But What Does A ‘BOY’ Truly Want?: In Conversation With Ben Rusnak

All images credited to Rebecca Woolich

The world of film is multifaceted. We often focus on the stories told in long-form: but the individuals who make short films have an equally important message to tell, and deserve recognition and platforming.

One such film is BOY, which follows Danny, a young gay man looking for a casual hookup. He meets Mark on a dating app and invites him over to fulfil his desire. But Danny soon realises that he’s not the only one with a mission. The power dynamic is unsettling, the tension is high and the conflict is covert, ultimately resulting in a sinister 13-minute watch. The trailer has gone viral on Instagram, with over 330k views.

BOY is the directorial debut for the London-based duo, Ben and Ruth Rusnak. The two have explored a common experience of many queer people, the struggle with identity and expression, and given the topic the attention it needs, with the edge of a thriller. Having personally only encountered the storyline of queer hookups in a small handful of TV shows, it is still a relatively under-represented concept.

I sat down with Ben to discuss the film and his directorial process to understand more about how BOY came to be.

Where did the idea for BOY come from? Tell me a little bit about your initial ideas and how you arrived at the film you have today?

BOY came from a mix of my personal experience, stories from queer friends and imagination. There were many scripts that came before BOY and many other stories, similar and not to the film that we ended up making. In an earlier draft, BOY was more of a psychological thriller, and it slowly morphed into more of a tense drama. It was when I first sent my co-director, Ruth, the latest script for BOY that she was keen to jump on the project.

In all the time that I have known you, I’ve seen you work through several different creative mediums, such as music and writing. Was filmmaking always a natural next step?

Filmmaking became a natural extension of my creative expression last May. After chatting to a friend about the world of shorts and film festivals, I made it my mission to create my own. Enter, BOY. Looking back, it made a lot of sense. I have a love for stories, whatever their form. Films are the perfect channel for that creativity.

This is your first time working behind the camera on a production. Did you, at any point, want to fuse the acting and directorial process? Or was it always your intention to stay as director?

While I’ve acted in the past, it was never my intention to cast myself in any of the roles in BOY, especially with it being my directorial debut. I wanted to focus all my efforts on the production to develop my skills behind the camera.

Though you’ve said that the film is not based on your personal experiences, were there any scenes or pieces of dialogue you thought were particularly important to write into the storyline?

I thought it important to convey the conflict between Danny’s hesitation and his desires to hookup with Mark. This is an experience many people, especially queer people, might relate to where their identity doesn’t fully align with their intentions. It was also important for me to focus on the two characters mismatch of intentions when it came to the hookup, where Mark saw Danny from a more predatory angle.  

What did you enjoy the most about creating BOY?

I enjoyed working with such a talented cast and crew for an intense three-day shoot, before the long but rewarding postproduction with our amazing editors. It was such a journey finding and working with such a creative group of individuals with whom I can’t wait to collaborate with in the future.

Were there any moments during filming where you found yourself deviating from your original plan? Were there any spontaneous changes?

Ruth and I were clear with the cast and crew that we wanted the project to be collaborative and that we invited any ideas. Most of the deviation from the script happened in the last scene with Danny’s Mum – where, during the shoot, we played around with the dialogue a little and slightly extended the scene.  

What has the creation of this film taught you and what are you going to take from BOY into your future endeavours?

My main takeaway from the film is in the importance of collaboration. I developed as a creative more than I can explain by working closely with our cast and crew. Another takeaway is that you can never have too much footage! Even if it puts pressure on time, it’s always worth getting that extra shot, that extra angle, as it makes the postproduction process a lot simpler.

What do you hope that your audience, particularly those who are young and LGBTQ+, take away from BOY?

I hope young LGBTQ+ audiences can relate to Danny’s experience. BOY addresses a young and awkward queer experience I have found is often overlooked, especially when it comes to young, confused men finding intimacy in unconventional encounters. I hope a wider audience can appreciate the nuances of these situations more.

What advice would you give to any aspiring filmmakers who may be too worried or scared to do what you have done?

JUST DO IT! I think the obstacle that stops most people from completing their first project is the supposed scale of making a film. In my experience, it’s all about building your network from the bottom. In a creative industry like this, you can always find talented people at the same place as you in their career who will be happy to collaborate on projects, and locations that will let you shoot for free. Money and connections don’t and shouldn’t be an obstacle. Just get out of the house and shoot it!

BOY is currently on a film festival run and will be premiering later in 2026.

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Edited by Hannah Tang, Co-Editor of Film & TV