We were lucky to catch up with Isaiah Moore recently and have shared our conversation below.

Isaiah , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

In spring of 2023 I began writing “til death do we art”. A short film about Kori, whom burdened by their immortality, has lost the urgency to create art or engage in any meaningful endeavors, believing that they have an eternity to do so. Snoh, Kori’s lifelong best friend on the other hand, lives life to the fullest, embracing each day as a precious gift. Their friendship is an intricate dance between the eternal and the ephemeral. Although laced with an undertone of queerness and a gender non conforming character, the main themes I set out to represent is platonic intimacy and shared grief.

I had recently read a book titled “death” by Todd May. In which he discusses two divergent views on death. Questioning whether or not death is evil or if immortality would be worse than death; that there is no escaping death; and that the convergence of these views on death “yields both a beauty and a tragedy to our living that are inextricably entwined”. To live in this life is to understand that we move closer to death each day.

I wanted to bring together these philosophical perspectives and meld them with experiences from my own life. As I brought the story and these characters to life, there was no question as to if there would be queerness and a non binary character represented. The only choice I made in regard to this project was to not have those be the defining characteristics of the characters. This representation was intended to show the normalcy in which I hope these marginalized communities can one day live with in our world. I was inspired to focus on a platonic friendship that seemed to even transcend the romantic one depicted in the project based on the relationship I have with my best friend Elivia. To be loved is to be seen, to be understood, and to have it all be unconditional. We don’t condemn each other’s actions, we listen and care for each other. We make time for each other in life even though we live on opposite sides of the country. We hold each other in a light seen only by us.

Throughout the development of this project, I had the pleasure of working with an amazing cast and crew that brought a beauty that amazed me every step of the way. As the project gears up for a festival run in 2025, I could not be more proud of how it has turned out and the mark left on it by everyone involved. I would be remiss if I did not mention the brilliant director of the project Liz Uys. We worked tirelessly on this project for several months and I am not sure it would have turned out the way it did if not for the partnership we cultivated throughout. Not only was our professional relationship in constant sync but a beautiful friendship blossomed from it as well.

What made this project most meaningful was not only the joy of writing and producing it but the people I met throughout. To have people come together with an immense love for their craft and create something so dear to me is what mattered the most to me. I will work on many more projects in my lifetime but the circumstances that brought us all together for this project is truly once in a lifetime and unforgettable.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I aspire to write. To make films. To create art. To cultivate and be apart of community. Life has brought me to this point because of what I have been dedicated to and dreams I am too stubborn to abandon.

I left New Jersey when I was 18 to move to Chicago to pursue my undergraduate degrees in Television and Cultural Studies, and made another move across the country five years later to Los Angeles to pursue a master’s in Television Writing and Producing. I am in this field because I want to create stories and share from my own experiences about marginalized communities. As a Black, queer, gender nonconforming person, I am at the intersection of a lot of margins. Margins that I hope to shift and transcend through art. Society and culture are shaped by artists and what we create. We tell the stories of what we see and experience, hoping that it resonates with people to shift their perspectives but also have other feel seen.

As I have navigated the world, a lot of what I hear is that you have to “brand yourself” or “sell yourself” in order to showcase what you do and who you are. That has always been challenging for me, and not because I have trouble sharing who I am or what I do but because it is forever evolving. After day, month, year, decade; I am created anew. There is so much being offered (and taken) by the world that branding myself feels very compartmental. I just am, I just exist. An answer I have for a question today might change tomorrow because I learn everyday from the life around me. All in all, I want to experience life for all it has to offer and the best way for me to “brand” anything is to be open to new possibilities and people who want to share this journey; no matter for how long.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Just how many niche communities there are out there! Mainstream narratives, organizations, brands, politics, etc dominate so much of our lives that we become immune to it. With someone of my background and lived experiences, a lot of those mainstream components do not resonate with me. So, it takes a bit of time, experimenting, and research to truly find where you feel most comfortable and accepted. This is an endless journey that can bring so many new people and experiences into your life. If something interests you, it interests other people too and they just might even share the same identities as you.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

That what I spent countless hours making can have an impact on someone’s life. I create with the idea of expressing myself and being vulnerable enough to bring an experience or feeling out of my mind and into the world. Who it can or will impact comes much later in the process because I believe in creating art for yourself first. It will resonate with people in due time in ways I might not have even expected. That’s the beauty of it all. We interpret and live with art in a way unique to ourselves and if what I create allows someone to see themselves or feel something then that’s one of the best things I can leave in this world. Even if I am unaware of it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isaiahfromthemoon/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaiah-moore-73b74a126/

Image Credits

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