Film Q+A: Co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda and Megan Trufant Tillman | Honolulu Museum of Art
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:15
Film Q+A: Co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda and Megan Trufant Tillman | Honolulu Museum of Art
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Interview
Fri Feb 20 2026
Film Q+A: Co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda and Megan Trufant Tillman
For the first time, HoMA Theater Manager and Programmer Sarah Fang put out an open call for this year’s Honolulu African American Film Festival. From the submissions she put together a great program of shorts that includes
Newbies
, by co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda, who is from Honolulu, and Megan Trufant Tillman, who is also a writer and musician from New Orleans. Together, they work as Flypaper.
Newbies
is a moody, contemplative film that focuses on two strangers (played by Mia Isaac and Josiah Cross) in late-night Brooklyn, both navigating queer identities. And it features a cameo by Danny Glover. The film premiered at last year’s SXSW Film & TV Festival, where it received the Texas Short Competition Special Jury Award.
This isn’t the first time the duo have had work in the Honolulu African American Film Festival. The 2023 lineup included
little trumpet
, directed by Tillman and produced by Lawrence-Matsuda.
You can
see
Newbies
on Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Doris Duke Theatre. The busy filmmakers took the time to answer questions via email. This interview has been edited for clarity.—Lesa Griffith
Newbies
is a lyrical visual poem. The lush night scenes and deliberate pacing made me think of Wong-Kar Wai. Is his work an influence on you?
Wong-Kar Wai’s work is a huge inspiration for us. Our amazing DP, Ray Huang, first introduced us to his work before we shot our first film, little trumpet. We were really drawn to that style of making things feel felt.
The film’s metaphor of teeth—and feeling them moving, or constantly feeling them with one’s tongue—is powerful. It is anxiety made tactile. In this case, do the narrative meditations on teeth echo the characters’ grappling with their queer identities?
The metaphor of grappling with your teeth moving is meant to capture the feeling of coming into your queer identity.
Newbies
centers the internal experience of what it feels like to come into our queerness, rather than the external experience of others’ reactions—getting inside the body, showing what it feels like to come out to yourself. Even though this cracking open can be painful, there’s beauty and freedom in it. As directors, we wanted to reflect that visually, to capture the unknowable beauty of an expanding queer self.
The film has long, quiet close ups of both characters—the viewer can read so many emotions moving across their faces in their wonderful performances. What it was like directing those scenes?
We worked with two incredible actors, Mia Isaac and Josiah Cross, who showed up with those performances fully formed. Our approach as directors was just to create the space for them to live in those performances. We approach filmmaking as an exploration of our characters’ interiority—earned through careful observation, intimacy, and time. We hold on our characters to let them reveal themselves to us.
This is the second time you’ve worked together. What led you to co-directing and what was that like?
After working together on
little trumpet
, co-directing just felt like a natural next step in our creative partnership. Our skills really complement each other, and we love working together.
I have to ask—how did you get Danny Glover to be part of your project?
Danny Glover is an old friend of Kimiko’s father, and he was excited to support the film. It was an honor working with him.
In Danny Glover’s scene, the charater Kai mishears the older man as saying “Are you feeling pain?” Tell our readers the significance of this to the character Kai.
Kai hears the older man asking, “Are you full of pain?” when actually he’s asking, “Are you Filipine?”—he’s mispronouncing “Filipino.” This was a moment taken straight from Kimiko’s life. For Kai, finding herself at her lowest point, she feels like everyone can see her pain, but really her mishearing him is just a manifestation of what she’s feeling inside but hasn’t fully grappled with yet.
The jazzy soundtrack is phenomenal. Megan, did you compose the music just for this film?
Megan conceptualized, composed, and recorded the film’s original score with her co-composer, BLK ODYSSY.
Do you see your directing partnership continuing? Are you the next Wachowskis or Coen Brothers?
We just shot our next short film together,
The Birthday Song
, and we’re currently in post-production on it. We’re excited to continue our directing partnership as FLYPAPER. You can follow our filmmaking journey
@byflypaper
on Instagram.
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We have received your application. We will contact you when tickets become available.
Something went wrong. Please call to be put on the waiting list.
Added:
To wishlist
To the cookie settings
To the main content
To the footer
Interview
Fri Feb 20 2026
Film Q+A: Co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda and Megan Trufant Tillman
For the first time, HoMA Theater Manager and Programmer Sarah Fang put out an open call for this year’s Honolulu African American Film Festival. From the submissions she put together a great program of shorts that includes
Newbies
, by co-directors Kimiko Lawrence-Matsuda, who is from Honolulu, and Megan Trufant Tillman, who is also a writer and musician from New Orleans. Together, they work as Flypaper.
