The cast of Moonlight discusses the impact of excellent storytelling

Director Barry Jenkins, Naomie Harris, Trevante Rhodes and Janelle Monae    

Moonlight, the 2017 Oscar award-winner for Best Picture, follows the life of Chiron played by Trevante Rhodes, as he navigates his way through the impoverished streets of Liberty City, a neighborhood in Miami, while also coming to terms with his sexuality. The story is based on the semi-autobiographical play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue by Tarell Alvin McCraney and unfolds through a series of flashbacks to reveal how limited definitions of masculinity rob Black men of their humanity. Rhodes says he went into character as if he were a man who wasn't free to live authentically. 

“The feeling was as if when I connected with someone they would see right through me - they would see the insecurity, they would see all that was frightening to me, and it felt like this weight,” Rhodes says.  “Then I would go home and remember this is just the skin I’m putting on and I could take it off….it was like 30 pounds was lifted off of me. It was just the most unique sensation.”

Rhodes, star of the Netflix thriller Bird Box, prepared for the role by walking around Los Angeles with what he describes as a “disdain for everyone.” It was a part of the psychological training for the role of Chiron, who goes from being a bullied kid to a hyper-masculine Black man hiding his homosexuality. The film is a gift to the Black Lives Matter Movement that was founded by members of the LGBTQIA community says Director Barry Jenkins, who directed the critically acclaimed film If Beale Street Could Talk. Creating a new narrative around Black masculinity is what Jenkins says makes the film important to the Black community. 

“One of the beauties of this film is we get a very rich nuanced perspective of the range of Black masculinity," Jenkins says. "We’re used to seeing the finger snapping gay man, but this film breaks that all open, and so it’s going to spark really powerful conversations about alternative versions of masculinity."

In the film, Chiron finds refuge in the most unlikely places, one of which is Juan, a drug dealer played by Mahershala Ali, who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the film, and his girlfriend Teresa played by Janelle Monáe. The two portray a loving Black couple that provide a safe haven for young Chiron. Chiron’s mother Paula, played by Naomie Harris, is a crack addict, whose verbally abusive character is foiled against Teresa’s empathy. Jenkins says the deliberate juxtaposition of the two female leads speaks to the important role Black women have historically played in  the lives of Black gay men. Teresa is a representation of many Black women who have affirmed young non-gender conforming Black men, and Monáe says that's what makes the character so vital to Chiron’s existence. 

“This film is important for humanity and when I was on set I felt so much responsibility for being an example of how you nurture someone who was having a hard time accepting themselves and how they know themselves to be,” Monáe says. “I’ve spoken about these things in music what it is to be the other or outcast, someone who is discriminated against or bullied because of their gender, sexuality or race.”

The film balances how the two maternal figures influence Chiron’s life. The nurturing spirit of Teresa

The cast of Moonlight wins Best Picture at the 2017 Oscars

saved Chiron, but the drug filled rages of his mother exacerbates the young boy's isolation and struggle with low self-esteem. In those moments Chiron’s world feels hopeless as he tries to manage the effects of his mother’s addiction. Harris, who won Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film, says she only had three days to shoot allotting a short amount of time to capture the intensity of Paula’s character. 

“I knew I had to know this character inside and out because there was no time to shoot sequentially. So, I was jumping backwards and forwards between various ages and stages of crack addiction and rehab,” Harris says. “It just meant that I did a phenomenal amount of research to make sure this character was well under my skin and I had compassion for her because, ultimately, it’s an emotional journey.”

Harris underwent a process of understanding herself to ultimately understand Paula's character. She learned what made Paula tick and and what triggered her emotional reactions. Exploring Paula's unconscious behavioral patterns gave Harris the ability to fully express the complexity of the character on film. The excellence poured into the project was apparent during the screening at Telluride Film Festival when the film received two standing ovations- the first in Telluride Film Festival history says Harris.

“There was this 70 yr old white guy who said he saw himself in the film. There was a young Black girl who came up to me and started telling me about her experience and she couldn't finish because she started sobbing and I ended up hugging her,” Harris says.  “This film just touches people irrespective of race or sexuality. It’s just something that strips all these labels we have tied to ourselves and society applies to us. It just speaks to people’s hearts.”

The poignancy of the movie is universal says Monáe, who views herself as a storyteller before being an actor or musician. The singer/songwriter says there was a responsibility to tell the story in “an unique and unforgettable way.” While filming, Jenkins reminded Monáe that there is no mistake as long as you’re speaking truthfully, it's a lesson Monáe says she hopes everyone takes away from Moonlight. 

“We wanted to do the right thing for our community, not just the LGBTQIA community," Monáe says. "To make sure that when a young boy or girl, no matter their race or where they comes from, after watching this movie, they don’t feel so alone.”