Episode 17: Authenticity & Taking Up Space: David Bell's Journey to Making His First Feature Film (Copy)
In today's episode of The Hollywood Dream podcast, I chat with writer and filmmaker David Bell, who shares the inside story of a movie-making experience filled with collaboration, challenges, and self-expression.
In this candid interview, David shares how he and his co-director dived into the process of writing and directing a scene that added a unique flavor to the film. With the co-director taking full control, the scene took an unexpected turn, serving as a platform to explore the intricacies of one of the characters. David discusses the challenges he faced as a young black man navigating different environments and the importance of taking care of oneself. They touch on the struggle of finding his voice without appearing aggressive and the significance of not diminishing oneself. Offering advice to listeners, David encourages them to be true to themselves and find confidence without shrinking for anyone.
The podcast episode also delves into the creative process of David's latest project, a movie he wrote and co-directed titled "$Broke Boi," inspired by conversations with a friend hustling during the pandemic. Their aim is to tell a story about a young black man on a mission without solely focusing on race, believing that portraying different perspectives can bridge divides.
From overcoming skepticism to staying true to his vision, David's story is filled with determination and the power of belief. Tune in to this episode of The Hollywood Dream to hear about David Bell's inspiring journey and discover how he turned his creative vision into reality with unwavering persistence and the support of a dedicated team.
Learn more about David and his films
https://kingdomproductionsllc.com/
Follow David on IG: @bellinyaear.films @brokeboifilm
Transcript
Please note: This transcript is auto-generated, so there may be spelling and grammar mistakes.
Johanny [00:00:15]:
Hi, everybody. Welcome to the Hollywood Dream podcast where we talk to the people that are making film and TV in New York City and all around the world today. I'm here with David Bell. David is a writer and a filmmaker, and he had his latest feature film had its world premiere at the Harlem International Film Festival in May. And then he had a Brooklyn premiere at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival last month, which is where we met. Hi, David.
David Bell [00:00:44]:
Hello, Johanny. How are you?
Johanny [00:00:46]:
I'm doing great. Thank you for being here.
David Bell [00:00:47]:
Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.
Johanny [00:00:50]:
I wanted to ask, how was it seeing your film Broke Boi in front of a packed audience? How did you take the reaction? Was it what you expected? Was there something different? How was that experience?
David Bell [00:01:09]:
I don't actually watch my films when it's on screening, when it's screening at festivals or anything like that.
Johanny [00:01:17]:
I know you left after everyone got in. Yeah, leave, like, afterwards. When people came up to you, what was their reaction?
David Bell [00:01:27]:
I'm not going to say it's always, but it was welcoming. People really enjoyed the film, and I was really grateful for that. Yeah, I mean, it was just like a fun time. I think that's what I want when people see the film is just to have a fun time and have this experience and go on this journey with the character. So, yeah, it was just a fun time. And I like walking in late, kind of towards the end of the movie.
Johanny [00:01:50]:
Make you an entrance.
David Bell [00:01:51]:
Yeah, I time it out enough. We've watched the movie so many times, I know how much time I have to mess around, do whatever I want to do and then come back and kind of come as the movies toward the end. And I kind of catch the tone and the feel of the room and how are you all? Are you at the edge of your seats? That's really what I want. Everything else is just fun, but I want the hook. That's really what I care about.
Johanny [00:02:18]:
And you've done a lot of short films and this is your first feature, right?
David Bell [00:02:22]:
Yes, it is.
Johanny [00:02:23]:
How was that experience going from making short films to a 90 minutes movie, which is like a huge thing.
David Bell [00:02:30]:
Yeah, I'm not going to lie on myself. It's 83 minutes. It's not 90 minutes. I'm not going to lie on camera or live. You can go check that. But it was a fun experience. It was definitely daunting. I think I'm grateful for my team that I had around me. You're just seeing me right now. But Broke Boy is such a larger team. There's so many people behind me that have were right next to me. I'm going to say pushing me forward, but right next to me, walking with me. And that's like Kristen Kirkley Mecca. Medina. Liz Mealy. Stephanie hink. Sadiq Vaughn. So many people, and that's just like a couple like that's, like the main crew. But so many people were there, and they have been with me either in the beginning or have been with you throughout the way. And so when we started it, we were kind of just all like, all right, well, let's just buckle in and let's do it. And everyone had their days. The second or third day, I was ready to lose my head. I was like, Things are not going like, I have set things up and they should be going right. And this is never going to just go right. Simple little things where I'm like, I know I did this right, but it didn't go right, and shouts out to Mecca. She was just like, Yo, this is just an everyday battle. It's not just going to be like, we win today, and that's it. Sometimes you lose a day, but you can't take that as l. You got to learn from what you did that day, and then, how can I change and get better for the next day?
Johanny [00:03:56]:
And you co directed with Medina?
David Bell [00:03:58]:
Yes, I did.
Johanny [00:03:59]:
How was it co directing? Was there ever a time where you guys were disagreeing or something? Or how did you kind of handle things when you both had different ideas and you both want to be heard and you both want your ideas to be executed? How did you guys resolve either a conflict or an argument?
David Bell [00:04:17]:
I don't like conflict on my set. I don't want any conflict because it's something that we're so honored to do. This is what I wanted to do when I was a kid, so I'm not going to bring any of that. And I asked her to do this, so I'm not going to be like, do this my way. I always have to be ready and open for suggestion because my way is not always right. This is a collaborative process. It's not just me here. Even though my face and whatever is on it and my name is on it, it's like, still, there's so many people that help me go forward. So, yeah, I didn't really have that problem. And there were days that she was there, and then she had this way, and then there were days it was just me there, and she shot there's one scene, the lingerie scene, that was kind of my again, like, the hook. I always got a hook. So I was like, Yo, look, I want you to co direct this. And she was just like, okay. Because she didn't really know how she wanted to be a part of it.
Johanny [00:05:10]:
This is the scene, the party where you all have to be in your underwear.
