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Entries in interviews (38)

Sunday
Sep162012

Send Suicide Packing - 'Ritechus Cry' Filmmaker Jacolby Percy Unmasks the "Black folks don't kill themselves" Claim  

In 2011, Jacolby Percy's short film "A Higher Power" was an official selection of the Urbanworld Film Festival where it screened in front AMC Theater audiences ready to soak in a story about death, faith and the consequences of a grieving fathers' criminal acts. Percy, who lost three members of his own family including his father, uncle and cousin all in a short period of time, gave viewers a story about people in crisis who cross paths and learn from each other.

Percy's new film "Ritechus Cry" (formerlly titled "Rear View" until recently) tells the story of a suicidal hip-hop artist who is trying to maintain his tough public image despite secretly dealing with depression. This summer, I did an interview with Jacolby Percy, where he explains how this short film came to light, misconceptions about suicide and the best coping practices when your loss hits close to home.

Madlab Post: Is the close family member who inspired you to make "Ritechus Cry" the same person who is the inspiration behind "A Higher Power?"

Jacolby Percy: No. Actually, it was a cousin. What's interesting about that is, before I came to New York where we did that interview for the [Urbanworld] film festival, my cousin took his own life. So, I was going through that [grief period] at that time. It literally happened a few weeks before I left to go to New York, so I was struggling with that -- it was so surreal. I lost my father a few years prior to my cousin's death.

Although your cousin's suicide shook up your family, does "Ritechus Cry" have the ability to help your family heal and come to terms with his death?

Yeah absolutely! I am inspired by my cousin, of course, but I had no thought in my mind about making a movie [of this subject matter] because of his death. I had friends who approached me and shared their own experiences with losing family members to suicide, while offering condolences for my loss. They either lost somebody or know someone that knows somebody that this happened to and I was shocked to hear what they told me.

At the time, I was already working on a coming-of-age story about a hip-hop artist and co-writer Byron Morris who also appeared in "A Higher Power" came to me and said "Man, I got this idea for a movie about suicide..." while telling me about some things he was going through -- without having any prior knowledge of what was going on with me and my family. So, I was like "What?!!" because what I was writing was similar to what he was saying.

It was just crazy! So, I kinda merged the two [Hip-hop story and suicide ideas] stories. These experiences told me that I needed to make this film -- I was kinda hesitant at first because the subject matter was so sensitive and so fresh at the time. After I heard from Morris, however, I was like "Aw man, I have to do this movie!" So, this is for all people who have experienced suicide. I'm just trying to bring awareness to it. Of course, the movie will be good for my family and any family because it has resolutions at the end -- not just someone going out and killing themselves; that's not helping anybody. "Ritechus Cry" is a raw, gritty film with very complex subplots -- it's not just about suicide. It's about what's going on as we speak right now.

I just want people to realize that if you're hurting, you don't have to put on this mask, as we tend to do -- especially the African-American population, myself included. When I was a younger kid, I put on this mask and felt like I can't ask for help for anything, so it's extra tough. When you're a hip-hop artist, that toughness is almost required -- you can't come out and say "Oh, I'm having dark thoughts" or "I'm feeling bleak." So, that's why I'm doing this. Hopefully, it will help my family but even as they mourn, there are millions of other people going through this, not just my family. Loss by suicide is not an isolated experience.

What motivated you to choose Hip-Hop music as the career path for the main character rather than a blue-collar or even white-collar field with high depression rates such as the Food Service industry, nursing or educators?

In a sense, we know that the majority of humans who take their own lives are normally caucasians; there was also a large number of African-Americans who comitted suicide since the 1990s. Although the number has declined greatly in recent years, suicide among African-Americans still occur.

A while ago, a little girl came up to me asking what "Ritechus Cry" was about -- when I told her about the movie, she said "black folks don't kill themselves!" and I'm like "[Sarcastically] Oh, they don't?!! 'Cause I know a few who have!" -- So yeah, suicide is prevalent in blue-collar jobs or among white people, etc. but for some people to say [or believe] that it doesn't exist in the black community, where do we go then if it happens to our families? Do we just sweep it under the rug? Take the pain and not mourn in the right way?

For people who don't know, it's a different type of mourning when it comes to suicide. It's not a normal type of mourning -- I think it's proven to be one of the worse because you don't have the comfort of knowing that if the person could be here, they would. Just the thought "Aw man, if that person could be here, he or she wouldn't want to be here. They took their own lives" -- all of that is extra on a person's mind when someone that they know commits suicide.

There are so many unanwered questions, so there is a different approach to healing after that. So, where do we go if suicide is nonexistent and black folks don't kill themselves? It's not that widespread where you see it all the time but just look around -- it's happening more than you know. Off the top of my head, I can name at least five or six people who committed suicide in the last year. All of them are African-American or people of color, so I wanted to use somebody that you would least expect.

That's who it normally is -- not the nerdy guy who's sitting in the corner who's a weirdo. He does it too, but I'm just saying, a guy who has to walk around in the world with this tough bravado -- that's the guy who you'd least expect and sometimes, they are the weakest ones. In our community, I've seen a couple of people who were thought to be tough and they killed themselves.

