June 17, 2024 • 27 mins
Director Noah Salzman and actor Germain Arroyo join Gwen to talk about their film 'Clocked' (2023), the story of Adolfo, an 18-year-old Puerto Rican boxer who fears being accepted as transgender by his conservative Catholic family.
'Clocked,' at its heart a sweet film about family ties and self-acceptance, has made the film festival rounds, including in Key West, Miami and Sedona, to rave reviews. Salzman said they're now looking for a distributor to release the film to the public.
Photo: Writer-director Noah Salzman, Germain Arroyo and Danell Leyva on the set of Clocked. Clocked photo
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Key West Sidetracks. I'm Gwen Filosa digital editor
at Keys weekly newspapers down here in the beautiful Florida Keys.
And I'm so excited to have my guests. The movie
is Clocked. I saw this movie at the Key West
Film Festival at Williams Hall, a beautiful film
about uh a young person coming to grips with um identity,
(00:24):
sexual identity. Also a boxer. I actually got choked up
and I, I rarely do that. It just really tapped
into my vulnerabilities, my own way of connecting to that.
So please introduce yourselves for the show.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Hi, my name is Noah Salzman. I am the writer
and director of Clocked and seated next to me is,
Speaker 1 (00:46):
hi, my name is Jermaine Arroyo and I am the
actor in the movie of and Clocked.
Tell me how uh clock takes place in Miami. Are,
are you from
there?
Speaker 2 (00:57):
I've been living in Miami for going on 19 years.
So definitely what I consider home base. Um It was
um Miami story. I recognize that at the time, at
least there, Miami wasn't highlighted, especially in a long time
due to the fact that so many films could no
(01:18):
longer shoot there due to lack of incentives. And
I realized that what most people knew of Miami was mostly,
you know, cocaine speed boats, Miami Vice. And there's so
many little nooks and cranny neighborhoods that never got the spotlight.
And I just wanted to highlight uh like a legitimate
community in Miami. Uh like 85% of the film I
(01:41):
believe was shot in a small area known as little
Haiti in Miami. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
And how did you cast the film? How did you meet?
Speaker 2 (01:52):
There was a national casting. Uh Germaine is in L A.
So we had people from L A, New York, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta.
Uh We were all cast in the film. We had
close to 1000 submissions that me and one other person watched.
(02:15):
Um
and the people who ended up in it, some of
them didn't even come from the casting network. We had
people who we couldn't find, you know, they just weren't
hidden in the auditions. We went through some roles, we
went through like 80 people, 90 people and just none
of them were in and we start getting nervous and
(02:36):
then when you get nervous, you go to Facebook
and you get recommendations and uh we had like six
people recommend uh one of our roles. Actually, the uh
mentor of Germaine's character
was found through like six different people on Facebook being
like you have to audition this person and they were 100%
Speaker 1 (02:57):
right?
That's a great story. What, what drew you to the role?
I mean, besides, you know, we all need to work.
But what was it? Talk about what drew you and
how badly did you want it? What was going when
you were up for it? Yeah. So when I first
got the uh the audition, the breakdown, the scripts, um
I immediately connected to it. Uh the storyline, I mean,
(03:20):
I'm a Latino, I'm queer. And at that time, I
was exploring my own identity, my own um
place in life, I guess, and I freshly had come
out as non binary. And so the role came around
and I think I attached myself immediately because Adolfo in
(03:41):
the movie was also going through this moment in life
where they were discovering things about themselves. They were, they
were wanting to explore,
wanting to learn and wanting to put themselves out there
a little bit more. And I think I was in
the same place in my life. So I immediately attached myself.
I was like, I like this person, I know this
person and I would love to be able to share
(04:05):
the story and bring this person to life. Um And
I think I did a good job.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
You did an incredible job.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
It's
remarkable. It's remarkable. And uh I guess I just
um my own sexuality or however I identify I like women.
Uh the lesbian queer. It's so personal, but at the
same time, it's like I don't know. I have a
lot of us have internalized homophobia. That's the messaging growing up.
(04:32):
It's like you're disgusting. It's like, oh, I'm 10
or I'm 11 or, I don't know. And I didn't
know I could be gay. Like, growing up in a
small town. I didn't know. And I sure as hell
wasn't going to ask somebody what? Um, and there's just
that scene in the film of, of, of I can,
I can just, it was palpable for me to fear like,
what if someone finds out? I can't tell anybody but
(04:54):
you have to tell somebody and, and I do think
a lot of people can relate to any of that.
I don't think it matters if you're queer or straight.
I mean,
but, but just the fear of like I need to
tell someone who I am and, and what on earth
could happen. And I just, I could just feel it
in my gut and it really brought me back to,
to being grateful for
(05:15):
surviving. Can I say that? And these days I'm just
what happened. It was so mainstream to be LGBT Qi.
I actually, I live in Key West. It's la la land.
I'm so, but when I go to the mainland, I'm
just kind of like, OK, I need to put that
guard up and I, I'm not, I'm afraid of being
(05:37):
out there even on Twitter, I'll post something and people
are this homophobic stuff and I'm like, really? It's 2024.
And do you guys, I mean, are you, do you
get a, or do, do you get afraid or? Uh, yeah,
I mean, someone who presents more feminine in life. Um,
this is, this is how I dress every single day. Um,
(06:00):
this is who I am. And so at first I,
I was terrified and I still am, I still get
a little anxious. I still get nervous when I'm going out, um,
or gonna hit the streets. So, like I'm like, uh,
a little, my heart starts racing. My palms are sweating
and, yeah, I think it's, I don't know, for some reason,
it feels a little scarier right now. Um, especially when
(06:20):
you travel when you go different places. Uh, coming here.