David Bell [00:05:14]:
Yes. So we had written this scene, and it was really, obviously a really fun scene. And I knew what I wanted for the scene, but I also knew I wanted it right. And I was like, man, she wants to do this scene. She wants to really direct this scene out of everything in this movie, this is the fun, juicy part. So I was like, yo, look, we co direct everything. But this day, that's all you. This is your day to show off. So she showed off. She really went off. And if you watch that scene, I love it because it's so different if you really watch the movie, it's so different from the rest of the movie because we are two different directors so much. She's very much like she loves to sit and sit in the moment and still and I'm very manic and just love to see the environment and see the world and sorry, push around. And so you can kind of feel that in the film, and you see that with the characters, and it really helped exploring the characters, especially for Steve's character, ty. Like, in that moment, you kind of get this shining moment of him and you see these two characters kind of have this bonding experience that they don't really get to have throughout the film. And she shot it beautifully. It was really great. Shouts out to Liz as well. And they're, like, really close friends as were just it was funny. It was like, there's a lot of women on set, a lot of in production, and obviously, it was their favorite day. They were just all geeked up. And I'm like, I bought, like, robes for everyone, and no one wore the robes. I was just like, okay, because there's maybe, like, two or three guys on set, and they're just all in lingerie, running around. I was like, all right, do you all want these robes? Or you all would have been like, no, we're good. We're just chilling. That was kind of like the energy throughout the whole process of the film. We can have our disagreements for a second, and we can be like, okay, we want to do this. But at the end of the day, we know we both have the same goal, and we've been working with each other long enough to know our differences and our strong points. And I've learned a lot from her, from shots, just learning how to really place and set up something as my career has gone on. And I think I'm really good, as this film can attest, to just being able to work with a lot of different people and just being able to bring these people together on a single idea and be like, let's just do this.
Johanny [00:07:27]:
I rewatched it last night because I wanted to have it I'm sorry, I hit the mic, too. I wanted to have the movie fresh in my head. And I was going to say it looked really good. Like, the cinematographer did a great job capturing the vibe, and it looked really I love the way it looked. You know how in Hollywood they say a lot of cinematographers have a hard time lighting dark skinned people or just black people in general. You guys look amazing in there.
David Bell [00:07:58]:
Yeah. Shout out to Liz, who is at AFI right now. So she's killing it. She shot this before she went to AFI in the process of so imagine when she comes out, I'm saying, watch out, dangerous right now. And she's like her and Mecca are good friends. They've been friends for a long time and have worked together previously. And we had actually shot a short together over during COVID and it was just me, Liz, Mecca and Sadiq and one other person. And we just shot that together. So we've been working together and Liz is a white person, white woman, but she also understands the purpose to lighting and how to help. That also shouts out to Sierra Lauren, my gaffer, who did us great and lit so many great scenes and made us look good. We had a great collective of people together and to make this film look great.
Johanny [00:08:53]:
So you guys been working together for a while now?
David Bell [00:08:56]:
Yeah, a few of us, yeah. We've had like a little band.
Johanny [00:09:00]:
Is that like your core team? We say what is it called? Remember that group of guys that they always work together in Hollywood?
David Bell [00:09:10]:
The Rat Pack. Yes, I would say that's my Rat Pack definitely we are the troupe, the group, whatever you want to call it. I like to roll deep.
Johanny [00:09:21]:
How did you all meet?
David Bell [00:09:23]:
All different? Yeah. Okay. So me and Kristen have known each other for a while, but not really that close. Just through comedy and improv scene. And we've just kind of known each other and cross paths with each other and had friends of know. And then through someone mutual, we had met and started working together. Mecca Sadiq and Liz Combo Group I got cast in a short that Mecca was doing and then Liz was also on that project as well. She was dping and then oh, sorry. Drink my coffee real quick. Sadiq is Mecca's cousin, so that was like one of those things. So yeah, that's how we all met and kind of started working together. And then me and Stephanie actually went to acting school together. Went to Maggie Flanagan studio.
Johanny [00:10:17]:
She's similar to Esper we were talking about. Yes, I went to Esper.
David Bell [00:10:22]:
Yeah.
Johanny [00:10:22]:
Manny Flanagan used to be an Esper teacher and then she left.
David Bell [00:10:27]:
Yeah.
Johanny [00:10:27]:
So you're a Meisner. We're both meisner.
David Bell [00:10:29]:
Both Meisner. Yeah. Maggie is a very tough lady and I think Meisner teaches you a lot about yourself and the process and the work. So it's been one of those.
Johanny [00:10:39]:
I know. Do you ever miss getting in the closet and emotionally preparing?
David Bell [00:10:46]:
I never got in the closet. I would never go in the closet. My emotional prep was always weird. I think that was one of those things that I had, one of my struggles as learning as an actor because it was such a foreign process to me. And I'm like, what do you mean emotionally prep? And I don't think it clicked until probably the end of my second year, where I was like, oh, okay, because I'm doing something else. I could go in there and I could understand this stuff. And when it was to text, I was so much better when we came to text. But activities, oh, my God, they were so annoying. They were annoying. Now I'll be walking down the street, and my teacher would say he's like, yeah, you're going to walk down the street and think of one? I'm like now I'm like yeah, I do easily but before, I'm like, what the fuck are you talking about?
Johanny [00:11:31]:
I know.
David Bell [00:11:32]:
What do you mean?
Johanny [00:11:33]:
I used to be in the train, just, like, emotionally preparing all day before class.
David Bell [00:11:37]:
Yes. And I would always go first. I would always go first. People are like, what? I'm like, no, I'm getting this out the way. I don't care. I know I'm going first. Because you don't know. He might be in a bad mood. He might be in a good mood. Whatever it is, I'm going to go first. I'm a test of waters. I'm going to see what's up.
Johanny [00:11:52]:
So did she let you volunteer? She didn't.
