5 Questions for BlackStar Filmmaker Lab Fellows

Tinsel & Tine’s 5 Questions Series continues. Normally, I feature a number of filmmakers screening shorts during a film festival. But since this is the inaugural year for BlackStar Philadelphia Lab Fellows , thought it would be great to just feature these four.

Last October BlackStar and Xfinity Launched their First-Ever Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab Cohort – Four emerging, Philadelphia-based Black, Brown and Indigenous filmmakers were selected to create short films which are now premiering at BlackStar Film Festival (August 3-7, 2022). Films will also be featured on the Black Experience on Xfinity Channel.

The year-long fellowship provided the filmmakers access to equipment, funding, and mentorship. BlackStar acted as executive producer on the short films providing feedback on the works in progress and advice for working with crew; while Xfinity provided a major portion of the funding for production.

The Lab’s 2021–2022 fellows are:

Bettina Escauriza – Tonight, We Eat Flowers, centers on a person who sells hold music to companies, employing magical realism and the absurd to disrupt expectations.

Jasmine Lynea – The Love Machine, (hybrid film) is set in 2036 North Philadelphia in a dominantly Black neighborhood and focuses on cultivating a new perspective on love.

Julian Turner – The Big Three, engages a conversation surrounding Black representation and artistic ownership through a musical setting.

Xenia Matthews – Ourika! utilizes surrealism, animation, and multimedia elements to further the ongoing conversation on the colonization of Black women’s bodies in art and material culture.

The films will screen Sunday, August 7th 3pm in person | 4pm Virtually

Click HERE for Tickets or Reserve for Virtual Screening

And Here’s the Answers to their 5 QUESTIONS

Filmmaker BETTINA ESCAURIZA
TONIGHT, WE EAT FLOWERS

Synopsis: Luis, a recent immigrant and former doctor, works a soulless job selling hold music to corporations while saving money to get certified in EMS. Jamilah, a brilliant gourmet stuck working in a cubicle hellscape dreams of a life of sensuality, color, and flavor.

When Luis walks into Jamilah’s office to hawk his wares, their conversation is interrupted by a scream piercing the air. Luis and Jamilah run to investigate and discover that one of Jamilah’s coworkers has accidentally stabbed himself and Luis must jump into action. The crisis reveals that the two have a great deal in common and leads to an unlikely romance.

T&T: In a nutshell what was the main inspiration and/or the theme that is the heart of your film?

Bettina Escauriza: The inspiration for Tonight, We Eat Flowers is my own experience, that I share with many people, of working unfulfilling, exploitative, dead end jobs while wishing I was able to live a life full of awe, sensuality, beauty, and art making. I wish that I could spend my mysterious existence on this earth exploring the limits of possibility and not selling my time that makes up my life for meager wages while making money for other people. I trade the hours that make up my existence in order to be given a small amount of money that will allow me to live indoors and eat food. And to make matters worse — I can have my hours cut or lose my jobs altogether at any moment. I think about this a lot — I think about how we all contain multitudes and yet we are completely disposable.

At its core, Tonight, We Eat Flowers is about desire. The desire to pursue your passions and the desire to connect with others. Luis desires to continue his work as a doctor, Jamilah wants to bask in sensuality and flavor, Azadi wants to paint, and Tom wants to play disc golf. They all want to be fully themselves — just like you and me.

T&T: Tell us a bit about the music (Who did you work with? What did you want to convey? Or any other tidbits):

Bettina: I’m so happy you are asking about music — I’m obsessed with music in general and consider the hold music to be a character in this film.

Tonight, We Eat Flowers is about a hold music salesman and a gourmet who fall in love within the drab backdrop of an office space. The hold music was written by Elijah B. Torn and Johanna Cranitch at Massive Music. Elijah and I had many phone calls before the songwriting began where we talked about what I heard in my mind when I thought about the hold music. We had a lot of fun and laughed a lot at the possibilities of what the music could be. I have really strong feelings about the hold music in this film — I think of them as their own vast landscape that I am just scratching the surface of.

The closing theme was written by David Torn. David has worked on The Big Lebowski, The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs, Twilight, The Bourne Identity, Friday Night Lights and many other projects. He has collaborated with David Bowie, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Carter Burwell, and Howard Shore and many other of my favorite musicians and composers. I was so excited to have David onboard with this project and it was such an honor to work with him. David and I had some really interesting conversations about what I was chasing in that final scene of the film — what was happening for me and what was happening with the characters. In the end he wrote an absolutely stunning song that captures both the intimacy of the moment and the strange arc of the film. I love this song so much I actually just listen to it all the time.

