|
 Oyelowo, known for appearing in
historical dramas like "Selma" and "A United
Kingdom", also acts in the movie, playing the
father of the young protagonist Gunner.
After the family move to a rural town, Gunner,
played by Lonnie Chavis, befriends a local girl
who tells him of the mysterious "Water Man",
said to live in the woods and the two set off to
find him.
Oyelowo, Chavis and Rosario Dawson, who plays
Gunner's mother, spoke to Reuters about the
film.
Below are excerpts edited for clarity and
length.
Q: What was it like to direct your first film?
Oyelowo: "My respect for the difficulty
definitely went through the roof because of the
sheer amount of plates you need to keep
spinning. And where my respect quotient really
went up is actors who decide to direct things
that they are also in. That is a real rub your
stomach, pat your head kind of crazy thing to
embark on."
Q: Was directing a goal?
Oyelowo: "People have said to me 'we're
surprised this is your first film', and I guess
I'm known for more ... historical dramas ... and
maybe ... I’ve gravitated towards that first
because there's a reason I tend to do a lot of
those films.
"But this is the kind of film I loved growing up
... I'm so glad I got to do something that
people seem to be surprised I did."
[to top of second column]
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 Q: What is the film's message?
Chavis: "There's a lot of love, there’s family
... there’s friendship, there's hope ... But
what I hope people will take away is to not take
time for granted."
Dawson: "It's our most precious resource ...
There's so many terrible phrases in our cultural
vernacular, 'killing time' and even just saying
things like 'I'm bored' ... well I'm so sorry to
hear you're so boring because it is such a gift
to be here and to have each other.
"It's terrible that something as devastating as
this pandemic had to hit maybe for a lot of
people to get that. But you see that even with
this family in this story sometimes tragedy hits
and it helps you to prioritize what's actually
important in your life."
(Reporting by Alicia Powell, writing by
Marie-Louise Gumuchian, editing by Estelle
Shirbon)
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