David Bell [00:11:54]:
Just so I didn't have Maggie. So I had Charlie. He was the teacher under Maggie. And so Maggie came in like, two or three times during my time there. And so we met her and very nice woman, very cool, taught a lot. Like, just you could tell when she talked. I was like, oh, okay. I get why this man is like, my teacher was like, my height, and this woman is maybe like five foot.
Johanny [00:12:21]:
Really?
David Bell [00:12:21]:
Like five foot. And just like, you could tell she's breaking people down without a thought. Just like, that ain't real.
Johanny [00:12:28]:
I know that's how my teacher used to be.
David Bell [00:12:31]:
Ruthless. Ruthless.
Johanny [00:12:32]:
They were ruthless. But I like the training that I got. I thought it was a really good core training just to have. I mean, you should always try everything. Like, even after Esper, I would take acting classes someplace else just to get a little taste of another method. Yeah, but Meisner is a solid one to have.
David Bell [00:12:56]:
Meisner is definitely the one you mentioned.
Johanny [00:12:59]:
You do comedy or you're a comedian?
David Bell [00:13:02]:
I think I struggle with if I am a comedian or not, because I don't think I've done sketch comedy a lot. Done a lot of that. I think that was, like my lead into doing shorts was doing sketch comedy. I was a part of this group called Deadass, and they had just done shorts and would do shorts. And that got me into writing more consistently and kind of finding a purpose and being like, okay, this is the theme of what I'm trying to accomplish with this script. So I think that is something that I still gravitate towards in all of my projects. I think there always has to be some comedy in it because if it's not, like life is funny, like, even in the darkest moments, you will find some laughter in there.
Johanny [00:13:44]:
Yeah.
David Bell [00:13:44]:
And so I think I'm definitely grateful for having that and understanding that. And I think that has brought me along very far. And a lot of the people that I know, that I've worked with, I've met through comedy. So jury is still out. I don't know.
Johanny [00:13:58]:
You took a class for sketch comedy or it was just something that a bunch of friends just got together and decided to do it.
David Bell [00:14:07]:
So I did classes at the I did UCB and then I did the Pit as well.
Johanny [00:14:14]:
I did UCB sketch one and two.
David Bell [00:14:18]:
Okay. I never did sketch there, though. I only did improv when I did character.
Johanny [00:14:23]:
Okay.
David Bell [00:14:23]:
Yeah. And I think the improv was because I was doing that and I was also in acting school at the same time.
Johanny [00:14:28]:
It was too much.
David Bell [00:14:29]:
It wasn't too much. I think they were just, like, kind of playing off each other really nicely. And I was learning. I was able to pick up quicker because I had that freedom on stage or that was the one thing, I think. And that's why I was able to keep pushing myself because I was not understanding anything in that class. I was falling on my face every time. But I had the ability to just kind of move freely when we were up there and I didn't get locked. And when your teacher would start snapping and stuff and respond, respond, I was able to respond. I was always had some part of my upbringing and all that. And then also when I'm on stage, I'm not afraid because I've already done this and I've performed sorry, I don't know if I'm cursed. My bad.
Johanny [00:15:12]:
It's okay. We'll come bleep it out.
David Bell [00:15:13]:
Okay. Yeah. I've performed in basements before with like, three people there. So it's like, I'm not worried about being in a classroom at like, 02:00 p.m.. Someone asked me to respond about something, so I think that helped me push forward. And so yeah.
Johanny [00:15:28]:
You also mentioned you shot some stuff during the pandemic. The short?
David Bell [00:15:32]:
Yeah. Yeah, I went crazy during the pandemic.
Johanny [00:15:35]:
How was the pandemic filming during the pandemic? I was at school at Lau, and during the pandemic, we had to shoot our miniseries. That was part of the program and it was a nightmare. How was it for you just doing and we had, like, the school helping us. They didn't want us there. How was it for you working during the pandemic in a time where everything shut down and you couldn't really do anything?
David Bell [00:16:06]:
Kept it real. Like, Mecca asked me to do a short film first, and that was like the first thing. And it was just me, Mecca, Liz Sadiq and another sound person. So very small know, and the gaffer as well. Another person named Elizabeth.
Johanny [00:16:28]:
You had a lot of.
David Bell [00:16:31]:
I mean, like, it's one of those things where I feel like when you're working, their ego is less when you're working with women. And most of the guys that I do work with, they're just like, we work together, we work together. But I don't know, it just makes it easier just to keep moving and keep working. And it doesn't have to be a big deal. We just all are working towards one goal. They asked me to be a part of that project, and then after that, I was like, oh, we can do this. So then I shot another project with my friends, with Mecca. Directed that one. I wrote it and started it with my friend Ezra. And then same crew. Liz was the DP. That's when Kristen and I started working together with another person. And they said, yeah, I just kept it real know, always feed the like I just make sure everyone is fed because if you're fed, you can be a little happy. You'd be like, all right, cool, I got some food.
Johanny [00:17:31]:
When I first moved here, I worked on this film and those fucking people, we were there for like 8 hours and they weren't feeding us and we weren't even getting paid. I just did it for the experience.
David Bell [00:17:43]:
Yeah.
Johanny [00:17:44]:
And I was so hungry that I'm like, I don't care, I'll be a diva. I'm like, I'm starving. When are you guys going to order?
David Bell [00:17:51]:
You know, you can get so yeah, I think that is what was my goal. And then we shot that and that's how we got into Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. And then as we were doing that, I started writing Broke Boy. And then from there, I also had this short that I had written in 2018 and was kind of just like, we were outside and then someone told me I should just try it again, just do it again. And I started doing it. And so that's when I did Portal, which is one of my favorite little short films that I've done.
Johanny [00:18:22]:
What is that about?
David Bell [00:18:22]:
So Portal is about this young man who loses his father's ring and gets transported to this other dimension where he has a conversation with him. And as he comes back, he's desperately trying to go back to that world and keep talking to his father real quick. Short little thing like family drama. But I got to do some VFX in there, which is really fun. Something that I really enjoy to do. So from there, we kind of did that and then I did that in, I think, like, April, and we shot Broke Boy in August of 2021. Okay.