I was nervous even though I've been here once before
and I know like it's very open, it's very friendly,
but you still get nervous because there's a few people
out there who just don't understand. You don't get, it,
don't like it. Uh, especially when it's put in front
of them. Uh, and that's when
real issue comes around. They don't like that. You're putting
it in front of them as if I'm rubbing who
(06:42):
I am in front of you. I'm not, I'm just
living my life, I'm just existing. I'm just trying to
be happy and I'm not doing it to piss anyone
off and if you feel uncomfortable, well, I'm very sorry.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
That's a problem.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I need to look at where I come from. It's
like if you're upset, you need to look at
yourself. But I, I dress very masculine, I guess, mask.
That's the new thing that they say, which I kind
of like because growing up butch always never sounded good
to me. I'm in a lot of therapy. No, I'm kidding. But, but,
but it actually just brings it home for when I
see a film like that and it just goes like
(07:15):
gratitude for community and I took a lot of it
for granted. And,
but, but tell me about the, the film, I think
it has universal appeal because every single human being has
a fear of not being accepted or
loved a
Speaker 2 (07:30):
billion percent. Um We really, uh so, like I said,
I was in the theater community in Miami for about
six years. And when you're part of any, you know,
theater community, you meet a ton of really talented queer
people
and you find out that a lot of these people
(07:51):
discovered theater or whatever art they're a part of uh
in order to find a community that would be more
accepting of them
because their families weren't. And I genuinely wrote this project
in order for those people who are, you know, in
between families, you know, you're born into one. But you
can also at a certain point, you realize that you
(08:12):
can kind of choose who your family is. And so
I wanted to write something for the people who are
in between, who are like, what do I do now?
And that's how clocked came to fruition. Um I always
thought Miami was such a unique place because you have
such staunch religious people and you have churches that are
(08:35):
a block away from a strip club. And you have,
you know, it's saints and centers in the exact same
uh in walking distance. And I really wanted to show
like
there are scenes in the film where, you know, you
have the drag queens in a form of prayer, you know,
(08:56):
and to show that like just because they live life
that they live life the way they choose to live,
it does not make them so different from
the people that want to chastise them. And yeah, I
just wanted to show people that regardless of what they're
going through or if they feel like they're lost that
(09:19):
there are people who will find them and kind of,
you know, accept them for where they're at.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
I think one thing that I enjoyed about the movie
in the projects is
it's a queer story, but it's not your typical average
queer stories that people do write and people do put
out in the world, which is fine because that is
a lot of the truth for a lot of people.
But there's also um
this part of me that I want to see more
projects that are family friendly that are like clean in
(09:48):
a sense that, that there's not, you know, drugs involved,
there's no sex involved. There's no, it's, it's good. It's
ok not to have those stories as a queer person
as well because it's nice. And so I really appreciated
the place where family was a very important thing in
this film. Um Adolfo comes from a very loving family,
very supportive family.
(10:09):
They also found a family that's also supportive, also very loving.
So there's a lot of love and support in this
film that just creates this beautiful platform for this person
to actually shine. And I appreciated that. And it's such
a sweet film. Yes, it grapples with very real. It's powerful,
but it's also like the, the, the cast, the characters
(10:31):
are funny and they're real, they're so real and, and
um it
um how did you film this? I'm gonna guess you
didn't have tons of money but like how it looks beautiful,
but it also has that sort of um and you
can kick me if that Tangerine feel of like uh
Dod Oy, I love Sea
Speaker 2 (10:52):
Baker who listens to this somehow. Congrats on the palm
dr
Speaker 1 (10:57):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
So if this gets compared to a Sean Baker film,
Speaker 1 (11:02):
a
lot of artists do not like being compared to anyone
but Tangerine was remarkable. It changed movies, it changed the
way it's like I can make a movie, it's not
regulated to just people.
Speaker 2 (11:14):
I mean, 90% of the film was shot on one camera.
Uh 100% of the film was shot on one lens,
uh choice, personal choice. Uh We were given a lens kit,
but we decided to use one lens. Uh We chose
a wide lens because we recognize that that makes the
(11:36):
world seem like a stage. And that every single aspect
of Adolfo's life that we see on the screen is
them putting on some form of performance. So when they're boxing,
they're performing, when they discover who they are,
no spoilers, they're performing. And then when they're even at home,
(11:57):
they're not really themselves, they're putting on a performance.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Yeah, we all, I mean, the human condition of like
here's who I am with you in work and here's
this group
and here's who I am in this group.
It is. Um it is. But uh can I ask
how much the budget was
Speaker 2 (12:14):
it
Speaker 1 (12:14):
cost?
Speaker 2 (12:16):
We aren't allowed to distribution but uh it was not
made for what anyone, what the industry would consider low
budget less than that, what the industry would consider micro
budget less than that. So you can,
those are those numbers you can look up and those
(12:38):
numbers uh we were
Speaker 1 (12:40):
less. So it was made with a lot of support,
love and encouragement from everyone, part of the film, from
production to people behind the scenes, like the actors, everyone
just came together to really make it happen.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
Some of the actors all stayed in a house that
was
owned by the grandfather of one of the actresses who
was just like, come stay here. So that saved on
like hotel costs. And uh we shot during peak COVID.
