Interview with “CODA” actor Troy Kotsur

Alex (Daily Moth): Hello, Troy Kotsur! Happy to have you here. You have a Daily Moth mug! Stay with the light. Nice. Thank you for your support. So, you’re in the CODA film that recently was released today and is now in movie theaters and Apple TV+. I’m sure you’ve since had many different experiences in your journey. In your role as Frank Rossi, the father and the leader of the family… Your performance wasn’t just translating English sentences into ASL. You really integrated elements like facial expressions, and it was almost like ASL poetry. Can you explain the translation and expression process?

Troy: Before I read the script, it’s always important to understand the story before I understand the characters and get the overall story, then the layers, like there may be other elements that affect the characters… Like someone might say my character tends to be a pothead… That’s a clue of who Frank is, so I explore and read through the story. And I always like to challenge scripts in English print. I try to visualize, understand and get in the hearing person’s shoes. I imagine that I’m not deaf and read it in English or imagine spoken acting, and translate it into facial expressions… That’s what the usual process is, but deaf people have endless ways of elaborating one English sentence and have several options to show what works. Some may say certain options are too much. Ok, we can eliminate that, but maybe another option matches just right. There’s that range to play with, that furthers what hearing people could ever have imagined. It’s fun to play and override what’s written in English or spoken. Where is ASL? That’s the cool part.

Alex: I really appreciate you bringing that and I feel like you brought a part of yourself in that role.

Troy: Thank you.

Alex: Now, my next question. Your character was bearded with long hair, as a fisherman, and I read in the Hollywood Reporter that said you didn’t cut or shave for a while afterwards, like for a few months, because you still felt connected to the role. Can you explain why you left it on for a while?

Troy: Really, it took me a long time to remove the character from me. In the past, after they offered me a role, the director asked me to not shave. That was about five or six months that I left it to grow, and then on the first day of shooting, what you saw is what I looked like. I grew attached to Frank. After the role ended, I wasn’t ready to not be Frank anymore. I asked “Why is Frank in Arizona?” There are no waves there. My wife, Deanne Bray, asked me to cut it off and I wasn't ready. I had some mixed feelings, and as I started cutting more hair it felt like Frank was fading away. He’s lost. Where is he? It took a long time to say goodbye, because we grew together 24/7 and were together for two months, plus more time before that, so it took me a long time to say goodbye to Frank. Do you know where Frank is? He’s still in the movie.

Alex: Right, you’re no longer with him but that character is still there permanently in the movie. You can find Frank there. I can imagine it was a tough experience. It’s interesting, your experience through that.

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You mentioned your wife, Deanne Bray, who is an actor too. She’s been in successful projects. Did she give you any tips, support, or encouragement through your experience as an actor?

Troy: It’s really interesting. It’s like destiny and fate, how the timeline unfolded. In the past, my wife Deanne Bray played the star role, Sue Thomas of F.B.Eye, which was filmed in Toronto, Canada for three years. Believe it or not, they hired over 140 different deaf people from Canada to be a part of translation, plus as extras, guest stars, and part of the film crew. Many people don’t realize that’s what they did. I watched Deanne go through interviews, processes and schedules, and always followed and watched her journey which was a good lesson for me to know what to expect if a similar opportunity came for me. Now, with CODA, I look back to what she went through and I already know what to expect. Sometimes I ask for her opinion on what to wear because I know many eyes are on me after seeing the movie, and people will recognize me from CODA. How I dress might have to be adjusted. I have to think about that wherever I go.

Alex: Now you’ve become a star couple! Wow. Both a movie star and TV star. It’s really cool to see that grow in our deaf world and us going from having just a few names to more names and I hope that continues to grow in our community.

Troy: Yes. I hope you… I don’t want you to think of what I do but I want to think of people outside who get attention and I hope we get more support for the community with equal access like in theatre, TV and film production, screenwriting, and any job - you name it. I hope there will be more community collaboration and support. It’s just a matter of time, whether it’s long or short - you’re the only one who can believe in yourself. No one else truly knows you, but yourself. Be self aware, and go through what you go through. But now looking back, I learned about a lot of people I worked with and I thank them for sharing what we shared with each other. I hope that continues in the next new generation, with donations and support, like for Deaf West Theatre, NTD, and summer school programs. We want to see more training with screenwriting, improv, acting, and everything.

Alex: I really appreciate your time, Troy. Congratulations on your success with the CODA film. I hope many people can watch and enjoy it.