February 25, 2021

Alumni Spotlight: Camrus Johnson

Our Interview with Camrus:

Your short film GRAB MY HAND: A LETTER TO MY DAD garnered a lot of buzz on the festival circuit and took home several awards (including the Jury Award for Best Animation at NFFTY 2019!), and it was recently released online to great critical acclaim. What has your experience been like sharing this film with the world?

It has been such an incredible ride. Like I've said since the beginning of it's now-over-50 festival run, Grab My Hand was never intended to be seen by audiences or played on the big screen. I made it about my Dad and for my Dad to help him through a really tough time, and the fact that it's helped so many people around the globe through their own hard times and reminded others to call some of their favorite people has been such a lovely treat. I could't ask for a better past couple years since we finished the short. What a surprising journey it's been.

You have a new short film being released soon, BLUE BISON, which is very different from GRAB MY HAND. Where did the inspiration for this story come from? Was there anything surprising or exciting that you learned about yourself as an artist during the filmmaking process?

Blue Bison is SO different from Grab My Hand! (laughs) And that simple fact alone makes me so excited for people to see it, because it's still so much of me and my voice - just on the opposite spectrum. The inspiration for the story came from a pretty dark place but I've always wanted to create a story/world with teenage leads that were kind of like Batman, heroes without powers. Nothing ever truly inspired what that story would be until one week, the word "rape" became a very real thing in my life, after one friend admitted to having been raped by someone that I knew years before and another friend having been attempted to be raped at a wedding. In both cases I felt so helpless because people I cared about had been harmed and there was nothing I could do about it. So after toying with the idea of how there is no one to call when a civilian can do nothing and a cop won't do enough, the Blue Bison came to life in my mind.

I learned quite a bit from the filmmaking process, but one is that it's pretty dang hard to direct and act at the same time!! (laughs) We had so many shots to get in such little time, every time I was on camera it was hard not to either think "Dang this is so cool, I'm finally doing this" or "I hope this shot is working cuz we have to move on after this take."

When you're not working on your own projects, you star in the Batwoman series on The CW. What brought you to the role of Luke Fox? What has been your favorite part of working as an actor on this series?

Batwoman is just such a fun show to work on. The superheroes’ supersuits, the superviliians, the comic book fans, the stunts, the Batcave!!! My favorite part of working as an actor on the show is that I just get to play - I get to have fun in this world that is grounded within its larger-than-life limitations and that's a freeing feeling. What brought me to this character is the fact that he turns into a really awesome superhero in the comics (Batwing) and I really want to be able to suit up one day - not only for the fun of it (and to finally do awesome stunts!), but also to give little black kids everywhere one more black superhero to look up to.

You're a writer/director/actor/singer/comic book creator extraordinaire, and we could probably add even more to this list! Did you always know what you wanted to do professionally, or have you discovered new interests from your time in the industry?

I learn more and more about what I love to do in this industry and what my strengths, weaknesses, interests and hobbies are every day. Acting came first, then singing a year later, then I directed a sketch comedy show a few times but had no interest in taking it further then that, then writing (film, poetry, comic), then producing, then directing. Most of those things I never, ever imagined myself doing or being any good at but my world of acting has introduced me to so many new passions of mine that I can't see myself letting go of any of them anytime soon. I'm at a point now where doing multiple jobs at once keeps me sane and hungry for the others, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Do you have any advice for young actors or other working artists who want to pursue their own passion projects, the way that you've been able to? Any tips on how to find collaborators for personal projects?

From one kid from the south who grew up thinking that people moved to the big city to pursue their dreams was only a thing that happened in movies, but then did it and am living my dream, my advice is that if your heart is telling you something - listen to it. Forget this mentality that you need to have a backup plan or that you need to have each step planned before making a big jump, because you don't. What you need is to put your all into whatever it is that you want, what you need to start sprinting toward - and when I say sprint I mean it. Don't look back. You'll slow down when you need to, take a water break, enjoy the view, but then you start sprinting again - because there is no "I want to be an actor" there is only "I'm going to be an actor." There's no one way to do it, we all hit it from different directions. Your story is your story and yours only, so start writing it the way that you want it told.

As far as tips for finding collaborators, you can meet artists and creatives that connect to you and your vision from basically anywhere. Always be open to people with good energy, surround yourself with creators of art that you respect, and hone your own art to a point that you're impressed with what you've done so that you are constantly challenging yourself in a way that others trust your eye. My collaborators are currently an acquaintance from high school, a regular at a restaurant I was a waiter in, and an awesome animator I saw on instagram. There's no key to it. OH! Lastly, great artists want to work on great art. When you have a personal project in need of collaborators, make sure it is as perfect as can be so that you are presenting something that is undeniable and an artist would almost feel silly to say no to it.

How has NFFTY impacted your life or career?

If I'm not mistaken, I won my first festival award(s) from NFFTY! And it was also the first film festival I have ever been to. So in that regard, NFFTY showed me how excited and supportive the festival world can be. I met some incredible young filmmakers that I still admire, made some pretty freaking cool friends, and I witnessed firsthand that age means nothing when it comes to a filmmaker having keen and unique vision.

What's next for you?

I'm working on a couple short anthology comic books, I'm adapting a book into a movie, and I'm looking at films to act in between the end of shooting Batwoman Season 2 and the beginning of shooting Batwoman Season 3!