Allow Me To Introduce You
Last October an independent film by the name of Dear White People was gifted to the world. A film so self-aware that it was hard not to take notice. Months later, the Justin Simien film hasn’t ended its run on the list of conversation topics amongst Hollywood, college campuses, and living rooms. And the same could be said about its star Tessa Thompson, a multi-racial Californian and a budding leading lady.
Today the Dear White People star has had one hellueva day, and the grandfather clock above my workspace hasn’t even reached noon. On this December morning, Tessa Thompson has announced the nominations for the NAACP Imagine Awards. To others a job, to her an honor. “I thought it was probably going to be an opportunity to get to say the names of some people that I admire. And it was!” she says, the excitement clear in her voice. “The only two black directors that I’ve worked with Justin Simien and Ava DuVernay took home some nominations. So it’d say it was a pretty solid morning.”
Simien, director and writer of Dear White People attended the predominantly white Chapman University in Orange Country, CA. His experiences there as a black face in a mostly white place were the inspiration for his debut film. Thompson one of the comedy’s vessels plays Sam White a bi-racial student at the very Ivy League Winchester University. White’s humorous on-campus radio show lends the satire its title. The outspoken character takes it upon herself to instill some boundaries at her school. Using her voice to gather the support of her fellow black friends. But that isn’t the full extent of the character by any means. Sam White is refreshing, independent, and honest and like all humans, conflicting. It is the type of character that sends airwaves and penetrates through the tiresome, been there done that nature of Hollywood films.
We got really lucky that Dear White People made a splash in Hollywood and that’s been great for all of us,” says Thompson. “Its changed the terrain and certainly put us on the map, which is really exciting. “But I think what is most exciting about the success of Dear White People is that when we were at Sundance we were so happy to be there, but we felt like we were the little movie that could. Justin would say the little black movie that could,” she says, unable to stop her giggles. Having household names like Sarah Silverman and Questlove to name a couple, voice their appreciation for the film over the internet is definitely a gesture that has not been overlooked by Thompson, or the massive success the film has garnered overseas, either. She says above all else, in the context of Hollywood it’s a testament to the hunger for such a film, certainly in the black community, but also in some unexpected places, too. “There’s a myth, this idea, that movies starring people of color don’t travel internationally, and we have fans from Scandinavia, which has got to be one of the whitest places in the planet.”
At 31-years-young, Thompson embodies the strength and gravitas of her Winchester University equivalent. Especially when it comes to the meaning and
reach of art in modern society, or ever for that matter. “With me, I think as much as media is a reflection of a culture I think it actually creates culture. So it’s been great being involved in two projects that have important things to say and important questions to ask,” says the actress. “ I loved playing Sam White, someone who struggles with her identity in a colorful and heartwarming way. If I would’ve seen a movie like that when I was in high school it might’ve helped me a bit. All sorts of girls come up to me, all kinds of people, telling me what the character or movie meant to them. There’s an incredible amount of power. Even if the movie has no political values. Just seeing someone who looks like you, who speaks like you in a narrative is a really powerful thing.” It doesn’t take much to see why Justin Simien saw Sam White in Tessa Thompson. An individual that holds the same charisma and intelligence as the on-screen early 20-something.
Thompson may not have gathered friends in protest, but she certainly went through the same woes as the rest of us during her formative years in a Santa Monica high school. “I’m multi-racial, and that hasn’t been a huge struggle for me,” she admits. “The high school I went to was very racially diverse. There was someone from every which place. But there were definitely pockets where I felt the segregation. And the more you fit in; it gets tricky trying to figure out who you are in relation to what people talk about or what people see in us.” Such a statement could not be more relevant in light of recent current events that mirror accounts from our nation’s civil rights movements in the 1960s. The Interweb has been used more than ever to post opinions, “like” posts and share article after article. In all its 21st century glory, technology is the good, the bad, and the very clickable ugly. Naturally, someone like Tessa Thompson is apprehensive about such things. She tells me she has a love/hate relationship with social media, deeming the Internet both inspiring and heartbreaking. “As a public figure you have the chance to use this platform. People like Ava DuVernay who do it right inspire me. The Internet can connect us in ways so that we can have dialogue that passes country lines and race lines in a way that can be very valuable.” Unfortunately this isn’t always this case. “For me you have to sort of take pause,” she confesses. “There’s this animosity to this retweeting culture where we retweet things without giving a thought to the implications or really making sure that we’re being as informed as we can be. I have a really touch and go relationship with social media.”
