Frame x Frame: New York Creatives

Yesterday, for me, felt to be a good day to be a creative in New York City.

I linked up with a creative by the name of Dimz, who I met from a project a while ago. We also met up with an aspiring actress, Tiffany, who was interested in getting into the creative sphere. We first did some monologue reading, just to get her comfortable, then we started taking some pictures in the great weather.



Afterwards, Dimz's friend, Fresh, came through to hang out, he decided that he wanted to shoot an improv short dialogue with Tiffany and me, so I pulled out my "Denzel" and helped her release her inner actress. It was fun getting into a character and seeing her try to become dramatic and believable all at once. For me, acting doesn't have to be an over-the-top, soap opera exercise; being yourself and coming off real makes acting more authentic. It was a good day just to be outside and enjoy what the city had to offer.

Throughout the course of the day, I saw a performer flip over a group of people, met up with another creative who sells vintage clothes, accidentally bumped into another actress and her friend, and finally linked up with Joshen to record and watch an improv sketch show. It was amazing seeing and meeting all these creative people in the city I live in and hear their stories of trying to make it their respective industries. Whether you're trying to become an actress, actor, photographer, videographer, music artist or anybody who creates, the consensus is that the creative market is saturated and everyone is struggling to get by. For some, it's a deterring factor, which leaves some creatives feeling hopeless. For me, interacting with all these people gave me some hope; hope that there are people out there that want to do something dope and amazing and I want to be a part of that.

I'm not giving up on the New York scene just yet. I just have to get out there in the streets and just do it.

-Video Vix[o]n

Production Vlog "A" - #VideoDictionary

In an attempt to jump start my creativity, I started a new short film series called #VideoDictionary. All the details will be in the production vlog below.



*Sidenote: The premise of the short film was based off the NBC show "Awake," which, ironically, starts with the letter "A." 

Stay tuned to my blog to see the upcoming production vlogs as this series continues.

-Video Vix[o]n

Trayvon Martin: The Hoodie Worn 'Round The World

I like hoodies. I like how the hood keeps my comfortable and warm when I need it to. It's a functional and versatile part of my wardrobe.

Earlier this week, on March 21st, 2012, hundreds of people flooded Union Square, Manhattan in hoodies; not because it was cold, but to symbolize the innocent death of Trayvon Martin. The story of the young boy who was shot in "self defense" in Florida by armed neighborhood watchman, George Zimmerman, has caused national outrage and people have taken the streets to demand Zimmerman's arrest.

First hearing about the story, I thought to myself, "Here we go again with another innocent Black youth killed by a clearly racist white man." The shooting of Martin is so common, sadly I've become desensitized about it; not because I don't care, but because it's so rampant in our society. Wearing a hoodie now represents us being Trayvon, following the "I Am (insert innocently killed African American male here)" template of injustice. Similar to Troy Davis and Sean Bell, which I'm sure some people may have forgotten about already or may be bringing back up, Trayvon Martin represents the blatant racism that is still present in our society. I wonder if Trayvon Martin was a white boy that had been shot, would we be treating the case in the same fashion of protest and rallying? It's a good question to pose, considering Martin could have been anyone.

Though I didn't know about the rally in Union Square, from the video and stories I've been reading about, Skittles definitely seem to be winning in the sense of product placement. It's clear that Martin was carrying some Skittles and a drink on him, but I feel the symbolism of the hoodie was enough to get the point across. He wasn't shot because of the candy in his pocket; he was shot because he appeared threatening to an insecure White male who doesn't know better to differentiate a normal youth from someone who could have possibly posed a hazard to his neighborhood. Was Zimmerman wrong for trying to defend his neighborhood? No. Was he wrong to profile a young Black man as automatically threatening and shoot him? Yes. Many people get shocked when these incidents happen because they expect people in our society to know better; to be better. People like Zimmerman represent the percentage of dormant racist bigots who don't verbally express their racial anxieties, but act out upon it through violence and behaviors. It's something that we can't stop, which is why I feel people march in protest.

Unfortunately, Trayvon Martin has been added to the long list of the victims of injustice in this country. Of course I am upset about it. I'm angry that people like Zimmerman aren't automatically arrested and trailed for their crimes. I'm upset that it takes people to march in the streets and get angry for stories like this to get attention. I'm also upset that the stories similar to Martin are happening everyday and are never bought to light. But what can I do? Stop wearing my favorite piece of clothing just to feel safe?

