EP 138: Cultural Witness wth Director/Writer/Producer Max-Arthur Mantle

This week on Visual Intonation, we sit down with Max-Arthur Mantle, a Jamaican-born artist whose lens, pen, and voice challenge silence. As a writer, photographer, and filmmaker, Mantle builds bridges between the Caribbean and the diaspora, between queerness and culture, between pain and power. His debut novel Batty Bwoy didn’t just tell a story. It reclaimed one. 

In this conversation, Mantle takes us behind the scenes of his boldest work yet: BATTY BWOY!, the feature film adaptation that will become the first LGBTQ-themed narrative ever filmed on Jamaican soil. We talk about reclaiming slurs, confronting polite homophobia, and why it’s not enough to be tolerated — you must be seen. You must be heard. You must be accepted. 

We trace Mantle’s path from fashion photography to fiction, from Howard University classrooms to film festival stages. He reflects on growing up queer in Jamaica, on the resilience of diasporic identity, and on the global responsibility of storytelling. This episode is about more than art. It’s about truth. It’s about healing. It’s about that 13-year-old boy afraid of his own future, and the man who now tells him: you are not alone. 

If you’ve ever felt erased, if you’ve ever fought to make your story visible, this episode will speak to you. Tune in as Max-Arthur Mantle offers not just a conversation, but a call — to create, to confront, and to care. 

https://www.gofundme.com/f/ub8n6-support-jamaicas-first-lgbtq-feature-film/e/o?attribution_id=sl:a10e5f1c-7907-4845-91ae-5c2257e6fc71&lang=en_US&ts=1751960877&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp13_t1-amp14_t2-amp15_t3&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=email&v=amp14_t2

Info@battybwoyfilm.com

https://battybwoy.com/ 

Max-Arthur Mantle 

Source: Instagram 

Max-Arthur Mantle 🏳️‍ (@maxarthurmantle) - Instagram 

Source: IMDb 

Max-Arthur Mantle - IMDb