EDGE Interview: 'I Wish You All the Best' Director Tommy Dorfman Presents a Non-Binary Coming Out Story Full of Heart at SXSW

Known for her acting skills as Ryan Shaver on Netflix's hit series "13 Reasons Why," queer performer Tommy Dorfman hit the SXSW Film & TV Festival to debut her newest film, "I Wish You All the Best." Based on the novel of the same name by Mason Deaver, the coming-out drama stars Corey Fogelmanis as Ben, a North Carolina teenager who is kicked out of their parents' home when they come out as non-binary. Viewed as a disgrace to their parents and the conservative Christian community at large, Ben retreats to live with their estranged sister (Alexandra Daddario) and her husband (Cole Sprouse).

As Ben acclimates to a new town, trying their best to understand where they fit in, they meet Nathan (Miles Gutierrez-Riley), who shows them the ins and outs of their new high school. A progressive area filled with understanding and woke teenagers, Ben discovers a lot about themself with the help of the supportive people around them. This includes Ms. Lyons, a sympathetic and hilarious art teacher played by Lena Dunham.

EDGE sat down with Dorfman and Fogelmanis the day before their newest film premiered at SXSW.

EDGE: Tommy, you adapted the novel, produced the film, and this is your directorial debut. Is that correct?

Tommy Dorfman: Correct.

EDGE: It seems like you really threw yourself into this film. Why this movie? Why this story?

Tommy Dorfman: I had never read a book like Mason's. Frankly, I'd never read a book with a queer coming-of-age story that felt so authentic, visceral and set in a more rural area. I grew up in this house. So it just felt like a perfect opportunity and I felt uniquely qualified to do so. It's just really inspiring. I mean, as I was reading the book, the visuals were so clear to me; what Ben looked like, the feelings were so visceral and so lived in. I just immediately started outlining what it could look like as a movie.

When you're making something for the first time, especially if you're known as an actor, it can be really challenging to get people to believe in you and trust that you can do something different. So I knew that it was going to require an incredible amount of like passion and bringing myself to the project to get it over the line. For many years, it was just like me and my manager and a couple people who are now executive producers on this project reading, frankly, shitty drafts that I had written to get to the final draft. I really like them cheering me on in the same way that Hannah, Thomas, Nathan, Malika, and Ms. Lyons do for Ben [in the film].

EDGE: Speaking of Ms. Lyons, Lena Dunham plays her in the movie as the art teacher and life coach for Ben. How did that come about? She's hysterical and so warm as the character.

Tommy Dorfman: Lena is one of my best friends. I shadowed her as a director and really idolized her in a lot of ways. She has mentored me as an artist and as a multi-hyphenate, if you will. I lived in Brooklyn when she was still shooting "Girls" and I used to fantasize that maybe I'll run into Lena Dunham and I could like give her my head shot, you know? I was in college at the time studying theater. When we finally met it [was] sort of serendipitously through a friend. I couldn't have told you in 2017 that in 2023 I would be working with her in this capacity.

But yeah, I think working with friends is so important for me. Cole [Sprouse] and I are really close, Amy Landecker and I also knew each other. I think surrounding yourself, building yourself with people that you love and admire and trust is what makes me the most successful. I can't do these things alone. I had the great experience of being on Lena's set and watching how she works. I feel really fortunate that she was available, frankly. We shot all of her scenes in a day. When you see the movie, that's a lot of footage to shoot in a very short time. But, she is the most talented, professional, inspiring person to work with. Having her on set, I was pinching myself laughing.

Corey Fogelmanis: It came at the perfect time in the shoot because we had just done like, a lot of just really heavy stuff and I just needed to laugh. Everybody needed to laugh and she can't not make you laugh.

Tommy Dorfman: Yeah, and I really have to credit her. I always treat the script as a skeleton-like dialogue. Especially if it doesn't feel good, change it like you can work on it. I really like to give people freedom to improvise and play around if they want to. If that's their thing, and if it's not their thing. I've never forced anyone to do that. And Lena really just went to that Lena Dunham level. I couldn't be more grateful for that.

EDGE: Talking about perfect casting. Cory, what was the pressure like to play a non-binary teenager coming out and showing that coming out journey? Oftentimes, we tend to see these kind of characters as a friend of, not necessarily a central character. What was that experience like?

Corey Fogelmanis: It was a really unique experience because I feel like what you said, it is all about Ben. So cool that as we get to see Ben waking up in the morning and brushing their teeth and how they talk to their sister and their best friends and the person that they like. You see them on their best days and on their worst days. It was really special to create, and just kind of live as this full spectrum of a person. You just see them in so many different lights. It was really special because it was all there in the writing.

Tommy Dorfman: It's very rare that you see queer or trans characters just like living their life. Which we all do. Cry in bed, eating a bag of chips. You think they should think this shit is very relatable like, we watched too many episodes of the same show, like... we do these things? We go on first dates. We lose our virginity. I think there are these very human things that I wanted the world to see that has nothing to do with being non-binary. In so many ways, it has everything to do with just being a human being.