Dave Adams was the Music in Cinema Fellow at BlackStar and he scored much of the film along with writing the hold music for Jamilah’s phone. I asked Dave to write me a horrendous, panic inducing song that would drive a person absolutely mad if they encountered while on hold — and he delivered just what I had asked for. He filled out the film with minimal and sensitive compositions that do the brilliant work of moving the film forward while helping to tell the story at the same time. We also had a lot of funny conversations about music as we worked on this project.

Finally, the opening theme for the film was written by John Herndon. John is the drummer in Tortoise, Isotope 217, and Precious Wax Drippings among other projects. His solo projects are A Grape Dope and Johnny Machine. I fell in love with John’s drumming when I hung out in the Chicago free jazz scene about 12 years ago. I reached out to John and asked him if he wanted to write some music for a weird movie I was making and he said yes! Apart from writing the opening theme I also asked him to fill in some key spots throughout the film where I felt his drumming and synth work were crucial to giving shape to the story. John and I talked a lot about communicating energy and chaos with a shape to it when we discussed the music for this project.

T&T: Give us some insight into what the BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker’s Lab has meant to you. Perhaps an important lesson; a pro; a con; your process; what it was like to get the news you’d been chosen. Your choice, you don’t have to answer all of these, but just give a little feedback.

Bettina: The BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab has been an incredible experience. I have never been a part of a community this committed to actually supporting Black, Brown and Indigenous filmmakers before. They have run an incredible year long program and at the end of it there are 4 brilliant films that will get released out into the world for people to see. A lot of time I feel like these kinds of programs are more like photo ops that fill some kind of diversity criteria for organizations — but not this lab. The BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab is the real deal — they are actually transforming the landscape of cinema. I am so happy and proud that I got to be a part of the inaugural cohort of this amazing program and I hope that in the future the program will be generously funded and supported as it should be.

The fellowship is not over yet and I am still learning so much. I also built a really strong relationship with the people I met at All Ages Productions. My film would have been completely impossible without All Ages and specifically James Doolittle who really put himself out there to support my project.

For me, the BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab was exactly what I was looking for out of a lab — actual material support and mentorship that culminates in a finished film. I don’t know why this is so hard to find, but I count my blessings every day that I got to be a part of it.

T&T: Give a quick shout out to your creative team and anyone who helped get your film from an idea to BlackStar 2022.

Bettina: “Tonight, We Eat Flowers” would have been completely impossible without my brilliant producer: Nikki Harmon. Nikki is an absolute powerhouse and her DNA is all over this project. She is my dream producer. She knows exactly how to put up with my BS and how to talk me off a ledge and how to deal with and fix all the myriad problems that arose in pre-production and production. She was committed to the vision of the film from the beginning and her sensitivity and insight for the material was integral in the making of the finished product.

It’s a simple equation: No Nikki = No Film.

James Doolittle was the supervising producer and also the post-production producer on the project and again there would be no movie had I not been able to rely on his advice, insight and expertise. James was also all in from moment one and his incredible work ethic, often masked by his laidback attitude and hilarious sense of humor, brought the project across the finish line looking beautiful and polished.

Marie Hinson was the cinematographer and her sensitivity to the script and her attention to my vision and what I was chasing was key to realizing the project. Marie not only understands that storytelling is about emotions, she’s also a beast when it comes to the technical aspects of filmmaking. I relied on her heavily to communicate with other departments during production to realize the vision of the film.

David C. Valdez edited the film and through that process he transformed it. He sculpted the footage and the performances with such expertise and nuance that the material took on a whole new powerful dimension. David was also a very important creative partner for me in the post-production process and his insight and attention to the work were so important to me and to the project.

T&T: Name 5 of your favorite films which influenced your desire to be a filmmaker?

Bettina: Kind of an impossible question to answer… here are more than five. Sorry.

1. La Jetée & Sans Soleil, Dir. Chris Marker
2. Vagabond, Dir. Agnès Varda
3. All films by Andrei Tarkovsky
4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Dir. Michel Gondry
5. Michael Clayton, Dir. Tony Gilroy
6. Jurassic Park, Dir. Steven Spielberg

In the end though, I’ve been more influenced by still photography and novels in my filmmaking journey.

