KARMA

Recently finding the lost footage of a short film, KARMA, I shot over 20 years ago has been a reaffirming and re-invigorating experience as well as a source of renewed inspiration. In 1998, we were five young, struggling, out-of-work actors. I was also a budding young filmmaker dreaming of ways to tell the stories I’d want to see on screen. This was a time before smartphones with cameras or computer laptops with the ability to edit video. The barrier to entry to visually tell stories was much, much higher. For us five, professionally and personally, it was a time before steady acting work, being series regulars on TV, roles in major blockbuster films, or even Emmy awards. It was a time before marriages and children. We were young artists dreaming of making a way and our mark in the entertainment industry. We didn’t have much beyond a burning desire to create. So we worked with what we had: a story, a Hi-8 camera, blank tapes, and each other. Thinking we had lost all our work was devastating at the time, but we had an appreciation of our creative efforts, the lessons learned, and what we poured into each other. We accepted the loss and continued moving forward. Having recovered the lost tapes, I wanted to honor the young artists we were 20 years ago by completing the project we started way back when. Viewing myself and my friends from decades ago, I am heartened that, to this day, I still hold the same beliefs and philosophies about the type of stories and images I want to put out in the world.

Back in the 90s, I wanted desperately to explore stories not centered in the “hood” or drugs or violence. I wanted to examine young black male characters who weren’t steeped in the fight against societal oppression or urban dysfunction. I wanted to showcase a group of guys just trying to make sense of their mundane, everyday world of love, life, and friendship. I wanted to push back against the roles we were being offered as young actors, like “Gang Banger#2” or “Lowlife #3.” (That last one is an actual movie role listed on my IMDB page.). Having a story about a young novelist who, against the wishes of his best friends, is convinced he must confess his past affairs before proposing to his true love, felt like a creative revolutionary act. Taking my cue from the likes of Spike Lee and Robert Townsend in making something by any means necessary, I ventured to make this short film. Who knew it would be over 20 years before the film would be completed. Its rediscovery has been a heartened reminder to never wait to create. Ya heard.