Screenwriter and filmmaker Randy Wilkins has a history with Spike Lee that goes way back. As an English major with a passion for filmmaking at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Wilkins was assigned as Lee’s host when Lee visited the campus nearly two decades ago. Lee was so impressed by Wilkins that he gave a recommendation for Wilkins to apply to NYU’s graduate filmmaking program. Wilkins was accepted and graduated in 2009. Flash forward a few years and Wilkins was working for Lee on numerous projects, including as lead editor on She’s Gotta Have It and Rodney King for Netflix.

So it’s not surprising that Wilkins was chosen to direct the series premiere episode of Dear… featuring Lee for Apple TV+ that launched on June 5. Dear… is a 10-episode documentary series executive produced by Emmy® Award and Peabody® Award winner R.J. Cutler. It takes an inventive and cinematic approach to biographies of the most iconic figures in society today; including Lee, Oprah Winfrey and Lin-Manuel Miranda, by using letters written by those whose lives have been changed through their work.

“Spike inspired me and mentored and taught me a lot of things about filmmaking and the business of filmmaking and has absolutely had an impact on me,” Wilkins said.

“I’m fortunate to say it goes beyond inspiration because I’ve been a longtime collaborator of his in a lot of different positions and responsibilities. The opportunity to learn and grow under him has been a tremendous experience for me.”

Wilkins says that one of the biggest takeaways from filmmaking that he’s learned from Lee is having the commitment to see your vision through no matter what.

“You have to be willing to do a lot of things that will help your vision come to life and can execute it the way you see it and make your project happen,” he said.

“There was a time when Spike had some struggles to get some projects off the ground but he had a relentless desire to get those projects off the ground and to create them in the manner he wanted to create them in. That's something I keep in mind when I am trying to get some of my own projects off the ground.”

Wilkins says that his experience with working with Lee and the four letter writers who appear in the episode of Dear… made him realize that, “I was working in a bubble with Spike. I think being in that space for so long, you forget how much of an impact he has on people; it reminded me of the wide range of his work on a wide range of people.”

According to Wilkins, the story of Candice Wiggins, who reveals Lee’s movies helped her reconcile issues with her father, particularly touched him.

“She was discovering moments while she was filming. We knew it was real as we were going along. I don’t think it’s an experience I will ever forget,” he said.

The series emphasizes the point that one person’s story can change the world, and Wilkins says people like Lee and Miranda were featured because of their authenticity.

“They’re living and creating art through their own truth. I think the more genuine your voice is, the more of an impact it will have,” Wilkins said.

“I think a lot of times there are situations where it’s an either/or prism [in storytelling], and I don’t think that captures our realities. I think that most people crave authenticity; they crave a genuine attitude and approach to things.”

Wilkins says he believes the strongest storytellers are those who are attuned with “their own voices and are committed to creating the stories they see.” In other words, those who don’t rely on a formula or tell stories that have been told before.

“I think the strongest stories are those that introduce us to worlds, decisions and people that we don’t often see in our day-to-day lives but have an authenticity about it,” he said

“I think audiences are smart enough to know when people are being authentic or not, and I think it’s important to give the audience that respect.”

Wilkins is currently working on a number of projects in development, including his feature script Pray For A Little More Spring and the feature documentary MOVE, while also in co-development for the miniseries Forward Ever.

He says that when it comes to crafting his own stories, he likes to create characters that are engaging and “placed in situations where their morality might tell them one thing, the reality of the situation tells them something different, and the idea that is okay.”

According to Wilkins, outlining that things are not black and white is a priority.

“I think that’s important to have in characters,” he said.

Emotional resonance is also a key factor for Wilkins when it comes to crafting stories.

“I like to put my audience in the position of the characters they see on the screen and ask themselves, ‘What would I do in their position or situation?’ I like having characters dealing with situations and predicaments where they have to make tough decisions and I think that’s often a reflection of the realities we are living,” he said.

Now more than ever, telling real stories is needed in film, according to Wilkins.

“I think [film] presents a diversity of experiences that you won’t find in any other medium,” he said.

“[Stories] are connectors; they bring communities together, they allow people to have revelations about themselves. I think the value of stories has increased in times like now as they help us to understand what’s happened. I think stories are crucial pieces of culture.”