(upbeat music) - [Narrator] These are the stories that move us, the stories that guide us, and the stories that reflect our community.

Filmed in our neighborhoods and local haunts by those who call this city home.

Atlanta filmmakers are documenting stories that show the life of our city in a way we could only imagine.

These are the stories that we tell.

This is "Atlanta on Film".

(upbeat music) - Hey y'all, I am your host, Bobby Huntley.

And this is "Atlanta on Film" WABE's weekly film series featuring a collection of stories that reflect our diverse community.

This episode is made possible by our friends at the Morehouse Human Rights Film Festival.

In our final episode, we explore how circumstances and fears of failure can hold us back from our greatness in Andre McCoy's, "Blue Jay".

After we'll dive into the realizations of young child experiences in Yasmin Neal's, "Target Practice."

But first we see what it takes to hold on to familial land in this intimate look at the history of the Morse family.

In the wake of an elder's passing, this North Carolina family reminisces over the acres of land that have been in their possession for generations and how they fought to preserve it.

This is "Bug Hill".

(film projector rattling) (countdown beeping) - [Man] There's always something special to come to this part of the world.

You on the map, this place is on the map.

All the things that were said about love, the truth.

Sometimes love will manifest itself in different ways, let me put it that way.

- I thought, "I'm not built for this.

I'm little and short and it's too much work, the days are too long."

My dad would, because I was the oldest, he would get me out of bed at like four o'clock in the morning to go help him do something on the farm.

I disliked it with all my heart, but I graduated from it.

My name is Esther Smith Morse.

I'm from the Smith family.

In fact, I'm the oldest child of my parents.

There were 10 of us.

I was responsible for setting the pace and the tone for all of my younger siblings.

I didn't see it as pressure, I felt it was an honor really and the fact that my parents thought I was smart enough to take on that role made me feel good about it.

And so I took it seriously.

- My name is Decatur Ward Morse Jr.

I'm the youngest son of Esther Lean Smith Morse.

The history of the family land is interesting because it goes a good number of generations back to when our family worked on that land, We didn't own anything.

But after a certain period of time my great grandfather was able to buy portions of that land that he worked on for several years.

- I am Keith Marshall, the oldest son of Denise Marshall and Warren Marshall.

Denise is the oldest daughter of Esther and Decatur Morse.

I remember early on probably listening to Grandma tell stories about the house that we actually grew up going to.

I think she was born on that exact plot of land and then like her aunt lived towards the back by the pond to the left a little bit.

And then like she lived there for a while and then there was some other family that was further along down the street.

And so I listened to those types of stories growing up and seeing how important the land was to her and how it connected her to where she was from, and you know, just her history.

I think that kind of signified the importance of it and the fact that it stayed in the family for so long.

So like I've always said, I wanna make sure it stays in the family because of how much it means to you and our family as a whole.

It would be cool to know exactly how we got the land but I think one of the challenges obviously of our history as African Americans is a lot of that is lost and we're not really sure what, how some of this stuff played out.

We know what the ultimate source was being obviously slavery to indentured servants or whatever have you.

But I don't really think about stuff like that that much 'cause I feel like I can't change anything about it.

I'm just super thankful that we have it and I'm proud that's where we come from and all the things that our family has been able to do from those humble beginnings.

- The work was very hard, my dad was a workaholic.

He loved working on the farm, and he expected each of us to love working on the farm.

And you know it was hard work, but I mean we didn't know anything different.

So we just did it because we had to survive.

And my dad was a hard worker, he never complained about the hard work.

And I thought, "Well, we don't do nearly as much as he does so why would we complain?"

- I've never heard one time of either one of my grandparents saying, "I'm just beat.

I don't know if I can keep this going."

My grandmother used to always say and God rest her soul, I didn't get a chance to know her, but I've I've heard this from my aunts and uncles is if you have your health, you have everything.

I really think that the type of grandparents and great grandparents I had for that matter, I think that they would understand that and they would appreciate the fact that we now have that foresight to take care of ourselves, one, but also have the ability to step away for a time and come back refreshed and still be successful at whatever our endeavors are.

- My mother especially always thought it was important for us to go to school and to be on time and and to make good grades and to have aspirations to go into college.

She wanted us to grow up to be "somebody important" as she would put it.

I wouldn't have put it that way but that was the way she put it.

She wanted us to grow up to to have big goals and to strive hard to reach our goals.

- I think it's super powerful, the stories that I've heard about how they've gotten the land and the fact that they worked that land at some point and they were able to purchase it and continue to work it.

And it's something that's been able to stay in the family.

I mean, to me that, like I say, is powerful.

Like whenever I go down there I feel connected to that in a sense, knowing that this is where our people come from.

- [Keith] Marcus, what'd you catch?

- My daddy got the, Marcus put it in his mouth, eatin' all his crickets.

- [Keith] He's eating the crickets?

- Yes.

- Yeah, he's eating it.

See?

look at that, eatin'.

- He's grubbin' too.

That is (indistinct).

- [Keith] What're you doing?

- My earliest memories are from the kind that probably took place around when I was four years old.

And I just remember running around in all that open field, all that massive expansive land and I had never seen anything like that.

Instead of going to vacation at a beach house or a lake resort or a ski resort, we were coming to see grandma, that was our vacation.

- So it's called Bug Hill, North Carolina for a reason.

It's actually beautiful if you go in the fall, but if you go in the spring around this house, they hatch, you literally cannot go outside.

If you go out at night on the front porch you know there's a light, you'll turn the light on.

And so it tracks all the frogs, bugs, and it'll literally be like a whole little ecosystem up there.

