Compton Comedian Jared Snow Turns Sickle Cell Struggle Into Powerful Documentary

When Jared Snow goes to nan hospital, he’s usually successful superior pain, which he hopes will beryllium assuaged soon. But surviving pinch sickle compartment illness arsenic a Black man successful America often tests this hope.

The Compton calved stand-up comedian and character has been surviving pinch sickle compartment illness since he was a child. Hospital visits and symptom person ever been portion of his life. But now he’s utilizing his latest project, a documentary movie called “You Look Fine,” to show nan world really he copes arsenic an entertainer pinch surviving pinch sickle compartment illness successful an manufacture steeped successful image and perception.

Alongside actor-comedian Marlon Wayans, Snow wanted to make nan movie to raise consciousness astir nan realities of sickle compartment illness and really it impacts Black communities.

In nan United States, sickle compartment illness affects astir 100,000 people, pinch much than 90% of cases being among Black people, according to nan U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sickle compartment illness occurs successful astir 1 retired of each 365 Black aliases African American births. People surviving pinch sickle compartment illness person reddish humor cells that are crescent shaped owed to a cistron mutation. Because of this, nan reddish humor cells tin artifact humor travel to nan remainder of nan assemblage and tin origin chronic pain, strokes, lung problems, infections and kidney disease.

The astir 90-minute documentary has Snow filming himself wrong mini infirmary rooms, nurses trying to find a vein successful which to instrumentality needles, and moreover him trying to activity connected worldly arsenic he lies successful infirmary beds. The movie besides includes interviews pinch his friends.

Snow was adamant astir showing nan humor and needles successful nan movie arsenic good arsenic footage of himself writhing successful symptom connected infirmary beds and nan vexation of waiting hours for doctors to supply capable dosages of symptom medicine that tin thief him. He cracks jokes during his infirmary stays, but successful betwixt you get a front-row look astatine really tiring, tearful and emotionally devastating his unwellness tin be. Interspersed wrong specified footage are clips from his stand-up shows and him trying to unrecorded his champion life by traveling, skydiving and moreover experiencing New York City snowfall.

The Times caught up pinch Snow and Wayans to talk astir nan film, vulnerability, Black men’s health, and uncovering levity done nan pain.

J. Snow successful nan infirmary successful “You Look Fine”

(J. SnowPro)

I was struck by nan handwritten notes pinch title ideas. Tell maine wherever “You Look Fine” comes from?

J. Snow: It’s conscionable thing I perceive a lot. It’s thing I’ve heard a batch during my life. It’s taste Black gaslighting is what it is. When you’re successful pain, sometimes you look fine. When you are telling people, “I’m not fine,” they’re like, “Your hairsbreadth is nice.” I can’t spell to nan infirmary pinch gold. I had golden beads. Sometimes you spell location looking excessively nice. Sometimes I sewage to dress down conscionable to effort to get nan help. But if I dress excessively acold down, I look homeless, and they really won’t beryllium unfastened to helping me. So you sewage to find nan balance. But that’s benignant of wherever it comes from. ... I wanted to propulsion it backmost into people’s face. This is thing that a batch of sickle compartment warriors, and group pinch chronic illnesses successful wide hear, group pinch intelligence unwellness hear, and truthful I deliberation it’s important to item really that virtually is gaslighting.

What was your information to do this documentary now?

J.S.: I wanted to show that joke lives wrong this and that a batch of resilience and spot are besides wrong this, and that was really nan motivator. Also, conscionable increasing up pinch it, not having a batch of information, not seeing a batch of men talk astir it. I wanted to beryllium different, you know.

Marlon Wayans: For maine it fits connected marque for respective reasons. One is because I emotion taking nan acheronian things successful life and uncovering immoderate joke successful it. And I deliberation I effort to do that pinch my comedy. I effort to do it pinch my specials. I effort to do it because I deliberation we request to each find smiles nary matter what your business is; laughter is ever treatment and ever necessary. Being African American, I grew up erstwhile sickle compartment was for illustration a salient disease, and successful our civilization I cognize moreover erstwhile it came to dating, my mother would inquire “Who you dating? You know, because if she sewage nan trait, and you sewage nan trait, you know, what could happen.” So I’ve ever been alert of it, and I’ve mislaid now 4 friends to sickle cell. I conscionable mislaid 2 successful nan past year. It’s a agelong fight, and truthful I’m present to support them and our civilization and nan awareness. And you know, Jay is simply a friend, and you know, I want him to spot fame.

For Jared, successful nan film, you say, “I conscionable want to spot what my assemblage tin do.” I thought that was conscionable truthful profoundly profound. What is your narration for illustration pinch your assemblage now, compared pinch nan infinitesimal you were filming that?

J.S.: When personification sees maine eating a salad, and they’re like, “Oh, you eating salad?” I’m like, “This could prevention my life.” When I’m stretching and doing yoga, it’s not because I want to beryllium a yogi. It’s because it virtually gets oxygen into nan joints that are suffering without oxygen. It stretches my hips and I want nan longevity. I spot what happens successful sickle compartment warriors and group without sickle compartment who conscionable property without moving frequently.

J. Snow walks done nan halls of a infirmary while dealing pinch issues from sickle cell.

(Courtesy of J. SnowPro)

Black people, particularly for Black men, don’t person their symptom taken earnestly — beryllium it their beingness symptom aliases their affectional pain. What has it been for illustration for you to publically show that pain?

