Following our review of director Lacey Schwartz’ new documentary Little White Lie, we got a chance to chat with her and gained more insight into her very personal film which uncovers the secrets in her family regarding Lacey’s true full parentage. For Lacey, what binds the film together is how people deal with denial: hers, her mother’s own (their current relationship is fleshed out below), her father’s and relatives own, and even audience members own.
Little White Lie, which has played internationally, made its New York City premiere this past Sunday at the DOC NYC film festival and repeats on Wednesday, November 19th at 10:45am at the IFC Center. And starting this Friday, November 21 the film will begin its theatrical run in New York City before spreading out to other parts of the country. Details can be found at: www.littlewhiteliethefilm.com/screenings
Curtis John: How has the reception for the film been? In particular, have there been different reactions with different festival audiences, i.e. Black majority audiences vs. White majority audiences?
Lacey Schwartz: The reaction has been amazing. And we intentionally did a diverse range of festivals. The universal theme of denial has been most effective toward reaching people and connecting their own personal lives and stories to our. The family secrets aspect has bonded to people to us…that has been fantastic.
CJ: I know you also showed the film at the Trinidad + Tobago Film Festival as well. They have an unfortunate amount of folks down there with unknown or questionable parentage.
LS: Yeah, and there are so many mixed people (in Trinidad & Tobago) and a lot of diversity that made them connect with all the family secrets.
CJ: Do you think you missed something from your high school years from not knowing that you were half-Black? Did the knowledge of self you gained from college make up for that?
LS: That’s a tough question. I look at things as they are as they are instead of what they should’ve been. I believe in moving forward and being as being as productive as possible. High school is lost on young people anyway. You’re not appreciative of the what you have and there is so much emphasis on conformity and very little encouragement in being who you are. When you’re young and under your parents roof, you’re more of a product of who they are. That was my experience…My identity was definitely most tied to my family.
CJ: In the film your high school boyfriend Matt revealed not only that he know the entire time that you had to have Black parentage but then upon meeting your birth father Rodney Parker at the dinner party, that he figured out that Rodney was your birth father. It’s obviously a very serious thing for a teen to deal with, but in hindsight, were you upset that he never told you?
LS: But he did tell me. That dinner wasn’t the first time he met Rodney. In the film we go into Matt pushed me to think about it and how he constantly tried to make me think about my identity. He was biracial and so he pushed me a lot to think about it. The distinction between him saying Rodney was my father and saying I was Black was a short amount of time. I try in the film to really look at denial and at the anatomy of denial. Me, everyone in the film are less so lying to other people but lying to [themselves], even though things felt otherwise. I looked at everyone’s timelines of denials and realized they knew the truth but wouldn’t believe it. That period of time, when my parents break-up, I (unconsciously) knew (the truth) but wouldn’t admit it.
CJ: Your film really stayed with me for a long time with two of the strongest scenes being, 1. the first one-on-one meeting with your dad, when you try to get him to talk about the denial, 2. and, of course, the Foster Park discussion with your mom. Your film shows how emotional you were at both instances, but can you share whether you were more nervous or angry at hearing what they had to say?
LS: With my dad I was more nervous. It was pure nervousness for me having that discussion with him. I had this feeling, and I say this in the film, that we had to ‘move along on the same side of things.’ Part of going through this is not only learning how to have difficult conversations but accepting where they are after that. In regards to my mother it was more about the frustration of the moment – trying to get her to understand more about myself.
CJ: How is your relationship with your parents now?
LS: It’s good. It’s been a really positive experience overall. My father wouldn’t have chosen to do this through film, but he really supported me through it. And having these conversations has lifted a weight for me…we’re in a more authentic place. I’ve always had a close relationship with my mother and this has made it even closer. She is an amazing mother. Her coming out to the screenings and answering questions in front of audiences has helped her heal and has moved her from a place of feeling guilty to being responsible.
