5 Questions with Nyles Washington
1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?
I started writing my senior year of college, after staying on my good friend Eli Weinberg’s couch. I initially went to school for acting, but my friends and I needed reel material upon moving to Los Angeles. So the quickest way to fix that issue was to make a film.
2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?
While I was staying on Eli's couch, I was doing nothing but hanging out, and drinking for the entirety of two weeks - and Eli indicates that I need to do something with my life. Initially, I told him I was going to make a movie. He immediately shot it down, and told me I wasn’t capable. Thus igniting OBB [Other Black Boys]!
Initially, it was a story about a platonic relationship between two long time friends, and their process of patching things up after they’ve outgrown one another. Then, once I really started delving into what I was trying to say, the concept of sexual fluidity came to mind. Being from Texas has a lot to do with my insecurities in traditional masculinity, and I wanted to make a piece dedicated to the folks who don’t understand how their ignorant words can affect those around them.
Once I had an oddly-paced 30 page script, I brought it to our producer, Mackenzie McMahon, and she loved the idea. I was moving from Austin to LA within 5 months. She immediately took OBB for what it was and we hit the ground running on production. After that, Eli and I, along with our writing and producing partners Rama Tchuente and Alexis Roberts, all ripped apart and rebuilt the script until it was what it is today.
3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And generally what part of the creative process do you enjoy the most, and the least?
The biggest challenge of making the film was staying away from being too preachy and convoluting the narrative. Considering it was the first piece of a screenplay I had ever written, naturally I wanted to talk about everything that I had an opinion about. So deciding what themes we wanted to go with was probably the most difficult.
My favorite part of the creative process is definitely writing. I enjoy creating dialogue and reading it in the room so much. There’s just something about creating a world, throwing circumstances at it, and seeing the different tactics from person to person.
I hate post production. It gives me the creeps.
4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?
La Haine by Mathieu Kassovitz. My roommate is the biggest inspiration that I have for film, and before meeting him I knew nothing of the classics. Ever since he introduced me to La Haine I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. The tone, the character arcs, and the political stance is all something that inspired me as a writer/director.
5) What’s next for you?
For the last couple of months, I’ve been working with a production company called Clocked Inc., on developing a narrative program comprised of shorts on dealing with themes that mean a lot to me. Through that, I have a couple of passion projects that I am working on myself having to deal with religion and masculinity, with a bit of inspiration from anime.
Also, acting. I'm thrilled to continue to work on the craft, but there’s something in the film world for me that I’m excited to find.
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IG: @nyleswash