So like 1/10 of our budget went towards COVID testing
because this was S a and it's like
(13:18):
we had uh so many little things went wrong that
could have derailed the production. But we really felt like
some whatever film God was around was watching over us
because every time something went wrong it turned out ending
up for the better. Like uh initially we were shooting
on a much cheaper camera
(13:39):
because that's what we could afford. And then we lost
two days of footage because there was an internal chip
issue in the camera that bumped our iso 10 times
higher than what it showed on the monitor.
And
Speaker 1 (13:52):
how did
you recover from that
shock?
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Well, we sent the camera back to the camera house
and they were like, holy crap. This is totally our fault.
So to make it up to you, here's a free
red
for the rest of your shoot with a lens kit
and everything and that camera costs close to if not
like
(14:16):
what we shot the film for. Like if you were
to just buy the camera,
Speaker 1 (14:20):
they made
it like that.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
So they made up to it. They made up to
us by giving us that we lost the two days.
But we ended up finding a better house to shoot
the intro in uh they felt more comfortable because we
had to shoot that stuff at the end now. So
they felt more in their characters and that made those
scenes flow so much better. Um
uh There's a beautiful scene on a bench in the
(14:46):
film on a beach between uh Adolfo and their mentor
uh That day was their first day meeting.
Oh my gosh, probably that seems shot probably three hours
after they met and that they also had an 85%
chance of rain. So it rained literally everywhere except for
(15:07):
in the little section of beach that we were on
film Gods and there's like lightning and stuff and people
are like, oh, like you added that you added that
in special effects and we're like,
like we were silently cheering behind the camera as they're
having their moment, we looked like we were watching soccer
and someone just scored a goal and they're having this
(15:29):
tender moment, we're literally behind them.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Like,
like like this a hurricane about to happen around us.
There's wind blowing, the lights are falling.
There's like the mic is getting blown and, but we're
just like, just go, go for it. Lightning is happening
and I'm just like, there's really a storm about to
happen right now and we're just going to go all right,
we're doing it and
Speaker 2 (15:47):
then no rain hit us a moment like that where
we knew that
something wanted us to finish this film and get it
done
Speaker 1 (16:00):
was
on our side will be completed and people will see it.
Where can people watch clock right now?
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Just on the festival circuit right now in the process
of seeking distribution. We're also waiting here back for international
premier so that people across the, you know, across the
pond
can see the film as well. We've played
a number of fests here and the reaction has been great,
but we really just want to get as many eyes
(16:30):
on this project as possible
selfishly in part because I just want so many people
to see this astounding performance. Um They really put their
heart into it. Um And I also just think that
what makes their performance so special is the fact that
in their real life, they were going through similar things
(16:54):
going through like this is the first time they're coming out,
this is the first time they're, you know, putting on
lipstick or, or looking at themselves in dresses in the mirror.
And I don't think the emotion
that you see in the film would have been the same,
even with the same actor at a different stage of
their life, like everything locked into place, at least the
(17:19):
way I think it should
have,
Speaker 1 (17:20):
which is why I think it's important for people to
see the film because it affected me uh in such
a positive way.
I learned a lot about myself while filming this movie
and watching the movie, I've seen it a million times
but every time I see it, I also just have
a different reaction to different moments. Um Probably because now I,
I now know what that feeling actually feels like uh
(17:42):
in real life. So it's like, I think it's important
for people, not just people in the queer queer community,
but anyone, everyone, uh because you can learn a lot
about people
just by watching a performance, it hits you differently. It
hits somebody. We've had people come up to us who are,
you know, straight um parents who are dealing with their
(18:02):
kids coming out uh as queer or as trans. Um
And they've learned a lot about their own child by
watching the movie. And for me, that's like the most
important part of it all because it affected me. And
so I can honestly say right now that who I
am right now as a person is because
of the journey through the movie and filming it and
(18:24):
watching it. And uh people's reactions to it makes me
feel really good about what we did we've done and
I'm so proud of it.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Uh We, there's one thing that stands out. Uh this
happened in Sedona was like our second screening ever. And
there was this, uh there's this woman who came up
to us after the screening after the Q and A
and she was like, Jermaine, you use the term non binary.
And I think that's what my daughter is and I
(18:56):
was never able to put into words like what she
was or what she was going through. And I feel
like I can finally talk to my daughter and we
haven't spoken in a long time. So thank you. And it's,
it's stuff like that where it's like I thought this
would affect, you know, queer teens. You know, you really
go into a certain thing. You're like, this is a
niche film. Queer. Latino kids are gonna be impacted by this.
(19:20):
And then you realize
the wider scope of who it's impacting. And although it
was unexpected, it's unexpected in the best way. I
Speaker 1 (19:29):
love airing that because it's just a great movie. It's
just a great film. And j I mean, you did
make a point that to let people know this, it's
a family story, not that there shouldn't be, but there's no,
there's no, you know, it's not some type of why
do people think that all we do is sex? I always,
(19:50):
I always joke where I'm like straight people. I'm like,
I don't care what you do. It's privacy of your
own home. I really don't want to see it, but
I never think about that. But for some reason, it,
for some reason or another, it just kind of like,
oh, you're gay, queer lesbian. It's like, oh, I'm like, OK,
I wish I were doing that well, but I agree.
It's like, it's like, dude, I'm just a bart and, and, and,
(20:11):
but it's just a clock is just a great movie.