I definitely remember the first time that we went to Nakina, when the house was being built.

I was probably around 10 years old and we would come from North Carolina and Grandma and Granddad would be there and we'd spend Thanksgiving or some time in the summer and we just really didn't worry about the clock.

Woke up whenever we wanted to, went outside played in the field, used to catch grasshoppers, go fishing or go to the beach.

Just going exploring in the woods.

So my fondest memory of Nakina is Nakina itself.

I think it's like a big way I remember my childhood.

- Staying in Nakina with my own family for the first time was actually a treat for me.

It was an unexpected treat.

A, I knew how much joy it brought my father and my mother.

B, I loved the fact that it gave us a chance for my children to get to know their cousins outside of the hustle and bustle of a major city and walking around on old dirt roads and tobacco farms and just seeing nature.

Because that's quite honestly how I got to know some of my cousins.

I think both of my grandparents worked from can't see in the morning to can't see at night.

I would love to see what drove them.

How did they, how were they driven in that day and age in the midst of not only looking across the the room with the 10 faces of the children that they were raising, I get that as a form of motivation, but in the midst of the type of racism that they dealt with, walking off that land, and even this sheer audacity of owning that much land at the time.

- At first there were no struggles because my mother was still living.

But after a while the white folks around here thought they could play games with her.

And I told her, I said, "Don't commit to anything with any white person until you call Decatur and me."

And she abided by that.

One day my sister and I were driving in here.

We had been shopping and there were about four cars parked right down there by our old house.

And these guys were leaning against their cars like they owned the land, and I was driving.

So I stopped the car and I said, "Is there a convention going on here?"

And the driver of their car said, "No we are here because we think all of this land belongs to us."

I said, "Well you know what I'd recommend you do?

Go to the courthouse and see if your name is on one, single plot here and come back and tell me."

Never heard another word from them.

They were gonna try to take our land.

And I thought, "No, no, no, no.

Not as hard as my daddy worked, you're not doing that."

But they did do that to my aunt.

She was intimidated by them.

They scared her to death when they came to her door and told her that the land she was living out belonged to them.

Well it didn't, but she didn't know any better.

- [Child] You wanna dance?

(indistinct) - [Keith] Come on Tre.

- [Esther] Out here playing tennis with his grandma.

- [Keither] I saw.

- [Woman] You wanna go to dance?

(children screaming) (woman laughing) - [Man] For one more.

- All the family coming together and being there on that land and at night around dusk, how quiet it gets, it's nice and quiet.

You can see every star in the sky and then you come in and you can hear nothing but laughter and nothing but joy and nothing but just everybody chuckling.

And I just remember that was just a fast forward of something that I remembered as a four year old when I was a kid.

- Whenever I get stressed out and stuff and I'm like meditating, that's where I go 'cause it's just peaceful, quiet, happy place.

I always have good memories there.

But as the oldest grandchild or even the oldest child of my parents, I always felt a lot of pressure.

Not really pressure but responsibility more so to set the example for my siblings and hopefully for the cousins at large.

But as far as now pressure I definitely feel that 'cause know going outside of talking about our grandparents for a second.

But obviously I know where my father's from and growing up I got to see that very closely.

And so understanding how hard he had to work to get to where he could put us in the position that we are now in is something that I don't take lightly.

I want to make sure I pay that forward.

I just think my job is to support family, that's kind of how we were raised.

And so I wanna see that through.

- The reason it's important to me that the land stays in the family is, if you look at the history of wealth in this country, it's based on real estate, it's based on land.

They're not making any more land in this country.

They're making buildings, they're making shops, they're making roads, they're not making any more land.

We want that dream and we want our children someday to be able to run around on that land too.

- It makes me feel good knowing that we have kept the land.

I said our parents would be so proud to know that we've maintained this land first of all, and that we now have children and nieces and nephews and we can all come here and be at peace.

We know nobody's gonna drive us out of here because they wouldn't dare try it now.

Before I got married, since my siblings considered me the leader among the 10 children, we got our heads together and decided to split the land up between all the children.

So everybody got a parcel.

My husband was very, very good about helping me do everything that we needed to do to hold onto this land.

(Esther laughs) He said, "I have never seen this much land in one place at one time in my life, and y'all worked all this land?"

I said, "Yes."

He said, "Well I'm glad we don't have to do that anymore.

I said, "What do you mean we, you never had to do it."

But it all worked out, it all worked out well.

- I feel like the land kind of like embodies granddad if you think about it, like just quiet, peaceful, to himself.

There's nothing, there's not much going on.

Honestly, this may be dumb, but I don't wanna do anything.

I want to keep it how it is.

I'm sure we'll probably have to do something with the house at some point.

Granddad always talked about making the the pond bigger so that would be cool to do.

But you know, the rest of it I like the fact that it's kind of like stuck in history.

It's land, like it's nothing but just grass and cornfields.

I definitely feel like there's a connection and a lot of that is probably rooted in pain and the shared experience of our ancestors and people that look like us.

But like from it to transition from what it was and like so many generations of our family came from there.

And like I said, I've gone on to do other things have come back.

I definitely think there's a metaphysical like, that's where our people come from.

- It was just a good life, even though there were a lot of us, but we made it through.

(gentle music) - Welcome back to "Atlanta on Film" everybody.

We are sitting here with a lovely, amazing Miss Gabrielle Morse, the director of "Bug Hill".

Thank you so much for coming.

- Thank you for having me.

- With you starting so young in filmmaking at what point did you know that you wanted to center your family and your family's story in your storytelling?

