Colman Domingo and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin star in Sing Sing, a bold new take on the prison movie genre that ditches every overplayed cliche and stereotype in favor of a deeply humanizing and empathetic story about men who find their freedom within the confines of America’s brutal prison system. In addition to actors like Domingo (who recently received an Oscar nomination for Rustin) and Paul Raci, much of the film’s cast consists of formerly incarcerated people who are alumni of the “Rehabilitation Through the Arts” program at New York’s Sing Sing prison.

Two of these actors are Sean “Dino” Johnson and Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez, who play fictionalized versions of themselves in the film. Despite its setting, Sing Sing isn’t an exploitation movie or an action-packed thriller; there are no prison riots, mustache-twirling prison guards, and no dramatic escape plans: the movie is about the humanity of people trapped inside the prison system who take it upon themselves to seek rehabilitation through the art of theatre.

While promoting the theatrical release of Sing Sing, Sean “Dino” Johnson and Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez sat down for an interview with Screen Rant. They discussed the film, their lives, and what it was like to return to the film’s shooting location of Downstate Correctional Facility, where they and the rest of the RTA alumni in the film had previously been incarcerated. They also spoke about the incredible power of the RTA program, which Dino described as allowing him to feel “freedom behind the wall.”

Sean “Dino” Johnson & Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez On Their Unorthodox But Triumphant Return To Prison

Screen Rant: I was at a screening for the movie a few weeks ago now, and it’s just been bouncing around in my head ever since. I’ve done hundreds of these interviews and seen hundreds of movies, and this is one of very few that is special, that is making a difference.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Appreciate that.

Could you both tell me a little bit about Rehabilitation Through the Arts and how important of a program it is?

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: Sure, I think one of the most important things to relate about RTA is that it’s a program that goes way beyond the boundary of the actual participants that are invested in the program. The purpose of RTA is to empower people, and beyond just teaching the arts to individuals inside the program. When it displays the outcome of the of the work, which I refer to as the magic, that brings peace and provides escape for the entire population, and then reaches out and invites the community to be a part of that experience as well. It covers so many different formats in terms of like creating real change in people’s lives. I’ll let Dino give you the real insight.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Oh, you know, I agree. Definitely, JJ is absolutely exactly on point. RTA is beyond therapeutic. RTA is life changing. It’s a form of freeing one’s spirit. You know, when you are younger, you grow up and there’s certain things in life that were told to you. And it’s like, you don’t think or go beyond that. And you stay within that realm. RTA opens up the world to you, opens up better communication, effective listening, learning how to deal with other people. Also, how to deal with, you know, how people perceive you. That’s so important, how people perceive you, so you can know how to be more effective with them.

RTA? it’s a journey, man. It’s a journey to oneself. And it’s like breaking barriers, you know, especially the barriers that mentally we put there, like you have a lot of people in society that are in prison. Mentally, they’re in prison. They go beyond the barrier, they stay within the barriers and that’s all they know. And RTA teaches you how to free oneself. You know, for me, with RTA, I found freedom behind the wall. That’s very rare to say. You know, I found freedom because I found out I can travel. I can mentally go places. I can read, learn things, and go beyond the boundaries, whatever my physical boundaries are. It’s a powerful vehicle. For years in Sing Sing, a lot of young men have been taking advantage of RTA, and it’s been transforming.

I’m thinking about the perception of people in prison, because if you watch the movies, the best case scenario is they get jacked and then go get out and get revenge.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: It’s a little shallow.

But this movie is a really positive and optimistic one about humanity. Tell me a little bit about getting the call to do the movie. Were you skeptical? Were you like, “Are you coming in and exploiting our story?” Or are you like, “You get it. This guy gets it.” What was that journey like for you?

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: I think for me, it was pretty simple. When I look at the individuals that were involved in the film, it’s coming from individuals that were involved in RTA. The guys that were incarcerated are a big part of the cast. I was one of the last people to come out from our cast. And so, by the time I received the news that I could play a role in something that could be so powerful, something that was part of our livelihoods, it was my lifeblood inside. It’s what kept me pumping and filled with hope and desire beyond just the circumstances that I was caught up in.

To have the opportunity to be with them, and then you have individuals such as Dino himself, who has been out for over a decade, close to two decades. Knowing the wisdom and the leadership that he carries, and to trust in that process, because that’s what RTA is about, it’s about trusting the process. I don’t believe that RTA would have ever brought anybody into the fold that could exploit us.