J.S.: It’s been challenging. It took awhile for maine to get to nan constituent wherever I could moreover talk astir this publicly, particularly being successful intermezo and trying to support a definite persona and image successful intermezo wherever for illustration your ego clashes against your vulnerability and you emotion for illustration you’re weak. That’s nan stigma that comes pinch group who admit that they person illnesses and worldly for illustration that, particularly successful entertainment. It makes group not want to activity pinch you. I’ve suffered done that. I’ve mislaid jobs while successful nan infirmary because of this. And truthful it sewage to a spot wherever it conscionable was unavoidable. The unit built truthful overmuch and nan wave of nan infirmary visits became truthful crazy that it was like, you’re either going to beryllium viewed arsenic this very lazy, sometime-y person, aliases you’re going to travel cleanable astir what you’re really dealing pinch and conscionable look it.

M.W.: I unrecorded successful nan pain. I unrecorded successful nan vulnerability. I deliberation that’s why I create my champion work. You know, my parents died. I thought it was only due to talk astir that point that hurts maine truthful much. I deliberation portion of it takes courage, but astatine nan aforesaid time, I cognize it’s necessary.

What was going done your mind erstwhile you first saw that footage of [Snow] successful nan hospital?

M.W.: “This [man] is crazy. Why you filming?” He made judge he had a GoPro connected his ft and group cameras up — dude really wants to make it. Forget this disease. He whitethorn beryllium faking it conscionable to make it bigger. I was proud, right? That’s because I emotion nan resilience, I emotion that you still person a passion, that you still person a point that you want to do, and you person this creation and this alloy and this expression, and I cognize that moreover though he’s hurting, that he’s treatment astatine nan aforesaid time, astatine least, you know, emotionally and spiritually. Because to put creation retired location astatine nan clip that it’s happening, that you’re successful pain, that takes a batch of courageousness from nan artist, and truthful I was proud. That’s why I guidelines down it, because I deliberation it’s thing I’ve ne'er seen, and I deliberation it’s thing that’s basal for nan culture.

How has this movie changed your narration to your knowing of masculinity and strength?

M.W.: For me, it’s conscionable connected theme. It hasn’t changed, it conscionable enforced really I feel. You know, I’ve ne'er been 1 to hide my feelings. I spell to therapy. I person 2 therapists, I spell connected my walks. I talk to God. I’m reference my Bible. I understand that life is simply a agelong travel of suffering, and you request these outlets, and this movie and creation are portion of that. I person nan stage. I ever person this point that I’m expressing because it helps maine reconcile each that’s going connected pinch me, particularly erstwhile I return this symptom and make different group laughter aliases are entertained by it, past I go, each right, I did thing bully pinch that point that was bad. And truthful this enforces what I want group to feel. I want group to watch this. That’s why I guidelines down this, because it’s connected taxable spiritually for me.

J.S.: I deliberation erstwhile you guidelines extracurricular of that vulnerability and you’re acrophobic to really spell into it, I don’t know, I consciousness for illustration that’s orbiting your existent power. The astir masculine point you tin do is look your highs and lows caput connected and ain them. And that’s wherever you find retired who you really are. This is wherever you find retired what you tin really bring to nan array for yourself, for others, and wherever you go fearless. And that’s precisely what this showed me, was that I tin do anything, I tin conquer a batch of things. I locomotion astir pinch a caller power because I’ve done this. I virtually had a movie connected difficult drives, and I sat for 11 months and edited it relentlessly, and now I person my first characteristic movie because I was fearless capable to astatine slightest effort to do it and not feel, what are group going to think, aliases what are group going to say? That didn’t matter to me. Also pinch this timepiece complete my head, you don’t sewage clip to deliberation astir worldly for illustration that. It’s like, what do you want to do while you’re here? And what I wanted to do was make movies, make group laughter and animate others to do things that they want to do too. And that took letting spell of immoderate this masculine image was that was blocking me.

J. Snow connected shape astatine nan Hollywood Laugh Factory

(Brianna Joseph)

The full movie is endearing, but I recovered those moments of levity truthful well- timed and truthful thoughtful and funny. How do Black group find those moments of levity, oftentimes, during these moments of pain?

M.W.: Because Black group person been done truthful overmuch trauma earlier we get into family trauma, conscionable arsenic a people. We person suffered nan astir trauma from being separated from our family, slavery — we’ve been done it — and yet, and still, we find that funny. And that has been, I think, our redeeming grace is our consciousness of humor. It’s been a lifesaver. It’s been a raft successful a really unsmooth water for us. And I deliberation it’s beautiful that we can. I will ever beforehand laughing erstwhile you’re successful your astir symptom to find nan funny, because that takes a small unit off. You’re laughing and crying astatine nan aforesaid time. It’s for illustration nan champion feeling.

J.S.: It’s for illustration oxygen, for illustration erstwhile nan aerial is being sucked retired of nan room by your circumstances, your trauma, your symptom aliases whatever. That small laughter is for illustration a small activity of oxygen. It gives you thing to support going forward, to proceed to think, “OK, like, where’s different solution from here? What other tin I do here?” It gives you that activity that you need.