t feel that way, but I do." - Kasi Lemmons“Do not wear yourself out to get rich.” Proverbs 23:4-5. This week’s SC interviewee is writer/director/producer Kasi Lemmons! This woman’s body of work is buttery - both rich and essential. In the early 90’s, she passed GO by acting in notable projects such as, ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ and ‘Candyman’. By the mid-90’s, she had slid into the director’s chair and treated us to the cinema archive staple that is ‘Eve’s Bayou’. In the decades following, her directors hat would stay firmly planted as she would captain the following films: Black Nativity, Talk to Me and The Caveman's Valentine. Most recently she was chosen to direct the Harriet Tubman biopic ‘Harriet’ and the Madam CJ Walker series ‘Self Made’ (also directed by good sis Demane Davis). Lemmons steadfastness in only taking on projects that she could deeply love, encapsulates exactly what Sisterhood Cinema is about. We adored being able to learn more about her and we hope you do too. Enjoy!
//
1. What are some good qualities that you believe have been developed through you working as a film director and/or how has directing made you a better person?
Being a writer, I can be introspective and insular. As a child, I spent a great deal of time daydreaming and reading books - lost in my imagination. That side of me comes very naturally. But, as an actor, I had to present another side of my personality; the performer. That was always more difficult for me and caused me a great deal of anxiety. Directing has developed my people and leadership skills. I have to continually express myself in ways that can be understood and acted upon, both to convey the global vision of the film, but also in all the individual conversations, specific to each department, required to get others to execute and take co-ownership of the vision.
I would say I also have an even greater love for actors as a director than I did as an actor. I appreciate their vulnerability and the difficulty of what they are being asked to do: to be willing to mind their own pain, their own emotions, use their own bodies, to create a character.
I have a deep appreciation for all of the people and talents required to make a film. It makes me want to be a good leader and to never take anyone for granted.
Film-making itself is an exercise in increasing empathy, by exploring the human condition from a variety of perspectives. It forces me to understand and have empathy for people and characters that are very different than me, even those I might otherwise consider villains, without judgement. To look at the world through their eyes.
2. You once said, "The biggest challenges are always getting into the rooms that you need to get into and having people open to the types of stories that I want to tell". From your experience, what is the key to getting into rooms and getting people to be more open to different types of stories?
Getting into the rooms is the hard part. Having done good work in the past helps. Or having been part of a group, workshop or residency that has supported your work. I initially got into rooms because I had a very good script and an interesting short film. Now I get into rooms because of my body of work. It is my job to convince them that I am right for a particular job, even if they might consider it outside of my wheelhouse. Success in the room has to do with being prepared and being a compelling storyteller. Getting them to “see” the movie I am imagining. Allowing them to find themselves in the story. In some ways, the job of the storyteller is to make the world smaller. By being very specific we can also be universal. A good storyteller reminds us that we are are all terribly, fabulously human. We all have hopes and fears, we love our family, we try and fail. Some of us have extraordinary courage, some of us are terribly fragile, or damaged. Then we have to convince the people we’re pitching to that our story is essential. That people will want to come see it and that they’ll be entertained and enlightened.
3. 'Eve's Bayou' was the first feature length film that you directed and it was released over 20 years ago - how have you grown as a director since then?
I am definitely much happier in the process these days. I’ve found the joy. ‘Eve’s Bayou’ was a marvelous training ground, especially for the art of directing actors. I had all of these different artists and personalities, with different degrees of experience, who all needed different things from a director and had very different ways of approaching the work, from young children to a very experienced movie star. I learned a lot in the process of directing them. I think that initial experience has made me much more comfortable with actors. I’ve also become very comfortable with the crew and more able to understand what everyone is bringing to the table.
4. Looking back, is there something different you would have done in your career? Something you would have changed?
Sometimes I think that if I had made different choices, I might be a lot more wealthy or successful. But I am proud that I held strong to my convictions and only took work that I could sustain an interest in. I followed my passions. I never wanted to wake up and not want to go to work. I’ve always been motivated by love, and I’ve done exactly what I wanted. I haven’t gotten every job I’ve wanted, but every job I’ve gotten, every project I’ve worked on, I’ve loved deeply. And that love has kept me from being cynical. I can’t really be bought. The job is too hard to do it for money. Sometimes I wish I didn’t feel that way, but I do.
5. What's your favorite film?
Too many to name.
//
And here is a vid that details her writing process for the ‘Harriet’ script (SN: the line ref. in the vid ‘I go to prepare a place for you’ - is also in the bible **insert smiley face*)
Isn’t she a beast?! What a beautiful and meaningful career to look back on w/ SO MUCH to teach (**fingers crossed for a Masterclass**)! This week, let us review why we do what we do and make sure that we are not solely working for the money, but primarily for the ripple our work will have in the lives of others. Lemmons most recent credit, ‘Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker’ will premiere on Netflix 3/20/2020! #SelfMadeNetflix #SisterhoodCinema