- So I made the film when I was a student at Spelman College.

I was in the documentary program, and it was a new program so we were just kind of finding our footing within what classes we were taking, what we were learning.

And I remember one Thanksgiving break I was about to go and visit my family and I was just randomly telling one of my professors this and I was telling her our story and she goes, "That's amazing."

And I, it wasn't really something that I had considered all that deeply because it was just something normal growing up for me and my family to go and spend time with this land.

And that was one of the last Thanksgivings that we spent as a family before my grandfather died.

And I think that we all just kind of knew that this time was special.

So we really took the time to ask my grandparents a lot of questions about them growing up, their childhoods, how they met each other, things like that.

And then when the pandemic happened my grandfather passed that June and I just decided that this is something that I really wanted to focus on because it's such an important story to me and my family.

And I wanted us to have that archive of memories, something that I could contribute for my family.

- If you look at the history of wealth in this country it's based on real estate, it's based on land.

They're not making any more land in this country.

- Just the fact that you, your story, your family's story of owning land and how important that is for the African Americans in this country, - [Gabrielle] Mm hmm.

- when did you get a firm grasp of understanding how not necessarily rare that is, but how important that is for us?

- So I feel like I was a little late in my age when I realized that.

I think I was a very naive about our family situation.

- Yeah.

- And, it wasn't until I think the pandemic when mental health was really a struggle for a lot of people.

And you know, people are stuck with their families or they're alone or they don't really have the space to kind of just take a minute and breathe and kind of be centered.

And when we went up for my grandfather's funeral it was the first time we had been in a while.

And just being able to be in nature like that, just have a place to rest.

Even though that was an area that my ancestors had worked, they were tobacco farmers, and it's was not a place to rest back then.

But just the fact that it has transformed into somewhere where we could find respite.

I think that that's really what struck me.

Like I am so lucky to be able to have this place to breathe and just be.

(gentle music) - You know, it's so interesting sitting here and hearing you tell your story.

What was the thought behind the creative process of not including yourself in the story of telling this film?

- Well I just really wanted to kind of get to know what my family thought about the land.

'Cause I know what I think and of course the audience doesn't know but because it's such a personal film for me it was kind of just exploration of, you don't really think of your grandparents as people independent of just being your grandparents.

- That's true.

- And so I wanted to hear what my grandmother thought, having been born on that land and being there for so long and then wanting to leave because she wasn't trying to be in the country like that.

And she wanted to go out and explore and things like that.

And then having to come back and just, in a time where she had lost her husband, what does that mean to her?

So I wanted to take myself out of it for that reason.

And also my dad, I wanted to hear his thoughts on it.

It's just not something that you really ask the older people in your family until you kind of have that experience and you realize what it means to you.

- I think it's super powerful, this story that I've heard about how they've gotten the land and the fact that they worked that land at some point and they were able to purchase it and continue to work it and it's something that's been able to stay in the family.

I mean, to me that, that, like I say, it's powerful.

Like whenever I go down there I feel connected to that in a sense knowing that like this is where our people come from.

(smooth music) - So Gabrielle, this was your senior thesis project correct?

- Yes.

- Okay and what school were you attending?

- I attended the illustrious Spelman College.

- Okay.

(both laugh) All right, in the heart of Atlanta.

- Yes sir.

- So um being an Atlanta filmmaker, can you talk about what your creative process was and you know even though the film itself was based in North Carolina what resources you used and all the things that you had and even the editing and post-production how did Atlanta tie into the filmmaking aspect for you?

- So, I feel very lucky to have been born and raised in the city just because it's such a hub for creativity and exploration and you know people come here and they make great things.

People are from here and they make great things and so going to school in the AUC and just being around so many talented black young creatives, I felt like I had such a network already and I was only 18 at the time and I think something that was really important for me throughout my entire matriculation throughout Spelman was my documentary film Siblings.

I always felt like I could lean on them.

I could always ask them for help.

I could ask them if whether this cut made sense or if I just needed to vent and complain like they were there for me and that was really special and I think a lot of times people ask me "Well why didn't you go to a film school?

", and I could have gone to film school and I could have probably gotten the same you know, support, well, maybe not the same support.

I'm a little biased.

I just feel like I was in the right place and I made the right film at the right place - For sure.

- and I don't think I would be the artist that I am today had I not known the girls that I had met when I was at Spelman.

(gentle music) - [Interviewer] So what do you want the audience to walk away with as they watch this piece?

- [Gabrielle] It's a hard question though.

- [Interviewer] Take your time.

- I think that I would like for the audience to just kind of know that places like this do exist and they are attainable.

You know, like you don't have to start in the 1800s.

You can begin building that legacy for your family now - Legacy.

Okay.

Okay.

- and I want, other black people to, even if they feel like they just, you know, have a house that their grandmother grew up in and it's just kind of they feel like it might not be more than just a place where she lived, just to understand the history within the walls and that that is worth protecting and that is worth preserving.

You know?

Because, I mean, houses can come and go, right?

- Yes.

- But it's, it's the memories there that kind of that you know, it drives you.

It, it's who you are and to be able to hold onto that and have a place to remember that I think that's very special and can really do a lot to just preserve whatever it is that you're trying to preserve about your family.

You know, whether that's in picture books or journaling, writing, things like that.

To have someone 10, 20 years from now down your bloodline to be able to look back and know that there was someone in my family even years before me that felt the things, the same things that I felt.

- [Interviewer] Yes.

That, that's incredibly helpful.

You know, it's just knowing that you're not alone even generations back.

- For sure, for sure.

