Moving Beyond the Page

An Interview with writer-director Kyle Laursen

Perspective is a hard pill to swallow. As individuals, it’s easy to get wrapped up in a routine of living only our truths and our circumstances. When we are artists, this blinded view becomes the vision of our art and must be protected at all costs. However, this can become problematic when we are too introverted to see how these truths are evaluated and interpreted by someone else. What may be true to us may be a trauma for others.

That’s the world we step into with Kyle Laursen’s short film Josiah. Brandon (Luke Forbes), an actor of color, auditions for a sizable part in a western that his friend and colleague, Mather Zickel, is working on. This should be an easy audition, the relationship they share should translate easily from personal to professional. That is not the case and this audition quickly begins to test this familiarity because the period-accurate N-word is used several times during the script, directed at the character Forbes is auditioning for. A question begins to form: Is it still necessary to use this appalling word, one seeped in anguish, for the sake of historical accuracy? This is a situation that Laursen has seen, and even participated in, over his career, and it was time to address the question of race and racism head-on.

“Many times discussions about this process do not take place [in production], which can be potentially damaging,” Laursen explains. “These situations force many of us to discover times when a project comes face-to-face with unintentional harm inflicted on an individual.“

There are several contributing factors Laursen believes cause this discussion to be brushed aside; be it flaws of an individual or the creative process, the desire to not rock the boat of a power dynamic, or simply because our society has taught us not to question these types of things. It is because of those reasons that it was important for Laursen to not only address this professionally but internally as well.

“I've been in rooms where I have witnessed something that needed to be questioned, but I too regretfully remained silent for reasons I was attempting to understand throughout the making of this film,” Laursen adds.

Josiah entered the festival circuit when racial injustice was once again at the forefront of real change in our society. To say this came out at the right time might be an understatement. The idea of perpetuating stereotypes in art is not a new topic, but we seem to finally be in a time when the majority is willing to see its importance to the minority.

“Our film definitely ignites conversations about recognizing inequality, bias, and racism. We hoped to point out how unconscious bias and stereotyping can absolutely remain hidden behind positive intentions specific to the Hollywood setting but could also be mirrored inside other industries,” Laursen said. “We hope our project is adding to the current discussion, to identify blindspots behind any creative process.”

It is only when we recognize our own shortcomings that we can work towards becoming a better person. That’s not to say that everyone who watches Josiah will broaden their minds, but being able to place yourself in a situation like this helps you see the other side.

For me, I could see myself in this world because of the set design. The minimalist design opened up a blank canvas that made it possible for me, and hopefully the audience, to imagine what we would do in a situation similar to this. Our inclusion in the situations helped to facilitate change in perspectives. What’s interesting is that my take away from the visual world, inclusion, was not the same as Laursen’s intent, intimidation.

“When we first saw the location, Jenn (Jennifer Gittings, Director of Photography) immediately pointed out how the stark space may feel a bit more intimidating, a nondescript feeling that isn’t exactly inviting and we thought we could play with that,” Laursen explains. “We wanted to amplify the pressures put on anyone who entered with the intent of auditioning and conjure up his or her own creative voice in this type of room.”

While the intention and takeaway may be different, it’s the former that will always cause the latter. Another intention that was piercing, was the way the camera moved throughout Josiah. The way the characters were introduced, the way the audience witnessed the audition process, and the way Josiah’s, or more so Brandon’s, pain was shown through were all powerfully felt through the camera lens.

“We simply wanted to continue escalating the underlying tension and make it inescapable. When we landed in the elevator with Brandon [at the end], we wanted it to feel like something fairly massive had shifted underneath us, even if the complexities made it to where the audience may not be able to pinpoint exactly what went wrong,” Laursen explains.

The camera was free-flowing, creating a vapid yet invasive environment that highlighted the unseen shift in mood. While in the casting room, however, one long take is utilized. This never-ending journey allowed people and situations to be seen or unseen naturally, mimicking real life. The only exception, the one break in the flow, is the moment when the camera cuts to see the footage being recorded on tape. This rawness, the realness, shaped the film’s influence.

“We decided that the most interesting moment to enter into that angle was to see what the producers would see in the actual casting tape performance,” Laursen adds. “The audience of the short film saw the damning context behind the brilliant performance, despite the producers never knowing or being privy to how the performance was achieved.”

The performances were subtle in execution but vigorous in substance. Each accomplished actor brought their distinctive ability to bring life to a layered character. As mentioned before, Josiah uses personal and professional dynamics as ways to push boundaries regarding the subject matter. One may be quick to stand up to a slur in a professional setting, but not think twice when reinforcing a cultural misrepresentation personally. The intricacy of motives brought up through the characters is what makes this film important. For Laursen, seeing these actors represent this complicated dynamic was when the script truly came to life.

“Luke (Forbes) drew me into his innate ability to emote with nearly every inch of his face and being. Kevin (Dunn) understood the reality behind his character, the ease of power someone like his character can resonate, but also the charm and humor that can absolutely add to the magnetism of intimidation,” Laursen marvels. “Mather (Zickel), is someone who possesses that rare ability to instantaneously turn on the effervescence of a showman and then counter in the next moment with a searing, quiet awareness. And finally, Melanie (Chandra) is specific, thoughtful, and in a sense, the beating heart of Josiah. Her ability to come into that room—layered with sincerity and void of provocation—and rattle the men inside, hold the awkwardness and tension firmly in place throughout the film.”

Josiah is more than just a short film, it’s a conversation starter for a topic our society needs to have. Change can only happen if we are willing to have a discussion of our shortcomings, and this film provides that gateway to change. It’s not an easy task, but it is made easier when phenomenal works of art, like Josiah, helps us experience injustice in different situations.

“We definitely wanted to try to explore the most complex situation we could in this short project, which meant we could not rely on the characters in the room to be based on a single thought,” Laursen adds. “We wanted to allow the audience to enter into an experience that allowed them to see these different intentions collide, which might lead certain audience members to recognize their own blindspots they carry.”

Josiah is currently under Oscar consideration for this year’s Academy Awards ceremony.

Written by Lisa M Mejia
Images provided by London Flair PR