We were lucky to catch up with Rice Omary recently and have shared our conversation below.

Rice, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I had a brief period where I was intensely into jazz, blues, bluegrass, and country. I even had a tiny stint at Jazz at Lincoln Center, where I met luminaries like Wynton Marsalis and Phil Schaap. I loved jazz, especially, because it was so dynamic, and yet within its myriad intricacies and its nuance and depth, it remained incredibly digestible. I as a creative endeavor to such aims.

Jazz, much like life, mimicked the creative path. It’s full of nuance and depth, detours, and hardships. It brims with abject failures and complete unknowns. It’s extremely fulfilling and, in retrospect, very simple. I wanted to tell the story of a little girl who had to wrestle with the worst of it and, parallel to her journey, the story of a jazz musician who devastated himself through his art every second of every day.

The most meaningful project I worked on took me five years to write. It’s a feature-length script called ROAD 1958, the title inspired by the famous photograph by Art Kane called Harlem 1958. About 15 people read it. A lot of those people were polarized by the story. I think even one person was outright triggered. It was a visceral piece and it meant so much to me to create it. I learned about life, myself, and tragedy. I learned about resilience, mystery, and meaning. And I also learned about joy and how enriching it can be, especially for children. I learned to revere the process and welcome all the parts of me that resisted it. I learned that not all dichotomies are strictly binary and spectrums are the mode du jour of a craftsman. I learned about characters in storytelling, why we bother to uplift certain voices within us, and why we shun others.

Ultimately, Road 1958 was a fantastic journey. And, like I like to say, it’s a piece that lives in a graveyard filled with the whispered works of many creatives.

Rice, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a screenwriter and film producer originally from New York City. I started writing in 2007 and producing in 2022. I attended the City University of New York’s Baccalaureate Program and graduated with a B.A. in Film Studies and a minor in French. I used to speak French fluently, but that skill has since left me. You can find me on Pimsleur these days practicing my intermediate-level language skills, learning basic Arabic, and re-discovering my passion for Russian. I got into film in a very roundabout way. I was a child actor for 12 years and I was unable to find monologue books for kids like me (shout out to NYPL for quite literally housing my dreams). I then began writing dramas, starting with a book of monologues and progressing to feature-length screenplays. I had an audition at Juilliard and on the morning of, I decided to focus on writing. I’ve been writing ever since. In 2022, with a desire to lean into my entrepreneurial interests, I added producing to my slate.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I cannot stress enough how relational creative professions are, especially film and TV. There are about a million organizations that cater to people across a wide variety of specific demographics. These groups (Chicks with Script, Young Entertainment Professionals, college alumni groups, and many others) are amazing resources. When I was coming up, I had no clue they existed. I can now confidently say that most of my colleagues in film I met through mutual activities as a member of such groups.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

When I was 21 I read Good to Great by Jim Collins. I was so blown away by the creative ingenuity of the business leaders that it completely unlocked a passion for entrepreneurship within me. I highly recommend the read.

Image Credits

HaleLee Photo
Bahareh Ritter