Newbies
is a moody, contemplative film that focuses on two strangers (played by Mia Isaac and Josiah Cross) in late-night Brooklyn, both navigating queer identities. And it features a cameo by Danny Glover. The film premiered at last year’s SXSW Film & TV Festival, where it received the Texas Short Competition Special Jury Award.
This isn’t the first time the duo have had work in the Honolulu African American Film Festival. The 2023 lineup included
little trumpet
, directed by Tillman and produced by Lawrence-Matsuda.
You can
see
Newbies
on Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Doris Duke Theatre. The busy filmmakers took the time to answer questions via email. This interview has been edited for clarity.—Lesa Griffith
Newbies
is a lyrical visual poem. The lush night scenes and deliberate pacing made me think of Wong-Kar Wai. Is his work an influence on you?
Wong-Kar Wai’s work is a huge inspiration for us. Our amazing DP, Ray Huang, first introduced us to his work before we shot our first film, little trumpet. We were really drawn to that style of making things feel felt.
The film’s metaphor of teeth—and feeling them moving, or constantly feeling them with one’s tongue—is powerful. It is anxiety made tactile. In this case, do the narrative meditations on teeth echo the characters’ grappling with their queer identities?
The metaphor of grappling with your teeth moving is meant to capture the feeling of coming into your queer identity.
Newbies
centers the internal experience of what it feels like to come into our queerness, rather than the external experience of others’ reactions—getting inside the body, showing what it feels like to come out to yourself. Even though this cracking open can be painful, there’s beauty and freedom in it. As directors, we wanted to reflect that visually, to capture the unknowable beauty of an expanding queer self.
The film has long, quiet close ups of both characters—the viewer can read so many emotions moving across their faces in their wonderful performances. What it was like directing those scenes?
We worked with two incredible actors, Mia Isaac and Josiah Cross, who showed up with those performances fully formed. Our approach as directors was just to create the space for them to live in those performances. We approach filmmaking as an exploration of our characters’ interiority—earned through careful observation, intimacy, and time. We hold on our characters to let them reveal themselves to us.
This is the second time you’ve worked together. What led you to co-directing and what was that like?
After working together on
little trumpet
, co-directing just felt like a natural next step in our creative partnership. Our skills really complement each other, and we love working together.
I have to ask—how did you get Danny Glover to be part of your project?
Danny Glover is an old friend of Kimiko’s father, and he was excited to support the film. It was an honor working with him.
In Danny Glover’s scene, the charater Kai mishears the older man as saying “Are you feeling pain?” Tell our readers the significance of this to the character Kai.
Kai hears the older man asking, “Are you full of pain?” when actually he’s asking, “Are you Filipine?”—he’s mispronouncing “Filipino.” This was a moment taken straight from Kimiko’s life. For Kai, finding herself at her lowest point, she feels like everyone can see her pain, but really her mishearing him is just a manifestation of what she’s feeling inside but hasn’t fully grappled with yet.
The jazzy soundtrack is phenomenal. Megan, did you compose the music just for this film?
Megan conceptualized, composed, and recorded the film’s original score with her co-composer, BLK ODYSSY.
Do you see your directing partnership continuing? Are you the next Wachowskis or Coen Brothers?
We just shot our next short film together,
The Birthday Song
, and we’re currently in post-production on it. We’re excited to continue our directing partnership as FLYPAPER. You can follow our filmmaking journey
@byflypaper
on Instagram.
Suggested stories
Remembering Toshiko Takaezu: Artist Kaili Chun on the influential artist
Artist Kaili Chun shares memories of Toshiko Takaezu—teacher, mentor, and friend—and reflects on her lasting influence on art, clay, and life.
Interview
Mari Matsuda: I try to make art that gives us hope and energy
Explore artist Mari Matsuda’s activist art, from Hawai‘i’s historic protests to her creative journey, legacy, and message of hope for future generations.
Interview
Aloha ‘oe: Parting words from Halona Norton-Westbrook
May 16 is Halona Norton-Westbrook’s last day as director and CEO of the Honolulu Museum of Art, before she and her husband Jim Tucker and daughter Minerva move to Fort Worth, where she will assume the…
Interview
We have received your application. We will contact you when tickets become available.
Something went wrong. Please call to be put on the waiting list.
Added:
To wishlist