I love the boxing subtext of boxing. I love, I
just work the bag but I love no one sitting
in his face. Alright. But, but boxing is like this
grunt work of like
the rope, the bag in it for five minutes in
the ring and it's, you do all this work similar
(20:31):
I think to acting or stand up where you do
all this grunt work and then talk about the um
training or the, how did you get into that? Yeah. No, I,
I love boxing. Um I've always loved it when I
was a kid. I, for some reason I just wanted
to do boxing. I never did it because
I also don't want to get my face hit in
the face. I was like, I don't know if I
(20:53):
like it that much so I didn't do it, but
I've always, I've always enjoyed it. Um I think it's
because
I don't know you're working out as well, but there's
a sense of like you're performing, you're learning a lot
about your body. You're, you're, you're, you're going out there
and it's, I liked it. Um So
when I read the script that it also involved a
(21:13):
young boxer, I was like, this is great. I get
to learn how to box and I get to like,
do a lot of queer things and just be, you know, gay.
And I was like, I love this. And so, um
training was so much fun. We did 22 weeks of training,
I think I did one week in, uh, in L
A
and then when I flew to Miami, I did another
(21:35):
week in Miami. And so two weeks which is not
enough for boxing because boxing is a very hard sport.
So pretending to know what you're doing is not that easy.
But we had stunt people and I had a stunt double. No,
I didn't,
I did but there was somebody there who
would help you
Speaker 2 (21:58):
choreographer,
Speaker 1 (22:02):
coach, she was there. And um I also love that.
It was a woman who was teaching me how to
box as well and she was so great. We love box.
Uh And so for the days of shooting the boxing scenes,
which
she would just come over, teach me some fights, teach
(22:22):
me some moves and teach me how to make it
look real as possible. Um But it's a movie. So
there's a lot of magic behind the scenes, the DP,
the directors, the choreographers, the, the ST the stunt people,
the person I fought with in the scenes. He was
also incredible to make me, he, he made my hits
look real. And um
but the training was fantastic and the boxing scenes were
(22:45):
so much fun. I think I hit the person a
couple of times for reels which I'm not supposed to,
but he actually liked it. It's good. I like it.
It makes me feel like we're actually doing it. Yeah. Yeah.
And I was like, sure. And then he hit me
for reels and I was like, in the face where
you might like it. I'm still on the market. I
don't want to hit in the face. My nose is
(23:06):
not broken.
So let's not go there, please. But she looked great.
And can I ask how old you are in real life?
How old is Adolfo? Adolfo is? 18? Ok. You look
18 because, um and I can't think of the name,
the actor who is his friend, the best friend, the
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Caesar who is played by Brandon Prado. But
Speaker 1 (23:28):
the, the young woman, Marissa,
she was, they were all amazing, the mother, the dad,
but the, the best friend I thought that
I
thought that role was, there was a lot going on
that she had to deal with, you know, and, and
as the character of like, I love this person, they're
my best friend. She's probably my favorite character in the movie.
(23:49):
To one. She's my favorite with it. There's a lot
going on because it's like the funny friend. But then
at one point it's like, I'm,
I'm struggling with something too and she's the only one
that knows the only one in the film at first.
And the way she finds out is a lot for
a person. To take on and to be like, no,
you know what I support, I support you. I'm here
(24:11):
for you. I'm going to go with this journey with you.
Uh It can be a lot for a person. And
the character in the movie to me was just such
a supportive,
it was, it was needed like you want that girl
in your corner. I have a couple of those friends who,
I don't know what I would do that they're the
ones that are like, oh, no, you're fine.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
And I think her character is also supposed to show
like the differences in the generations of Catholic religious families because,
you know, the mom set them up, the moms are
obviously friends and you know that they're both super Catholic
and you know, that the daughter is Catholic. But I
think
since people in our generation are more uh
(24:54):
surrounded by openly queer people and, you know, our friends
are queer. Uh I think that we just have uh
that these different generations of religious individuals have different perspectives
on the exact same thing. And I think that was
a major thing I wanted to show with the character
of Camila.
Speaker 1 (25:14):
And I've been very careful because I don't, I don't,
I don't want to do spoilers, but the ending was,
was to me like a powerful kind of like a,
almost like a rocky, that's all I'm going to say
is it just felt really, um I just I don't know,
I loved it. And I, I'm, I'm so excited that
you all came to Qs Film Festival.
Speaker 2 (25:35):
We just want to share this project with
as many people as possible. And, uh we put a
lot of heart into it and we hope that you
all recognize that when you come and see it.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
Well, it's a beautiful movie clocked. The shooting on location
means everything, doesn't it? It's real interiors. I mean, I
don't know a ton about Miami, but I love it.
And even with all its challenges, the craziest part is
it's a
wonderful
Speaker 2 (26:05):
and, but it's in a part of Miami that people
don't want to go around an area with a
people consider not the best of Miami, but it's still,
it's gorgeous and the people there are friendly, there's so
much culture there and it's just such a shame that
a place so beautiful, a neighborhood, so awesome and people
so friendly get treated as like an aside to what
(26:28):
real Miami is.
Speaker 1 (26:30):
So that's the family neighborhoods to me is a family
neighborhood and
cock has everything. So uh thanks for coming on the
podcast and congratulations and continued success.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
We appreciate you guys immensely. Thank you for having us
Speaker 1 (26:47):
and thank you for listening to Qs Sidetracks. I'm Gwen Felos.
