Interview with filmaker and model Christopher Wilson

Welcome Mr Wilson, we are very excited to have you today and discuss about your work. Who is Christopher Thomas Wilson and how did the passion for filmmaking start ?

I’m from Miami. I grew up playing basketball and watching movies. These were my two passions. I traveled all over the world from ages 19-35 including four years living in Greece. I played overseas basketball in Mexico and Amsterdam. I am a professional model and commercial actor. As well as an award winning director and actor. I am also a business owner in Miami. Many hats. 

Can you tell us about your previous work?

My first feature was a documentary film about the search for my biological father. He was a world record holder for track representing the country of Jamaica… for twenty years he disappeared and everyone believed he was dead. After two years of searching we found him alive and documented the whole process. The film entitled “You Have His Eyes” went on to have over 30 official selections and won ten major awards and was voted adoption film of the year. As a result I am also a contributing author to a series of adoption books called “flip the script”. The film garnered interest from the likes of production companies like JuVee productions run by Viola Davis and her husband Julius Tennon to maybe turn the documentary into a feature film. Through those contacts I was able to meet prolific producer and director D. Channsin Berry and was delighted to produce his latest project as well as star in a major role in the film. Shot in Greece and starring Dorotea Mercuri as the lead, “Francesca” has just started making the film festival rounds now winning a few awards and achieving 8-9 official selections as of this interview. 

CONVERSATION ABOUT: BLACK AND WHITE

How was your experience filming in Greece and how was the location selected ?

I have lived in Greece about four years and love the country.  I can’t say enough how amazing the talent pool is in Greece both in front and behind the camera. The country is beautiful for filming. However this story is very isolated and it needed to feel that way. The character is hauled up in his home and we needed to find a spot that could front as a disgraced actor's getaway pad. I chose the location for filming because it was the perfect style of apartment for the character and it was my current home in Greece as well. 

Talk to us about your film? How was it created and what inspired it?

The film is based on a story I wrote ten or more years ago and inspired by true life events. I was in a relationship with a woman And we were dating when, in the end, I found out she had accused three men of various abuses and none of them turned out to be true. I found this out because I was the third person she had done that to following a break up. As a result, of her accusations the court system heard the case and filed a restraining order against her for my own protection. My story reflects what would have happened if there had been a different outcome. When I started the production it was exactly at this moment that the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard trial began and the parallels to the story were just insane to me. I had never followed the case or anything up until that point. Then it was impossible not to. 

Why was the use of Black/White selected and what does it add to the story ?

I used the title “Black and White” and shot it in black and white because sometimes in today's world the media and the general public at large pigeon hole things into absolutes, and oftentimes things are not as clear from only first perception. They are often gray, as they say, and not so black and white. I believe these characters in the film; all of them… show that. They are all flawed. And none of them should be judged with a wagging finger. 

Did your team face any difficulty during the shooting of Black and White ? 

The difficult thing about the film was casting. God works in wonderful ways but the lead actresses I was previously eyeing were scared to do the script because of the current environment of #metoo and things. Another one got sick with covid and then boom; Eirini Stamatiou fell from the sky and just completely blew me away. Her performance, even though it basically comes down to one scene, is the whole crux of the movie. Everyone else is there really to gin up her entry and she knocked it out of the park. I can’t say that enough. For her and all the actors. Peter Rundle is a great character actor and voice actor; and Kiki Konteli is a new amazing talent. I increased her role once I knew she could pull off the character in the auditions. 

FUTURE WORK AND CLOSING LETTER

What is the message the audience should convey leaving the screening of your film ?

Really it’s hard for me to tell an audience what they should take away. It’s up to them. Definitely there’s an element in the film about not rushing to judgement always. Sometimes that can be hard when media and culture and social media particularly is breathing down your neck with a narrative. There is NO perfect person in this world. Casting stones and shaming used to be considered a bad thing. Now it’s the first thing. And I understand completely how difficult of an impulse that can be to suppress when someone encounters a perceived injustice. 

What is the target audience of your project ?

I don’t make films for target audiences generally. I just make the film I set out to make and hope it’s received. Good or bad for better or worse. 

Any future projects incoming ? Along with personal aspirations.

I will continue to act and direct God willingly. I have a film in the works in New York at the moment and we are seeking to continue the story of Francesca with director D. Channsin Berry at the helm. I can’t reveal too much more on that project yet. But I’m excited for it. 

That was the interview with our beloved creator Christopher Thomas Wilson. Our community is rising everyday, new talented filmakers and screenwriters get onboard. Be sure to check the rest of our interviews and why not schedule one for yourself to promote your work. To publish an interview simply submit on the INTERVIEW OF YOUR FILM category on our Filmfreeway page.