In filmmaker and musician D.W. Waterson’s debut feature, “Backspot,” an overachieving teen enters the world of competitive cheerleading. However, she finds the hurdles she faces — including the sport’s physical demands, her desire to appease her assertive coach and her attempts at keeping her relationship stable — are affecting her mind, body and soul.
Through the character of Riley, played by Devery Jacobs of “Reservation Dogs” fame, “Backspot” highlights cheerleading’s intense and laborious nature, where one little slip can shatter someone’s bones and spirit; the infrequently discussed mental health struggles athletes face; and the intergenerational friction between queer millennials and their Generation Z counterparts.
While Waterson, who uses they/them pronouns, did not have prior personal experience as a cheerleader, they lived the cheer dream by wearing a cheerleading uniform when DJing and playing drums in the underground Toronto music scene.
“That was my odd way into the cheer world,” they told NBC News.
Waterson said the sport first caught their eye after they saw a viral video of a cheerleader rigorously trying to perfect a split.
“I’ve never seen that side of cheerleading before. The stress on the body, like what it actually takes, and like these high-pressure scenarios,” Waterson said. “That kind of led me to want to dive in and see the full experience of what it’s like to be a cheerleader.”
Jacobs, who serves as the star and a producer of “Backspot,” said the basis of the film’s concept was expressing the intergenerational relationships among queer people, particularly Gen Z and millennials.
“The main idea that we were interested in exploring was the one where there’s friction between generations of queer folks,” Jacobs told NBC News. “There’s kind of a gap with young folks a lot of the time, taking for granted what rights they have access to, being able to be out, and then for older queer folks, they had to fight so hard for their rights, but sometimes harbor some resentment or bitterness towards this young generation for taking these things for granted.”
That generational divide comes through Coach Eileen, a ruthless, hard-edged lesbian, powerfully performed by a showstopping Evan Rachel Wood.
Throughout the film, Riley does her darndest to make Eileen proud, pushing herself over her limit despite her coach’s aggression.
The role was written with Wood in mind, and like a wish, it came true, Waterson said, adding that their Zoom session with Wood before she officially signed on to the project was “a mind-blowing, out-of-body experience.” During that initial conversation, Waterson added, Wood expressed her hope that her portrayal of Coach Eileen would do for Waterson and Jacobs what Holly Hunter’s star-powered inclusion in Catherine Hardwicke’s 2003 debut film, “Thirteen,” did for Wood.
“To be hearing her say that on a Zoom to my face, I’m like, ‘OK, be calm,’” Waterson recalled.
Waterson and Jacobs also received help from executive producer Elliot Page, who, according to Jacobs, gave the duo helpful notes during the development process.
During their seven-year journey creating “Backspot,” the first film under their Night Is Y production banner, Waterson and Jacobs were adamant that the story stood apart from other female-led sports stories they admired — like “Bring It On” and “Bend It Like Beckham.”
Another essential aspect of Riley’s character is her relationship with her girlfriend, Amanda, a co-cheerleader and fellow fan of “Legally Blonde: The Musical” played by Kudakwashe Rutendo. The relationship between Riley and Amanda serves as the emotional core of “Backspot.” While the characters hit some roadblocks, mainly stemming from their opposing ideologies about competitive cheerleading, Waterson and Jacobs said it was essential that the two teens were still together by the end.
“So often in queer cinema, we’re deprived of happy endings instead of seeing them come together. So often, we’ll see the ‘bury your gays’ trope. It needed to be a happy ending, one that felt hopeful,” Jacobs said.
Some of the romantic moments shared between Riley and Amanda, Waterson revealed, were actually inspired by fan edits of some of their favorite queer relationships from television, including Naomi and Emily from “Skins” and Santana and Brittany from “Glee.”
“It’s a happy, healthy relationship where they’re best friends, they love each other, they love to be silly,” Waterson said of Riley and Amanda. “I feel like just showing a positive young queer relationship is possible.”
As the team started to assemble its cast and crew, many coming from the gymnastics world, Jacobs decided to take on the challenge of playing Riley.
“I had been wearing a producer hat for so long that it was a tough gear shift for me to take off that hat then and put on my actor’s hat,” Jacobs said. “Riley is so three-dimensional. She’s honestly, I think, the role that I’m most proud of as an actor to date, because we get to see so many sides of her, and we see her being silly, we see her being competitive, we see her struggle.”
Jacobs added that she didn’t feel like she was “playing a character,” rather like she was “invoking this person and living in her.”
In the hopes of capturing the competitive cheerleading world authentically, Waterson said they worked closely with Cheer Fuzion, a cheerleading squad based in the Canadian city of Brampton, near Toronto. Waterson said they used what they learned to help ensure the film was authentically depicting Generation Z, the athleticism of cheerleaders, and the physical and mental health issues some athletes face.
“Backspot” — named after the cheerleading position of the person who stands behind the flyer and catches them when they fall — is a unique character analysis that investigates the root of competitive drive and how sports can affect one’s mental health in and out of the gym. Unbeknownst to others, Riley struggles with her self-image and even shows symptoms of trichotillomania, a condition where one uncontrollably pulls out their hair due to anxiety. Waterson revealed they have struggled with trichotillomania and wanted to base this aspect of Riley’s character on their own experience.
“I wanted to show what that pressure and anxiety was doing and how it started to shape in a way where Riley wanted to control the anxiety and pull it out of herself,” Waterson said. “It was important for me to showcase that, and hopefully, it will start conversations with people.”
“Backspot” debuts in theaters nationwide Friday.
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