Johanny [00:18:59]:
It was still kind of pandemic.
David Bell [00:19:01]:
Yeah, it was still kind of pandemic, but things were obviously a little more lax. I'd started working again. A lot of people were kind of working. What's not working. But to be honest with you, I was in a position where I had enough money to pay my rent. I had paid off things that I could do. They were giving us free money. So I decided to take that free money and make art because I'm like, I don't know if I'm ever going to get this opportunity again.
Johanny [00:19:31]:
Exactly. I was so jealous of everyone that was getting the free money because I worked. Like I mentioned earlier, I worked full time, and I was considered essential, so I had to go to work every day. The only good thing about that was I used to take the A to Brooklyn, and every day the A would be packed with people. And once the pandemic happened, I had the train all to myself.
David Bell [00:19:57]:
Yeah, it was mean. My uncle was also working every day before I moved out of there, and he was there every day just going to work. And so, yeah, I saw it as a time when I was like, I've already kind of been on this mission and moving in a place where I want to keep creating, and nothing else is happening right now, and I know I can keep moving in a way that is safe. I'm not trying to put anyone in danger, but I also know that I can't slow down and stop.
Johanny [00:20:28]:
So and as far as casting for Broke Boy, was everyone someone that you knew or you just wanted to work with fresh talent that maybe was out there? How did you approach the casting process?
David Bell [00:20:43]:
Yeah, everyone I pretty much knew yeah, there's maybe, like, maybe two or three people that I didn't really know. Maybe, like, one or two that had speaking roles, I guess. But everyone that had a speaking role I've known and had either worked with or had been associated with in some way. So, yeah, I knew these people. I know how to write for people when I know them and kind of, like, attach what I want to say to their voice, and so it makes it easier for them.
Johanny [00:21:16]:
And we've been talking about broke boy. Can you share what Broke Boy is, what the movie is about? What inspired you to tell that story and explore the hustle mentality in America?
David Bell [00:21:29]:
Yeah. Hold on. Let me get my hey, y'all. Iced coffee.
Johanny [00:21:37]:
I was going to say hydrate, but coffee doesn't really hydrate.
David Bell [00:21:40]:
No, it doesn't. It just gives you a little boost. I've been working all weekend, but yeah. Okay. So Brook Boy is about this weed delivery boy who gets robbed of his stash the night before he owes his weed company. So him and his friends are running around Brooklyn trying to sell weed while still trying to make it to the part of the summer, which is in City Island. And there's a lot of inspiration behind this movie, I think. Me and Steve have been kind of working together for a while I shot music videos with him, we were kind of just, like, writing stuff back and forth. And we just been talking about what ideas are easily done and what can be done, what kind of movie do we like and what kind of want to see. And so that was kind of like the start of that being like, yeah, this is the kind of movie I like. I like kids or after hours. Just like, this person is on a chase for something. I like those kind of movies. So that was kind of that first thing. And then just being in New York City and just constantly having to just try to get somewhere to get something else kind of like, just made me start thinking more. And then I was talking to my friend, and he was just like, yeah, it was during the pandemic, and his homie was just out here and he was doing his thing. He was hustling. He's like, Bro, they're going crazy. And I just started thinking about what happens if here's this guy who wants to do that too. He's here. He's like, I have all the opportunities, I have all the things lined up for me to get there, but I can't get there still. How many people are like that still trying to just chase this dream? And maybe they're chasing the wrong dream, or maybe they're not focusing enough to get to the dream that they think they need to get to or want to get to. And then the floodgate started opening of like, what I Could Do. How could I show that? How could I show a film that portrays a young black man on a mission that might be good, might be bad, but it just talks about what he's going through? But it doesn't have to bring up race every time. It doesn't have to bring up any of this trauma that's linked to other people, but just like a story about.
Johanny [00:23:51]:
A guy just trying to make money.
David Bell [00:23:54]:
Trying to make money everyone can relate to, just trying to make some money, everyone can. And so I wanted to do that. I wanted to make sure that good or bad, whatever, you wouldn't have to feel like, oh, is this movie, like this black guy? And it's not like I don't want to show because it's very much in there and he's still that person. But I think it's important to be able to show that side of us without pinning it on, like, well, this race thing or this race that, because then that just lets more division in it. And it's like, nah, I can be here and talk about this story and you're just going to accept it. And my world is and I think I had a problem with that in acting school, too, which is like I think I don't know if you ever had that problem where activities I think that was one of the things that I'd have a problem with is because the things that relate to me in my world that would bring me to life don't necessarily relate to you in the same way. And it's like just different cultures, different ways of upbringing, and if they don't see that all the time and so I want to be able to show that in way that's just like, it can't be the same thing. You can have the same thing, but we look a little different.
Johanny [00:25:09]:
Yeah, exactly. One of the things that I like about Brook Boy was how you guys use social media and Twitter and how that affected the comedian's character, her relationship with Raquel, with you. What made you want to add that element, the social media element to that to your story. How do you feel about social media now and how it affects relationships?
David Bell [00:25:41]:
It's tough because it definitely affects relationships. Like, you heard the Facebook story on Frank Ocean's thing?
Johanny [00:25:47]:
No.
David Bell [00:25:47]:
What is it on his album where the guy's like, she wanted me to accept him on Facebook. But I'm right know it doesn't matter. They're totally different. Not the same thing regarding my you know, I wanted to put that in there because it was a pillow part to the know. Raquel's character, cheyenne is just kind of like this force, and Raquel is a force in real life, too. So I really wanted to drive that, and I felt like social media is kind of a thing that can help with that. It's just a great device to use, especially in our day and age. It's very easy to relatable to where it's like, yeah, one of your friends is always tweeting and tweeting about their life, and something goes off. And for someone who is actively working to get that, and now it's working, but it's at the expense of your friend, it's like, how do we play with that? And if I had a little more cheese, it's a little more money, then it would have been a 90 minutes movie because I would have expanded her character out because I had so much more for that character. Honestly, I had more for each of the characters because I really wanted to make it just like having showing all these A and having the A story, but having the B and the C and the D story really just combined in a very nice you know, for time reasons. We was like, all let's. A lot of people were like, David, choose a character and focus on that character. And I was like, but everyone like, focus on one. Yeah, but the social media part, I think, is just really important because it does shine a light on what goes on today and how it affects us today.