And so it’s a no-brainer. This is an opportunity to create a platform to educate society about a real movement, I would say. It’s bigger than a program. There are people in prison who have made choices to change their lives, and people are not paying attention. And so this film gives us an opportunity to shed light on that and give people an opportunity to learn about what’s really happening in prison, not the exploitative stuff that they’re used to. To be a part of that change is absolutely a part of my mission and my lot in life. And so it was a no-brainer, for real.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: For me, we all knew the humanity that exists, the greatness that exists, that’s stagnated behind the wall. We all knew that. But to give that voice in society, to let others know, because it’s been Sing Sing’s best-kept secret for years. It was important to let the world know that humanity exists behind that wall, because we’re portrayed like monsters. We’re portrayed like people who don’t feel, who don’t care, who don’t love. And to have that voice, to get society to see that humanity shine… That’s one of the most powerful things about this movie, is that it shines true humanity. You know what I mean? Without the stereotypes, without the other recklessness that goes on in prisons, that’s not important. What’s important is that the human spirit is resilient and continuing to grow.

Even within the most contained environment, the most violent environment, there’s still beautiful people being formed.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Absolutely. I personally believe that it’s a powerful way to put a display of humanity, of the power that people have to change through choice, particularly when they’re given the proper support. And that proper support, the last closing piece to what this film is about, is the power of relationships. So it’s all about humanity, relationships, and the power that people have to change through choice.

To be offered an opportunity like that? We were like, “Hey, let’s let it be told. Let’s do this.”

After the screening was over, I was talking to audience members, and the question was, “When did you cry?” Everyone had a different answer, which is such an important way of telling that everyone’s getting something different out of the movie, or at least they’re getting it at different points.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: It meets you where you’re at.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: Exactly. There’s a couple of moments. I’ve watched it so many times, and at different parts, I start to feel emotions in different ways.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Yeah, I’m glad you get it, Zak. I’m glad you felt it, because that’s what we intended, man. We want people to come alive and leave that theater feeling renewed, because sometimes in life, we get so numb to the horrible things that happen every day, that we forget to care, we forget to feel, we forget to love, you know what I mean? There is resilience in our spirit. So that’s beautiful.

Sing Sing Stars Share Their Acting Journeys

Tell me a little bit about acting. Was there a learning curve for film acting versus stage acting, or had you already been over that hump before?

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Not at all. See, I studied theater for going on nine, ten years, you know what I mean? And we had professionals coming and teaching us, and they would teach us from a film perspective, they’d teach us from a theater perspective.And we would mostly just do plays, but we had the information to know, this is the difference.

I know there was only one day at Sing Sing, but you shot in other prisons, like Downstate. Was it a hassle going there, or was it not a big deal to be in that place? Were you already protected?

Sean “Dino” Johnson: When you go into a facility, whether it’s occupied or not, you can feel the awe. You know what I’m saying? You can feel the pain. You can feel the misery, the morbidness in it. You know what I mean? And for us, for some of us, it was extreme. For others, we looked over and said, you know what? This is for a greater good. You know what I mean? We’re just going there, but we’re walking out of there. So let’s go do this.

And once we put the greens on, I think all of us were just kind of looking at it and looking at each other. And it was a crazy feeling, like, wow, I thought I would never voluntarily do something like this, put these back on, ya know? But we got past it. It was just good, all of us just being together, being together once again. That kept us in good spirits.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: I’ll tell you, Zak, personally, for me, I was only a few months out. I wasn’t even into double-digit months yet out of prison after doing almost 24 years for a crime I didn’t commit, right? Coming home, and then having to go to a decommissioned prison, right, and going through that experience. And I remember looking Dino in his eyes, we were in the dressing room putting on the greens. And I’m like, “Dino, did you ever fathom putting this back on again? Because I know I didn’t.” And I had just come home.

You felt the weight of it, but at the same token, we knew what the mission was, right? And we were together. We felt that, again, we had to trust the process. We felt that brotherhood, that solitude that you get when you know that you’re around good company. And we were able to pull through. Downstate Correctional Facility is a facility that everybody comes through to get processed. So every single one of us who had done time in New York State had been through that prison. And if we did the type of time that Dino did, or that I did, and several other people on the cast did, you went through that prison several times, because any time you went to another prison, you had to go through there. And if you went there on a Friday, you spent the weekend there.

