Writer/director Minhal Baig poetically addresses the loss of innocence in We Grown Now, an emotionally resonant coming-of-age story set in 1992 Chicago's impoverished and crime-ridden Cabrini-Green housing projects. The film follows a pair of Black boys, Malik (Blake Cameron James) and Eric (Gian Knight Ramirez), as they navigate a turbulent period for both of their families. Jurnee Smollett co-stars as Dolores, Malik's single mother, who seeks a better life for her children while trying to protect them from a hostile environment.

Baig, acclaimed for her films 1 Night, Hala, and work on BoJack Horseman, wanted "to explore the perspective of a community from these two kids." A Chicago native, she "had been away for a long time. When I returned, it really felt different." The death of her father had Baig "reestablishing" a relationship with the city while "also reconciling this loss." Meanwhile, Smollett "was deeply moved by the notion of telling a story from the point of view of two Black boys." You can watch our interview with Minhal Baig and Jurnee Smollett above or read on below.

Viewing Family and Chicago Through a Different Lens

MovieWeb: You've made this beautifully poignant film about Black children and their families in the Cabrini-Green housing projects. Minhal, you're from Chicago, please talk about where this story came from.

Minhal Baig: This story came from a very personal place. My father passed away. My siblings and I were trying to figure out what to do with our family home. I had been away from Chicago for a long time. When I returned, it really felt different. I was reestablishing my relationship with the city and also reconciling this loss that I was experiencing. I wanted to explore this relationship to home, but I didn't want to do it in an autobiographical way. I really wanted to see it from the perspective of community.

"I was put in touch with former Cabrini-Green residents. That process started in 2018, and as I was interviewing people, I heard all these amazing stories. I just felt there's all these amazing stories that I've never heard of. What they were sharing with me really challenged what I had known about Cabrini-Green at the time."

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Minhal Baig: It was something that I wanted to explore in a film, especially from the perspective of a community, a family, and then from these two kids, the perspective of these two children, because this is the only place they've known as home. So, while the story takes place in the housing projects, it's not where I grew up. It was a place I very much knew about as I was growing up in Chicago. I wanted to share this story. I hadn't seen it before. That was exciting to me, what life was like there in a different lens.

Jurnee Smollett and the Ability to Dream

MW: Jurnee, you play Dolores, a single mother with two children. I saw my mother in your performance. It was deeply affecting. She works long hours without getting ahead. Talk about that spirit of being the anchor for the family.

Jurnee Smollett: When I read the script, I was deeply moved by the notion of telling a story from the point of view of two Black boys. As the mother of a seven-year-old black child, a Black boy, I myself can relate so much to Dolores, her struggle to raise him in all his fullness, all his glory, trying to protect his joy and his light. And yet, also, I have to have certain talks with him. I have to rear him in a way that lets him understand that he's going to face certain obstacles, simply because he is who he is.

Jurnee Smollett: And while we sit in a place of privilege, stepping into the mind frame of a mom in the '90s, who is a single mom. I drew a lot of inspiration from my life, but also from my mom, who was a single Black mother, raising six kids. My grandmother, who was a single Black woman in the south, raising four kids — those long hours, and that toll that it takes on you, and how you've got to just find the beauty in the mundane.

Jurnee Smollett: I think with Dolores, one of the things we talked about is, both her and her son have this ability to dream. But she's kind of lost it a little bit. We see it in moments when they complain about the food. There's a bit of this magical realism, but she's lost touch with her ability to dream about a life beyond where she is. She's so desperately holding on. 'I just need stability. I just need to get through this day, tomorrow,' right? And what that does to someone, how that wears down on them. How does that manifest in their relationships, in their home?

So yeah, it's a great compliment. A lot of people have said that she reminds them of their mom. That means a lot. Because it means it's resonating. So thank you for that.

Children Are the Most Imaginative

MW: You did an amazing job. The boys, Blake [Cameron James] and Gian [Knight Ramirez], are incredible. They are also anchors of this film. Minhal, you capture their innocence and wonder with symbolism and fantasy elements. Working with children on set can be difficult. Talk about working with the two boys, and what that experience was like?

Minhal Baig: It was an amazing experience working with them. They brought so much to these roles. I believe that children are just the most imaginative. They haven't lost their ability to dream and to play. They're already doing that in making make-believe. Every day was a surprise, because they don't fake anything. They are very true to themselves and these characters. Working with Blake and Gian was a joy. There's parts of it that I can't control. Those are the parts that they're bringing to the table. That's what I was really excited about as a director because, for me, it's not just about getting what I want. It's about cultivating an environment that allows them to do their best work.

Minhal Baig: They did that very naturally. We had rehearsals. We worked through the scenes. We very much had a process before we started filming, but I really encouraged them to take ownership of their characters and play inside of this world. They did that. By the end of the film, they were saying things like, Blake said once that 'Malik wouldn't say that.' I told him that he was 10 (laughs). They knew their characters very well by the end of the film. It was really special working with them.

We Grown Now is a production of Participant, Symbolic Exchange, and Stage 6 Films and will be released theatrically on April 19th from Sony Pictures Classics.