Teyana Taylor recently spoke about her role in the film, “A Thousand and One,” about a young mother who spent years and jail and, upon her release, plans to kidnap her son from the foster care system.

In the film set in 1994, Teyana pays the mother of “Terry,” and the story unfolds from when Terry is 6 until he turns 17. “I learned a lot in just how to deal with a teenager and a person coming up into themselves,” Taylor tells Complex. “It was amazing, and I always wanted a son. So to be able to have sons in a movie was pretty great.”

A.V. Rockwell makes his directorial debut with “A Thousand and One,” he told Complex he wanted audiences to understand how gentrification affects natives. “So many historic moments have happened right on the streets of Harlem that mean something to Black people worldwide. To lose that sense of identity and heritage for us is devastating.”