connecting*the*dots

Who Wants To Be An Amerikan
by Aaron Beckum
Vancouver Film School

For my best friend…

Next Monday: The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Opens tomorrow, May 11th.

‘Hip Hop Project’ is a Long Time Coming
Davey D

[…] “It focuses on Chris Rolle, a.k.a. Kazi, a former homeless youth from the Bahamas who bears the emotional scars of abandonment by his mother. As a teenager, he lived a rugged life on the streets of Brooklyn, but he eventually “found his way,” thanks to hip-hop and a dream of becoming a rapper.

As a young adult, however, Kazi set aside that dream to dedicate his life to helping wayward teens. He launched a mentoring program named the Hip Hop Project, with the goal of getting youngsters to write, record and release a compilation album. Another goal was to get the young musicians to move beyond the all-too-familiar themes of sex, violence and misogyny. Kazi challenged them to dig deep and find their inner voices.

The process became a four- or five-year journey, as Kazi explored the deep-seated issues these teens faced, which went way beyond lyrics. In a recent interview, he explained that most young people lack the confidence to open up and express themselves, instead displaying only anger and a facade of callousness. He soon realized that they had developed callouses to protect the tender parts – their hearts and spirits.

Kazi understood that their lyrics initially reflected the pain resulting from a fatalistic view of life. The album became a secondary concern, as he realized that the kids needed healing to get on with their mental and spiritual development. And while dedicating every waking hour to assisting them, Kazi confronted his own issues over abandonment.” […]

(shot by taoruspoli)

Founded in 2000, The Los Angeles Filmmakers’ Cooperative is a mobile production company based out of a fully equipped school bus. Loaded with digital HD video cameras, 3 editing stations, a portable library, a screening room, and room to sleep 5, the LAFCO bus has seen countless adventures in the United States and beyond, producing dozens of music videos, documentaries, and narrative films.

Click To Play

LAFCO’s clients include Sony Music, Big Imagination Group, JVC, dead prez, The Outlawz, Talib Kweli, Yellowcard, and several others. LAFCO was awarded the Best Editing prize at the prestigious Ann Arbor Film Festival for work on their first feature film, Camjackers.

Can you say dream gig?

Andy, Micah, Blake and Will are all local independent filmmakers and forward-thinking netizens. Something really interesting is going to come out of this collaboration.

They’re open to ideas for a production company name. Any thoughts?

(view the movie)

Synopsis:
In this symbolism-filled short, the reasons for war are told through a young boy and old man. Beware your benefactors. And benefactors beware.

If the introductory small text is any indicator, this film was based on discussions around Tavis Smiley’s “Covenant with Black America.”

As it turns out, I stumbled into sitting in on a similar discussion a few months back at A&T, though the conversation was a bit more inclusive.

The film looks interesting.