Congratulations again for making this beautiful piece.

- Thank you.

(film projector beeps) - Feeling trapped by the world around us can make even the most ambitious of us push aside the dreams we once had.

In this film, directed by Andre McCoy and Maya Law, Blue, a surreptitious trumpet prodigy feels trapped in by his circumstances.

He's forced by his best friend, Jay, to confront the reality that a dream deferred becomes a nightmare he can't escape.

This is BlueJay.

(film projector clicking and beeping) (Soulful trumpet and piano music) (Soulful trumpet and piano music) (trumpet playing loudly) (bed creaking) (foot steps) (water splashing) (water running) (deep breath) (breathing heavily) (breathing heavily) (thump) (plastic opening) (lighter flicks) (deep inhale) (soulful trumpet music) (soulful trumpet music) - [Jay] (deep voice) Give me all your money.

Oh oh oh.. - Come on man, you play too much.

- All that muscle and you scared.

- Yeah, whatever.

- (sings) Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you.

All I want for my birthday is a big booty hoe.

Birthday sex, birthday sex.

- Yo, what kind of remix is that anyway?

- The best kind.

You trying to get this quick bag and then we outside tonight.

What you trying to do?

Gold room, compound.

Magic.

Oh, you wanna see some white girls?

Cheater.

- Jay, you know I don't do birthdays.

(soft piano music) - You okay?

- Yeah, I'm good.

- Yeah, me too.

- Ready to be out?

- Period.

Let's get this shh money.

- You're so corny.

- What would you do without me though?

(laughs) Ah.

(door slams) (laughter) (Upbeat music) (Upbeat music) - What it looking like?

- Yeah, still sitting here.

It's been slow all day.

- Yeah, me too, but you know the fifteen's coming up so we'll be good.

- Make sure we double up then tomorrow.

- We all got you.

- All right.

- Oh Blue, happy birthday - Look at the block 1 3 perks.

- Okay, so give it to me.

- Clearly I'm out, that's why I'm coming to you.

- Ain't no way, it's slow.

- [Jay] I don't have it, so.

- Look at me.

You high?.

- (chuckles) No I ain't high.

- Let me see how much you made then.

- You're such a downer.

Chill, it's your birthday.

- I ain't playing with you, lemme see how much you made.

(car drives by) What is this?

- A gift.

- A what?

I put you on to make money not to be using, go home.

- It's not that serious, relax birthday boy.

You always get on me for what I'm doing.

- 'Cause you always doing something.

- Yeah whatever.

You know what you be doing is stupid.

- I don't be doing nothing, I don't be on nothing.

- Exactly, you literally don't do nothing.

- What's that supposed to mean?

- The most talented person I know.

Yet you stay blowing that horn every day doing nothing.

- I see what you're trying to do.

Trying to flip the script ain't about to work.

- Whatever boo.

I may be high but at least I'm living and enjoying my little life.

You wasting yours.

- I ain't wasting nothing.

I'm making money and protecting you.

- (laughs) You wasting and protecting me?

- See that's your problem.

You play too much, you don't take nothing serious.

- Okay, okay, I'll be serious.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Answer this for me.

Why you always practicing something?

You never play out loud for people to hear.

You stand on your gift.

Like a chicken on an egg or something.

To afraid it's gonna crack, you won't let it hatch.

Low key that was worse.

- So what if I'm nice?

It don't matter.

Don't make it out, we stuck.

Jay, look around man, look around.

Ain't nothing popping off here.

Talent, no talent.

The trumpet don't trump the tribe.

You know what?

I don't even know why I'm entertaining this conversation because for somebody who loves life so much you're real reckless with yours.

- Man you and Pop's told Teisha that tomorrow ain't making no promises.

So if I don't know if I'm gonna see you tomorrow why wouldn't I get it all in today?

- That's not what he meant, stupid and on Pop's grave, if you don't show out for them pills, you ain't gonna see tomorrow.

- All right, how about this?

You go out and party with me for your birthday like really go out and I'll chill out on all this.

- Cap.

- No I'm serious, on Pop.

- All right.

- So we going out?

- We outside.

- (screams in excitement) We gonna do a big event, like bottle service and all that?

Dude, like it's your day - Yo, Jay, on everything, I swear if I ever see you doing anything again.

- [Jay] Nah, I got you, I got you.

(hands clap) - Yo, where you going?

You don't even drink.

- Facts, but I said we gonna turn up.

Don't worry about me.

Worry about you getting this haircut before I come scoop you from the crib tonight.

'Cause you ain't getting no (inaudible) looking like 20 years of slave.

(laughs) (Smooth beat music) (Smooth beat music) - Blue!

What's up man?

- What's up man.

- What's up with it, look at you man.

You got it going on man.

Sit down, man.

Good to see you, man.

Hurry up and get you in looking like that I know you always up the something.

I ain't tripping now ain't today your birthday?

- Yeah man.

- Oh oh oh.

Turn up time, hold on.

(laughs) You know you gotta, you know how I get down.

- Uh come one man, I'm done.

- Come on man it's your birthday.

You lived to see another year man, you did it.

You lived to see another year, you know how that goes.

Happy birthday man.

- Mm, you did it.

(hair dryer turns on) (smooth beat music) (smooth beat music) (paper rustling) (smooth piano music) (glass bottle hits table) (smooth piano music) (Dial tone) - [Voicemail] Your call has been forwarded to and automatic voice message system.

5 1.. (phone hits table) (smooth piano music) (video call dialing) (smooth piano music) (sighs) (groans) (foot steps) (medal clanging) (feet stomping) ("Happy Birthday" on trumpet) (out of tune) (smooth piano music) (smooth piano music) - [phone voice] Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice message system.

