“There’s nothing cute about a 40-year-old Cincinnati troubadour,” Jean (Melanie Nicholls King) tells her daughter Theresa (KiKi Layne), clearly not seeing what’s right in front of her in “Dandelion.” The view is hazy for the singer/songwriter as well, having stayed in her hometown in Ohio to take care of her mother upon learning that her health was getting worse instead of going on tour as planned and payments to keep treatments going are about to claim her guitar, one of the few possessions she has left after playing gigs around town that are too small to pay the bills and her energy is starting to flag when the future seems bleak in all respects. While Theresa, who goes by the stage name Dandelion, thought she was delaying her dream, it seems as if it could evaporate completely until learning of a battle of the bands in South Dakota where she might be able to make some easy money and at the very least get some fresh air when the climate in her neck of Cincinnati seems stifling.
Something else entirely is waiting for her in Nicole Riegel’s glorious second feature, which the director said upon its premiere at SXSW, “Results are the antithesis of this film.” Instead, less attention is paid to the miles Dandelion puts on to rekindle her career with the help of a conspicuously handsome fellow musician named Casey (Thomas Doherty) in the mountains than to simply just getting back on the road in terms of her passion for music more generally, drained of inspiration when being pulled in every which direction by life. If time in the wilderness can reveal what’s been hidden from Dandelion as she’s balanced her musical aspirations against her responsibilities as a daughter, the film allows a full-fledged coming out party for Layne, a Cincinnati native whose talent might’ve been recognized earlier than her on-screen alter ego after carrying “If Beale Street Could Talk” on her shoulders and leaping into action with “The Old Guard,” but somehow shows even more in the lead role when her renditions of Dandelion’s music, some of which she wrote lyrics for herself alongside Bryce and Aaron Dessner, are bound to send a chill down your spine and ultimately bring joy to your soul.
Even if Riegel’s aim was simply to demonstrate how rewarding process can be, “Dandelion” can’t help but put a punctuation mark on it when Layne gives such a powerhouse performance and the film itself is so well-crafted, having the fluidity of an irresistible earworm. The film seems like a particular triumph when the writer/director’s debut “Holler” had the unfortunate timing to be released during the pandemic and as Dandelion finds the strength to carry on, Riegel affords herself another opportunity to show the force that she is, with plans ahead to complete her Ohio trilogy with her next feature. In the mean time, Layne graciously took the time to talk about how such an ideal part came her way, working on a run-and-gun indie production for the first time and putting her personal stamp on the film’s music.
Usually I’d ask what got you interested in this, but when it’s a script that has a character from Cincinnati and you’re this great singer, what’s this like to land in your lap?
It’s such a beautiful gift to be able to tell a story that’s truly so close to home. There was just so much of myself and my personal experience that I could pour into this one that was very special and unique. So for sure when I saw that [Dandelion] was from Cincinnati, I was like, “Well, how could I not do this?” And being able to share my singing voice for the first time, it all just felt very divine.
From “Holler,” I know Nicole Riegel and Jessica Barden viewed it as a real collaboration to create the character. What was it like hashing this out with her?
That was one of the wonderful things about working with Nicole is that she does have that openness and wants to have meaningful conversations with her actors and learn who they are and what it is that they feel is authentic to bring to the role. So we had a lot of conversations around the music because obviously it’s such a big part of the film and of Dandelion’s character. We were just having conversations around how do I pour more of myself into this music because it’s supposed to be written by Dandelion, but of course in real life it’s written by the Dessners, two white men in their mid-40s, and Dandelion is now a 30-year-old black woman, so [we talked about] how do we bridge the gap of the talents of the Dessners with the truth of the instrument that Dandelion now lives in?
You’ve got a songwriting credit on both “Over the Rhine” and “River,” both of which I understand evolved quite a bit from their original conception. What was that process like?
With “Over the Rhine,” that was originally supposed to be a song called “The Ghosts of Cincinnati” that Aaron Dessner released with his band Big Red Machine, but having conversations with Nicole, I expressed to her this song references [the Cincinnati neighborhood] Over the Rhine so much, and that area has been so gentrified that it’s a very different place now for Black people than it was when I was growing up, so I was like, if she writes a song about this area, how could she not reference that? So I’m grateful that Nicole allowed me to go on that journey, and grateful to our guitar teacher, Noah Harmon, who in addition to making me actually look like I know how to play guitar, was very helpful in me creating these songs.
Then with “River,” it just didn’t quite feel like the finale yet. It didn’t quite feel like it captured all the things that Dandelion had been through in the film, so we really just had to go on a journey of “What does that sound like? What is that song supposed to make you feel like at the end of everything that you’ve seen her go through?” Thankfully, we landed on something that feels pretty damn, pretty damn good. I’m very proud of that one.
It made me feel good at the end of the movie. Was there anything that you wanted to express about the journey of finding your voice as an artist, just gaining confidence or figuring out what you want to do creatively?
Yeah, that is something that we all have to go through as artists, especially now with social media. It seems like the views around what’s successful are so limited, being able to own our own perspective of what success looks like for us and what things have real meaning. Are you only successful as an artist if you are selling out stadiums and arenas? Or are you successful if you’re in a venue and there’s 60 people there that know the lyrics to your song? Isn’t that a measure of success as well? That was definitely a big part of why I wanted to do the film, but then also something that I continue to take with me moving forward as an artist.
This seemed like it must’ve been a new experience as well when it was a scrappy indie production and as far as I can tell, you’ve only been on big sets. Was it an adjustment?
It definitely was because I went into doing “Dandelion” immediately after filming the “Old Guard 2,” so it was quite a culture shock to go from a massive Netflix action budget to a tiny indie film shooting in Covington, Kentucky [standing in for South Dakota for some of the shoot]. But I love to tell stories. I don’t really care what the budget is. It’s about the character and the people that I’m working with. So it is anbit jarring to go from one to another but both experiences for that reason were amazing. I just love to tell stories.
Even for a film of this size, it had to be incredibly intimate to film when it looked like at times it could be you and Thomas singing on the side of a mountain. What was that like?
It was amazing to engage with the nature and the beautiful landscapes of South Dakota. It’s so funny because South Dakota was not on my list of places like I have to go to, but having went, I really appreciated it and I think it was such a beautiful backdrop for this sensitive story around artistry and the artist’s journey, so it did feel very intimate. We’re not a big crew and it’s not that big of a budget, but if we’re surrounded by other artists on their journey as we’re telling this story – even beyond myself, Thomas and Nicole – I think for everyone that was a part of it, it meant something to them to tell this story.
It looks like it must’ve meant a lot to you when you’ve been traveling the country with it since SXSW. What’s it been like to take on the road?
I’m excited for more audiences to see the film, and it’s exciting to talk to connect with people who are on similar journeys of trying to define success in their field is and whatever it is that they are passionate about. I even had a conversation with a journalist about that and his own journey of like trying to find his voice as a journalist, so it’s not just about performing arts. I think it’s anything that anyone is passionate about that they can connect to this film because you’re seeing someone fighting to continue to do the thing that actually brings them the most joy in the world, even if it’s not bringing them the most money.
It sounds like this experience might’ve had an impact on what you want to do moving forward as an artist.
Yeah, definitely. I think finally sharing my singing voice and my songwriting, you know, I can’t go backwards from that. It’s out in the world now and I’m definitely seeking more opportunities that allow me to share more of that and just some fuller version of myself as an artist that goes beyond just acting.
“Dandelion” opens on July 12th in limited release.