Exclusive: Curtiss Cook Jr. On Vimeo Staff Pick Premiere - The Short Film ‘An Occurrence at Arverne’

Currently playing on Vimeo as a Staff Pick Premiere is the new short film An Occurrence at Arverne, starring Curtiss Cook Jr. ("Orange is the New Black," "Manifest," "Bull") and directed/written by Robert Broadhurst, and produced by Charles Hayes IV.

In the film, a man arrives at an unknown home with an unknown agenda. This film is one whose outcome very much depends on what individual viewers bring to the table. As the country continues to navigate social justice and racial equality in the Black Lives Matter Movement, this short is a very timely and culturally relevant film, and important for audiences to see as they continue to educate themselves during this important time of change and understanding.

BlackFilmandTV.com caught up with Cook Jr. as he spoke about his involvement with the film.

Can you talk about your decision to appear in the short film?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: I wanted to get in there just because first of all me and the director are friends and felt like a trusted connection. I just felt comfortable being able to talk to him. We had very, very long multiple discussions about the piece that allowed me to sit with it and settle in with it. It was at a pretty crazy time in my life. I was just having a child at the time as well. I was extra sensitive to everything, but especially to what was going on in my life at the time. But the fact that we were able to sit down and listen to each other that was a really big deciding factor. We were able to get our sentiments and points across to each other, and change the things that needed to be changed and go through a whole bunch of different stuff. We both just were really open and able to be vulnerable with each other and talk with each other and hopefully put some some truth on the page and on the screen.

Without giving so much away, how would you describe the short?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: That’s a tough question. I feel like you can't say anything. It’s one of the things that made me really want to do the piece in the first place. It was just an experience that people should have. If they choose to opt in and watch it, it’s an experience that caters to their perspective of where they're at in life. I didn't want to throw anything on top of anybody. I wanted people to just watch and take away what they needed to take away from it. That's partially why it plays out the way it does.

How long was the production?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: I was a part of it for two or three days. They had to do other things when I wasn't there. I don't know how long the whole production took, but it wasn't more than a few days that I was a part of it.

What did you learn from this one that you can take on to your next project?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: To go with the flow to always, to trust yourself, and go with what you feel. That was the biggest part.

What inspired you to get into acting?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: My dad, Curtis Cook (“The Chi”). He has been doing this since before I was born. I just came into the world with it in my background. That's definitely a big part and then just a calling; it just felt like it was exactly what I was supposed to do. It was easy to step into in terms of feeling like this is the right thing for me. I definitely did try to search for some other things to see if maybe I want to do something else because this was relatively accessible at the beginning. And in doing that stuff and trying to figure out other things. I had nowhere else to go but to come back to this. It’s what my heart brought me back to.

As your career is starting out, what tickles your fancy when you look for a part? Do you look for certain roles or do you go wherever the work takes you?

Curtiss Cook Jr.: It’s where the word takes me, but I'm just looking for honest work. That's it.

How do you feel this short film was selected as the Vimeo staff pick? It gives the film awareness as well as visibility for you.

Curtiss Cook Jr.: I'm definitely excited about that. I've been lucky enough to be a part of some other projects that were Vimeo staff picks but never a Staff Pick Premiere. So this is new territory and just shout out to the team who put in all the crazy work that they put in after my job was done and getting everything together and getting people to know about it and things of that nature. Definitely is a win for all the team and I'm really excited.