Screenwriter Jay Anthony White has a problem. It’s not entirely unwelcome or harmful, but it sometimes leads others to view him as disconnected in social settings. Some might say his body is present, but his mind is elsewhere.
“I can’t shut it off,” White says with a chuckle.
The “it” White alludes to are the story ideas that constantly flood his head at all hours of the day and night. He has had countless occasions when his presence required engagement with others, but he would be so locked into thinking about an idea that he’d drift off into a make-believe world of plot twists, unique character traits, and compelling dialogue. “There would be an obvious shift in my attention, which would come across as if I was bored (in a social setting),” he explains, “when really it’s just me needing to document the idea that’s in my head.” This dynamic has prompted him to end dates prematurely so he could go home to write. But when returning to his quiet digs proves difficult, he whips out his voice recorder and makes an audio note.
White has what most artists have: a connection to that figurative creative portal—a mechanism that grants them access to imaginative concepts that others struggle to retrieve. Sometimes, the spigot to that portal trickles ideas. Other times, the ideas flow like a firehose. It’s during these times when ideas come in rapid succession that White must extract himself from gatherings to archive and document those thoughts.
Since his days growing up in Detroit, White has always had a healthy imagination. It started in middle school when he’d write short stories that featured his classmates. His imagination continued to manifest as he aged, with White performing standup comedy routines in front of family members. He had a brief flirtation with playing baseball and even had desires to play professionally one day, but that was a short-lived ambition. He soon put his full attention back on the arts—specifically, films. White gravitated toward some of the classics: Dog Day Afternoon, The Godfather, and Taxi Driver. He studied those masterpieces and held them up as the standard-bearers of the industry.
“I’ve always loved great films with great characters,” White says. “I’m fascinated by that and by the artists who create those stories.”
White’s interest in storytelling via film led him to watch his favorite movies while reading along with the script. That experience revealed the degree to which abstract words on a page are morphed into a world made of dynamic characters, vivid environments, and memorable themes. It also exposed White to the structure and process of crafting screenplays, and he used that understanding to start developing his own.
One of those early screenplays was Pawn, a story he wrote in six weeks about a hostage situation inside a small diner. Michael Becker of Imprint Entertainment purchased the script, and the film enjoyed a limited theatrical release in 2013. It starred Forest Whitaker (Panic Room, The Last King of Scotland), Michael Chiklis (“The Commish,” “The Shield”), Common (American Gangster, Just Wright), and the late Ray Liotta (Good Fellas, Hannibal).
Since the release of Pawn, White has continued writing scripts and has since expanded his involvement in the movie-making process by venturing into directing. His directorial debut is Project 313, an independent film that explores the vastly different lives of five individuals as they navigate the tumultuous aftermath of the shooting of an unarmed teen. White also penned the script. Sitting in the director’s chair, though, provided White with a fresh perspective about creating art.
“Directing allowed me to get all of my creative ideas out,” he says. “It was a freeing experience in the sense that I had the liberty to express myself in ways I’m usually not able to as a screenwriter. I was able to control this project from beginning to end, with no interference from producers or studio heads.”
Project 313’s premiere is set for 6 p.m. on Thursday, August 1, at the Emagine Theater in Royal Oak, Michigan.
The love of telling stories will forever fuel Jay Anthony White’s artistry. His devotion to the craft forges an unyielding bond that helps him bring to life riveting tales that reflect the nuanced archetypes of his imagination. He looks forward to telling more stories, even if the ideas bouncing inside his head continue to force him to prematurely end dates.