5 1 6 4 7 7 (feet stomping on stairs) (pounding on door) (dog barking) (pounding on door) - Jay?

(dog barking) (hair clippers buzzing) - [Friend] Blue - What's up man?

- What's up man?

(palms slapping) - Look at him, all clean like always.

- Yeah.

- I know you had a ball last night.

- Yo bro, Jay didn't even show up, man.

- For real?

- Yeah, I got drunk and passed out.

You seen her though?

- I haven't.

That's crazy.

But I make sure when I do see her I'ma holler at her about that.

- Yo man, you know how she is.

- For real.

- Yo but if you see her, let me know.

- I'll have her call you man.

- Okay, cool.

- That's weird, man.

- All right, I'll be back later.

- Or I'll call you, whatever.

All right, man.

(laughs) - Yo, what's good man?

- What's cooking?

- Yo, you seen Jay?

- No.

- Dang.

- Cool man.

- You been all right?

- I'm trippin'.

- All right, all right T. Yo!

What's up bro, you good?

- Yeah.

- $1 water, $1, $1.

- $1.

- $1 water - Wanna try real quick?

$1 water.

- You understand?

- Hey man, y'all little niggas seen Jay?

- You lost your girl?

- Dude, that ain't his girl.

That's his sister.

- Oh, so I can have her then.

- Hey yo chill.

- This nigga.

- That's family, watch your mouth.

- All right, my bad big bro.

But nah, we ain't seen her since yesterday.

But big bro.

(cross talk drowns out) - You always trying to get some money man.

- You know what I'm saying?

- Come on, BLM bro, it's a movement money.

Come on bro, I'll wholesale it to ya.

- Yo chill out man.

- I'ma not, I'm not get all that, let's just.

- You should give it all to him.

- You should just, come on.

Same time tomorrow big dog, same time tomorrow.

- Yo water, we got $1 water.

- Man.

(smacking palm) Hey Ms. Williams.

- Hey baby.

- You seen Jay?

- No, I haven't.

Everything okay?

Y'all are always attached at the hip.

- I'm sure it is.

- Okay.

Well you let me know, 'cause you know our girls are always going missing around here.

- Yeah, I know, I know.

- Um hum.

- You be safe too, okay?

- You too, honey.

- [Doreen] Blue!

Blue, Blue, Blue, Blue, Blue, Blue, no Blue, come here man.

- Not today Doreen, not today.

Not today.

- No come over here.

Okay, just just take me, I could give a fuck, that's all.

- Yo, I need some money.

- Got a little something?

I, I, I, I ain't got it today.

But you know, when I get, when I'll get it to you tomorrow, when I get paid tomorrow.

- Well what job?

- You got me.

We grew up together.

- Yo, you seen Jay?

- If you gimme a little something, I'll tell you where she at.

- You always finessing man.

- I'm not finessing.

I swear man, I just need a little something.

- Here man.

- Thank you.

(loud truck driving by) - Jay!

- Yeah, she at home man.

She at home, I'll see you though.

(knocking on door) (dog barking) (key clinking, bumping door) (suspenseful music) (suspenseful music) (Blue sighing) (clothes rustling) (snaps opening) (mouthpiece clicking) (slow jazz music) (trumpet thumping) (slow jazz music) - [Jay's voice] Why you always practicing something?

You never play.

Out loud, for people to hear?

You sitting on your gift.

(solemn jazz continuing) (shutting case) (birds chirping) ♪ (trumpet playing "Amazing Grace") ♪ ♪ (trumpet playing "Amazing Grace") ♪ (distant applause) (gentle jazz music) (gentle jazz music) - I am sitting here with Andre McCoy, the writer, director, and the star of "Blue Jay."

How are you doing today?

- I'm doing good man.

Thanks for having me.

- Thank you so much for bringing that amazing film here with us.

You have to let us know what was the inspiration, the vision behind this beautiful piece?

- I was kind of telling a story about a young man who has aspirations, has goals, has dreams, that he has talent.

But just given his circumstances, where he's at in life he just feels like they can't come to pass.

And I knew a lot of people could relate to that.

Just a lot of people have so much talent, but they look around and see their situation and they just feel, like stuck.

So I wanted to show that, you know you could go from point A to point B, and just don't give up on what's inside you.

- Now there is, I have to say there is something about seeing a black man play a trumpet on screen.

- Yes.

- Like it's just the coolest thing ever.

- Yeah.

- [Interviewer] Do you actually play in real life?

Like what was that at all?

- No, I actually don't play the trumpet.

- Oh okay.

- At all.

(both laughing) Yeah I don't play the trumpet at all, but I just wanted to show, you know, the African American community, jazz is a lost art, you know?

And so, and then gospel was a, well it's not a lost art, but a lot of our roots come from gospel and jazz.

- For sure.

- So I wanted to show that aspect of like, him playing jazz, but also, you know, at the end, when he plays "Amazing Grace," I wanted to show, and fuse the gospel in with that message, you know.

(playing "Amazing Grace") - Now the colors were crisp, the lighting was amazing.

The cinematography was also amazing.

- Yeah.

- Did you have any other visual cues from any other movies, or what was your inspirations in terms of the look?

- Well, the look is, I said I wanted "Moonlight" fused with "Boyz in the Hood."

- Mm.

- So I love the colors of the moonlight, but I love the grittiness of "Boyz in the Hood."

So it's just, when I was thinking about when, this movie came to me in a dream, I dreamt this whole movie.

