We are moving stories

“It’s a relatable story that almost every can attest to but I really want the audience to watch it as a teaching tool, a character study of how folks can be mentally broken, especially at an early age where it’s already hard enough trying to figure the world out. I want folks to understand that if they give certain people in their lives a chance before they crumble their hopes it could be beyond the sky’s limits. It’s a teaching tool that also deals with race and equality, watching people still have to fight just for the basic laws of justice and to be seen as a human being and not a piece of trash.”

“We only have one life to live and, with that notion, why would you waste it hating one another? If you take the time to understand other backgrounds and cultures it would give you a much deeper and more grateful understanding of human society and why we all need each other.”

“Dontre was shot and killed just a mile from my house, and across the street from where I used to work. The details of the case were very murky early on and Dontre was portrayed in the media as a violent, mentally ill homeless person. I was interested in hearing from the family’s perspective, and to show the other side of the story... Approximately 1,200 Americans are killed by police every year. For every name you have heard on the news, there is probably another 100 cases that you did not hear about.”

“When there is oppression or harm against an individual because they belong to a particular group in our society, we all suffer. When people of color are racially targeted, the emotional health of the entire society is compromised. The film explores the ways in which oppression harms individuals, communities and the whole of society, and compels the audience to invest in equality.”

“Often when white people from the suburbs heard about protests in Ferguson and Black Lives Matter, they imagined burning buildings, overturned cars, hate directed at police officers, or things like that. When my black friends were involved in or talked about the protests, they saw those events as fighting for justice, fighting for “US.” This is what you will see in the film: struggling schools; lack of quality housing; lack of opportunity; as well as personal experiences with police profiling. In the film, you’ll hear individuals thinking about their friends who have been shot by the police and about structural inequality that’s been in place for hundreds of years. Among us, we are often using the same words while talking about different things. As a community, we’ve been having two different conversations.”

“I would love for people to walk away from the film asking themselves what financial barriers exist in their communities that would exclude non-wealthy individuals from participating in politics. From my understanding, these barriers aren’t often obvious, and if more people are aware of them, they can take steps to change them.”

“My great uncle was Clerk of the Courts and played a part in the injustice in voter registration in the segregated south. I feel it is my duty to help bring these stories to life to ensure we do not make these same mistakes again.”

“These issues are extremely relevant today with a resurgence of civil rights activism in America in the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, and a renewed conversation about race. With Trump’s election in America, voices of resistance such as O’Dell’s are extremely important in the public discourse, and provide inspiration and a path forward - and a reminder that there are alternatives to the way our society is currently structured.”

“Lynching played a big role in shaping the nation we know today, yet most of us learn little about it in school.  Almost every audience member we’ve talked to is surprised and shaken: surprised by the definition, the scope, and the scale of lynching, surprised by how unaware they were of this history, and shaken by the intergenerational effects and modern-day echoes of lynching.  If you want to understand the historical context of Black Lives Matter, watch this film.  If you want to understand how black journalists, activists, and community members have resisted racial violence for generations, watch this film.”

“We are making this project because for many years we lived in Richmond, Virginia, Which was the capital of the Confederacy—which tried to secede from the United States of America, causing our Civil War in the 1800s. The city continued to have serious racial issues through the Jim Crow era, through the Civil Rights era and on up through today. We lived in the historically black neighborhood of Jackson Ward, which in its heyday was considered the Harlem of the South.”

“My father’s story is fascinating to me; a person who overcame many challenges during the Great Depression and worked in the segregated North. After overcoming unfair entry barriers into the bricklayers’ union, he became the first licensed and bonded African American contractor in Cleveland (circa 1950). He established his own construction business and built affordable homes for people who otherwise could not purchase them.”

“To celebrate the art, life and philosophy of Ashley Bryan who embraces diversity and fights bigotry by example.”

“Coming from the UK, I was completely shocked by the number of people being killed by the police in America. I was interested to know what people were doing to try to prevent it. That’s how I discovered WeCopwatch... I would like it to encourage people to join the Copwatch movement. You simply have to pick up a phone and film if you see someone in danger.”

“Employee of The Month is a short film I wrote and directed following the Nigerian government’s heavy-handed response to peaceful protests against police brutality. I wish to shed light on the atrocities committed by a repressive government.”

“I have a personal connection to this film because I remember when my father was pulled over by a policeman while I was in the car. First, we were joking around trying to get home and all of a sudden a cop pulls up behind us. I could see my father completely shift into a man that had fear in his eyes. I learned that this is a very universal aspect of black life—not just for black men, but for black women as well.”

“Being a black man in this world and seeing the mistreatment suffered by men and women of color from law enforcement has left a bitter taste in my mouth. We can speak upon the issue by creating a film, which explores the subject of racism and trauma suffered by war veterans as well. These are universal themes relevant in society: racism and mental health, in my opinion.”

“Recently Betty Shelby was acquitted in the shooting death of Terence Crutcher, now I’m not a lawyer but it seems clear to me that at the time of the incident she was in no eminent danger. As a person I can form my own opinion about the situation but the fact is these situations happen much too often and there are too many instances where the motivation in these situations are racially motivated, whether it’s out of fear, hate, misunderstanding, indifference or poor training it’s something that needs to be addressed.”

“The writers Cam’ron Moore, Michael Bhim, and I love telling stories about social issues with a different outcome, one that we often don’t hear. When we began our search for a story to tell, we remembered Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, imagined if their story had ended differently, or had someone like a vigilante to fight for them. We were so tired of watching films where the person of color struggles the whole movie and loses in the end. In our film, we left the ending open for the audience to decide, if the characters lose or won in the end.”

“Professor Armour’s experience with his father’s incarceration when Professor Armour was 8 years old could have led to devastating consequenced. But his father was able to vindicate himself. Concurrently, Professor Armour was able to leave the poverty of Akron, OH through a high school program called A Better Chance (ABC), go on to earn his bachelor’s degree from Harvard, then a law degree from UC Berkeley. Because Professor Armour’s personal trajectory could have very easily been a negative statistic (he believes he could have easily been stuck in an impoverished situation turning to crime to survive because of the lack of opportunities for many black communities to do anything else), he has formed a deep and committed passion to fight against racialized social oppression. ”

“I’ve made social justice films for 45 years about issues such as AIDS, racism and the justice system. Regardless of subject matter, my narrative and documentary films give voice to the voiceless. I passionately believe in the power of film to touch hearts and change minds.”

“The intimate stories of MILWAUKEE 53206 follow the psychological and emotional impact of what life is like having a loved one missing at the dinner table due to incarceration. The 53206 ZIP code sits on the Northside of Milwaukee and is the most incarcerated ZIP code in America, where 62% of its men have been imprisoned.”

“I was inspired by a story of someone who lived in the foster care system in New York. I also have been involved in grassroots organizations dedicated to building a movement against police violence in the U.S. in which Eodiya just touches upon. It is also inspired by the Buddhist philosophy of letting go to free ourselves.”

“The movie is implicitly driven by the interaction between two characters, one who is so isolated that he resolves his emotional conflicts with hallucinatory episodes and another who has lived his life built up on so many lies and slights of hand that he is no longer sure what his true motivations are anymore. It is from this interaction that the story emerges, as well as the themes of paranoia, isolation, and loneliness.”