Kasi Lemmons: Talk To Her

Involved with the performing arts since the age of nine when she started acting professionally, Kasi Lemmons has evolved into a writer/director of powerful film making, from her critically acclaimed debut Eves Bayou to her latest film about radio deejay and cultural/racial icon Ralph Petey Greene, Talk To Me. We spoke to Lemmons about the complex and fascinating person of Greene as well as her own intriguing journey and thought process of bringing this film to life.

HHDX: How did you pull off such an authentic 70s-era setting in this film without having it dominate or distract from the story?
Kasi Lemmons: We wanted it to be as real as the times were but not feel forced. Sometimes it helps to be extremely authentic in detail and it helps the audience to go there. Sometimes I think people arent authentic enough. If youre authentic in the details, then its easier to just flow into it. We had a great props person, a great costume designer, Gersha Phillips, I think shes a total star, and a great production designer, Warren Alan Young. We had stacks of magazines we went though as references; watched tons of newsreel and old TV shows; we immersed ourselves in it. Wattstax was like our bible. I made everybody watch it. When the actors came, there would be a copy in their hotel room. Theres a CD I made of music I would listen to. I tried to pull people into the time.

HHDX: How did you decide to become a director?
KL: I went to film school to learn to make documentaries and at the same time I was acting and writing. I started acting professionally when I was nine and by the time I was seventeen, I was pretty much supporting myself as an actor. And yet at a certain point, I didnt feel fulfilled. I felt like I had more to offer so I went to film school. Then, several movies happened for me. I did Silence of the Lambs and I wrote the script for Eves Bayou, not intending to direct it. I was looking for a director to do it. I literally woke up one day with the epiphany that I should do it and at that point, I made a short film, not like the films I made in film school but with a real 35mm camera and a real crew to show the producers whether or not I had the chops. And I made a film called Dr. Hugo and quickly knew that I was on to something, which certain friends of mine had already known when I came out of film school. After I made Eves Bayou, I was pretty certain I had something to offer as a director, as a filmmaker.

HHDX: Which is more fun: acting or directing?
KL: Theyre completely different. Sometimes, when Im directing and you have to make a million decisions and all the pressures on you, you see those actors and youre like Look at them: goin to their trailers, getting their hair done But acting is very painful and elusive and exhilarating and wonderful and I love actors so much. But theres something about sitting back and seeing a film with your whole name on it and its like a symphony. Im really proud when I get to direct a film.

HHDX: Why do you think that when it comes to popular culture, African-Americans always have to stand-in for everyone whereas if a white guy does something stupid, it really only reflects on that individual?
KL: Well its any minority. We feel responsible for each other. After that horrifying shooting [at Virginia Tech] that Korean-Americans felt this sense of Oh my God, whyd he have to be Korean? and we feel like every time theres a crime we feel like Oh God, please dont let it be a black person. You see a black person stand up and say something stupid and youre like Oh man! You stabbed me in the heart! I think thats a natural feeling of a minority. But theres so many white people that you dont have to take on all white people because youre white. Its the luxury of being in the majority. But certainly as African-Americans and any minority that I know, you feel responsible. You gotta represent.

HHDX: And the film touches on that. Theres not a lot of outlets where black people can talk freely among themselves and Petey does that with no fear. Says whatever he wants whenever he wants and it gives people power to talk about those things.
KL: Yeah, the great thing about Petey is hed say something crazy and itd be Here he goes again! But what would be great is that sometimes at the end of a show hed say, Yall are waiting for me to say something crazy but Im not feeling like saying something crazy today. He was really interesting and knew how to use it and do what wasnt expected and if he knew people were expecting it, he wouldnt do it.

HHDX: Theres an interesting scene where after the King assassination, Martin Sheens character weeps openly and it seems like it gets a very mixed reaction and that you gets different reactions based on the market and the city.
KL: We did. This morning I had a conversation about it and somebody was saying that actually because [his character, E.G. Sonderling] had been so conservative and not wanting Petey to go on the air that by him being affected by Petey, it was kind of amusing to them. But to me, it really represents that King wasnt just our loss. It was the worlds loss. To let Sonderling be affected by that just shows that it gets outside of the nuclear experience of African-American loss and says that it was devastating for a whole lot of people.

HHDX: You spoke earlier about authenticity and one of the themes in this film is about how contrary to popular belief, you dont need to sacrifice authenticity for opportunity.
KL: Yeah, [Petey] stays the person that he stays. He really remains at his core. He sticks to himself. I think its really hard to do and really brave to know who you are and what you want. Its something most of us struggle with; so many people in show business are like I want it! I want it! I want it! and they dont know what thats like to be in it, followed around by photographers, snapping your every moment.

HHDX: And yet Petey doesnt seem to have that ambition. Hes happiest when hes just on the radio and thats a very unique position in relation to the demands of THE AMERICAN DREAM and all that entails.
KL: Right, its like Why arent you happy? Youre rich and famous! Its hard for people to understand. Its not even something everybody wants.

HHDX: But shouldnt he be jumping up and down at the opportunity to be on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson?
KL: I think he really rebelled against being packaged. For instance, Dewey told us a story: Hed get Petey in a bar or on stage and his routines were so down-pat he just knew they were perfect. But when he tried to produce a comedy album for him, Petey kind of blew the jokes. He said he must have done it on purpose. But I think Petey just resisted being packaged. Maybe it was something about being in prison that made him yearn to resist that kind of cage. He just wanted to be who he was. And if you really listen to tapes of Petey, you cant really package that. I mean, once you try to clean it up and package it, its not Petey any more. I have copy of his TV show where hes trying to be earnest and its not as good as when hes completely raw and himself.

HHDX: In researching the film, what did you discover about Peteys impact in the field of radio?
KL: With Petey, it was kind of a performance art. It was both very authentic and artistic. So much of it was social commentary but the way he came about it threw it in your face and made you think about it. It was really more about how he felt on a moment-to-moment basis. I think Peteys just an iconoclast and he could have had a lot of respect for anyone who hed say something bad but he expected everyone to have a sense of humor about it. He was always saying, Black people take themselves too seriously! He felt we should all be able to take a joke and look at ourselves and re-examine ourselves and be able to deal with those kind of analogies.

And you had to roll with the punches if you were gonna be around Petey. Dewey said that Petey would haze you just to see if you were cool enough to talk to. He would initially really throw people off track and that was how he saw if you were cool enough. It came from a real story where this reporter came to interview him. And she had her papers and she had her pens and Petey would just say Lemme ask you something and she was taken aback and didnt know what to do, but after that, they were friends. He just liked to stir it up. Hed just be like Let me throw you way off, and when you catch your breath, we can start again. It cuts through the layers of bullshit.

HHDX: It seems like the heart of this story and its emotional core is the friendship between Petey and Dewey. Can you talk a little about how you came to focus on that relationship?
KL: I thought it was a beautiful friendship. Thats what I so admire about Petey and in this story and especially here in the individual courage it takes to say I miss you, or Im sorry. Its very, very difficult to say, especially between two men, but its very difficult for us to say in relationships and marriages, Im sorry. It takes a lot of courage for us to say those things. Dewey cant really say the things that Petey can say because the truth comes easily to Petey.

Don't forget to read the review on Kasi's incredible film, Talk to Me.