- Wow.

- So when it came to me, I was like, you know I want to fuse kind of like, the 90's grit of black filmmakers in the modern way of, you know, how films are done.

So I just wanna fuse them together like if they had a child.

- So your co-star?

- Yes.

- Becky Babatunde.

- Yeah, talented.

- So talented.

- Very talented.

- She was heartbreaking in the role.

- Yes.

- Hilarious.

- Yes.

- All these different colors.

How did you go about selecting her for the role?

- Well, you know, we went, we had a casting call.

And so a lot of people submitted and when I seen Becky, she just had that light.

And that's exactly how I saw Jay.

Just very bright, very energetic, a lot of energy.

'Cause Blue, you know, given his name, he's more chill.

He's blue, he's more down.

And I just wanted to contrast on camera where, you know, he was more of the one who was kind of like, serious.

And she was the one who was always pushing him, 'cause you know, and it's so, I wanted to create that best friend thing.

Because a lot of people, a lot of us, we have goals, we have dreams, we have talent.

But sometimes other people see more in us than we see in ourselves.

- Facts.

- And that's what she was to Blue, she saw something in him.

So she was really the one who was like, you know, "go do it, why are you sleeping on your gift," you know?

- Answer this for me.

Why you always practicing something?

You never play, out loud for people to hear?

You standing on your gift.

Like a chicken on an egg or something.

Too afraid it's gonna crack, you won't let it hatch.

Okay, I was.

(indistinct) - So, you said you attended Clark Atlanta?

- Yes, I attended Clark Atlanta.

- Awesome, so what is Atlanta to you in terms of creativity?

What has it done for you?

The filmmaking community.

Like we've been in several spaces together, you know, see each other at different events and things like that.

What is the Atlanta film community, the creative community done for you?

- Well, Atlanta's full so much culture.

And you could get so much culture in Atlanta, when it's just, even in black culture, just given this is the hub of the civil rights movement and different things like that.

And then we filmed the movie on MLK.

So, right next to the AUC.

So going to school at Clark I was always walking up and down the street, you know whether in a barbershop or just stores over there.

So you see so many things.

We call him like he's a character, but literally that's, in movies you make characters.

- For sure.

- So in, just seeing how so many different people are different.

You see so many people with talent.

You see so many people who are funny, and you see all these different characters.

And I just wanted to highlight that, you know the difference between a lot of people on the block versus the kids in the community at the schools.

There's just opportunity.

There's not a lot of difference.

So just given certain opportunities you could go, you know you could be either there or there.

So I just wanted to show that, and actually use, you know the platforms of like, the MLK environment to make this film.

(gentle upbeat music) - And speaking to that.

- Yeah.

- You have this amazing scene, in the middle of the film, where you're like literally walking down the street and you're interacting with all these different characters.

Yes.

- These people.

- Um hum.

- These personalities.

And it just, it's obviously a love letter.

- Yeah.

- To the community.

- Definitely.

- The city, the area.

All these people that you interact with.

- Yeah.

- So was that pretty much where that scene?

- Yeah, that's where it came from.

That's why I had the water boys.

Because you know, a lot of people, the water boys are a staple in the community.

- But what was the actual process of filming like for you?

- Well, it took about two weeks to make the film.

We only maybe shot for, I think we had five days worth of shooting.

Just, you know, with the actors and stuff like that.

But we had a pretty small circle when it comes to just crew, cast and crew.

But we had every niche filled.

So we just made sure pre-production, that's what we put most of our energy in, is pre-production, so it.

- As one should.

- Yeah.

(Andre laughing) And so it could roll smoothly.

'Cause you know, I've been on different sets as an actor where you just showing up the day of set, and especially when it comes to short films, and you're just, the actors haven't met each other, nobody knows each other and you're just, you know filming.

Maybe you might have one table read or something like that.

And I just don't like that personally.

So I make sure we have rehearsals, you know.

I make sure, you know, cast crew, camera, lighting, everybody's just kind of, knew what we was gonna do before we actually, you know, hit play.

And once we hit play it just rolled out smoothly.

So, this is my first time doing anything.

Writing a movie, you know, starring in a movie, you know, all of it, directing a movie, anything.

- Yeah, well this is your first film.

- First.

- This is your first film.

- Yes sir.

- Ain't no telling where you could possibly go with it.

- And that's exciting 'cause I believe that, you know, I was called for this.

I feel like this is a part of my purpose.

Well I know this is a part of my purpose.

That's why I want to tell stories.

That's why I call it Parable Pictures, like, you know, Jesus in the day, you know, gave parables of you know, he's basically telling stories of the times.

So that's basically what I'm trying to do.

I'm trying to, you know tell stories that have faith-based inspiration to you know, influence culture, you know, and shift culture into the modern day, yeah.

- Well that's a word.

- Yeah man, that's the goal.

(both laughing) - Thanks again for sharing your film "Blue Jay," man.

It was amazing.

- Thanks for having me.

- We can't wait to see what you do next.

- Thank you.

(film projector clicking, beep) - In this next viral piece, Yasmin Neal tells a story of a young boy looking for help while facing a harsh reality that he is too young to understand.

This is "Target Practice."

(film projector clicking, beeps) ("Strange Fruit" by Nina Simone playing) ♪ Southern trees ♪ (solemn piano music) ♪ Bearing strange fruit ♪ ♪ Blood on the leaves ♪ ♪ And blood at the roots ♪ ♪ Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze ♪ ♪ Strange fruit hangin' ♪ ♪ From the poplar trees ♪ (solemn piano continues) ♪ Pastoral scene ♪ ♪ Of the gallant south ♪ (somber piano music) ♪ Them big bulging eyes and the twisted mouth ♪ ♪ scent of magnolia, clean and fresh.