Be back next week with a new show. Check us
out on Keys, weekly.com. No paywalls. We don't force you
to sign up with your email. It's all free and
for the taken and our print editions come out on Thursday.
I'll talk to you later.
Welcome to Key West Sidetracks. I'm Gwen Filosa digital editor
at Keys weekly newspapers down here in the beautiful Florida Keys.
And I'm so excited to have my guests. The movie
is Clocked. I saw this movie at the Key West
Film Festival at Williams Hall, a beautiful film
about uh a young person coming to grips with um identity,
(00:24):
sexual identity. Also a boxer. I actually got choked up
and I, I rarely do that. It just really tapped
into my vulnerabilities, my own way of connecting to that.
So please introduce yourselves for the show.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Hi, my name is Noah Salzman. I am the writer
and director of Clocked and seated next to me is,
Speaker 1 (00:46):
hi, my name is Jermaine Arroyo and I am the
actor in the movie of and Clocked.
Tell me how uh clock takes place in Miami. Are,
are you from
there?
Speaker 2 (00:57):
I've been living in Miami for going on 19 years.
So definitely what I consider home base. Um It was
um Miami story. I recognize that at the time, at
least there, Miami wasn't highlighted, especially in a long time
due to the fact that so many films could no
(01:18):
longer shoot there due to lack of incentives. And
I realized that what most people knew of Miami was mostly,
you know, cocaine speed boats, Miami Vice. And there's so
many little nooks and cranny neighborhoods that never got the spotlight.
And I just wanted to highlight uh like a legitimate
community in Miami. Uh like 85% of the film I
(01:41):
believe was shot in a small area known as little
Haiti in Miami. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
And how did you cast the film? How did you meet?
Speaker 2 (01:52):
There was a national casting. Uh Germaine is in L A.
So we had people from L A, New York, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta.
Uh We were all cast in the film. We had
close to 1000 submissions that me and one other person watched.
(02:15):
Um
and the people who ended up in it, some of
them didn't even come from the casting network. We had
people who we couldn't find, you know, they just weren't
hidden in the auditions. We went through some roles, we
went through like 80 people, 90 people and just none
of them were in and we start getting nervous and
(02:36):
then when you get nervous, you go to Facebook
and you get recommendations and uh we had like six
people recommend uh one of our roles. Actually, the uh
mentor of Germaine's character
was found through like six different people on Facebook being
like you have to audition this person and they were 100%
Speaker 1 (02:57):
right?
That's a great story. What, what drew you to the role?
I mean, besides, you know, we all need to work.
But what was it? Talk about what drew you and
how badly did you want it? What was going when
you were up for it? Yeah. So when I first
got the uh the audition, the breakdown, the scripts, um
I immediately connected to it. Uh the storyline, I mean,
(03:20):
I'm a Latino, I'm queer. And at that time, I
was exploring my own identity, my own um
place in life, I guess, and I freshly had come
out as non binary. And so the role came around
and I think I attached myself immediately because Adolfo in
(03:41):
the movie was also going through this moment in life
where they were discovering things about themselves. They were, they
were wanting to explore,
wanting to learn and wanting to put themselves out there
a little bit more. And I think I was in
the same place in my life. So I immediately attached myself.
I was like, I like this person, I know this
person and I would love to be able to share
(04:05):
the story and bring this person to life. Um And
I think I did a good job.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
You did an incredible job.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
It's
remarkable. It's remarkable. And uh I guess I just
um my own sexuality or however I identify I like women.
Uh the lesbian queer. It's so personal, but at the
same time, it's like I don't know. I have a
lot of us have internalized homophobia. That's the messaging growing up.
(04:32):
It's like you're disgusting. It's like, oh, I'm 10
or I'm 11 or, I don't know. And I didn't
know I could be gay. Like, growing up in a
small town. I didn't know. And I sure as hell
wasn't going to ask somebody what? Um, and there's just
that scene in the film of, of, of I can,
I can just, it was palpable for me to fear like,
what if someone finds out? I can't tell anybody but
(04:54):
you have to tell somebody and, and I do think
a lot of people can relate to any of that.
I don't think it matters if you're queer or straight.
I mean,
but, but just the fear of like I need to
tell someone who I am and, and what on earth
could happen. And I just, I could just feel it
in my gut and it really brought me back to,
to being grateful for
(05:15):
surviving. Can I say that? And these days I'm just
what happened. It was so mainstream to be LGBT Qi.
I actually, I live in Key West. It's la la land.
I'm so, but when I go to the mainland, I'm
just kind of like, OK, I need to put that
guard up and I, I'm not, I'm afraid of being
(05:37):
out there even on Twitter, I'll post something and people
are this homophobic stuff and I'm like, really? It's 2024.
And do you guys, I mean, are you, do you
get a, or do, do you get afraid or? Uh, yeah,
I mean, someone who presents more feminine in life. Um,
this is, this is how I dress every single day. Um,
(06:00):
this is who I am. And so at first I,
I was terrified and I still am, I still get
a little anxious. I still get nervous when I'm going out, um,
or gonna hit the streets. So, like I'm like, uh,
a little, my heart starts racing. My palms are sweating
and, yeah, I think it's, I don't know, for some reason,
it feels a little scarier right now. Um, especially when
(06:20):
you travel when you go different places. Uh, coming here.
