It was recently announced that Calloused Hands, the acclaimed film by Jesse Quinones (of Woolfcub Productions), will be opening the 8th annual British Urban Film Festival. Based loosely on Jesse's own life and starring Andre Royo (Bubbles from The Wire), 'Calloused Hands' tells the story of 12-year-old Josh, a mixed race boy growing up in Miami who lives under the oppressive weight of his abusive step-father. He manages to forge his own path in life when his estranged grandfather insists he study for his Bar Mitzvah. We caught up with the talented filmmaker to find out the motivation behind telling his story, what advice he would give to other writers and directors and of course, what 'diversity' means to him.
Calloused Hands is inspired by a true story, your true story. What made you want to reveal yourself in that way and how did you find the process?
Calloused Hands is the film that I couldn't NOT make. I had been working on the story since 2000 and for 13 years, I was trying to find a way to tell this story. The process was intense but incredibly rewarding.
You have had great exposure on the film festival circuit with Calloused Hands and it was recently announced that Kino Lorber has bought the North American rights. What advice would you give to independent content producers who are trying to get their films, web series etc to a wider audience and even picked up by networks?
You know, I once heard this interview from Lee Daniels, who is one of my filmmaking heroes, and he was talking about how he learned later in his career how to avoid receiving a 'no' for an answer. And I have taken a leaf out of that book. When someone tells me 'no' I don't hear no. I hear 'maybe', 'call me later', 'perhaps', 'try me in two weeks', 'why not', 'interesting', 'OK'. I never hear 'no'. And I'd say that's probably my best attribute beyond whatever talent I may have for writing or directing. And that attitude can be really useful because when you start shopping your film around or you start trying to get it some exposure, you are going to be told 'no' a lot.
What’s next? What’s the plan for you in the next year or so?
There are a couple irons in the fire. I'm in development on my second feature film Carlito y Jane. It's a romantic comedy about a British playwright that falls madly in love with a young Cuban playboy. We have the Cuban ballet dancer Carlos Acosta attached to star in that one. And then I have just recently had another feature film get optioned by Finite Films. That one is a London set sports drama about a cage fighter. I have also been approached about directing a script, set between Bolivia, Brazil, and London. I can't say much about this one as it isn't a done deal yet but the writer is someone a lot of people would love I think. He's Oscar nominated, and responsible for one of my all time favourite movies so I'm hoping it pans out. Then I have a few TV projects in development and I am in post production on a documentary about shoeshine girls in Bolivia. To find out more about what I might be up to best to check my website at www.jessequinones.com
Finally, as we ask all our interviewees, what does diversity mean to you?
Diversity is who I am. My father's Afro-Cuban and my mother's an Irish Jew. I grew up with a deep appreciation for different cultures, and religions, and races. And I believe, almost subconsciously, I ended up working with a real cocktail on Calloused Hands. There were all sorts of cultures there. There were Colombians, and Polish, and Afro Caribbean, and Cuban, and English. And that's something I'd strive for on every project I do.
A huge thanks to Jesse for taking part in the SceneProfiles series. Remember to check out www.jessequinones.com to find out more and follow him on Twitter @JesseQuinones81. Also check out our SceneProfiles with lead actor in Calloused Hands Andre Royo.
Calloused Hands opens the British Urban Film Festival on 5th September. Stay tuned to SceneTV for a full schedule soon. In the meantime, you can find out more about Calloused Hands here.
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