It's like "Wow, this doesn't make any sense! That guy had to be setup, he had to be murdered or something. He just wouldn't kill himself!" but you just never know what's going on a person's mind. That's why I wanted to do it with a tough guy, a hip-hop artist who you wouldn't normally see take his own life.

In your experience, what are some of the most effective ways people can learn to cope with their loss of a family member or friend who committed suicide?

From my experience and what I've seen talking to people is that you have to be around people who support you and people who understand. What I mean by that is people who have been through the same thing such as suicide support groups, etc. because what I say to you when somebody just died of natural causes or sickness might affect you differently if it was a suicide. You might hurt a person by telling them different things or tip-toeing around the issue and people don't know that.

To cope with suicide from my understanding, you just have to be around people who have been through it. A lot of support groups and community center programs are free. You need to talk to someone who has already crossed that hurdle of experiencing it and knowing how to cope with it -- that's the key, because you never get over it. Trying to deal with it like a normal type of death is not going to work. The overwhelming amount of guilt that comes along with suicide is deeper than any other death. If you lost a family member or friend suddenly or to heart failure, etc. you come to develop an understanding [about their death] later on but suicide is not like that. 

How did IndieGoGo beat out other crowdfunding services for your "Ritechus Cry" fundraising campaign?

[Laughing] I need all the money I can get to make this happen. 

If you give me half towards my goal, that's so generous and great -- we'll have to work with that. I know that I have a certain goal and there are certain things we need to make a quality film such as equipment rentals, locations and even small things that come up behind the scenes that people don't know about. Every little bit counts, so I say rather than get zero dollars, I can work with whatever I get. You never know what will happen -- you could get over the goal, hit the goal right on the money or meet much less than your goal.

We don't know and I can't predict the future, so I felt like going with IndieGoGo after weighing my options. It was a better platform for me and what I'm trying to do. Making a film is expensive, and I've been trying to raise funds in other ways as well. Once we reach a certain amount on the IndieGoGo campaign, we're giving a portion of the proceeds to suicide prevention programs and community centers to help. 

"Ritechus Cry" (formerlly titled "Rear View") is currently in development and raising funds for the production on IndieGoGo. This film tackles an important subject that far too many people either ignore or don't take very seriously, which is why I urge those of you reading this post to support the film through donations (they are being accepted for as low as $2...most people have two dollars!) and/or sharing this interview with as many people as you know who can help "Ritechus Cry/Rear View" reach its fundraising campaign goal on IndieGoGo.

Have YOU lost a friend or family member to suicide?

What are YOUR best suggestions for coping with the death of a loved one?

Which factors do YOU think play a role in high suicide rates among certain gender, job, age or racial groups within the population?

UPDATE - September 16, 2012: After I published this interview, the film's director informed me that he changed the name of his movie to "Ritechus Cry." Please note where necessary.

Friday
Aug102012

Post-Screening Audience Response at Doc ‘I’m Fine, Thanks’ Premiere #indiefilm

The Midwest premiere of Grant Peelle and Adam Baker’s documentary “I’m Fine, Thanks” opens tonight in Wilminton, Ohio at the Murphy Theater. It is one of a few select screenings that brings the most backed documentary in crowd funding platform Kickstarter’s history in front of audiences who are treated to an early view of what battling complacency looks like. I had the pleasure of attending the New York premiere of “I’m Fine, Thanks,” in July and spoke with several audience members who shared their thoughts on this movie with me, following the screening that day.

Producer Adam Baker and I at the NY Premiere of "I'm Fine, Thanks"

“I really liked it -- not knowing what to expect, I was really blown away. I'm ultimately very proud to have any part of it and more than ever, I feel like OMG, this is so much bigger than I ever knew, sitting at home trying to coordinate it. It's huge, so I just hope people see it.

Chris actually watches documentaries and I never watch them unless he makes me, so for me to not only watch one but also help make one is totally crazy on its own but I think it's pretty awesome that it was a documentary that I actually liked watching. I have more appreciation for the genre.” – Joan Otto, member of the Crank Tank Studios team and editor at Man vs. Debt, from Pennsylvania

“I thought it was tremendous. I was really impressed -- to put that quality of production together in only a few months. He made a real film! -- A real documentary in months! Those guys, with tremendous help from their *coordinating producers* -- He has every right to be proud of what he accomplished; not only the fact that he got out there and tried to do it but also made a hell of a film.”  – Chris Otto, journalist from Pennsylvania who blogs at Papergreat and favors the 1978 documentary “Gates of Heaven” by Errol Morris

“Honestly, I would have liked to have seen more about the people who were in the movie and less about the people who made the movie. I think it was a good first effort -- I know it was their first time making a film and they did it really quickly, so you're going to have some things there that might be different if you've taken a little more time to do it but for the sake of time-crunch, they did a pretty decent job.

