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What to see at Sundance 2017!

How to Sundance!

And the winner is…

Stanley Nelson, MacArthur “genius” Fellow and member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, has completed his newest documentary which will premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival this week.  The film, “Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities” isn’t his first Sundance film.  Just 2 years ago, the remarkable and award winning film “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution” educated and entertained audiences.  This newest film, still quite literally in the color-correcting stage of production, will premiere on Monday, Jan. 23rd. Nelson, not worried a bit about finishing in time, shared with me his hopes for the film and the inspiration behind it.

WATCH THE TRAILER HERE

Nelson, the father of 3, a 27 year old and a set of twins setting off for college soon, grew up in New York City, specifically, Manhattan.  He recalls, “My father was a dentist and my mother was a librarian so there was not choice about whether or not to go to college.”  He added, “I got out of high school during the Vietnam era and that was another reason I went to college.”  Initially, although he liked movies as much as the next person, he wasn’t focused upon filmmaking but then he noticed the influx of Blaxploitation films.  He observed that there“…were black people in front of the camera and few behind the camera, [and] I felt like I can do that!  Those films are really bad.  I can make a bad film too,” he chuckled aloud.  Nelson then transferred to Fordham’s film department.

Why did Nelson focus upon this particular topic for his new film?  His mother who attended Talladega College and his father who attended Howard University, while their choices were limited back the 1930’s to black schools only, it did, as he says,  “…make a huge difference in their lives and down through the generations in my family’s lives.”  He continues, “I felt it was a story that

hadn’t been told.  Black colleges and universities were instrumental in forming black communities and being foundations for black middle class and nobody had ever really done a film about [it].

With a team of 3 researchers and a number of interns, Nelson found archival footage, old photos, and yearbooks to depict the history of several institutions.  Creatively, Nelson uses reenactments and graphic art to help fill in the blanks where photos and footage couldn’t be found.  He said, “So much of the film, maybe half of the film, takes place before 1930, before there was a lot of footage and we wanted to make the film come alive.  As we get later into the film, we don’t have to do recreations, but early on we do.  The film really starts out during slavery when African Americans were not allowed to learn to read and write and it was against the law for a white person to teach a slave how to read and write.  It shows you how scary the idea of education was.”

Nelson hopes that by telling this important part of history using film as the medium, that first and foremost people are entertained by it.  He says, “The next thing you want is for them to learn something.  I think that part of the idea of the film is that you see the great lengths that African Americans have gone through to secure eduction and…to control their own education.  I think it’s important to understand that education has the same importance that it did 170 years ago that it does today.  Why was the white slave holder so afraid of education?  It was a way to freedom.”

Why would someone choose an all black school for higher education?  Nelson explained that, “It’s one of the only times you’re in the majority, especially if you’re living a middle-class life.  A lot of times you’re going to all white schools.  In your work life if you’re moderately successful, you’re in a white majority setting so this is a chance to be in a black majority setting and I think that builds great value.”

Given our current political environment, I asked Nelson about whether or not we were taking a few steps backward and how he thought we could avoid repeating the ugliness of our history.  His answer was sound and confident as he shared, “I think that societies will always tend to, in the long run, move forward.  It’s a roller coaster ride.  I think that’s what we’ve seen recently.  If we don’t constantly regroup and push forward, we go backward.”

As his youngest children head to majority white universities in the fall, not following in their grandparents’ footsteps of all black universities, Nelson hopes that they can both attend an all black university for a semester….it’ll be really interesting for them and they’ll enjoy it.  I’ll keep my fingers crossed. I want them to make their own choices and be happy in college.

Nelson has an amazing upcoming week with not only his Sundance film premiere, but his special on BET called “Through the Fire: The Legacy of Barack Obama” airing on Thursday, January 19 at 7pm EST.  The show explores President Obama’s two terms in office blending archival footage with interviews with some rather extraordinary guests:  Samuel L. Jackson, Common, Usher, and narrated by Jesse Williams.

Nelson’s passion not only for filmmaking, but for portraying life shines through with every film he makes.  Sundance will be yet another shining example of his work and he says, “I’m really excited to see the film with an audience and see the reaction!”

THE BOOK OF LOVE

Starring: Maisie Williams, Jason Sudeikis, and Jessica Biel

Directed by: William Purple

“The Book of Love” formerly  “The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea,” premiered  at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival and is now available on VOD (video on demand) starring Jason Sudeikis, Jessica Biel, and Maisie Williams.  Directed by William Purple, the film addresses loss and the grieving process in a realistic and rather poignant way.  Its message will resonate with anyone who has suffered a loss or tragedy in life—in other words, everyone will find the ability to relate to the subject.

Henry Herschel (Sudeikis) is an introverted, up-and-coming, young architect who tragically loses his carefree and loving pregnant wife, Penny (Biel), in a car accident.  Upon honoring his promise to his deceased wife, Henry finds himself helping a streetwise teen, Millie (Williams) who is attempting to build a raft to sail across the Atlantic in search of her long-missing father.  This father-daughter type of relationship between Henry and Millie delves deeply into how they each navigate the waves of emotional healing.

“The Book of Love” is steeped in reality.  From the moment we meet Penny and Henry with their care-free and happy marital banter, the familiarity brings you back to an early time in a marriage.  It’s a time when you look forward to the future together—smooth sailing.  But just like real life, tragedy can strike at any time.  Henry is truly crushed; swept away by the sea of uncertainty ahead.  Within this tragedy, however, there is still a well-balanced element of humor—just like real life.

Set in Louisiana, the unusual surrounding seems to beautifully augment the depth of each character as does the soulful soundtrack.   Williams’ portrayal of Millie as a rough and wise-beyond-her years street teen touches an emotional chord of sympathy within each of us.  Although we may not relate to her situation, we do relate to her needs as a child and understand her reactions or walls that she has built to protect herself.  Her ability to consistently portray a true Creole accent is questionable, but given the depth of her character, this is easily forgiven.

Sudeikis, known primarily for his comedic roles,  shines in this dramatic endeavor.   He creates a lost soul that is devastated, giving a range of emotions that swing like a pendulum allowing us to feel what he is feeling.  In addition, there is an organic and natural interaction between he and Williams.  They each peel away the layers of their true selves to find a new self.  It’s simply beautiful.

Biel is a light and comforting sight as the expectant mother.  Her whimsical ways are heartwarming and we immediately identify with her love of life.  The comedic element is spearheaded by Paul Reiser as Henry’s boss with additional humor brought to us by the two workers, Pascal and Dumbass.  The unintelligible Creole  and his buddy’s interaction is exactly the levity that is needed in this film to give it a balanced feel.

You never know who will have an effect on your life or perhaps what effect you may have on others.  “The Book of Love”  reminds us that people come in and out of our lives for a reason.  With profoundly eloquent narration, expressing the deepest thoughts in an almost poetic way, the film will captivate your spirit, mind, and perhaps most importantly, your heart.