Johanny [00:27:31]:
Aside from the free money you were getting during the pandemic, you did a seed and spark, and it got greenlit, and you had your whole community help you. Yes.
David Bell [00:27:42]:
Yes.
Johanny [00:27:42]:
And you've done a lot. What type of things do you do to get your community involved to come support Brook Boy? Because I know for Art of Brooklyn, it was sold out, and there were so many people there, and I wasn't a Harlem, so was it sold out as well?
David Bell [00:27:58]:
Harlem was not sold out, but what I do, I think I just put it out there and just pray that people come. I think I'm working on getting better at promoting and bringing more people together. I think I have a lot of ideas, and executing them is something that, again, is like, a team thing. And I'm now working on getting a team together that can actually help me push more of those ideas forward that are in relation to that. Yeah, I just do, like, social media posts. I do things that I think would look cool. It's like, what do I think looks cool? And I'm like, if I feel like it looks cool, then I'm hoping that someone else that follows me and likes my stuff also thinks it looks cool and like, okay, I want to see that. I want to check it out.
Johanny [00:28:44]:
What has been the most rewarding part of being a filmmaker and going to festivals with your feature now?
David Bell [00:28:54]:
Hmm. I don't know. Honestly, I think, like, I'm happy it's I'm happy it's out. I'm happy it's done. I'm happy that part of the process is complete, where I think I can fully say now I'm not nervous saying I have a feature, because I think before I was still in that process and I've talked to people. Some people are, like, editing their film for six years. And I know it's like, I was afraid that would happen with this film because of funds and everything. I didn't want to say I also didn't want to speak that under the universe. Like, I had this thing done and it wasn't done yet. So I think that was, I guess, the most rewarding thing where I could say, yes, we had finished, completed. It's been seen in the public. It's been accepted into festivals. And so, yeah, it's done.
Johanny [00:29:47]:
What is your main goal with Broke Boy?
David Bell [00:29:50]:
The main goal is for distribution. Obviously, I want to get it out to the public. I want to keep going to festivals and just kind of just sell it to get it out there. And then realistically, I would really hope to get backing for the next project. That's really what we want. I already did this. I already done this. So I don't necessarily need not that I don't want money for it, but I would much rather if you're going to give me money and you try and give me some money, give me some money for my next thing, angel investor, then we could do it again. And you're like, look, it's fun. It's a fun movie. And my friends, it is a fun movie.
Johanny [00:30:29]:
I enjoyed it.
David Bell [00:30:30]:
My friends are fun, and we like to make fun movies about serious topics.
Johanny [00:30:33]:
With a light hearted take.
David Bell [00:30:36]:
Yeah, just figure it. Life is already so hard, and we can just do something that means something, or we could just have some fun. We could do both. So that's the goal with Broke Boys is to keep pushing out there, get it seen. Let's go to Europe.
Johanny [00:30:52]:
Have you submitted to stuff in Europe?
David Bell [00:30:54]:
Yes, I have. I have submitted to some festivals in Europe, submitted to kind of just like going online, just kind of submitting. I don't know if anybody knows about film freeway here, but sit on film freeway, kind of look through what you got.
Johanny [00:31:08]:
You have to be careful with film freeway because sometimes there are festivals there that are just a scam.
David Bell [00:31:15]:
Yeah.
Johanny [00:31:15]:
So it's kind of hard. You have to really pay attention and see do your research.
David Bell [00:31:21]:
So I've gotten some advice in that. What I've been told is to obviously do your research and just go on the Instagram and the website and see what that looks like. And I think that's a good way to tell what this festival is and what's going to be happening there. So I've been starting to do that and look more into it. So I'm not just, like, applying to random things because, yeah, we want this film to have a life, and we know it has a life. We've seen the reaction we've gotten from people, just random people that I don't know and then just people that are my friends. So, yeah, we just want to keep pushing that forward.
Johanny [00:31:57]:
And as more people get to see Brook Boy, what do you hope audiences get out of watching the film? What is the main message you would like to convey?
David Bell [00:32:09]:
Stick to what you know, always and always rely on the people that are there for you. I think that's something that we're quick to throw people away sometimes, especially in the Internet age, again, it's like, you know, a different person. I mean, in the film, you see how that affected the character, how that affected Victor. And sometimes we're really quick to just dash, and it's like, okay. And that can be detrimental to you in the long run or in the quick. You don't know. And so, yeah, I think that's something I would like to take away also, just knowing when to take a step back and just breathe, because we do live in this grind culture, and this got to wake up and get on it.
Johanny [00:33:02]:
I know I hate hustle culture, and.
David Bell [00:33:05]:
Hustle culture is there is a need for it in some aspect, but there's also a need for rest. There's also a need to take care of your mental because you can run. Run. But how much of that then does that become like, you just run in a circle. How much becomes the rat race?
Johanny [00:33:24]:
How do you take care of your mental health?
David Bell [00:33:26]:
I'm still figuring that out. I'm still figuring it out. I just try to sit on my couch, watch movies, go eat good food, chill with people that I care about. Yeah, I mean, that's kind of it. I'm working on going out and experiencing new things. I think I've been working on this film for the past three years now, and now I'm able to know that I don't have to wake up and there's nothing that really needs to be done done immediately. It's not, like, in that way. Like, we're out until the next part of the chapter of this work on this film. So there's things that I can do in, like, two, three days so I have a little more time to myself and finding out what I enjoy to do to get back in that process of creation again that's kind of know, go to the museum, watch a movie.
