Colman Domingo on ‘Sing Sing' and bringing real lives to the big screen

Introduction to life. Since you've been in custody, you've been involved in the theater program. speaker: All right, gentlemen, let's go. speaker: It's been a program that was established to help people get more in touch with their feelings and it really gets some rehabilitation. Gladiator Goliath: I am Gladiator Goliath! Spartacus: I am Spartacus! Hamlet: I'm Prince Hamlet of Denmark. speaker: And it's turned into something--I don't know. Wonderful. Interview Cortney: Colman Domingo, oh my gosh. It's so great to have you here. Matthew: I don't think we've been this excited in a long time. Colman Domingo: You wore some beautiful, sherbet colors. Matthew: We'll talk about clothes with you in a minute. We both adored this film. Cried. Cortney: Yes, I cried, even me. Matthew: I cri--no, I'm a crier, no, I'm a crier, but I cried so hard that when the lights came up and everyone was standing and leaving, I had another wave of crying. Colman: But I want to ask you why? Matthew: Well, I'll tell you why. Because the fact when I found out that those were the real-- the real participants, people that actually took place in this program, and then you use them in the film, that is an incredible thing that I don't think they could ever imagine. Colman: I think, well, you're about to get me emotional about it--but that's exactly it. I think the idea that these men who went through this program to come back in and be a part of telling the story, which is a story about hope and about our humanity, they made a choice to do that, because they know that the program has worked. So this film, you know, as you know, it has a sort of documentary feel. And I think that's also part of why people are feeling so deeply with it, because it feels like there's something--there's an element that you know is real, because you know that this program has worked, and there's a little sleight of hand happening with some professional actors and actors who have gotten their experience as, you know, through this--the prison system and the RTA program. It's kind of this beautiful, beautiful hybrid they were making, and at the end of the day, really, there's so much love around that film and so much purpose and intent, because it really is just about, like, the possibility of what we can do when we're presented with something that can help open up our hearts and give us some tools to move forward. So, I think that's what people are feeling. Matthew: And that was just waving over us. Cortney: Yeah, and I was emotional because it showed friendship, a male friendship in a way that we don't usually see it, vulnerability, just that moment where they're both on the outside after knowing what they went through inside. We don't get to see that a lot. Colman: No, and that was very important to me. I said I'm very interested in tenderness and deconstructing tropes about Black and Brown men that--because what I've learned, these guys were sort of holding onto each other in this program, and this place is completely toxic and completely, you know, if you show any emotion, you could be-- it's vulnerable. And you could be, you know, destroyed in some way, shape or form. But the idea that I think it's revolutionary to show, like, tenderness, even, like, watching a handshake or holding a hand that's not sexual. It's just about people actually saying I'm holding onto you, brother, and we need each other, you know? Matthew: And I think we see so many stories about prison, and there's almost 2 million people in America that are in prison right now. And the stories vary, so to see something like this, you know there are those connections within those walls. Colman: They showed this at Sing Sing Prison, and a lot of the inmates said, "It was the first time I actually saw myself in a film." They watched all the prison films, you know, but this is, like, I like to say that this is just a film that takes place in a maximum security prison, but it's not a prison film. It's a film about the possibility of our humanity. Cortney: Another thing in this film is just the healing power of the arts. Matthew: How have you seen the arts heal people? Because you've done theater, you've done regional, you've been all over the place with it. Colman: I know, we've known each other for a while. Matthew: Long time I've known you. You don't know it. Colman: We look so young. But, you know, I do understand the power of healing with the arts. A conflict in my mind, like, why do arts programs get cut in schools? Are we trying to build a pathway to these disastrous events and moments? And, you know, or what kind of world do we wanna be? I think we need more art, we need more music, we need more dance. It's because it's not just frivolous. It actually, you know, gives us a bit of more empathy, it teaches how to build community. There's so many skills, I mean, we've all, I'm sure, I feel like we've all were raised with some, you know, being in the arts or arts. Matthew: Jazz hands in the living room, jazz hands in the living room. Colman: Even jazz hands in the living room just shows you to be expressive and to bring out what's inside, and that's healthy, so you become more human and more in touch with that. Matthew: I think everybody should take an art class or a theater class in some way. Colman: And I think it's not even the purpose of you becoming an artist. It's just giving you these life skills that you need to be human. Matthew: What a couple of years you've had. I mean, we have "The Color Purple," "Euphoria." Cortney: "Rustin," loved that film. Colman: Thank you. Matthew: And I remember you on the red carpet years ago, and you were still in theater and still trying to make it happen. How does this attention change things for you, if at all? Colman: You know, it just--I think it just gives me--it gives me a bigger voice. Yes, it does. But I also understand the responsibility of it. Like, even when I was named-- what, what, 100 most influential people in the world by "Time Magazine" this year? [crosstalk] Colman: You know, but I--but for me, why I mentioned that is because I know the influence and the power that I have right now and on this platform. And if I can do that with style, with what I say, with what I produce, with what I put out into the world, I feel like I'm doing a whole lot of good, because that's really been my north star, being in the theater for so long when we first met, is say, no, everything--people can go back into my career now and see that I've been very mindful and intentional about the things that I pour into the world, because I think that, you know, art really does save lives. It can be the parachute that saves us all. Cortney: Exactly, okay, can we talk about you being a fashion icon a style icon? Colman: Of course we can talk about this black ensemble today, this little thing. Cortney: You have been on all the best dressed lists. Fashion I mean, have you always loved fashion? Colman: I've always loved--you know, I've loved--fashion-- I've always had a sense of style, and I think that, like, I feel like style comes from anyway, I didn't have to--I didn't have a lot of money to have a sense--but you could have a sense of style, you know what I mean? So, I feel like I could make anything with anything. But now that I'm on this platform, I like to tell a story. I can look at every image, even if this last, like, sorta Oscar campaign and tell you exactly what that was about. What film I was representing, what audience that was there, what story I was trying to tell. So, for me, it's always about storytelling, and if I could do that with fashion--. Cortney: I love the story you're telling. We love everything, everything. We can't--after an award, we can't wait to look at your picture. Colman: Thank you so much, thank you. Matthew: Thank you for being here, thanks for coming to Chicago, and this movie is just beautiful. Colman: Thank you, thank you, guys.