Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Justine’s Stephanie Turner

Stephanie Turner is the creative mastermind and star of Justine, a must-see new drama now on Netflix. In the film, Stephanie plays Lisa Wade, a single mom who’s forced to move in with her father-in-law after the death of her husband. Grieving from that loss, Lisa has shut herself out from the world and her family.

She takes a job as a caretaker to Justine, a young girl with spina bifida living in a racist household. While at first glance they appear to be an unlikely pair, they ultimately become friends and help each other grow in the process. Pop Culturalist caught up with Stephanie to chat about Justine.

PC: You’re an actress, director, producer, and writer. How did you discover your passion for the arts?
Stephanie: As a kid, I always said that I wanted to be an actor. It came from watching movies. There was something that I loved about the storytelling. At the time, I didn’t know the performance aspect of it. Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I didn’t see a ton of examples of writers or directors who were women. I saw acting as my way in. That’s how I got my start in the industry. That will always be my first love, but over the course of my career, I started writing, and that has become a big passion for me. With this new film I have out, it was my first time directing, and that’s now a new passion.

PC: Tell us about Justine and the inspiration behind the film.
Stephanie: I wanted to write a film that was low budget that I could potentially make or raise money for easily. I wanted to play an interesting, complex character. That has always been in the back of my mind. Then I had this idea of a relationship between this young girl who everyone in her life has cuddled or sheltered in some way. But then she has a caretaker—whether it was a teacher or nanny, I wasn’t sure at first—that refused to shelter her in that way. That was the original idea.

Then I built the world and everything around that based on either things that I’ve experienced in my life or came into contact with at some point. It’s a story of a single mom with two young kids who’s forced to live with her father-in-law after her husband dies. She takes a job as a nanny to an eight-year-old little girl who’s in a wheelchair and has spina bifida. The two of them bond and connect in a unique way.

PC: Like you just said, throughout the film we get to see Lisa and Justine form this unlikely bond. What’s the biggest lesson they teach each other throughout the film?
Stephanie: For both of them, it’s about connection. They give each other the opportunity to connect with somebody. For Lisa, she’s chosen not to connect with her own family because it’s too painful. She doesn’t want to connect with Justine at first either. Neither do Justine’s parents. She likes the idea of having a job that she can show up and not get attached to. So on paper, it seems great. But once she’s actually with Justine, she can’t help but engage and connect.

Justine, on the other hand, she’s desperate for connection. She’s found her own coping mechanism, which is going inward and connecting with herself and her imaginary friends. Lisa gives her the opportunity to have a friendship with somebody that she hasn’t ever had.

PC: The film has been really well received on the festival circuit. What do you think it is that’s resonating with audiences?
Stephanie: I’m so happy that the film is affecting people. I’ve had so many people come up and tell me different things. It’s rare that we see a character like Lisa on TV and in film because I think she’s definitely been described to me as unlikable. Many people have come up to me and said, “Lisa reminds me so much of my own mom when my dad died” or “She reminds me so much of someone from my childhood” or “It reminds me of myself when I was going through this really hard time.”

Even though she is unlikable to some people, there’s a version of her in all of us that we can relate to—that feeling of not wanting to engage with people and sort of isolate ourselves in our grief. I also think the family dynamics are resonating with audiences. At the heart of the film is family and people coming together. While we were making the movie, we tried to keep the focus on that.

To keep up with Stephanie, follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Watch Justine on Netflix today.

Photo Credit: Tommy Flanagan