Johanny [00:34:13]:
And you wrote or you co wrote Broke Boy.
David Bell [00:34:17]:
So I wrote broke boy. And then Steve came through and with his gifted knowledge and guided pen, came through and added some tweaks to it. And then I came back and did some tweaks to it. So it's like story by me, screenplay by David and Steve.
Johanny [00:34:31]:
Okay. And what is your writing process like?
David Bell [00:34:34]:
I think it's changing a lot. I think when I was doing Broke boy, I think that's when my writing process kind of changing and evolving to what I'm doing now, which is a little more meticulous, like writing out more notes, kind of giving a lot more backstory to what is actually happening and writing one pages, one sheets of what the story is, and maybe writing two pages outlining, it a little bit more. So that way I can kind of just come in and just drop stuff in on the script. Kind of makes it easier for me just doing all this extra back work so that when I come to the screenplay, the actual format of it, I'm just, like, dropping it in there. So that is the goal for right now. I am not still work in progress. Come talk to me maybe a year, and we see how we go, how it goes.
Johanny [00:35:16]:
We are all a work in.
David Bell [00:35:18]:
Yeah. Yeah.
Johanny [00:35:18]:
So and a masterpiece at the same time.
David Bell [00:35:21]:
At the same time. Same time. Yes. Love that.
Johanny [00:35:23]:
That was Jess King from Peloton. That's her motto.
David Bell [00:35:30]:
Get on that bike. You can do it.
Johanny [00:35:33]:
Do you have any advice for anyone who is afraid to jump in and do a feature? Is there something that you wish you knew before that someone might have told you and no one did, and you found this out through your own experience?
David Bell [00:35:54]:
Probably not, because everyone's experience is different. I think my experience came with a lot of, again, falling on my face or finding out that this person who said that they were there wasn't really there. Trust your gut always if you feel like something's off, because it's hard when you're first starting off for people to even just take you seriously. I think that was one of the biggest things and challenges I had to overcome. Even though I had done shorts and stuff like that, it was still hard for people to be like, oh, we were doing a feature.
Johanny [00:36:25]:
I know, I've experienced the same thing. I told you. I've done a bunch of shorts, and when I graduated, I was looking for work in production. I always got that you don't have enough experience. Even though I've done all these things by myself, all these short films and stuff, it wasn't relevant experience to some people.
David Bell [00:36:50]:
And that's why I say stick with the people that you have with you. Because the people that are there with me, the people that I named, are people that didn't tell me to stop and didn't tell me to slow down. They tell me to keep going, even if they might have been like, hey, do you feel like you need to do this? Because when we first started, they were like, do you want to do just make this into a short and really focus. Bring it down, boil it down, like ten minutes or like 30 minutes or whatever you want to call it. And I was like, It wouldn't make any sense. If I do that, I'm not going to want to do it again. I'm not going to want to make it longer. We're either doing it all the way or we're not doing it at all. And they respected that. They respected me while and out and standing on the chair being like, I got to do this. And I'm not trying to force anyone to be here, but if you want to be here, this is how we got to do it. We got to do it like this. And tell me when I'm wrong and I will listen to you and try to come up with a retort. But if I'm still wrong, I'm wrong.
Johanny [00:37:44]:
Yeah.
David Bell [00:37:48]:
I would just say stick with the people that believe in your story and believe in what you want to do, because that's how you'll get it done. Because that's how I got it done. It wasn't because of any sage advice or wisdom that I wish I had or didn't get. It's not the destination, it's the journey and the friends you make along the way. Come on. That's all it is. Because people did not think I was going to like, they was looking at me crazy, and I understand why they was looking at me crazy. Yeah, I understand that totally now, but I'm very stubborn in a lot of ways, and so I was like, I can do this. We can do like, I know enough people, and this is just like five shorts maybe wasn't it was not that at all. There's so much more. But yeah, if you have people that believe in you and are stubborn enough to keep going forward, you'll find a way to make it happen. Get two jobs, get three jobs, get three or four jobs, work those jobs, and then throw out some money. You know what I'm saying? Pay people here. Give five right here. You know what I'm saying? I'll pay you the next five two weeks from now.
Johanny [00:38:58]:
I feel like as long as you pay them something, people will work with you.
David Bell [00:39:02]:
Yeah. And once we got started, it really became like, people wanted to work with us, and I knew that. I think it was like I felt like at first, people were just like, okay, you're doing this, but are you really doing this? You're just saying that. People kind of felt like I was just saying this. I was like, oh, I'm going to shoot feature. And then I was like, all right, cool. Let me drop this seed and spark. Let me actually try to fundraise money. And we started fundraising. We made some money, and so we made the goal, and they'd be like, oh, you're actually doing this. And once they saw that, they were like, okay.
Johanny [00:39:32]:
It's funny. I'm always nervous about doing crowdfunding, and I did it once, and I was like, Never again. But it's interesting to see the people that do donate. Yeah, because when I did mine this is a while ago, some guy that I bear, like, I met once gave me $100 to make this short, and I was like, oh, thank you.
David Bell [00:39:57]:
It'd be the random people that come out of nowhere and pop up for you. So it's just about staying on the path and keep pushing yourself forward. I think that is what has helped me go forward and just keeping the people that are close to me and that want to see me win, sticking with them and working with them and pushing them forward as well, and putting them in positions where they are now doing big things. None of us had shot a feature before. None of us none of us knew what it was like to do a 20 day shoot. A 24 day shoot. None of us do that. We'd all come in from, like, shorts one day, two days, things.
Johanny [00:40:37]:
It took 24 days.
David Bell [00:40:38]:
About 24 days, yeah. And then we had, like, two, three days of pickup pass after that, like, in the year. And none of us knew what that was. None of us knew what that meant. None of us understood what it meant to like, okay, we have all these extras, and we need all these extras.
Johanny [00:40:52]:
Yeah.
