Ryan Robinson

As a young teen within the African American community, sports were heavily influenced and nothing else within the stereotypes fit the picture for me. It wasn't until a good friend of mine asked if i could join him in a play located at our church at the time that made way for new inspirations. Every rehearsal I anticipated feeling that sense of belonging that I felt over and over again when I was there. It was during opening night, stepping foot on the stage that made me realize my new interest in theatre. And although this was not the start of my passion for film, it was indeed the beginning. I can recall one conversation with my mom I had when I was around 14 years old that made a serious impact on me. I was sitting in the living room watching a Christian film that i was entirely bored with. Growing up in a household founded on Christian morals, watching Christian films was the norm. However, I found the type of Christian films made at that time very cliche and unrelatable. I complained to my mom about why there weren't any better Christian movies to represent real-life or any films with action. Despite the fact that I was a young teen probably wanting the wrong things out of a Christian film, there's one thing my mom said that set my inspiration for the film industry on fire. She told me " the best movies made are the ones you make yourself", and that has stuck with me till today.