Private Project

Smoke, Lilies and Jade

Alex, a young Harlem Renaissance artist and writer, plays around at love and life until he meets Beauty, appropriately named, who makes no bones about his same-sex desires. Troubled and confused, Alex wavers on the brink of passion until a challenge posed by his girlfriend forces his hand.

  • Deondray and Quincy LeNear Gossfield
    Director
    "Congo Cabaret," "The Chadwick Chronicles"
  • Robert Philipson
    Writer
    "Congo Cabaret"
  • Robert Philipson
    Producer
    "Congo Cabaret" "Body and Soul: An American Bridge"
  • Xavier Avila
    Key Cast
    "Alex"
    Pretty Dudes
  • Ernesto Reyes
    Key Cast
    "Beauty"
    American Gods
  • Billy Porter
    Key Cast
    "Narrator"
    Pose, Kinky Boots
  • Alexandra Grey
    Key Cast
    "Melva"
    Empire
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    28 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 4, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    60,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Distribution Information
  • 13th
Director Biography - Deondray and Quincy LeNear Gossfield

Quincy LeNear is a Chicago native, multi-talented artist having enjoyed a career as an actor, visual artist, cartoonist, writer, photographer, and filmmaker. He began his work in film as a photographer for Vibe Magazine, URB Magazine, BWR Public Relations, UPN/Big Ticket Entertainment and local Chicago newspapers. Dedicated to the art of filmmaking, LeNear worked in various production positions including production designer, stills photographer, storyboard artist, and production assistant before embarking on a career as a director.

Los Angeles native, Gossett began his career as a classically trained award-winning actor. He was the first African American to play Romeo in DTASC’s competitive Shakespeare Festival and to win first place for his portrayal. He later went on to win a third and fourth place prize for his portrayal of Walter Lee Beau Willie Jones (the Colored Museum) and Othello (Othello) in subsequent DTASC Fall and Shakespeare festivals respectively. He earned guest star roles on TV shows, ROSWELL, THE PARENTHOOD, THE HUGHLEYS, MTV's UNDRESSED, and THE NATHAN LANE SHOW.

In 2000, Gossett formed D.E.G. Media, a film and video post house and worked as an associate producer with South Street Studios. D.E.G. Media produced media and industrial presentations for clients including Janet Jackson, Nick Cannon Presents, The Mayhem Project, Rhinehardt Publishing, Avitone Music, and Magic Johnson Industries. He also co-produced The 1999 Pan African Film Festival Opening Gala with South Street Studios. Soon after his sights were set on directing.

Changing their surnames after marrying on the Grammy Award Show of 2014, Quincy LeNear Gossfield and Deondray Gossfield are the directors and creators of the award-winning anthology series, THE DL CHRONICLES, which premiered internationally on the pay cable network, Here TV in 2007. They are also the directors and creators of the web spinoff series, The Chadwick Journals, originally created to be a fundraiser for the indie, The DL Chronicles Returns, The Chadwick Journals has received over 400,000 combined views on YouTube since its 2011 release. The star of last season’s episode of The Chadwick Journals, Damian Toofek Raven, was nominated for an Emmy for “Outstanding Principal Performance in a Daytime Program.”

The team has also produced and directed projects for notables including Mariah Carey, Tavis Smiley, Magic Johnson, Nick Cannon, Jody Watley, and Shanice Wilson and have directed dozens of industrial ads for GAP, Activision, and Monster. The Gossfields directed, wrote, and produced the star-studded, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2014 HEROES IN THE STRUGGLE Award Show at the Roy Disney Concert Hall and DGA Theater for the Black AIDS Institute. They also were the directors, producers, and writers of the Black AIDS Institute’s and Kaiser Permanente’s PSA campaign, “Greater Than AIDS”, one of the most powerful nationally televised AIDS awareness campaigns ever done specifically focusing on people of color.

The Gossfields’ previous collaboration with Shoga Films was the 2017 short, “Congo Cabaret,” which won multiple awards while on the film festival circuit. Quincy was a co-writer of the script and both Gossfields produced and directed.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

DEONDRAY:

After having read “Smoke, Lilies and Jade,” we were captivated by the imagery and voice of the piece. It is a wonderful read; the prose weaves an enchanting story both ethereal and carnal. We were fascinated by the bravery and artistry of Mr. Nugent and wanted to bring this beautiful historic piece to life.

This film explores the idea that the soul can find its mate in more than one person – and more than one gender -- at a time. Our lead character, Alex, is in a budding relationship with a beautiful and fascinating woman but falls head over heels for a man. He is in love with two people of two different genders. Alex feels strongly connected to both but knows that he should choose what society dictates.

As two African American, gay and married directors, we’re familiar with living on the periphery of what is considered culturally and societally acceptable. The themes of personal choice and how one’s environment influences those choices are important to us.

QUINCY:

The story mirrors my own. When I met and fell in love with my spouse, Deondray, I was in a long-distance relationship with my childhood sweetheart, a woman whom I truly loved and cared for. I remember my utter confusion, not about what I was feeling for them but about what decision to make based on what was expected of me. Our protagonist, Alex, is fluid in multiple ways, from his artistic and intellectual pursuits to his romantic ones. His conflict is in reaction to feeling constrained by society's dichotomies. He doesn’t want to be placed in a box, narrowly defined, but fears he will eventually have to conform. This causes Alex to doubt himself as an artist and as a person; he hides behind an elusive persona. As a multi-disciplinary artist, I have always faced pressure to “choose” and limit my artistic inclinations and modes of expression. Like Alex, I struggled with the societal rules that told me what and whom I had to choose romantically. We are kindred spirits on many levels.

DEONDRAY:

This story and these issues are timeless, whether it be 1920s Harlem or 2020 anywhere. As artists, we naturally desire to live freely, without expectations and demarcations, but as members of society, we’re aware of opinions, traditions, and collective rules that are imposed upon us. How do we make decisions, whether right or wrong, of the head or the heart, when these rules not only hedge our freedom but run counter to our natural inclinations?

We are incredibly excited to share “Smoke, Lilies and Jade” – truly our story – with the world. We continue to explore the human condition as experienced through Black SGL (Same Gender Loving) and trans artists of the Harlem Renaissance whose lives and stories are still being excavated almost a century later – our precious, long-buried secret.