♪ ♪ Then the sudden smell of burning flesh.

♪ ♪ Here is a fruit, ♪ ♪ for the crows to pluck.

♪ ♪ For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck.

♪ ♪ For the sun to rot, ♪ ♪ For the leaves to drop.

♪ ♪ Here is a strange ♪ ♪ and bitter cry.

♪ (footsteps) - Sweetie, hey.

Everything okay?

Where are your parents, huh?

We're technically closed but, do you need any help?

(somber piano music) (somber piano music) - What's up little man?

- Can you help me take this off?

- Yeah, let's see what you got.

♪ Southern trees, ♪ ♪ bear a strange fruit.

♪ ♪ Blood on the leaves.

♪ ♪ And blood at the roots.

♪ ♪ Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze.

♪ ♪ Strange fruit hanging, ♪ ♪ from the poplar trees.

♪ - That, that don't come off.

♪ Pastoral scene of the gallant south.

♪ ♪ Them big bulging eyes and the twisted mouth.

♪ ♪ Scent of magnolia, clean and fresh.

♪ ♪ Then the sudden smell, ♪ ♪ of burning flesh ♪ ♪ here is a fruit.

♪ - I am sitting here with the writer, director extraordinaire Yasmin Neal.

Yasmin, how are you doing today?

- I'm doing fantastic.

How are you?

- I am excellent.

I am excited because we are here today to talk about your film entitled, "Target Practice."

- Yes.

- Give us a little backstory on "Target Practice" where the idea came from, just all that.

Gimme all of that.

- Well, initially when starting "Target Practice" or before we had an increase in African American males being killed, whether it was at the hands of police or not at the hands of police at the hands of regular citizens.

And it was kind of like where their skin was criminalized.

So when it comes to that aspect, I wanted to tell a story that said the unspoken words that a lot of black and brown people experience in this world today.

And that's where "Target Practice" came from.

So it just took a very simple concept, and turned into a film.

- [Bobby] The young talent in there.

What's his name?

- His name is Jahlil Muhammad.

- Jahlil Muhammad.

His performance, watching it again, cause I watched it just before, just to watch it.

But like watching it for the purpose of this interview, he seems to take direction very well.

His eyes, his face.

What was the process of the casting for that particular role in working with that young talent.

- So, for me in being, especially on the indie side you have your favorite actors, and you have people that you know that just can nail it every time.

And he's one of those ones I would call.

Prior to that, he'd already been in a series from Netflix.

- [Bobby] Wow.

- At a very age.

I think he was there like three or four.

So he's been acting many years before, and he's just very good.

And he's been become so accustomed to Hollywood sets, indie sets are a breeze for him.

So the most interesting aspect of this is because of the subject matter, we had to be careful about deciding if we're going to let him know what he's doing.

So when it comes to directing child actors, it's a number of things because they don't have, especially children that are young, eight years and under especially, they don't have a reserve to refer back to when it comes to emotion.

They don't know what heartbreak looks like.

They don't know what horror looks like.

Even when he did a horror film for me, he didn't understand the definition of that.

But he knows how to act and a good actor can act.

And so with this, I had to talk to his parents which I encourage any director, if you work with children, especially on very hard topics, talk to the parents, let them decide if they should be a part of that conversation.

So I talked to his mother and she has two sons, he's the oldest of two.

And I said, do you want him to know what we're doing?

She said, no.

She said, because up until that particular day she doesn't even let him watch TV to the point of knowing that black and brown people are being killed.

So she wanted him to be ignorant of that fact, for this project.

So from his perspective, he's just getting painted on.

So when he was laid out and getting the paint applied, he's we got the music going, he's dangling his feet.

He has no idea what he's doing.

He just knows when I say action, he just drops into it.

He's just so good.

I can't wait till he grows up.

But he just so good.

He just knows what's to do.

- What's up little man?

- Can you help me take this off?

- Yeah.

Let's see what you got.

♪ Southern trees.

♪ ♪ Bearing strange fruit.

♪ ♪ Blood on the leaves, ♪ ♪ and blood at the roots.

♪ - What was your start in like filmmaking storytelling?

Like where did all the creativity start for you?

- Yeah, so I've been writing since I was a child.

Won a lot of little short film competitions growing up.

Eventually when I transitioned towards high school into college, I started switching over to screenplays.

And from that moment I was fearful for a while of showing the screenplays because I was afraid somebody's gonna steal it or what would the world say.

So I spent many years initially chasing Hollywood.

Like so many of us do.

Instead of just going straight indie, so you name it I was at film festivals between here in California, you name it.

I was there trying to just sell this script.

I had to sell a bunch of screenplays.

I had no idea what I was doing.

And so at some point someone just said and actually I remember the day I actually watched an Ava DuVernay YouTube video where she said just shoot it.

So I wrapped up a few nickels and took one of my favorite pieces which is called "Queen of Kings" ancient Egyptian story.

And just shot it.

And from that moment, I just kept shooting it myself.

I actually shot it.

I produced, directed, and wrote it.

And I tend to direct everything cuz at some point, and you as yourself a director will understand sometimes only you can understand your vision.

And sometimes it's very hard to give that to somebody.

I'm not saying they can't do it as a director, they just don't understand the vision.

And so that's actually what's guided me to continue to direct because there's just a vision I see that I just think is different from some others, and I need to get it on screen the way I see it.