-Video Vix[o]n

Stop (and Think) Kony 2012: Revisited

Last week, in a rush of emotionally charged passion, I posted my emotions all over my social platforms about my sentiments towards the now infamous Invisible Children documentary, "Kony 2012." From what I saw, I had to tell people that we had to band together to stop the evil monster who was Joseph Kony. I went from not knowing who this man was to 30 minutes later, cursing his name and recruiting my imaginary troops to do something about putting him down. During my state of fiery passion, I used my creative juices and thought to compile a mash-up of something popular in pop culture with this issue to spread more awareness. This was my result; Avengers x Kony 2012:



But, throughout my rally cries for the global community and myself to assemble and put a stop to Mr. L.R.A., I didn't stop and think about what this documentary was telling me and how it was affecting my emotions.

As I stated in my last post, this documentary was well shot and did a good job at conveying its message; too good of a job. Throughout the video, it uses different audio and visual messages that pulled at one's heart strings; showing African children in pain, the innocence of a young boy trying to understand what evil is and the ultimate message of standing up and finally doing something about it. What I failed to realize is that the ending was the drive home for the organization's mission; to donate. They advertised their merchandise that, through a donation, you can receive an "Action Kit," that would contain fliers, T-shirt, bracelets, etc.; all aimed at spreading awareness about Kony. I did get pulled in by "action kit" and immediately pulled out my credit card to donate. But, if my logical senses kicked in instead of the emotional, I would have realized buying a T-shirt and posters was not going to stop a world-class criminal. Each view on this documentary wasn't going to get us one step closer in the African jungles to catching him. I'm sure there are people who have jumped on the "Stop Kony" train that have come to this revelation by now too.

Was it wrong for me to feel strong about putting a stop to a bad man? No. Was I wrong for wanting to spread more awareness about the issue? No. Was I wrong for not taking the time to do more research about the issue before leading to any conclusions? Yes. Joseph Kony actually helped me to learn the importance of educating oneself about any issue before taking action, no matter how dire the situation may seem. After doing more research about Kony and Invisible Children, I discovered that everything is not what it may seem; outside of the anti-Kony 2012 rhetoric I was hearing all over the web. It's safe to do research about a topic to get all the facts straight; deeply analyze any pressing issue that I watch/read on the Internet and come to a well-balanced opinion. That not only makes me a smarter consumer of information, but a more cautious one. I'll remember to research first, react later.

Invisible Children, I see what you did there.

-Video Vix[o]n

Stop Kony 2012: I Can't Stop

Last night, I had the pleasure and disdain of watching a very important documentary on Youtube that shaped the way I see the world and my responsibility as a global citizen.



For those who have been in the dark about this issue, like I have, there is a man in Africa by the name of Joseph Kony. Kony leads a group of rebels called the L.R.A. (Lord's Resistance Army). This "army" is comprised of children that his henchmen and him have captured, raped, killed and forced to join his group and kill others with guns as child rebel soldiers. Seeing that these children are taken away and forgotten about, they're referred to as the "Invisible Children." These children have been suffering at the hands of LRA for years.

The documentary is well shot and convincingly gets its message across. The director and main narrator, Jason Russell, explains his experiences working with the Invisible Children organization and spreading the word about the mistreatment of these children in Africa and fighting to put an end to Kony and his tyranny. There was something inside me that was building a fire as I watch every moment and learn every fact about the Stop Kony movement. I was aware that evil existed in the world, but not to this magnitude. This is something different; something bigger than myself or anyone else that I can imagine. We're talking about a world criminal; the most dangerous man in the world. Ironically, the U.S. had sought out to find Bin Laden and stop Gaddafi, but the efforts to put an end to Kony has never been emphasized (of course, this is due to underlying U.S. interests and not the concept of world justice).

Ultimately, the question comes down to what am I going to do about it? After college, the fire I had in me to create change fizzled out; I got caught up in my own world and creating a difference for me. But now, there is a global threat on our hands that has been occurring for more than 20 years; before I was born, and I have the ability to stop it. I'm afraid that if I don't keep this story in my mind's eye, then I will forget and go back to my complacent ways. I can't allow that to happen. For some, this may be a bandwagon trend that'll go away in a couple of days; for others, this is something that needs to be addressed and acted on.

If anyone reading this wants to do something inherently good and take action to spread the word about Joseph Kony to stop him, then do your research and get active. If not, then I could understand; it's not easy to feel empowered to create change. It can be scary and not much people know how to handle it, much less make it a priority. Either way, I am a strong believer in stopping villainy and as all of us can be the heroes we need to put an end to this tyrant.

-Video Vix[o]n