Actress Joy Brunson brings her phenomenal talent to the thriller Both Eyes Open, delivering a performance filled with depth and emotion. She shares insights into the film and the Black Girls Cinema Club.
Can you tell me, tell us about your character, Kara Beckett, in both eyes open in her role in the story?
Yes, I play Kara Beckett in Both Eyes Open, and the whole film, it’s a psychological thriller where the lead character, Ali (played by Gail Bean), is trying to get her life back on track after leaving an abusive relationship. My character, Kara, comes in as a new friend. She starts as her yoga teacher, and then they develop a friendship over time. But as the movie unfolds, we start to see that maybe my character has alternative motives for wanting to be Ali’s friend. She was a lot of fun to play. It was so funny in the premiere, everyone was really rooting against my character, which I knew was going to happen, but I didn’t know how bad they were going to be rooting against me. So that was fun to watch.
Well, you know, they say that it’s successful when you make the audience feel anything. That means that you’re doing a great job.
Yeah, I’ll take it.
The film deals with themes of trauma and reality. How did you portray these complex emotions?
Oh, that’s a good question. Unfortunately, I think for some people, reality is kind of the trauma and, or it can at least, at times, be traumatic. And so, what I really appreciated about being on a predominantly Black set, a predominantly Black female-led set from our directors to our ADs, there was a lot of care and consideration taken into the fact that we were talking about heavy subjects. I never felt like we were talking about things just for the sake of hitting a pain point. It really was like, how is this impacting these women psychologically?
How does it influence their decisions and what they seek from one another, whether it’s friendship, love, revenge, or something else? I think it was approached with a lot of care and consideration.
You started your career in television, playing characters in several different shows. How did those experiences shape you as an actor?
I really started in theater as well as television. What I appreciate about it, that’s different from film, is that usually, you get more time to build an arc of a character. There were some shows I was on for four different seasons where I didn’t even know what was going to happen because it hadn’t been written yet. And so, it’s cool to grow with the character as you’re also growing in real life versus film, which I also love. But it’s shot in a much shorter amount of time. So, I think television really taught me how to build a character from start to finish.
You described Both Eyes Open as a psychological thriller. How does that differ from other projects you worked on?
What’s funny is I’m actually a scaredy cat, and I don’t even watch psychological thrillers or scary movies. So, it differs in the fact that I’m even doing a project that scares me. But it was a lot of fun being on the inside of it and knowing how it kind of works and how you break down that type of story. So, it’s not scary to the artist. But when you see it all together, you’re like, this is kind of frightening. It has some good jump scares. I really enjoyed doing something that was different for me. But I still cried a lot, which is kind of my thing.
You’re also the founder and CEO of the Joy of Acting Studio. What motivated you to start a training studio?
I’ve always wanted an acting studio. I did think it was going to come much later in life. But it started because I was teaching at other studios. And when I left those places, the actors in my classes were like, “OK, cool, where are we going next?” I realized there was this need for a different type of studio where the teachers were also working professionals. I think you can learn something from everyone. But this is something where it’s like my teacher is auditioning alongside me. So, we’re teaching them what we are seeing out in the field and immediately bringing all of that information back to them. So I find it to be very, very useful.
What goal do you hope to achieve with it?
I believe we have truly achieved our goals in many ways—specifically, building community and establishing a support system. I love seeing my actors, who are now friends who met at the studio. That’s such a cool thing to me. I hope that, in addition to having successful careers, everyone has also found colleagues who will support them throughout their professional journeys.
Coming from a background in acting and business, how do you balance artistic and entrepreneurial pursuits?
It’s definitely a constant balancing act. It’s never a 50-50 balance. It might be 30-70 one week or 60-40 the next. But from the jump, even in my individual career, I’ve always tried to understand that it’s called show business for a reason. I think a lot of people, maybe not so much now, but 10-15 years ago, when we were in school, it was all about the show and learning how to be an actor. And then you get out in the business, and you don’t know how to take care of yourself as an entrepreneur because that’s really what we are as actors. We’re independent contractors in many ways. So, I think it’s really important to understand both sides, the entertainment business and the artistic side. And that’s something I try to bring in everything that I do… If you’re too heavy on one side or the other, I think it can kind of, unfortunately, work against you a little bit.
Absolutely. So, what’s next for you now that the movie has received rave reviews and such?
Well, hopefully, first of all, many more films. I really enjoy doing film. Like you said, I do a lot of television. And so, getting to do this project was perfect. I like film. We get in, we get out. This is great. In addition to that, building The Joy of Acting, which is taking on more of a private coaching arm this year, because I have been really busy, which is a good thing. I’ve started a new film social club called Black Girls Cinema Club for Black girls and those who love Black girls. You have to understand when you come in, we’re going to be talking about all things that are related to us. Basically, it’s a periodical event where women will come in, and we’ll watch a film like Daughters of the Dust or something more niche. Following that, we will have a discussion with both an academic expert and an industry professional.
This is particularly relevant as I recently completed my master’s degree last year. What I’ve learned in that process is that both sides of the coin are talking about representations of Black women on film, which is what I’m all about, but they’re not talking to each other. And I think if we really want to look towards the future of how we, as Black women, can build our community to be successful, we need to start having those conversations. So, the Black Girls Cinema Club seeks to kind of bridge that gap. And I’m very, very excited about it.
Does it have its own social media and website as well?
We’re building. It has a social media page. It is @BlackGirlsCinemaClub, and the website will be built in February. Our first event is in March. We’re collaborating with UCSD. And after that, I’m really hoping to do more projects with small independent female bookstores. So definitely follow @BlackGirlsCinemaClub on Instagram.
