Filming an Interview with Director Ryan Coogler

Back in 2021, I was hired to film an interview with the director Ryan Coogler, best known for directing Black Panther. The interview was promotional content for a documentary he had created. It was a very interesting experience, and a bit surreal because COVID was still in full swing at the time.

They were being extremely cautious on set. If I got him sick, he could in turn get an entire movie crew sick, which would be very expensive for them. Because of that, I had to wear a surgical mask and a face shield during setup, and when Ryan came in for his interview, I had to walk away from the set completely. So even though I filmed him, I never actually got to meet him. It was very surreal experience, with the mask and face shield on I felt I was in a movie myself.

The interview was filmed at Tyler Perry Studios inside one of the empty warehouses where movies are usually shot. It was an amazing backdrop for the interview, and hands down the best interview setup I’ve ever worked on. They let me drive my car all the way to where I was setting up, which was a dream.