So, yes, when you walk through those halls, you have those memories. You remember everything. You you feel it. Like, physically, you feel it. And each one of us feels it differently. But at the same time, it’s cathartic because we’re using that to express our freedom, to express our message. We turned something designed and built for negativity into something that could possibly save the planet in terms of recognizing humanity in everyone.

You’ve got this incredible setting, incredible cast, and of course Colman Domingo. Was there a process of letting him and the other people who haven’t been in your situation pick your brain? Like, did you offer advice as you were shooting?

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: It was a very engaging process from the beginning. Before we actually met Colman, Sean San José, Paul Raci, we had already had Zooms with them and gotten familiar with them there.You know, joked around, talked about serious things, learned a little bit about each other, but learned more so what the environment and setting was like and educating them so that they can do what they did. And it was really an open environment on set where, like, we were all just, for lack of better words, shooting the shit and just vibing on a level that, yeah, everybody can get it. Like, we can do this. And so it was real easy and seamless, to be honest.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Yeah, we were feeding off each other. We were just feeding off each other, that energy, you know? And, you know, the guys, the professionals, Paul Raci, Sean San José, and Colman, these guys, they’re so generous, man.You know what I’m saying? Because as professionals, they could have just, you know, dominated every scene. We all just grew together in that moment, you know? It was a beautiful, beautiful experience.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: They inspired us, like, in between scenes, you know, like, giving us, like, little tips. Everything was, like, love on that set. And beyond that, one thing that I think that we should also mention is the leadership of the directors and the producers. They were open to hearing how this may play out differently in a real setting. They were open to saying, listen, this is the motivation based on what we wrote in the scenes, but you guys have the autonomy to take it to another level. That is very important in terms of creating something that’s authentic.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: Yeah, they gave us a lot of room to find that authenticity, you know? And if a scene didn’t work, we knew it already. We would look at each other, we’re like, yeah. And automatically, we knew exactly what had to be done, you know? So, it was a beautiful process, especially with the leadership.

[Director and co-writer] Greg Kwedar said that some scenes were almost like black box exercises, where it was more of a premise than a real scripted out scene.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: That’s unheard of sometimes. You got some directors that’ll be like, “I didn’t write that. No, say what’s on the line.”

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: Do it like I told you! (Laughs)

Now that the movie is coming out, tell me a little bit about taking that victory lap. People are seeing it, the reviews are coming out, and it’s winning awards at all the festivals.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: I could say this real quick, Zak. I think this is the simplest way for me to convey it. You know, oftentimes it takes great loss to recognize greatness in the first place, right? And so, the individuals that have been on this cast, and those that decided to support this process, everybody from Colman down, everybody that was on the sidelines that will be mentioned when the curtain rolls, right?

It’s just amazing what we were able to do. And the reality is, we are hurt people who have been healed, right? And once you’re healed, you want to continue to heal others, because it feels so good. I don’t know if you caught what was being conveyed in between that, but that’s really what it comes down to. We’ve been saved, and now we want to save others.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: The wounded healers.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: That’s really what the movie is all about.

I wish there was a way to articulate it to the people in charge that this is how you rehabilitate people. Prisons shouldn’t necessarily be a place where people go to be punished, but where you have to go to be rehabilitated.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez: it’s this simple. When people believe in you, that changes the trajectory of your life. A lot of the individuals that we incarcerate in this nation were people that were from the beginning told that they would never be anything, and they weren’t treated properly or adequately from the beginning. They were void of opportunity from the beginning, dispelled, cast into certain communities, couldn’t go into others without facing prejudice. And so, coming from that, we have to analyze where we’ve been and where we need to go in order to continue to succeed.

Sean “Dino” Johnson: And, you know, to answer your question, how do we balance it? It’s very humbling. And we know that the only way for change is by one heart at a time.

About Sing Sing

A theater troupe finds escape from the realities of incarceration through the creativity of putting on a play in this film based on a real-life rehabilitation program and featuring a cast that includes formerly incarcerated actors.

Check out our other Sing Sing interviews here:

• Colman Domingo & Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin
• Greg Kwedar
• Cast & Crew at SXSW