Interview: Harry Lennix on Digital Release of ‘Mr. Sophistication’

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HollywoodChicago.com: For the producers, this is an independent film made what I presume was a tight budget. What tricks did you use to make the film feel as broad and expansive as it did, despite the budget?

Albena Dodeva: [Laughs] Every trick we could find.

Edwards: It’s mostly connections. We have a wide range of connections in most cities, we’ve been doing this since we were kids. It’s about the relationships, and we got a lot of love. People believed in us and allow us a wide range.

HollywoodChicago.com: This film also deals with the complexity of so-called celebrity relationships. Danny, how did you want Ron Waters to remain sympathetic despite his obvious problems with fidelity, and what were you trying to say about the nature of relationships with celebrities?

Green: I wanted Ron’s brilliance, charisma and charm to carry him through – those are his positive qualities – but he also has these glitches in which he carries on with a couple women at the same time and is not honest about it. I wanted to explore his nature in relationships, as he was doing all these great things, moving the world with his passion. If an outside force tries to marginalize that, do they also destroy the positive man or woman?

HollywoodChicago.com: The stand-up circuit is staging a revival, especially in Chicago. What fascinated you all about the lifestyle and work ethic of stand up comedians, and where do you think the best work is coming from recently?

Green: It trips me out to see people get up on stage and make other people laugh, that’s rare. It’s easy to be funny in more intimate settings, but to get up on stage and reveal a part of yourself is challenging on any level. An example of the best stuff was recently in Los Angeles, when we went to the Comedy Store. They had comedian after comedian, but there was an entire line-up that had us in constant laughter.

Producer Albena Dodeva On Set for ‘Mr. Sophistication’ Photo credit: Mr. Smoothie Company

Dodeva: I’d never laughed like that my entire life. They were great.

Green: I’m not saying it’s even just L.A. I think the great comedy is coming from the clubs again, pockets of comedy happening all over the world. That’s where the real comedy scene is happening.

HollywoodChicago.com: There is a fluid use of the n-word in the film, again made prominent by a character patterned after Richard Pryor, who also threw the word back into the culture’s face. Given the complex nature in the use of the word today, why did you want Ron Waters to make it part of his on-stage routines?

Green: Because it just is, it’s a part of it. Personally, the taboo of it isn’t taboo to me.

HollywoodChicago.com: It does go back to the fact, though, that not all could get away with it, like how it changed Michael Richard’s career when he said it.

Green: Yep, he said it and ruined his career. It wasn’t a joke though, he was going off on a rant, which is different. Whites guys, other races, yes, it’s more difficult. But this is part of Ron’s character.

Edwardz: This character is not thinking about what other people think of the word.

HollywoodChicago.com: What are the biggest challenges of producers, when presented a script with so many roles, sets and costume changes? How do you work in tandem with the director to reel it all in?

Dodeva: First, we had an amazing crew, production designer and everything. We were surrounded by great people. But there are a lot of difficulties, for example on day four, one of our trucks which had our wardrobe and make-up stuff just disappeared. We got a call from our unit production manager, and she asked me if I was sitting down, which is never good news. We scrambled, and got everything back in place in 48 hours. This is how good the crew was.

Edwards: When it’s out of the system that is supported by a studio, there is no office to call when something like that happens.

HollywoodChicago.com: Danny, besides Richard Pryor, which comedians influenced the piece and gave Ron his voice, and why do you admire what they did in the comedic landscape?

Green: Lenny Bruce was the other big influence, we had to tap into that, that brand of social commentary. Dick Gregory is fantastic as well. We like that these guys are smart and topical, and topical immediately. Whatever happens with them, it’s about now. I listened to Dick Gregory’s tapes, and he makes even the most mundane subjects part of the story, and always funny.

HollywoodChicago.com: When you formulated your own visual style, what directors influenced you, and what films did you watch to get a sense of how your film would flow in the way it looked?

Green: ‘Butterfield 8,’ lots of Frederico Fellini films, and I did watch Bob Fosse’s ‘Lenny.’ I used some off-angle close-ups from there, and also when I was shooting in the clubs, some of the starkness. That was the visual, we wanted the film to look like a classic movie. We were careful not to put it in a time or place, to give it a sophistication that was timeless.

HollywoodChicago.com: Finally, I’d like each of you to pitch ‘Mr. Sophistication’ in one sentence…

Green: ‘Mr. Sophistication’ is a fairy tale about love in the modern world.

Dodeva: ‘Mr. Sophistication’ helps himself out by using the drama of life.

Edwards: Sometimes a baller has to ball – hopefully we captured that, and we shot it.

By PATRICK McDONALD Senior Staff Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com