WWTW Interview: ‘Black Mold Exposure’s’ Michael Roland Williams

I never gave a second thought to mold until our condo flooded a few years back.

Suddenly, we were out thousands of dollars … and out of our home for weeks.

All because of mold.

My wife and I suffered from that mold outbreak, but apparently nothing what actor/filmmaker Michael Roland Williams endured. Williams’ plight is now a new documentary, “Black Mold Exposure.” It’s set to have its world premiere April 15 at the Landmark Magnolia Theatre in Dallas.

WWTW checked in with Williams to find out more about his new film:

WWTW: Can you tell us briefly about your mold situation … how it began, the health ramifications and the struggles you had getting people to understand the scope of your problem?

MRW: Without going into too much detail, my girlfriend Karen and I were being exposed to high levels of various molds that were blowing out of her air conditioning system in her apartment, and we didn’t know it.

The mold exposure made us allergic to everything. We became sensitive to chemicals, pollen, food, clothing, carpet. You name it and we had a problem with it. Severe reactions! I had to tape the interior of my shoes with foil for three years because the dye and chemicals the shoes were made of would make my feet itch and my bones in my legs hurt.

This is one example of countless. As far as getting people to understand the problem, I only told them what was necessary. Rarely did they truly understand, or even want to understand.
 
WWTW: You’re a working actor by trade. At what point did you realize your mold situation.was something could make a powerful screen documentary?

MRW: Because of the extreme sensitivities, I sat in one room of the house for over two years over a five year period. This was a room that I made a safe area where I could go without having reactions. It was during this time that I started working on stories that might make good screenplays.

One day it just hit me that we had a very crazy and strange story to tell about our own lives. I knew we had a story that would interest many, because it’s absolutely crazy. It’s really hard to believe. If it hadn’t happened to me personally, I don’t know what I would think about this.

WWTW: What was one of the more frustrating/maddening parts of your battle with mold-based illness?

MRW: The thing about mold is that if affects everyone in a different way. However, chemical sensitivity is very common among people exposed, and the maddening thing about MCS, which is multiple chemical sensitivity, is that sometimes you don’t even know what you’re having a reaction to because you may not be able to smell it or see it. Your face may be burning like someone poured acid on it and you don’t know what to do to stop it, because you don’t know what is causing it.

That’s why it’s very important to have a place you know you won’t react so you can go there and heal. Like the room I mentioned earlier.

WWTW: Had you shot any films before this … any formal film training beyond your work as an actor?

MRW: None. I picked up a book and started reading. I didn’t stop for three years. Always reading. Filmmaker magazines and books. One right after the other.

WWTW: Talk about the curious path you took to raise money for the production…

MRW: Well, not being able to work because of illness, I needed to find some way to make money. I started playing online poker. I did the same with the poker. I read book after book after book. I played 60 hours a week and I was break-even after 3 months.

The fourth month I made a profit and went on to make a profit the next eleven out of twelve months. The reason this worked for this film is because we had a long production period. I was able to make enough to eat, pay my bills, and pay for the next shoot. The next month I would do the same. I really wasn’t making that much money, but it worked. Lucky for me I was already editing when the bill passed making transactions to gaming sites illegal.

WWTW: What’s the biggest hurdle in dealing with mold? Not enough medical research to study its causes/symptoms/cures? Insurance agencies afraid of paying out for mold claims? Something else?

MRW: Yeah, all of that. (laughs). Honestly, I don’t care about the money, my things, none of it. I just want my health. If you have your health, you have everything you need. If people only knew the power they posses just by being healthy.

WWTW: What’s the current status of your film? Is it rolling out in art house theaters across country? DVD release info?

MRW: The film is going to world premiere in Dallas on April 15th. It will screen in Dallas, Austin, San Diego, Boston, Seattle, Houston, and Chicago. All at theatres within the Landmark Theatres chain. We would like to add more cities and screenings as we go.

We’re not going to rush to DVD. We’ll release it to DVD a couple of months after the theatrical run. 

WWTW: Have you had the chance to get feedback on your film yet?

MRW: We have. And it’s all been good. When our clearance attorney first viewed it, he emailed me and said it was “extraordinary.” We’ve screened it numerous times during the editing process to get what we thought was an entertaining and enlightening film.

My goal from the very beginning, above all others, was to make an entertaining and engaging film that anyone would enjoy. People don’t watch movies to be educated. People watch movies to be entertained.

(Photo: Environmental Evaluator Ted Cartwright from “Black Mold Exposure.”)

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