A meta exploration of a relationship, “Spice Islands,” directed by Nic Murphy, witnesses two actors workshopping a scene that probes deep into their expectations and hopes for the future. We asked Murphy how the project began, what the biggest challenge was, and what comes next for him…

1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?

I got interested in filmmaking through watching movies with my dad and brother, a familiar story obviously, something that bound me to two people I loved so dearly. Lots of creative consumption, discussion, and output in my young life. My (probably) lifelong exploration of "reality/dis-reality" was most likely sparked by reading Kurt Vonnegut's BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS at a formative time and having my mind pretty much blown at the meta-ness of the ending. I think movies are reality via dis-reality, and that's why I love them so much. Obviously they aren't REAL (even documentaries aren't) but they speak to reality, digest it, maybe even more acutely than real life does? Is "real" life perhaps dis-reality via reality? I don't know. Let's circle back here.

I went to school for History, was doing a lot of music video crewing in Minnesota, and then I moved to LA where I am now heavily involved in theater, particularly immersive theater.

2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?

Maybe two years ago, I was directing a play for my theater company (PUBLIC ASSEMBLY) and there was this moment I couldn't get out of my head. It was the day before we opened, in my small apartment, me sitting on the couch, my two actors acting the fight in front of me. At this point, the rehearsing was over, no more "work" to be done - but then what was this moment? Well, it wasn't really for me, the director, since the dis-reality tweaking was finished. It wasn't really for them particularly, because they had it in their bones. This moment wasn't really for anybody. Sure, the audience is still on the horizon and they're still our purpose, but they weren't the purpose in that moment. That moment's purpose was simply about existing and reveling in the deliciously spiced soup of reality and dis-reality that was occurring in my apartment. It wasn't real, but it wasn't fake. Is there a way to put that feeling on film?

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?

We shot about 15 hours of this thing, basically because we simply shot the whole, "real" rehearsal process of PART ONE. While it definitely was a blast, and I do think it worked in the end, this made for a very, very long and semi-hellish editing process that took me around 8 months on and off. The cuts needed to feel in the pocket, as natural as possible to keep the viewer from getting too jarred by the meta-ness, but that's an uphill battle between the hours and hours that were basically each unique. It actually reminded me of documentary editing, perhaps documentary editing of a narrative story.

My favorite part of the creative process is having the projects lifted up in surprising ways by my collaborators. Least favorite, alone in my apartment, staring at a screen and feeling #hopeless.

4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?

ONE CUT OF THE DEAD! Whew, talk about playing with reality/dis-reality in the most fun way possible. If SPICE ISLANDS has two levels of reality/disreality, ONE CUT has three (!) but I don't want to spoil the twists. And it's done so beautifully, with a surprising amount of heart, a real love-letter to the purity and family that is indie filmmaking. A true crowd pleaser which I seriously recommend to pretty much anyone.

5) What’s next for you?

I'm currently directing a live immersive musical downtown LA called CAGES. There's holograms, pop-music, talking moons... My Chemical Romance meets Tim Burton meets Kanye West - so clearly I'm having a heck of a time. I'd say there's definitely another short brewing in me about this reality/dis-reality stuff. Just have to see when it pops out.

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Website: http://www.nicmurphy.com

Instagram: @nharrisonmurphy