There are films that’ll make you laugh, smile, or provide a 90 minute escape from the weight of present day life. Then there are films that linger long after the credits roll, reaching into some hidden corner of your soul and forces you to feel the raw ache their characters endure – It Comes In Waves, belongs firmly in the latter. From the final scene, I was left in a rare state of quiet contemplation. Similar to feelings I experienced after watching films like Moonlight, Aftersun, and The Worst Person In the World to name a few.
At its core, It Comes In Waves is about generational trauma through the lens of a family shaped by the Rwandan Genocide. How it weaves in and out of your life like a current, making it’s way through situations you boldly face or circumstances you attempt to run from, definitively shapes the lives of all who are connected.
In my conversation with the director, Fitch Jean and lead actor, Adrian Walters, they pull the curtain back and offer a glimpse into what went into bringing this story to life. Jean’s own desires to tackle narratives and themes often pushed aside in cinema, was the very force that allowed him to tell this story. While Walter’s determination for bold storytelling and his own inspiration from films like Blood Diamond (2006), fueled his passion to pursue roles like this one.
“What drew you to explore generational trauma — was it personal or cultural?”
FJ: I initially wanted to tackle trauma specifically from the perspective of black men. I like to discuss topics that I don’t see on the big screen – it’s a duty that I have. One of my friends [getting his PhD at the University of Detroit] thesis was a similar topic, so he would send me research and documentation around it. As I was building that idea [of generational trauma] in my head, I wanted to find a good backstory for the subject matter. Speaking to my own personal friends in Ottawa who are Rwandan, it confirmed that there’s a lot of unresolved and unhealed trauma from people that have experienced the genocide – even affecting those who were born here and didn’t experience the genocide at all. I realized that it really carries on a generational level. I researched and found that when trauma doesn’t have healing attached, it can carry on throughout generations. That’s where I dived deeper into that [Rwandan Genocide] as the backstory of the film with my writing partner [Sammy Mohamed] and we crafted the story of what eventually became It Comes In Waves.
“How do you personally define ‘generational trauma’ and how did that shape your storytelling in the film?”
FJ: It has different facets to it – but I think that it’s the result of wounds that are not healed that trickle down. It affects people around them [mainly children] which creates wounds in them, and the wounds carry on through generations. It comes in many forms right? It can be quiet like Akai who has nightmares, or it can be loud like his mother who decides to deal with it through substance abuse. I wanted to show that there are many forms to trauma and it appears differently in everyone. I didn’t want to display a cookie-cutter version of it. Even supporting characters are dealing with their own trauma. I wouldn’t want someone who is dealing with trauma to have their experiences invalidated because it doesn’t look like what the general face of trauma is often portrayed as.
One of the things I admired most about It Comes In Waves was how each character responded differently to trauma. Whether by suppression or acceptance. The film refuses to villainize any of them. Instead, it extends a great deal of compassion to each, recognizing them as forms of survival.
“Why was it important for you to portray the different faces of trauma: acceptance/rejection/suppression? Especially in the main character [Akai] who knows he’s suffering from his past experience, and has decided he wants to heal from it.”
FJ: I wanted to start a conversation. It’s well documented that marginalized communities have a hard time dealing with – or accepting trauma and mental health issues. I wanted people to see themselves in the characters and seek help or talk about this – their experiences are valid. Whatever conversation that would spark in a direction that leads to some type of education, for me, was the ultimate goal.
“What was the casting process when you started the search for actors to play these lead roles? Or even the conversations you had once you casted those characters? It’s not just a responsibility – it’s a weight that they have to carry with them throughout the project. I would love to know how you navigated those conversations during your search.”
FJ: It initially started by casting Akai [played by Adrian Walters]. I had a meeting with Adrian – we didn’t really talk that much about the film, but we talked for like 3 hours. He had such deep empathy, which was what was needed for the film. I tried to equip him as much possible with what was needed to take on that role – research, books, movies. I also got in contact with people from the Rwandan community. I ended up having 2 consultants on the project [Marshall Ubaruta and Patrick Rubayiza] who my talent could speak to to more about the the history of the Rwandan Genocide. It’s a very heavy subject matter so I tried to approach it in a way that would honor the character but also be respectful to the mental health of my talent. Especially when it comes to Nendia [who plays Akai’s little sister – Zera]. I had over 100 auditions for different little girls for the role. For her, I really wanted to find someone who encapsulated that joy but also the depth of the emotions as well.
Jean’s direction is not only truthful, but strikingly empathetic. He doesn’t exploit the trauma of the genocide, which is portrayed through tense nightmares from the main character Akai, but he allows silence and visible discomfort of characters to speak louder than any dialogue. It’s is rooted in understanding rather than judgment, which is a rare quality in films that deal with intense subject matters. His pacing throughout the film mirrors the very title itself – dealing with and healing from trauma comes in waves.