I was nervous even though I've been here once before
and I know like it's very open, it's very friendly,
but you still get nervous because there's a few people
out there who just don't understand. You don't get, it,
don't like it. Uh, especially when it's put in front
of them. Uh, and that's when
real issue comes around. They don't like that. You're putting
it in front of them as if I'm rubbing who
(06:42):
I am in front of you. I'm not, I'm just
living my life, I'm just existing. I'm just trying to
be happy and I'm not doing it to piss anyone
off and if you feel uncomfortable, well, I'm very sorry.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
That's a problem.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I need to look at where I come from. It's
like if you're upset, you need to look at
yourself. But I, I dress very masculine, I guess, mask.
That's the new thing that they say, which I kind
of like because growing up butch always never sounded good
to me. I'm in a lot of therapy. No, I'm kidding. But, but,
but it actually just brings it home for when I
see a film like that and it just goes like
(07:15):
gratitude for community and I took a lot of it
for granted. And,
but, but tell me about the, the film, I think
it has universal appeal because every single human being has
a fear of not being accepted or
loved a
Speaker 2 (07:30):
billion percent. Um We really, uh so, like I said,
I was in the theater community in Miami for about
six years. And when you're part of any, you know,
theater community, you meet a ton of really talented queer
people
and you find out that a lot of these people
(07:51):
discovered theater or whatever art they're a part of uh
in order to find a community that would be more
accepting of them
because their families weren't. And I genuinely wrote this project
in order for those people who are, you know, in
between families, you know, you're born into one. But you
can also at a certain point, you realize that you
(08:12):
can kind of choose who your family is. And so
I wanted to write something for the people who are
in between, who are like, what do I do now?
And that's how clocked came to fruition. Um I always
thought Miami was such a unique place because you have
such staunch religious people and you have churches that are
(08:35):
a block away from a strip club. And you have,
you know, it's saints and centers in the exact same
uh in walking distance. And I really wanted to show
like
there are scenes in the film where, you know, you
have the drag queens in a form of prayer, you know,
(08:56):
and to show that like just because they live life
that they live life the way they choose to live,
it does not make them so different from
the people that want to chastise them. And yeah, I
just wanted to show people that regardless of what they're
going through or if they feel like they're lost that
(09:19):
there are people who will find them and kind of,
you know, accept them for where they're at.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
I think one thing that I enjoyed about the movie
in the projects is
it's a queer story, but it's not your typical average
queer stories that people do write and people do put
out in the world, which is fine because that is
a lot of the truth for a lot of people.
But there's also um
this part of me that I want to see more
projects that are family friendly that are like clean in
(09:48):
a sense that, that there's not, you know, drugs involved,
there's no sex involved. There's no, it's, it's good. It's
ok not to have those stories as a queer person
as well because it's nice. And so I really appreciated
the place where family was a very important thing in
this film. Um Adolfo comes from a very loving family,
very supportive family.
(10:09):
They also found a family that's also supportive, also very loving.
So there's a lot of love and support in this
film that just creates this beautiful platform for this person
to actually shine. And I appreciated that. And it's such
a sweet film. Yes, it grapples with very real. It's powerful,
but it's also like the, the, the cast, the characters
(10:31):
are funny and they're real, they're so real and, and
um it
um how did you film this? I'm gonna guess you
didn't have tons of money but like how it looks beautiful,
but it also has that sort of um and you
can kick me if that Tangerine feel of like uh
Dod Oy, I love Sea
Speaker 2 (10:52):
Baker who listens to this somehow. Congrats on the palm
dr
Speaker 1 (10:57):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
So if this gets compared to a Sean Baker film,
Speaker 1 (11:02):
a
lot of artists do not like being compared to anyone
but Tangerine was remarkable. It changed movies, it changed the
way it's like I can make a movie, it's not
regulated to just people.
Speaker 2 (11:14):
I mean, 90% of the film was shot on one camera.
Uh 100% of the film was shot on one lens,
uh choice, personal choice. Uh We were given a lens kit,
but we decided to use one lens. Uh We chose
a wide lens because we recognize that that makes the
(11:36):
world seem like a stage. And that every single aspect
of Adolfo's life that we see on the screen is
them putting on some form of performance. So when they're boxing,
they're performing, when they discover who they are,
no spoilers, they're performing. And then when they're even at home,
(11:57):
they're not really themselves, they're putting on a performance.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Yeah, we all, I mean, the human condition of like
here's who I am with you in work and here's
this group
and here's who I am in this group.
It is. Um it is. But uh can I ask
how much the budget was
Speaker 2 (12:14):
it
Speaker 1 (12:14):
cost?
Speaker 2 (12:16):
We aren't allowed to distribution but uh it was not
made for what anyone, what the industry would consider low
budget less than that, what the industry would consider micro
budget less than that. So you can,
those are those numbers you can look up and those
(12:38):
numbers uh we were
Speaker 1 (12:40):
less. So it was made with a lot of support,
love and encouragement from everyone, part of the film, from
production to people behind the scenes, like the actors, everyone
just came together to really make it happen.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
Some of the actors all stayed in a house that
was
owned by the grandfather of one of the actresses who
was just like, come stay here. So that saved on
like hotel costs. And uh we shot during peak COVID.