Next time they decide to make a film, I would like to see more story development -- more of a story arc and less of the people who are making it.”  – Amber J. Adams from New York via Tennessee who writes about finding happiness on your own terms at The Fab Life Project

“I loved the movie because I associated with the story line of not only the documentarians but also a lot of the people in the film whom I've also got to know and befriended through the world of blogging.

I myself was in a dead-end job at age 23, depressed, confused and aimless; I took that leap that they talk about in the film to quit my job and started going in a direction where I didn't really know what I was doing but found fulfillment and passion in that lifestyle than the one that was expected of me.” - Dave Ursillo a New York based author and speaker who writes about alternative leadership, leading in your everyday life and applying personal leadership to your business, goals and dreams. 

"I thought it was absolutely wonderful! I heard about it because I read a lot of the blogs of people who are in and or associated with the movie. I myself am still working in a corporate job but kinda dealing with a lot of the things that the people that they (Grant Peelle and Adam Baker) spoke to are dealing with -- just feeling like it's not really a good fit permanently and just trying to figure out what I want for myself, so the movie absolutely spoke to that." - Shannon Beahan

"I think it was very moving. It basically speaks for the rest of us; that is the reason why we are here. We're so afraid inside, to be the first -- we need to feel that somebody else did something that we want to do before we go ahead and try something crazy like that because deep inside, we all really want to -- we're all just too scared." - Jane Lee-Thai

 

“I’m Fine, Thanks” directed by Grant Peelle and produced by Adam Baker is playing tonight at 7p.m. so if you have family and friends who live in Ohio, be sure to pass this information along to them! For more information on the who, what, when and where this screening is taking place, visit the “I’m Fine, Thanks” team on Facebook or Eventbrite.

For those of you who are waiting for my review, it will be posted soon. In the meantime, can you describe what, if anything, bugs you about complacency? Or, do you think it’s just fine to be that way?

Thursday
Jul122012

‘Are All Men Pedophiles?’ - Dutch Filmmaker Jan-Willem Breure on his International Documentary #indiefilm


The controversial feature debut of Dutch producer/director Jan-Willem Breure titled “Are All Men Pedophiles?” has been making its way around the film festival circuit -- with screenings in Iowa and Amsterdam. It is said to currently be playing at Festival Mix 2012 in Mexico but the future availability of the film in the U.S. has yet to be released, so I have no idea if or when we’ll have the option of checking out this documentary.

Based on its synopsis, “Are All Men Pedophiles?” aims to question the hypocrisy within our society’s beliefs about pedophilia. It highlights misunderstandings about pedophilia that has resulted in a society that condemns attraction to adolescent girls despite history and world culture suggesting that it is natural and unavoidable. According to the website for this film, the “fashion industry sexualizes very young girls but those who act on those instincts are reviled.”

The movie features several doctors - a neurologist; psychologist; sexologist, etc. and religious leaders, historians and modeling scouts who shed some light on the meaning of pedophilia, views regarding age and sexual attraction to teen girls. It also claims to be the first international feature length documentary that has an interview with a female pedophile.

In May, I interviewed the 23 year-old Jan-Willem Breure about his documentary and am now just getting the time to post it.

Madlab Post: Does the Fashion industry's sexualization of young girls aid in the attraction to girls ages 16 and under?

Jan-Willem Breure: Yes, the average age of a fashion model is 16.

What are some misconceptions about pedophilia that this film unravels?

There is a difference between pedophiles and hebophiles,  under 18 does not mean pedophilia.

Since the age of consent for females around the world ranges from nine years-old to 20 years of age, do you think religion is a large factor in our Western society's condemnation of a man's attraction to girls under 18 years-old?

No, Mary was 12-15 when she got pregnant -- the church is not embarrassed by this, but the church was a major cause of Sex guilt and also sex before marriage, so when the marriage age goes up you know there will be problems.

Are most men who claim they aren't attracted to girls under 18 years of age lying? Are they in denial?

Puberty ends for girls at 16 -- unless they are exclusive gerontophiles they are in denial because even teleiophilia overlaps with hebophilia.

Why is our culture quick to label men as pedophiles, yet, continue to be obsessed with youth, even going so far as to using age to measure beauty -- particularly where females are concerned?

Because they were not taught the definition of hebophilia. The were only giving one term for 2 things.

What was your motivation for making such a controversial film?

I realized the age of attraction does not change, instead it expands -- if you are attracted to 17 year olds, when you pass 18 (years of age) you don't automatically find people age 17 unattractive.

Although the subject matter is alarming, I would still probably watch the movie just to find out what comes of the on-screen discussion from both sides of the topic.

Boy....if only I was vacationing in Iowa or The Netherlands or Mexico! In the meantime, I guess I’ll continue to step my classic film game up by watching old black & white movies from the 1930s on Netflix.

Breure’s own average age of attraction to females ranges from 15 to 60. The movie poster for “Are All Men Pedophiles?” seems to reflect the main points of his film -- If you find teenage girls attractive, is that or is that not pedophilia? Breure already has plans to make another film, which will be about incest.

How old do YOU think the female on Jan-Willem Breure’s movie poster is?

Do YOU find her attractive?

Here is the trailer for the movie: