When are we going to be strong enough to say NO!!!

With so much positive energy flowing throughout the USA presently, why do WE as Blacks and Latinos still choose, willingly to degrade ourselves. I make this statement in referece to the film, Next Day Air. Now, before I continue, I must state that I have not, and probably will not see this film. With that said, the plot of this film deals with a lazy, weed smoking delivery man who works with a partner who likes to steal from the packages they are supposed to deliver. The lazy/pot smoking lead character delivers a large box of drugs, mistakenly to two lazy hustlers who are near eviction from their apartment. The plot thickens when the man, whom the drugs were supposed to be delivered to, angrily looks for the missing drugs all while dealing with his loudmouth, scantily dressed girlfriend.

Now I know I've said a lot to fill and confuse your mind, but keep one thing in mind. All of the pathetic characters in this film are of African Decent. The reason why I ask "When are we going to be strong enough to say NO", is because we do not have to shuck and jive and shoot people anymore to work in film. I may be naive in my thinking, but aren't there enough people of African Decent whom have the skills, money, and resources to create and distrbute pieces that reflect a broad spectrum of ideas. Why should the likes of Donald Faison of Scrubs fame, acclaimed Actor/Rapper Mos Def, Mike Epps, Wood Harris, Darius McCrary, and the legendary Debbie Allen even go near such a project? Are roles that diffrucult to come by for Blacks and Latinos? Or do we even care about the images that we portray about ourselves?

The answers are Yes and No respectively. Hollywood only seems willing to open its multitude of doors for for rolls that glorify, violence, ignorance, stupidity, and laziness within the African Diaspora. Yes there are films that portray these attributes to Whites and other races, but Hollywood allows for a diverse balance of both intellectualism and foolishness within the many films that feature White actors and subject matter. To the second question that I posed, I will quote something my father always told me. We are too willing to sell-out cheap. Blacks and Latinos just see an opportunity to work and make a living without looking at the overall consequenses of accepting certain degrading rolls.

This is a dilema which gave Halle Berry an oscar while leaving Angela Bassett out of work. I am referring to the lead role in the film Monsters Ball, which Halle Berry won the best actress academy award. Angela Bassett was up to portray the lead, but declined because she thought the part was degrading. I have known friends who have been put in similar situations, in various parts of the entertainment field, and have chosen to remain on the outside in order not to degrade themselves or other people of African Decent. I know the pain that they feel, to be so close at success, but unable to sell themselves out to allow success to happen.

My question remains, When are we going to be strong enough to say NO?

A new hope for filmmakers of African-Decent?

I'm not sure if anyone has noticed, but there is a void where there should be a plethora of opportunities for African American filmmakers. Just as you may be reading this, you're thinking, "what about Spike Lee, John Singleton, Antoine Fuqua, or Tyler Perry?". Well
there are a large number of others, including animators and screenwriters as well, whom have not been able to walk into the doors of the major ane even minor studios to find work.

Lets start with Spike Lee. Lee is the founder and owner of 40Acres and a Mule Filmworks. This production company has been Lee's calling sign since the mid 1980s. But that's just it, 40 Acres is just a production company. A production company is an entity where a film is simply created. And the creation of any film is no small feat. You must come up with a story, create ideas for characters and the look of the film, write a script and draw a storyboard, find funding, build or find a location, hire a crew, create your shots, and finally edit with sound and hopefully the production is finished.

After the film is finished, you then must find a way distribute or show your film. This is where studios like 20th Century Fox, Disney, and the like have a distinct advantage. Major and even some minor studios not only produce their films, but they also have a distribution network or company which gets their films into the theaters and on the DVD store shelves. This demographic now has a new player, and that is the Tyler Perry Studios. Along with TPS, Tyler Perry is creating an offshoot called 34th Street Films, which is is to cater to the creation and acquisition of films by other filmmakers of African Decent. This studio, billed by the New York Daily News as "the nation's only African-American-owned film studio" (http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/02/22/2009-02-22_tyler_perry_the_man_behind_madea.html?page=0), is responsible for both production and distribution of film and television programming.

