YES ROOTS!
Welcome to Rootsflix!
It’s a new day! A day where we can unite in bringing Art in the Spirit of Liberation into eachothers’ lives via the internet and grassroots distribution. The mainstream avenues are so narrow in what they think will bring the most revenue, and so limited in the scope of the human experience that make up the films that get distributed… it’s time we make our own road.
In 2004, I had the honor of editing Jesse Epstein’s short documentary, Wet Dreams and False Images, and went out to promote the film at Sundance… and we won the Jury Award for best short subject film! The air was electric. I met some producers and ended up getting some of my scripts read and getting pitch meetings in Hollywood. One script was a film about a Deejay in Brooklyn who decides to work with youth in a group home and has past traumas triggered to the point of being thrown into fits of rage. He uses his old training in boxing to take out aggression on the heavy bag and bonds with youth in teaching them to do the same. One producer told me that her and her team liked the script but that the marketing folks said it wasn’t “urban,” enough.
“But it takes place in Brownsville, Brooklyn, what’s more ‘urban’ than that?” I asked.
“Well they say it isn’t violent enough,” she offered.
“What about the boxing?” I wondered.
“Gun violence.” She laid it on the line.
“Wow, you want me to make a Blaxploitation film?” I was, thrown off.
“No, we liked your Cuban film. We’re looking to make a ‘City Of God,’ but in English. She said, and gave a smile that seemed confident that a film like that would be a director’s dream film.
“Well, the city of God in this country is Chicago,” I said, having just spent time out there on a grass roots promotional tour of my documentary, The Cuban Hip Hop All-Stars. Chicago’s history of originating gang culture fascinated me. “There’s a lot of amazing stories there.”
“Great, why don’t you give us a treatment that sizzles,” she said.
I ended up going out and spending two weeks interviewing gangsters and writing a ghost story. The production company dissolved before the film could move forward, and it was an exercise in attempting to transcend the confines of “urban drama” that exploits poverty and violence for entertainment.
At that moment, I knew that making films wasn’t enough. I had to get involved in the distribution side as well.
And now, after ten years of dreaming… It’s happening! Thanks to Cihan Kaan for inspiration and motivation and Tim Perry, our Chief Technical Officer, we welcome your input, your films and your unity
Stay Roots!
joshua bee alafia
Rootsflix Chief Creative Officer
