Speak Up Brotha!

Whatever happened to classic Black love stories? I was raised on the classics: “Boomerang,” “Love & Basketball” and, of course, “Love Jones.” These films were tiny Black universes, where our heroes didn’t have to suffer, and there was no implied white audience to perform for. They were also funny, entertaining and sexy. The movies looked good, and the people looked better. I always wanted to make a film like this, so when I got the chance to pitch and then finally direct “SPEAK UP BROTHA!” with Black Man Films, I knew it was my chance.

“SPEAK UP BROTHA!” is the story of Ahmad, an uber driver who makes a connection with a young poet: Mina, and tries to reconnect with her. It's a simple story of two people trying to get back to each other and communicate. At its core, this is a film about communication. As I have gotten older, I have come to realize Black men specifically have not generally been taught to communicate. We bottle things up, and frequently only seek help when things get really bad, and maybe not even then. Our hero: Ahmad’s struggle to overcome his anxiety and connect with Mina, hits close to home as someone who has wrestled with anxiety my entire life.

In the filmmaking, it was key that we both anchored the audience in the subjective anxieties of Ahmad, as well as visually harken back to the 90s era of Black love stories. We wanted the frames to feel saturated, warm and kinetic to match Ahmad’s momentum, driving towards Mina throughout the story. It is Ahmad’s struggle with himself on his journey that forms the heart of the movie. We also wanted to ensure that once we entered the club the film fully fell into the lushness of those Black love stories. By turning up the color and using anamorphic lenses, we made sure that once Ahmad entered the club, it was as if he was entering a world similar to the very best Nia Long or Omar Epps movies.

“SPEAK UP BROTHA!” is the kind of movie I love watching. A romantic, poetic and funny Black love story that I have not seen very much of in the last few years. It is also a love letter to Harlem, a neighborhood that I and many of the cast and crew are lucky enough to call home. We wanted to capture a snapshot of the beauty of our neighborhood; so, we shot almost entirely in Harlem, most notably in Morningside Park and the historic club: The Shrine. Our hope is that the film will leave its audience feeling full and communicate the passion this crew had while making it.