So like 1/10 of our budget went towards COVID testing
because this was S a and it's like
(13:18):
we had uh so many little things went wrong that
could have derailed the production. But we really felt like
some whatever film God was around was watching over us
because every time something went wrong it turned out ending
up for the better. Like uh initially we were shooting
on a much cheaper camera
(13:39):
because that's what we could afford. And then we lost
two days of footage because there was an internal chip
issue in the camera that bumped our iso 10 times
higher than what it showed on the monitor.
And
Speaker 1 (13:52):
how did
you recover from that
shock?
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Well, we sent the camera back to the camera house
and they were like, holy crap. This is totally our fault.
So to make it up to you, here's a free
red
for the rest of your shoot with a lens kit
and everything and that camera costs close to if not
like
(14:16):
what we shot the film for. Like if you were
to just buy the camera,
Speaker 1 (14:20):
they made
it like that.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
So they made up to it. They made up to
us by giving us that we lost the two days.
But we ended up finding a better house to shoot
the intro in uh they felt more comfortable because we
had to shoot that stuff at the end now. So
they felt more in their characters and that made those
scenes flow so much better. Um
uh There's a beautiful scene on a bench in the
(14:46):
film on a beach between uh Adolfo and their mentor
uh That day was their first day meeting.
Oh my gosh, probably that seems shot probably three hours
after they met and that they also had an 85%
chance of rain. So it rained literally everywhere except for
(15:07):
in the little section of beach that we were on
film Gods and there's like lightning and stuff and people
are like, oh, like you added that you added that
in special effects and we're like,
like we were silently cheering behind the camera as they're
having their moment, we looked like we were watching soccer
and someone just scored a goal and they're having this
(15:29):
tender moment, we're literally behind them.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Like,
like like this a hurricane about to happen around us.
There's wind blowing, the lights are falling.
There's like the mic is getting blown and, but we're
just like, just go, go for it. Lightning is happening
and I'm just like, there's really a storm about to
happen right now and we're just going to go all right,
we're doing it and
Speaker 2 (15:47):
then no rain hit us a moment like that where
we knew that
something wanted us to finish this film and get it
done
Speaker 1 (16:00):
was
on our side will be completed and people will see it.
Where can people watch clock right now?
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Just on the festival circuit right now in the process
of seeking distribution. We're also waiting here back for international
premier so that people across the, you know, across the
pond
can see the film as well. We've played
a number of fests here and the reaction has been great,
but we really just want to get as many eyes
(16:30):
on this project as possible
selfishly in part because I just want so many people
to see this astounding performance. Um They really put their
heart into it. Um And I also just think that
what makes their performance so special is the fact that
in their real life, they were going through similar things
(16:54):
going through like this is the first time they're coming out,
this is the first time they're, you know, putting on
lipstick or, or looking at themselves in dresses in the mirror.
And I don't think the emotion
that you see in the film would have been the same,
even with the same actor at a different stage of
their life, like everything locked into place, at least the
(17:19):
way I think it should
have,
Speaker 1 (17:20):
which is why I think it's important for people to
see the film because it affected me uh in such
a positive way.
I learned a lot about myself while filming this movie
and watching the movie, I've seen it a million times
but every time I see it, I also just have
a different reaction to different moments. Um Probably because now I,
I now know what that feeling actually feels like uh
(17:42):
in real life. So it's like, I think it's important
for people, not just people in the queer queer community,
but anyone, everyone, uh because you can learn a lot
about people
just by watching a performance, it hits you differently. It
hits somebody. We've had people come up to us who are,
you know, straight um parents who are dealing with their
(18:02):
kids coming out uh as queer or as trans. Um
And they've learned a lot about their own child by
watching the movie. And for me, that's like the most
important part of it all because it affected me. And
so I can honestly say right now that who I
am right now as a person is because
of the journey through the movie and filming it and
(18:24):
watching it. And uh people's reactions to it makes me
feel really good about what we did we've done and
I'm so proud of it.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Uh We, there's one thing that stands out. Uh this
happened in Sedona was like our second screening ever. And
there was this, uh there's this woman who came up
to us after the screening after the Q and A
and she was like, Jermaine, you use the term non binary.
And I think that's what my daughter is and I
(18:56):
was never able to put into words like what she
was or what she was going through. And I feel
like I can finally talk to my daughter and we
haven't spoken in a long time. So thank you. And it's,
it's stuff like that where it's like I thought this
would affect, you know, queer teens. You know, you really
go into a certain thing. You're like, this is a
niche film. Queer. Latino kids are gonna be impacted by this.
(19:20):
And then you realize
the wider scope of who it's impacting. And although it
was unexpected, it's unexpected in the best way. I
Speaker 1 (19:29):
love airing that because it's just a great movie. It's
just a great film. And j I mean, you did
make a point that to let people know this, it's
a family story, not that there shouldn't be, but there's no,
there's no, you know, it's not some type of why
do people think that all we do is sex? I always,
(19:50):
I always joke where I'm like straight people. I'm like,
I don't care what you do. It's privacy of your
own home. I really don't want to see it, but
I never think about that. But for some reason, it,
for some reason or another, it just kind of like,
oh, you're gay, queer lesbian. It's like, oh, I'm like, OK,
I wish I were doing that well, but I agree.
It's like, it's like, dude, I'm just a bart and, and, and,
(20:11):
but it's just a clock is just a great movie.
I love the boxing subtext of boxing. I love, I
just work the bag but I love no one sitting
in his face. Alright. But, but boxing is like this
grunt work of like
the rope, the bag in it for five minutes in
the ring and it's, you do all this work similar
(20:31):
I think to acting or stand up where you do
all this grunt work and then talk about the um
training or the, how did you get into that? Yeah. No, I,
I love boxing. Um I've always loved it when I
was a kid. I, for some reason I just wanted
to do boxing. I never did it because
I also don't want to get my face hit in
the face. I was like, I don't know if I
(20:53):
like it that much so I didn't do it, but
I've always, I've always enjoyed it. Um I think it's
because
I don't know you're working out as well, but there's
a sense of like you're performing, you're learning a lot
about your body. You're, you're, you're, you're going out there
and it's, I liked it. Um So
when I read the script that it also involved a
(21:13):
young boxer, I was like, this is great. I get
to learn how to box and I get to like,
do a lot of queer things and just be, you know, gay.
And I was like, I love this. And so, um
training was so much fun. We did 22 weeks of training,
I think I did one week in, uh, in L
A
and then when I flew to Miami, I did another
(21:35):
week in Miami. And so two weeks which is not
enough for boxing because boxing is a very hard sport.
So pretending to know what you're doing is not that easy.
But we had stunt people and I had a stunt double. No,
I didn't,
I did but there was somebody there who
would help you
Speaker 2 (21:58):
choreographer,
Speaker 1 (22:02):
coach, she was there. And um I also love that.
It was a woman who was teaching me how to
box as well and she was so great. We love box.
Uh And so for the days of shooting the boxing scenes,
which
she would just come over, teach me some fights, teach
(22:22):
me some moves and teach me how to make it
look real as possible. Um But it's a movie. So
there's a lot of magic behind the scenes, the DP,
the directors, the choreographers, the, the ST the stunt people,
the person I fought with in the scenes. He was
also incredible to make me, he, he made my hits
look real. And um
but the training was fantastic and the boxing scenes were
(22:45):
so much fun. I think I hit the person a
couple of times for reels which I'm not supposed to,
but he actually liked it. It's good. I like it.
It makes me feel like we're actually doing it. Yeah. Yeah.
And I was like, sure. And then he hit me
for reels and I was like, in the face where
you might like it. I'm still on the market. I
don't want to hit in the face. My nose is
(23:06):
not broken.
So let's not go there, please. But she looked great.
And can I ask how old you are in real life?
How old is Adolfo? Adolfo is? 18? Ok. You look
18 because, um and I can't think of the name,
the actor who is his friend, the best friend, the
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Caesar who is played by Brandon Prado. But
Speaker 1 (23:28):
the, the young woman, Marissa,
she was, they were all amazing, the mother, the dad,
but the, the best friend I thought that
I
thought that role was, there was a lot going on
that she had to deal with, you know, and, and
as the character of like, I love this person, they're
my best friend. She's probably my favorite character in the movie.
(23:49):
To one. She's my favorite with it. There's a lot
going on because it's like the funny friend. But then
at one point it's like, I'm,
I'm struggling with something too and she's the only one
that knows the only one in the film at first.
And the way she finds out is a lot for
a person. To take on and to be like, no,
you know what I support, I support you. I'm here
(24:11):
for you. I'm going to go with this journey with you.
Uh It can be a lot for a person. And
the character in the movie to me was just such
a supportive,
it was, it was needed like you want that girl
in your corner. I have a couple of those friends who,
I don't know what I would do that they're the
ones that are like, oh, no, you're fine.
Speaker 2 (24:30):
And I think her character is also supposed to show
like the differences in the generations of Catholic religious families because,
you know, the mom set them up, the moms are
obviously friends and you know that they're both super Catholic
and you know, that the daughter is Catholic. But I
think
since people in our generation are more uh
(24:54):
surrounded by openly queer people and, you know, our friends
are queer. Uh I think that we just have uh
that these different generations of religious individuals have different perspectives
on the exact same thing. And I think that was
a major thing I wanted to show with the character
of Camila.
Speaker 1 (25:14):
And I've been very careful because I don't, I don't,
I don't want to do spoilers, but the ending was,
was to me like a powerful kind of like a,
almost like a rocky, that's all I'm going to say
is it just felt really, um I just I don't know,
I loved it. And I, I'm, I'm so excited that
you all came to Qs Film Festival.
Speaker 2 (25:35):
We just want to share this project with
as many people as possible. And, uh we put a
lot of heart into it and we hope that you
all recognize that when you come and see it.
Speaker 1 (25:45):
Well, it's a beautiful movie clocked. The shooting on location
means everything, doesn't it? It's real interiors. I mean, I
don't know a ton about Miami, but I love it.
And even with all its challenges, the craziest part is
it's a
wonderful
Speaker 2 (26:05):
and, but it's in a part of Miami that people
don't want to go around an area with a
people consider not the best of Miami, but it's still,
it's gorgeous and the people there are friendly, there's so
much culture there and it's just such a shame that
a place so beautiful, a neighborhood, so awesome and people
so friendly get treated as like an aside to what
(26:28):
real Miami is.
Speaker 1 (26:30):
So that's the family neighborhoods to me is a family
neighborhood and
cock has everything. So uh thanks for coming on the
podcast and congratulations and continued success.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
We appreciate you guys immensely. Thank you for having us
Speaker 1 (26:47):
and thank you for listening to Qs Sidetracks. I'm Gwen Felos.
Be back next week with a new show. Check us
out on Keys, weekly.com. No paywalls. We don't force you
to sign up with your email. It's all free and
for the taken and our print editions come out on Thursday.
I'll talk to you later.
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