INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR / JUSTIN LO

How did you come up with the idea for THE CONRAD BOYS?

I came up with the idea when I was a junior at UCLA. I knew I wanted to make a movie about a young man, in this case Charlie, raising his younger brother, Ben. I wanted to explore the kind of selflessness that would take, the strength of a brother’s devotion. But I also wanted to show the darker side of Charlie’s emotions as well, the feelings of frustration he might feel for having to sacrifice so much.

The bond between Charlie and Ben is a huge part of the movie. But there’s another relationship going on for Charlie as well – with Jordan.

Yes, I wanted there to be a strong love story element in the movie as well, something pulling Charlie in another direction. So I bring in Jordan, this troubled guy who really wakes Charlie up and opens his eyes to new possibilities for his life. He’s handsome and charming and intelligent in an unformed sort of way, so naturally Charlie falls for him. And even though Charlie’s still very dedicated to Ben, he finds himself drawing closer and closer to Jordan, which is where a lot of the conflict comes from.

What are some themes that you think resonate most strongly in the film?

First, I would say, the bond between brothers and how deep that runs. It’s also about the power of first love and how blinding and all-consuming that can be.

What were some of your concerns as a producer on this film?

I was bound and determined to produce the film on my own, and I knew I wouldn’t have a lot of money, so I started thinking of stories I could produce independently with a relatively low budget. Luckily for me, my favorite types of movies have always been small intimate dramas that pack a lot of emotion, so I was more than happy to come up with a story that would fit into that company.

Could you speak a bit about the sexuality of the characters in the movie and how you decided to make Charlie a gay character?

The thing is, while I was writing the script, I felt there were so few films being made with a gay main character, especially intelligent dramas like the ones I was just talking about. So I decided that’s what I wanted to make: a serious-minded drama with at least one main gay character.

I also wanted to make a movie where the main character happened to be gay and it’s not made into a big deal. If we had made the central romantic relationship of the movie straight rather than gay, very little of the story would have changed, which is exactly what I wanted.

Is this a so-called “coming out” film?

Not at all. When we meet Charlie, he already knows he’s gay. He’s told his best friend, he’s okay with it. Charlie’s big thing is he’s never been in love before, and he desperately wants to know what that’s like. He’s extremely lonely, to the point that he doesn’t think it will ever happen for him. So when it finally does happen for him, it’s fun to see how he handles it.

Because it’s so true to my life. I’m a biracial person – my Dad is Chinese, my Mom is Caucasian and Jewish to boot – and since I was playing Charlie, I thought, Why not? I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had conversations like the one I put in the movie about Charlie’s background. Also, it’s not like there’s a lot of films out there with a Jewish Hapa lead character, so here’s one.

What was it like being the Producer, Writer, Director, Lead Actor, and Editor of your first feature film?

Busy! To be honest, writing and editing were the most manageable because I could focus on one job at a time. Of course, the busiest time was during production when I would be directing and acting and managing all at once. Luckily, I had the best crew I could have asked for, and everyone was just really supportive and pulled their weight so I didn’t get overwhelmed.

Any last words?

Thank you to everyone who helped make the movie possible. It’s been an incredibly rewarding experience, and I’m so proud of the work that everyone did. I really hope people love this movie. I can’t wait for them to see it.