Of course, Thompson’s role following her Dear White People success is nothing short of inspiring. She plays the delicate Diane Nash in Ava DuVernay’s masterpiece of a film Selma. The drama follows the very brave Martin Luther King (David Oyelowo) and his supporters during the civil rights marches of Selma, Alabama. Continuing on Thompson’s path of luck, she had the very rare chance of meeting the woman she portrayed in the 1960s set film. It was during a screening of the project that Thompson spotted the original Diane Nash sitting a couple seats before her. “I spent a fair amount of my time, kind of watching her watch the movie, and that was such a trip, really, reveals Thompson. “We made this movie to honor the legacy of all these incredible peers and to bring it into context today, to show the fans the sacrifice that were made so that we can live
the way we do. So, it was tremendous to have Diane say, I’m proud of you and for her to like the film. It made me feel like I could breath easy. To me, Diane was the person whose opinion I cared about the most.”
The real Diane Nash born in Chicago, Illinois in 1938 is 76 years old today and is described by historians as “bright, focused and utterly fearless.” She’s the kind of woman to make moves, and she did just that as a leader and strategist in the Civil Rights Movement. For Thompson, the name Diane Nash is one that she both knew about and heard about, but wasn’t necessarily aware of her story within the movement the way one would be with Dr. King or Malcolm X. “It was really just incredible to hear about this woman and learn about this woman who at the time was 21-years-old and effectively started desegregating the lunch counters in Nashville and then the busses in the south. What was I doing at 21, you know?” she asks jokingly. Thompson praises the sacrifice those that came and fought before her like Diane Nash, saying the film served a reminder our incredible responsibility and power; as individuals and as a community and society. “She [Diane] has this incredible lightness of being and spirit and she’s really such an angel. Which is what I felt like I saw in all the footage but then I got to witness it firsthand. Her son kept making jokes that I was his mom. If at possible, that experience alone made me even more proud in being involved with the movie.”
As if Selma didn’t have driving force, one-woman powerhouse Oprah Winfrey co- stars alongside Thompson and a pack of leading Hollywood actors. Though too many to name, they won’t and don’t disappoint. Winfrey looses herself in the role of Annie Lee Cooper, as well as producing the much-needed film. So how is Actress Oprah VS. Talk show Host/Network Owner/Publishing Queen/Big-buck maker Oprah? Thompson says she’s just authentically Oprah, always it seems. Winfrey Thompson says connected the dots, made the phone-calls to the family members, making them feel good about the film and her involvement and essentially gave way for production to begin. “I’ve read some critics say, and I think it’s so true, she disappears. For someone like Oprah, who is arguably one of the most important and famous women not just in the country, but also in the world. Being able to seamlessly fall into this story of this woman who is broken in some ways, and struggling and not completely sure of herself, was crazy to watch.”
She particularly remembers one day on set, Oprah’s first day, where hundreds of extras were present at the Tony Courthouse for a march scene. The extras oozed with excitement to be standing at close proximity to thee Oprah Winfrey, except not a single soul could spot the matriarch. “No one but the actors knew what she was wearing, because we’d been in rehearsal previously, so no one could find her. She was just one of the many people trying to stay out of the heat, with an umbrella and fan occasionally. She was just preparing for the scene. At one point, someone yelled Oprah to get her attention, and you could see everyone collectively realize where she was standing. She yielded that with so much humility and kindness, and gracious. I thought that was just such a great moment.” The humanization of Oprah if you will, did not stop there. “When we
would get our per diem, she’d be excited like everybody else. She’s just a woman. Which just reminds me of how incredible we can be when we are our best selves. She doesn’t walk around with the air of nothing else than just a person.”
Thompson is one of those rare faces and talents that comes along and saves us from the one-trick ponies of the entertainment industry. With a voice so kind and genuine, she offers the vibe of a very kind and interesting neighbor. The neighbor we watch and so desperately wish to be like. But what does she say? “At the end of the day for me, everything is all just filling. We’re just people.”