Akai and Zera’s – who is portrayed with fierce vulnerability, and heartwarming innocence by Nendia Lewars – scenes together are where the film finds a steady heartbeat. Three words: the diner scene. In a moment of tenderness, and unapologetic truth, Akai makes the revelation of his own experience with the genocide to his younger sister. A moment felt lived-in rather than scripted.
FJ: That scene, we initially started on Nendia’s shot. Adrian [even though he’s off camera], he will give you that performance every time. We were recording – I don’t even think there was a note or specific direction for her to start crying. But the way Adrian delivered his performance, it built up in her and really allowed her to receive what he was saying – then she started tearing up. I was happy that it was on her take that we got that!
“If this story had been told 20 years ago, do you think people would be able to recieve it?”
FJ: I mean.. I don’t think so. I don’t think people were ready for that at that time. It might have been a little too early. I’m not sure if even the signs of it – at a generational level – would have been visible. Even the industry as a whole, the stories we were allowed to tell, weren’t those types of stories. We really needed pioneers. We needed the Moonlight’s for stories like It Comes In Waves to exist. There’s no better time than now. And I’m so grateful for those who paved the way for films like this to exist.
The lead performance anchors the film with quiet strength. Adrian Walters doesn’t play trauma as spectacle. He carefully executes Akai’s mistakes, his honesty, and ultimate decision to heal from the very memories that haunt him.
“What was your reaction when you first read this script? Did you relate to Akai at all?”
AW: For me, my life experiences couldn’t be further from Akai’s – I’m very blessed to say that I am the youngest of 7 and I have both parents in my life. And they did their job. They’ve done a great job and I’m so grateful for them. So when it came to the story, Fitch provided me with a lot of research material (books, photos, movies) and Sammy wrote a beautiful script. Sound is also a part of my process as an artist. I started to research what are the sounds of Rwanda? The hymns, joyous sounds, battle cry sounds, painful sounds. I would absorb all of it. I did research on genocide survivors, especially from Rwanda. There were so many videos and images that left an impression on me. I would resort back to that and let it fill me up, absorb as much as possible into my toolbox. I also prayed a lot. Like, I said – Lord reveal everything I need to tell this story because I don’t know this life. Help me to stay out of my way, so I could honor something bigger than me.
“What was that moment you realized you could identify with the character? Whether it was a line, or a scene, what was that opening into their world?”
AW: Heartbreak. I know what it’s like to have love and love loss. That was my personal and emotional in. I have lived a very blessed life, but the more I investigate, I started to learn about low and high functioning trauma. There’s trauma that sends you out of commission, you can’t do anything, you’re barely holding on right? But it [trauma] doesn’t always look like that. High functioning could be a workaholic – you run so fast you don’t have to deal with what’s happening to you. I related to that with heartbreak. The more you investigate the human beings of the story, you realize we’re all the same – every single character. I am Akai – he just wants to be happy.
“What about your co-star [Nendia Lewars] – who is incredible by the way! What were those emotionally difficult scenes like? Did you have any discussions or meetings with her before filming?”
AW: We literally met on day 1 – when we were filming. My whole assignment from the minute I met her was to be present to Nendia’s innocence and do my best to protect it. We would do a very intense scene, and the minute they yelled cut, we would make Tiktoks or play silly games, little things like that to make her feel safe. That diner scene, she didn’t know she was going to cry, like she didn’t know that was going to happen. And when they yelled cut, she came over and sat beside me. She was like “don’t cry”.
We paused to swoon over Lewars sweetness!
AW: I wanted to protect her and it was like she wanted to protect me. She did her best to make everyone feel happy. We carried that throughout the process. She’s really became like my little sister.
Water’s futher explained the lasting relationships he made with everyone on the film. Citing “Jean has become like a brother to him”, supporting actors are his extended family now. For him, the heartfelt moments on screen lasted long after the camera stops rolling.
What makes It Comes In Waves so moving is that healing isn’t a straight line – it comes in surges, in waves.
By the time the credits rolled, I found myself thinking not just about these characters, but the larger conversation: how do we deal with generational trauma? What does it look like in terms of work, intimate relationships, and our perception of the future? The film isn’t an on-screen catharsis, but it offers something more honest and much more valuable: recognition.
Jean’s film is such a powerful achievement in memory, silence, and the courage it takes to face what has been buried through traumatic events. Pain, much like the tide, recedes and returns. And in learning to move with it, rather than against it, there lies the first step towards healing.
