BeatRoute Magazine BC Edition January 2019

FILM
IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK
IN CONVERSATION WITH KIKI LAYNE
PATRICK MULLEN
“Of course, I just lost my shit,” laughs KiKi Layne,
recalling the moment Moonlight director Barry
Jenkins offered her the lead role in his new film If
Beale Street Could Talk. Layne plays Tish, a 19-yearold
woman who discovers she is pregnant shortly
after her lover Fonny (Canadian actor Stephan
James) is arrested for a violent rape he didn’t
commit. It’s Layne first role, and she’s a revelation
as the shy, reserved, and resilient Tish. Offscreen,
she’s a bubbly, outgoing, and outspoken delight.
Layne, speaking with BeatRoute at the Toronto
International Film Festival in September, credits
Jenkins and James for making her big screen debut
a breeze.
“I spent so much time investigating who Tish
was and Stephan spent so much time investigating
Fonny. Naturally, in doing that, you start to kind of
tap into that love that they have for each other,”
says Layne. “When we brought all of that work
together, it just blossomed.” Beale Street flows like
sweet jazz as the film cuts back and forth between
Tish and Fonny’s present-day predicament and the
early stages of their romance in 1970s Harlem. It’s
a slower, smoother love story than Moonlight, but
equally poetic.
As with Moonlight, Jenkins’ film demands
natural down-to-earth performances that anchor
the story in reality. Layne, who studied theatre
at DePaul University in Chicago, adds that her
theatrical roots helped with Beale Street’s longer
takes, like a memorable scene in which Fonny
brings Tish to their new loft and encourages her
to imagine their life together. The camera dances
around the young lovers as they move through
their invisible kitchen, pantomiming with the
appliances as they envision the future.
“I pulled from what I knew,” says Layne. “Theatre
was what I knew, and that’s what I brought to the
table. Barry knew how to direct me and show what
works for stage, but for film it can’t be that big or
it needs to be a little tighter – that technical part
you can only learn by doing.”
The star adds that If Beale Street Could Talk
had a special energy on set as the cast and crew
brought to life the novel by James Baldwin.
“From the people very high up to everybody
that was there on set every day knew how special
it was,” reflects Layne. “We knew it meant so much
to be bringing James Baldwin’s words to life and I
think it created this beautiful, supportive family
energy on the set.”
The actor finds it inspiring to be part of a new
generation of artists getting to tell their own
stories. “I’m not too concerned anymore about
asking for anything,” she says when probed on
what she hopes the industry will do moving
forward. “I want to see more people take control.
Whatever type of film you feel is missing from
Hollywood, don’t expect Hollywood to do it. You
figure out how to do it. We’re done asking.”
If Beale Street Could Talk is in select theatres now.
January 2019 33