I put a question mark at the end of my title because I do wonder if this will be an advent of new opportunities for African American filmmakers. I as an animator have had a hard time meandering through this industry, trying to find success. The same could be said for my partner with Exodus Publishing as well as many other talented and educated African American filmmakers, whom I have met over the past several years. You toil to create a film, traverse the film festival circuit, and finally wait in hopes that some entity will deliver you into a prosperous career.

Hollywood is very formulaic and segmented in terms of who gets an opportunity. Certain formulas that have been lucrative in years past are recycled over and over again, keeping out the creativity of new ideas and new people. Also while handing out opportunities to friends, family, classmates, and those whom they can relate to. I'm not asking for a segregated or divided entertainment industry, but if Tyler Perry Studios is the ONLY African American owned film studio, what does that really say about Hollywood. What does that say about success for African American Filmmakers and Animators like myself.

Everyone deserves a voice or an outlet for creativity. African American people are much more than gangstas and cross-dressing big Mammas on the silver screen. There are so many dynamic stories within drama, science fiction, horror, action, and thriller that need to be told. And told in a professional and quality way that major studios have been able to do for nearly a century. Tyler Perry should not be the only act in town. It is my hope and dream that multiple doors will open, not just for African American filmmakers, but for filmmakers of all ethnicities throughout this great country.

Nation of Cowards or Nation of Heroes

I have to agree with Attorney General Eric Holder. In a recent statement from the Attorney General(http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=6905255&page=1) , he states that America is a nation of cowards in regards to the race issue. It's sad that on the same day, a political cartoon featured in the New York Post reiterated the idea of America still not being able to come to grips with race (view the cartoon at the Huffington Post, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/18/new-york-post-chimp-carto_n_167841.html ). The cartoon shows two police officers, one pointing a smoking gun toward a a dead chimpanzee, who is riddled with bullet holes, while the other police officer stands with a caption over him stating "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill".

As a Black man, I often live in a world of either anger or self-doubt. The anger comes from the thought of being treated as less than worthy because of the ignorance of racism. While the self-doubt comes from a fear of being unqualified or just not good enough. What we see within the media either compounds or conflicts with the experiences of our realities. Being Black, you're always on guard, hoping not to be harassed by police or treated as if you are an outcast. While I cannot speak for Whites, I do not believe that they walk around with that same apprehension.

After having struggled, and continue to struggle to break into the animation industry, I have lived with the confounded dichotomy of anger and self-doubt which questions my abilities, talent, and education. Ever since graduating from the School of Visual Arts, It has been an uphill battle to get work as an animator, while at the same time receiving praise for what I can do. I have not been alone in this kind of story. I have heard from colleagues and former classmates whom are of African decent who have told similar tales. So maybe it's not paranoia, but barrier of discomfort and fear that has kept us out.

It may have been much easier for this nation to elect a Black President than for a company to hire a Black animator, engineer, lawyer, accountant, associate professor, and etc. I know that there are successful African Americans in the fields I just mentioned, but not many. And I would guarantee that the road they had to travel to reach such goals gave them much pain.In order for Barack Obama to become President, he had to use more money and media time than any other candidate in history, to get elected. He had to persuade America that he was non-threatening, and trustworthy. He had to work to make America comfortable with him, not as a person, but as a African American. Without the money and media coverage(along with his education, charisma, and experience), there would not be a President Obama today.

For everyday African Americans, we have to work hard just to be lucky. Meaning, we HAVE to have to be high school honor students, we HAVE to have a college education, or we HAVE to be the best athletes in whatever sport, just to wait and hope a White employer or team owner to pick us. Until then, the many hard working African Americans wait in fear that either we are not good enough or that our race will hinder us from our success. This is not a delusion, but a reality where as the longer we wait, the more susceptible we are to giving up on our dreams, and accept lives that are far beneath our abilities and talents. African American people still have to prove their worth in this country in order for Whites(who own and control the vast majority of businesses and job opportunities) to feel comfortable enough to give us a chance. I do not mean to offend anyone by this post, but the pain and hardships people of African Decent experience everyday, should never have to be burdened upon anyone. We shouldn't have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars and constantly be on TV before we can be "judged by the content of our character" as Dr. Martin Luther King once said.

We as Americans must confront our pain and fear of one another in order to survive. Lets make sure that we give ALL people a fair chance to succeed and thrive.