Curtis Adair, Jr., LISFF 2026, Short Screenplay Finalist

- Can you please tell us about you and your daily life?

I am a Senior Director of Platform and Delivery Operations at Radial Entertainment, the largest independent distributor of film and television titles across VOD platforms both domestic and international. I’m an award-winning Filmmaker/Writer of original content, so my time is split between writing, production and coordinating delivery of projects across many platforms. I’m a workaholic!

- When and how did you get into writing/filmmaking?

I discovered I want to be a storyteller my last semester of undergrad while attending the VCU Arts based in Richmond, VA. Though I studied illustration, painting, and graphic design, I fell in love with the process of writing. When I learned one painting wasn’t enough to tell the kind of layered stories I desired to tell, I turned to photography, and that interest naturally turned to filmmaking. Two years later I attended Florida State University School of Motion Picture Arts and the rest is history.

- How often do you write/create/ develop ideas? Do you have a writing/creative routine? And what inspires you to write?

My mornings are dedicated to journaling. Ironically, I stay away from too much television, and I favor reading novels and nonfiction books to study well-developed concepts and how to strengthen my voice as a writer. I spend a lot of time in coffee shops and bars scribbling in my journal and typically challenge myself with meeting a new person in every social setting as a means of “gathering” unique voices and perspectives for character development. People inspire me to write. History inspires me—and because I feel we haven’t learned from history, most “re-tellings” feel very fresh! Most of all, my spirit inspires me. My writing is a combination of all these interests.

- How does it feel to have your work recognised?

It is an honor! In undergrad, I studied abroad at Westminster University. I wrote a term paper comparing Western animation with Eastern anime. These few months in London planted the seeds for my tastes in storytelling and character development, so the UK has a special place in my heart and always ignites my creative spirit! Since 2013, I’ve been recognized for writing and directing by the DGA (Directors Guild of America), Sundance fellows, and The Gotham Filma & Media Institute formerly known as the Independent Filmmaker Project based in Brooklyn, New York. I desire more work opportunities in London, including writing and directing London-based projects.

- What's the best and most challenging thing about writing/filmmaking in your genre/form? 

The most challenging part is getting the story right and making it clear. I tend to write historical dramas and supernatural tales. While the fantastical elements and period pieces can be challenging to conjure in the imagination and communicate via writing, both have a way of appealing to the senses and bringing in the abstract world. I’ve learned the difference between giving an illustration in filmmaking and telling a story. To tell a story, there must be a character who faces a conflict that forces them to make a choice towards a desirable (or undesirable) outcome. And then it must be clear. My terms for clarity include being grounded in Truth that makes it universal for all viewers.

- How did you develop the idea for your LISFF/LISP-selected work? Is there a story behind your story? And, how long have you been working on it?

I encountered a harrowing exhibit titled “Without Sanctuary,” a landmark exhibition and book project featuring a collection of haunting photographs and postcards of racially motivated lynchings in the United States. I noticed that most (if not all) of the photographs were uncredited and wondered if their names were lost to history or omitted by choice. As I began to study the era, I learned that lynching photography emerged at the same time as the first consumer camera called the Kodak Brownie camera. It was a simple cardboard box priced at a dollar that placed photography into the hands of the public. With it emerged an age of lynching photography—images that did not merely document violence but exposed the imaginations that sustained it. Consequently, I began to imagine the life of a White lynching photographer in that day—a frontiersman of sorts—the first to explore the power of consumer photography. Finally, I asked myself, why tell this story now? It occurred to me—the camera evolved, but the imagination behind it hasn’t.

- Can you please give us a few tips about filmmaking/ scriptriting/writing?

Whether you start with character or concept—write what inspires you. And don't be afraid to write about what you don't know. If you’re inspired, be bold enough to go learn about what you don’t know. And always, infuse yourself into the script—as a character, a place, or a message. Share from your spirit.

- What's the best thing and the most challenging thing about competitions/festivals? 

I don’t believe Art needs to be a competition. Unfortunately, that’s how it’s structured. Festivals/competitions are curated platforms. So, I indulge and hope that a platform embraces me. But just because my story was chosen over another doesn’t mean the other story has any less value or shouldn’t be told. I’ve been denied by festivals and competitions, but it doesn’t diminish my desire to tell the story, nor does it devalue it. So, I embrace each new opportunity with gratitude and humility.

- Lastly, do you recommend the writers/filmmakers submit to LISP/LISFF?

Absolutely. I hope to submit more than just scripts in the future!