BWW Blog: Jennifer Rudin - Meet FREEWAY Director Terry Milner

Meet FREEWAY Director Terry Milner!

Name: Terry Milner
Hometown: Jackson, Mississippi

Tell us (2-3 sentences) about your role in Freeway.

I am the director of Freeway.

How did you decide to become a director and writer?

I spent several years as an actor; I can't think of any better preparation for writing and directing. I spent a long time working in an unrelated field and only returned to the theater - primarily as a playwright - when I finally felt I had something to say. After my first play (The Jesus Fund) was produced, I was accepted to the MFA in Dramatic Writing program at NYU/Tisch, which I completed in 2015. Along the way, I also had the chance to assist other directors (Rebecca Holderness, Eve Roberts), then I met you through Tisch when I returned as a director for Gary Garrison's Drama Lab. You were nice enough to ask me to direct Freeway, and here we are!

What inspires you?

Literally everything. One thing you learn as a theater artist is an importance of observing everything around you. The entire human experience is your palette and you cannot afford to waste a single idea or impression or opportunity to learn why and how people do what they do.

What do you wish you'd known before you became a director and writer?

I wish I had believed myself capable of both earlier in my life. There was a recent opinion piece in The Guardian about how a lack of confidence and risk-taking explains the achievement gap for some who grew up children of working class parents. It resonated with me, as someone who grew up in the South, of parents who themselves grew up very poor. I mean it's all relative - I was a lawyer for six years and that took some sense of confidence - I just wish I had felt it as an artist, and felt it earlier in life.

Three words to describe your experience in Freeway.

Lucky. Happy. Proud.

What's next?

My focus is on my writing right now. I've got several scripts circulating - plays and screenplays - and am hoping some will catch on soon. But writing is a solitary pursuit, so I am thrilled to be in the rehearsal room directing terrific actors and collaborating with a gifted writer, all working together as a team to make something really special happen. I want more of that, please.

Learn more about Terry by visiting his website, on Facebook, @RTMilner and IMDb.

For more info on the festival, visit Eclectic Evening of Shorts X: Boxers & Briefs and reserve a ticket for the BOXERS slot. We'd love to see you all at the show.

Jen Rudin is an award-winning writer, casting director and author of Confessions of a Casting Director: Help Actors Land Any Role with Secrets from Inside the Audition Room and visit www.jenrudin.com and www.purpleglassesproductions.com and @RudinJen.

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