Private Project

Iron Grit

In 1979, a city official seeks to get elected as the first Black mayor in Birmingham, Alabama ('the most segregated city in America')...during the midst of racial unrest after the fatal shooting of an unarmed Black girl by a White police officer

  • Jamel Lajuan
    Director
    (Iron Grit: credited as Jamel Lajuan)
  • Jamel Lajuan
    Writer
    (Iron Grit: credited as Jamel Lajuan)
  • Jamel Lajuan
    Producer
    (Iron Grit: credited as Jamel Lajuan)
  • Sumner Nesbitt
    Producer
    (Iron Grit: credited as Jamel Lajuan)
  • Rickey Smiley
    Key Cast
    Friday After Next, BET Comic View
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Feature
  • Genres:
    African American, Southern, Political, Social Justice, Police Brutality, History, Civil Rights, Black
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 46 minutes 39 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 18, 2019
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED, Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1:85
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Sidewalk Film Festival
    Birmingham, Alabama
    United States
    August 24, 2019
    World Premiere
    Best Black Lens Film-Audience Award
  • Oakland International Film Festival
    Oakland, California
    United States
    September 24, 2019
    California Premiere
Director Biography - Jamel Lajuan

Jamel Lajuan Jackson is a Film & TV Producer born in Birmingham, Alabama who started out in the TV industry as a child actor in regional TV commercials and young model for magazines.

Along with being a proud US Army combat veteran, Jamel Lajuan holds Masters Degree in Film & Media Production. He has written, directed & produced over 12 shorts films and a feature documentary. His 1st feature film, Iron Grit, won the Audience Award for 'Best Black Lens Film' at the 2019 Sidewalk Film Festival.[Iron Grit: Credited as Jamel Lajuan]

He currently resides in Las Vegas, NV with occasional visits to Los Angeles, CA,

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I was born & raised in Birmingham, Alabama. For the first 13 years of my life,
Dr. Richard Arrington Jr. was the mayor of the city. Arrington has a major
street in Birmingham named after him, yet many residents in Birmingham do
not how or why he ran for mayor, nevertheless tourists from around the world
who come to visit. After living in Birmingham the majority of my life, even I did
not know about the events surrounding Arrington’s election in 1979. nor do
many in my parents’ generation. Therefore, this story needs to be told
through the documentary film medium.

Birmingham is known for being the center of the Civil Rights Movement in the
1960s. Yet, many think after the 1965 Civil Right Voting Act and removal of
former Birmingham City Commissioner Bull Connor from office that was the
end of the story. Birmingham’s racial strife & segregation continued into the
1970’s from an institutional standpoint and culminated with the shooting of
Bonita Carter in 1979.

Arrington not only became the first Black mayor of the city, but he
maintained his position in office for 20 straight years while bringing the city
economic progress. As a result he created a municipal model for success
that many minority & female mayors can follow today. The recent police
shootings on unarmed Black American citizens greatly tie into this 1979
story. I want to bring attention to the disproportionate deadly police action
towards Blacks in America that is still happening today, but I also wish to
inspire racial unity in the name of progress for global audiences.