In Trevor Morris’ Butterfly on a Wheel, Jacen Davis (Curran Walters) is brilliant and studying jazz at the Royal Conservatory of Music but hindered by his OCD. Meeting Sorrel (Brielle Robillard) adds pressure not just to excel in his chosen field but to overcome what’s holding him back from forging real human connection.
Awards Buzz spoke with Morris about making his directing debut and the way in which he connects with his main character’s behaviors:
“This is what he wants, this human connection, and ultimately, he gets in his own way. He blows it, clearly, and hits his rock bottom moment while he’s crying and just puddling down and decides that, as it says in the movie, real change only happens when the pain of staying the same gets bad enough, and that was his moment where he’s like, ‘This ain’t working. I don’t want to live this way anymore.’ He goes on his healing journey.”
He elaborated on the notion of Jacen cooking for Sorrel as a mechanism of control:
“Yes, it’s a control thing, for sure. I cook, so when I was writing the script, my producers really encouraged me to be as personal as possible, which took a lot of courage for me because that’s a lot of me up there on that screen. I cook like that. I just do. I find it relaxing and all that. But there is a precision to it. I never took it as him trying to show off for her. I just think that’s what he does and how he does it. And he’s done it alone 100,000 times, and this is no different. But yeah, he gets to prepare it his way, and it’s exactly how he wants it, and even the way he plates it is very precise. I also find that cooking, unlike baking, which I do not like to do, does have a level of technique and improvisation based into it. It’s never the same twice. That’s why I, honestly, listen to jazz and cook as my main method of relaxation.”
Watch the video above to hear about how the film has resonated with those who have similar conditions as Jacen and Travis.
Butterfly on a Wheel is on the Oscar shortlist for Best Live Action Short.