David Bell [00:40:53]:
And there was a day that we had maybe, like, 20 extras, and Stephanie was, like, the head of all of the extras, and she was like, I got everyone. We got them down, like, maybe an hour before the shoot. We got, like, four people, and what do we do? We went outside, and me and Kristen went to different bars, and he was like, yo, we are throwing this party for a shoot for a film. You want to be in it? Just come upstairs. I got you. I'll send you an Uber. There's food, there's liquor. People came. And that scene on the roof, and it looks like there's people up there.
Johanny [00:41:27]:
Yeah, there's a lot of people.
David Bell [00:41:29]:
Wasn't there?
Johanny [00:41:30]:
See, the community came through for you.
David Bell [00:41:32]:
So that's the kind of thing it's like, you got to have people that are willing to fall in their face a little bit for you, too. They got to be able to willing to be like yeah. And with that, you also have to be willing to fall in your face. I think that is something also I learned. You got to be confident in what you're doing as well. And it's hard. We live in an age, in a society where all of these things are just, like, circling around and you see somebody doing something on Instagram, and you're like, oh, well, I'm not doing as well as them, or I don't have that money. But you got to just be confident in what you're doing. Look how many vine and TikTok stars there are.
Johanny [00:42:11]:
I know.
David Bell [00:42:11]:
And it's just off your phone, there's so many things, and it's like, if you focus on what you want to do and this is me talking to myself, too if you want to focus on what you do and what makes you happy, you can go further.
Johanny [00:42:23]:
Did you always want to be in the arts, a creative, either actor, writer, or is that something that just came later in life?
David Bell [00:42:32]:
I think it was always there. Yeah, it was always there. But life is life, and I think it took time for me to actually understand what that meant and what it is. And again, I'm still every day learning how that is and what that is. I'm grateful for where I am now, and I've been kind of, like, looking back. I'm about to turn 30 in November, and I've just been kind of looking back at what my 19 year old self would be doing this summer and what he was doing a couple of years ago and how I feel and how do I look? Can I look at that portal to the back of my life and how far I've come and just be grateful for that? So that's kind of just like where that is.
Johanny [00:43:20]:
If your 19 year old self could see you now, what will he say?
David Bell [00:43:25]:
He's crazy. First of all, he's wilding because my hair is mad long. That's like the first I think I think about that all the time. He's just like, Your hair is that long, bro. What the my parents was not rocking with this when I was younger. We were very strict Caribbean, so they was like, and I do that, boss. Yeah, they don't have the accent like that but they wasn't going for that at that time. And me being able to just step into myself, I think that's something that a lot of people have problems with, especially if you're raised, like I was raised where I'm like, my family is very religious, and I don't think I'm religious. I'm like spiritual. I think just also because of how I was raised. But you have to find ways to express yourself as an artist, and you have that kind of over hovering, like, well, am I going to get judged for doing this? How is this going to react? How is it going to play in the group chat? So that was an experience that I had to overcome after for a while, just being able to not worry about what is happening in that sense and just kind of just be like, cool. So I think my 19 year old self will look at that and be like, that's tight, dog. We're happy. Yeah.
Johanny [00:44:39]:
I have a segment called Fast and Curious where I ask a bunch of questions.
David Bell [00:44:45]:
Okay.
Johanny [00:44:46]:
And then you have two minutes to answer as many questions as you can.
David Bell [00:44:49]:
Let me get some more coffee for that.
Johanny [00:44:51]:
Okay, hold on. The number to beat is 20.
David Bell [00:44:55]:
Damn. All right.
Johanny [00:44:56]:
Okay. And these are questions about you.
David Bell [00:44:58]:
So if you don't know one, I'm not going to try to bullshit you, but I'm also kind of go for this score.
Johanny [00:45:04]:
If you feel stuck in a while, you can just say pass.
David Bell [00:45:07]:
Okay. But the pass doesn't count for yeah. All right.
Johanny [00:45:10]:
Okay. I'm going to start the clock. Do you love or hate surprises?
David Bell [00:45:17]:
Love.
Johanny [00:45:18]:
If you had a time machine, what era will you go to?
David Bell [00:45:21]:
I would go to the future.
Johanny [00:45:24]:
Favorite fast food chain?
David Bell [00:45:26]:
Wendy's.
Johanny [00:45:28]:
If you could have dinner with any person, living or dead, who would it be?
David Bell [00:45:32]:
Albert Einstein. Favorite ice cream flavor cookies and cream.
Johanny [00:45:37]:
Favorite book?
David Bell [00:45:39]:
Black. Rupert. Red Wolf.
Johanny [00:45:42]:
Dogs or cats?
David Bell [00:45:43]:
Both.
Johanny [00:45:44]:
You have to pick one.
David Bell [00:45:46]:
Dogs.
Johanny [00:45:47]:
If you could guess star in any TV show, what would it be?
David Bell [00:45:50]:
Atlanta.
Johanny [00:45:51]:
If you were an Olympic athlete, what would be your sport?
David Bell [00:45:54]:
Sprinter.
Johanny [00:45:55]:
Favorite.
David Bell [00:46:01]:
Some by MF. Doom right now?
Johanny [00:46:04]:
Say that again.
David Bell [00:46:05]:
Something by MF. Doom. That's all I'm thinking right now.
Johanny [00:46:08]:
Favorite holiday?
David Bell [00:46:12]:
Juneteenth. Sure. Yeah.
Johanny [00:46:14]:
Favorite reality TV show?
David Bell [00:46:16]:
MTV Cribs.
Johanny [00:46:17]:
If you are a superhero, what would be your superpower?
David Bell [00:46:20]:
I would be the Flash.
Johanny [00:46:21]:
Coffee or tea?
David Bell [00:46:23]:
Tea.
Johanny [00:46:24]:
But you're drinking coffee.
David Bell [00:46:25]:
Yeah, but that's because I need to wake up. But if I'm chilling tea.
Johanny [00:46:28]:
Bugs Bunny or Mickey Mouse?
David Bell [00:46:30]:
Bugs.
