Director Q&A — Darien Sills-Evans

Rom Com Fest 2019 included a mix of classic and new movies that are diverse and representative of the genre. To better showcase the new films, we decided to do Q+As with the directors!

Say hello to the director of One Bedroom, Darien Sills-Evans!

Born and raised in Brooklyn, Darien started his film career writing, producing and directing dozens of PSAs and award-winning educational industrials. Directing professionally since he was 19-years-old, he wrote, produced, and directed his first feature in 2001, X-Patriots.

As he wrote “One Bedroom”, Sills-Evans hoped to make a film in which the audience would recognize themselves or someone they knew in the characters, "The film is very Black, but it’s also very universal. These characters could be anyone and in the context of the story, they never actually talk about race. Unfortunately or not, misery in a relationship is something we’ve all seen or experienced. At the very least, I hope that our film can find some laughs and a different point of view to ending romance.”

Q&A

Favorite movie snack?

• Popcorn. Are all of the questions going to be this easy?

Favorite rom com?

• Ok. They’re not going to be easy. The Apartment and Stolen Kisses

Where do you typically find inspiration?

• I don’t usually find it in the same place twice. I just tend to keep my eyes open and feelers out.

What was your inspiration for this film?

• I’ve experienced and collected quite a few breakup stories in my life. I started there.

What about casting? How did you approach finding the right talent for the project?

• The three men playing the barbers were the only actors I’d had a prior relationship with. Everyone else responded to a casting call and went through “the process”.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received, and who was it from?

• Oddly enough people often give me bad advice. So instead I take incredible risks with life and career and just hope for the best.

If you could have anyone (living or dead) watch your film, who would it be and why?

• Billy Wilder, Francois Truffaut,  and Spike Lee. I’ve probably been most influenced by these filmmakers. 

If you got the opportunity to remake a classic, which would it be?

• I wouldn’t want to remake a classic, though I have pitched remakes of Run Lola Run and Nothing In Common.

Any hints on upcoming projects? 

• I wouldn’t want to jinx anything or turn out to be a liar. What I want to make next and what I wind up making are usually never the same thing.