- Let me unpack cuz you dropped a few things there.

So number one, the other project you just discussed, what's the name of it again?

- Queen of Kings.

- Queen of Kings.

And that's the Egyptian throwback like period.

Like I need you to understand, she created a whole, how would you even explain it?

Created a whole visual piece.

Short film, Egypt just built everything from scratch.

- Yes.

- Amazingly shot.

They could compete with your 5 to 10 a 100 million dollar projects today.

So I'll always give you big ups to the, for that project every time I see you.

- Thank you.

- Creating your own, which I'm very big on.

If anybody knows me, like creating your own create don't wait as we love to say.

- Yes.

- You just take it into your own hands and nobody can tell your own story like you.

- Yes.

- And being in the Atlanta independent film space in this community, what exactly does that mean for you?

The Atlanta film community?

- I think it's a very important community and some they have their cliques, but at some point everybody kind of tries to help one another.

But outside of that, I like the fact that the Atlanta filmmakers are continuing to push forward.

Everybody keeps saying, oh, go to Hollywood, go to New York.

You don't have to go there anymore.

We just have to keep working, creating here, and make the noise here, to bring the people here when it comes to the above the line positions to include the writer's rooms.

So with that being said, I just feel that the only difference between us and New York and California, especially when it comes to writer's rooms and having original huge series or huge movies come out of Atlanta, is they just have to know we exist.

- Hmm.

- That's the only difference between us and the and the big boys when it comes to other states when it comes to filmmaking, they have to know we exist.

And the more we keep shooting and shooting projects that get a lot of attention.

Like for instance, when "Target Practice" went viral in 2020 it brought a lot of attention and eyes to Atlanta, what they're doing in Atlanta.

And continuing to do that.

You yourself, you go viral pretty frequently.

As we just continue to be Atlanta filmmakers, and keep making noise, they have to come here and ask about our stories.

- Now one of my favorite questions I like to ask cause you know, I'm very in tune and I'm always looking for signs and- - Yep.

- And things.

Was there a moment on set where you felt like, okay, I know for sure this is what I'm doing.

This is the magic.

It's all happening.

Like I have a vision to do.

- It's not a moment on set, I don't think.

It's a feeling.

I think it's a feeling that I get before I get to set.

Even days before, if I don't feel good it's just something about me not feeling peace.

- [Bobby] Ooh.

- Peace is usually associated with spiritual beings for those of you that believe in God.

So if I don't feel peace, I usually know if a project's not gonna come out right or I know that there's something that I need to change before I get to set.

And on that day I was completely, completely at peace.

- Was there any challenging moments on set?

Something you have to think on your toes and, you know, problem solve?

- So on that day, outside of the natural things like people, cars, animals, it was nothing we couldn't work around, especially since we were handheld so much of the production.

But it, it was one funny moment.

We were trying to get a bus to come to like stop, like he, the little boy had gotten off the bus or what have you.

And any other time when I go to that location and I went there prior to to see, hey, yeah that's an actual bus stop.

We stood there for the longest, not one bus came and we're like, and the kids just sitting over there.

It took forever for a bus to finally come.

Then the bus didn't even really stop.

So I'm like, we gotta cut that up in editing guys.

But we planned for the bus and it never came.

So.

- You completed this piece.

What was the process like of releasing it?

Did you do festivals?

I, I know it was online for a time.

It got picked up on different things, give us a little bit more insight on the release process.

- So we put it online and just left it there and just we're gonna see what was gonna happen.

- So what did happen?

- So eventually Viola Davis saw it and she blasted out online.

It won a number of awards.

It just, it went farther, much farther than I could ever imagine.

And that's how I ended up getting, becoming a finalist for the Morehouse Human Rights Film Festival for the Spike Lee award.

- Wow.

- And so it hit way over a hundred million.

And so when people later ask me after that moment, what do you consider success?

What is that, what is success to you?

I can't say it's awards anymore because the messages, and the DM's, and the people actually sending me videos of themselves, either they're crying or they're with a spouse.

They're saying your how your video helped.

Just reading through the amazing comments of people all over the world and how the film touched them and the conversations it started and the conversations that started in universities across this nation was insane.

I can never dream of that.

And so with that being said I just changed at that moment what success was for me.

- Thank you so much for allowing the world to see "Target Practice."

- Yes.

- Yet again.

And beautiful piece.

So Yasmin, what is next for you?

What's, I know you got a lot of projects in the fire.

What's going on?

What's next for you?

- The immediate projects are gonna be some commercial work from a private client.

Actually, we start filming this weekend.

So I'm really excited about that.

And I'm even more so excited about stepping to my feature film later this year.

Finally.

- I know you can't say nothing about it.

Can you give us just one word for the future film?

What's the one word?

You can put it in one word.

What is it?

Okay.

- The genre is romance.

- Okay.

- And the title is "Safe Word."

- Okay.

Oh, on that note, (laughing) Yasmin Neal, thank you so much for coming to our show.

- Yes.

- And showcasing your wonderful film "Target Practice."

We cannot wait to see what else you got in store for us.

(film projector clicks and beep) The levels of talent that we've seen together over the last few episodes is astounding.

More importantly, the things we've learned together about the world around us have been highly informative.

While our partnership with the Morehouse Human Rights Film Festival is coming to an end for now.

Our commitment to being champions for human rights causes will never cease.

Let's all continue to work together and make this world a better place for everyone in it.

I'm Bobby Huntley and I've thoroughly enjoyed sharing these films and conversations with you.

Have a great evening.

(smooth jazz music) W-A-B-E (music tones)