Johanny [00:46:31]:
Favorite season of the year?
David Bell [00:46:32]:
Fall.
Johanny [00:46:33]:
Rain or snow?
David Bell [00:46:34]:
Snow.
Johanny [00:46:35]:
Comedy or drama?
David Bell [00:46:37]:
Comedrama. Comedy.
Johanny [00:46:38]:
Dramedy.
David Bell [00:46:39]:
Dramedy. Thank you.
Johanny [00:46:40]:
How many kardashians are there?
David Bell [00:46:42]:
I think there's like, three.
Johanny [00:46:43]:
No, four. No, it's five. Guilty. Pleasure.
David Bell [00:46:50]:
Sweets. Any type of pastries.
Johanny [00:46:52]:
What's your dream car?
David Bell [00:46:54]:
OOH. Mustang 5.0 from that one. Green with the gold. Daytons.
Johanny [00:46:59]:
Beach or mountains?
David Bell [00:47:01]:
Beach.
Johanny [00:47:02]:
What's your favorite comfort food, soul food, and Jamaican food. If you could be a fictional character, who would you be?
David Bell [00:47:10]:
Sherlock Holmes.
Johanny [00:47:11]:
What's the most memorable concert you've ever been to?
David Bell [00:47:14]:
Asherworld. Damn. How many I get?
Johanny [00:47:18]:
It looks a lot. I think you beat it. Let me see.
David Bell [00:47:20]:
Come on. Yeah. Astro World. I was in a certain kind of state, and the visual effects at that festival were very entertaining. I would say that much.
Johanny [00:47:29]:
You did 23.
David Bell [00:47:30]:
Let's go. What number? Come on. What I say? I'm coming for the title. What I say, bro? Come on.
Johanny [00:47:38]:
You're the winner.
David Bell [00:47:39]:
Now get at me.
Johanny [00:47:41]:
All right, final question. We talked about what your 19 year old self would say to you if you could go back in time and talk to your younger self. Either be 19, 1315. What advice will you give him?
David Bell [00:47:59]:
This is getting personal, poof. I would tell him to just be chill, man. I think, especially being, like, a young black man growing up where I was raised around a lot of black people, and then I kind of got thrown into this world where I have to be around people that aren't like me and just an environment that wasn't what I was used to. Just to take it back, chill, and just be in yourself and your person. I think I kind of just like I am the type of person who kind of retreats into self and kind of like, I'll just be off in the corner. I'm good. I could take care of myself. I'm good. And so I don't need to take up space. I'm 63. I'm tall person, in a sense. So that affected not only my mental but my physical, where I'm not taking up space. And I think that took a long time to train my brain to be like, no, you can take up space. You're allowed to take up space. You might be a little loud sometimes, but you have to learn how to be loud and not feel like you're coming off as aggressive or anything like that. And so that's probably what I tell him. Like, man, there's tips for that somewhere out there, and you can find them. It's going to take some time, but you can find them. And you don't have to shrink yourself down for anybody or anyone, because why would you do that?
Johanny [00:49:28]:
That's great advice. Well, thank you so much for being here.
David Bell [00:49:32]:
Thank you so much.
Johanny [00:49:33]:
If you want people to find you, where can they find you?
David Bell [00:49:36]:
You can find me on Instagram at Belleinyour Films. There's a thing popping up under here.
Johanny [00:49:45]:
Yeah, I'll just put it there somewhere.
David Bell [00:49:47]:
It's like maybe up here. Maybe it's over here. Maybe it's like over my eyes.
Johanny [00:49:50]:
Maybe to your no, this side. Maybe it's on this side. Yeah, right there.
David Bell [00:49:57]:
How do you spell it? So it's B-E-L-L-I-N-Y-A-E-A-R films. That's me. And then also follow a brokeboyfilm at Instagram. That's where we're at.
Johanny [00:50:13]:
You know what? I forgot to tell you. I thought that when I first went to the website Sprouts, I thought that was a real company.
David Bell [00:50:22]:
Yeah, it might be. Who knows? We don't know.
Johanny [00:50:25]:
I was like, Is this real?
David Bell [00:50:27]:
That was the whole point. Again, my marketing is very much like I want to do like you ever seen those old photo ads where the sopranos, they just had, like, a dead body hanging out? I like stuff like that, where it's just popping up somewhere random.
Johanny [00:50:40]:
And I like your little commercial at.
David Bell [00:50:42]:
The beginning, the commercials, that was one of my shiny. I was really excited for that. When we did it, we was like, all right, it's going to look just like this. Perfect. It's like a perfect weed thing, but yeah, no, thank you so much. Can I do something real quick? I have something for you.
Johanny [00:50:56]:
Oh, really?
David Bell [00:50:57]:
Yeah, I do. I just want to thank you so much for having me. So these are some of the shirts we made.
Johanny [00:51:02]:
Oh, I love me a shirt for broke boy. Wait.
David Bell [00:51:06]:
Yeah.
Johanny [00:51:07]:
Hi there. Oh, thank you.
David Bell [00:51:09]:
It's got to die. I dyed it myself in my basement. But this is the thing. You're a broke boy right here. Shouts out and also, hold on on the shoulder.
Johanny [00:51:21]:
Okay.
David Bell [00:51:21]:
Shouts out to Sprout. Boom. Got sprout on the shoulder. I don't know if you can see it. You can see it with the weed company, but yeah.
Johanny [00:51:29]:
Oh, I love gifts.
David Bell [00:51:31]:
Yeah, no, thank you.
Johanny [00:51:31]:
You're my favorite guest now.
David Bell [00:51:33]:
Thank you so much for having me. This is really an honor. I appreciate it.
Johanny [00:51:36]:
That's it for us.
David Bell [00:51:38]:
Thank you.
Johanny [00:51:39]:
Thank you guys for listening. Listening. And make sure to follow the podcast on Instagram at the Hollywood Dreampod. And that's it. We're done.
David Bell [00:51:48]:
Peace. Bye.