You can follow Bettina Escauriza on Instagram @be_slingsandarrows & @tropical_vampire
and website: bettina-escauriza.com

Filmmaker JULIAN TURNER
THE BIG THREE

Synopsis: It’s 1961 and Big Three Records is striving to stay relevant. Ronny Baker is a shy but ambitious teenage musician with a stutter, longing for acceptance. While participating in a marketing focus group sponsored by Big Three alongside other musically savvy teens, Ronny gradually comes to terms with his speech impediment and realizes that not only does he belong in this world, but also that his unique voice can help shape it.

T&T: In a nutshell what was the main inspiration and/or the theme that is the heart of your film?

Julian Turner: When I wrote the script a few years ago I had been watching a ton of music documentaries and became fascinated with the minutiae of studio life in these pioneering 20th century musical institutions like Sigma Sound, Stax, Motown, Muscle Shoals, etc. In studying a lot of the aforementioned studios, I realized that a similar thread propelled each of these forward thinking environments: youth.

Inspired by real-life label practices, I wanted to create this world that centered the voices and opinions of young people. I wanted to present them as sort of cultural curators or tastemakers with strong ideas of where popular music should head.

T&T: Tell us a bit about the music (Who did you work with? What did you want to convey? Or any other tidbits):

Julian: Being an early 60s period film that takes place almost entirely inside a soul music studio, we wanted to recreate the early days of the popular soul sound and represent this kind of transitional period where several genres were beginning to shape popular music.

Since all the music in the film is diegetic and performed on-screen by the characters, we had to cast actors who could convincingly perform these period recreations.

Ultimately we got the opportunity to work with Brandon Pain and Luke Carlos O’Reilly, two native Philly musicians with a wealth of experience. Both a joy to work with, they forced me to really articulate the musical vision and were able to write unbelievable original songs for our setting and story. I can’t wait for folks to hear them.

Julian: I knew I wouldn’t be able to produce this script without some sort of structural support. I wrote it as a dream project and put it off to the side for about a year until applying for the BlackStar Lab. In relative terms, we didn’t spend a ton of money to get it made but it would not have been possible to pull off the period setting in any sort of convincing manner without a great deal of trust and support from the entire BlackStar family.

As the inaugural cohort in the lab, the process certainly was not without its obstacles, but I loved the transparency from the whole team and deeply respect their openness to feedback and willingness to adjust on the fly.

T&T: Give a quick shout out to your creative team and anyone who helped get your film from an idea to BlackStar 2022.

Julian: Big shoutout to everyone at BlackStar who helped cultivate the idea. Shoutout to my producer Yasmine who worked tirelessly to realize the vision. Shoutout to my cinematographer Bradley who never stops trying to make each frame better and who I can’t wait to work with again. Shoutout to Felicia, our wonderful AD who kept the ship afloat. Shoutout to the entire cast, but especially our two lead actors Ahlon and Jymil who committed so much of themselves to this project and who both have bright futures ahead of them. And big big shoutout to Brandon & Luke whose music really carries this film and connects all the dots.

T&T: Name 5 of your favorite films which influenced your desire to be a filmmaker?

Julian: I’ve wanted to be a filmmaker for so long so I have to trace it back to movies I saw when I was quite young either with my dad or my older brothers, movies that left an impression on me like:

1. Be Kind, Rewind

2. The Birds

3. 21 Grams

4. The Treasure of Sierra Madre

5. City of God

You can follow the short on Instagram @bigthreefilm

Filmmaker XENIA MATTHEWS
OURIKA!

Synopsis: OURIKA! is a glamorous surreal sci-fi short film that deconstructs the old tale of Ourika from death to life. After being dead for over 200 years, Ourika’s soul is awoken inside of a barren purgatory while her body incubates in a fleshy blob. In the void, she encounters ghosts from her past life and depictions of her likeness that taunt her. She must see her true self to find liberation. Ourika is unaware that two sister scientists, Velinda and Ronnell, twin spirits, have been searching for all the pieces of her soul in hopes that they can bring her back to life.

T&T: In a nutshell what was the main inspiration and/or the theme that is the heart of your film?

Xenia Matthews: OURIKA! began when she came to me in an art history class. There were so many artfully crafted depictions of black people but the one that stuck with me was a young Senegalese girl named Ourika. The more I read about her, the more I found her story so strange…but so familiar. The 19th century novel written about her was so disturbing – the way it reveled in the white gaze, the way her humanity was tainted by it, and how her death was caused by it. From there, things got filtered through my brain and it came out as a glam/grotesque sci-fi.

T&T: Tell us a bit about the music (Who did you work with? What did you want to convey? Or any other tidbits):

Xenia: The music was always an integral part of the story from the very beginning. I knew that experimental synths would shape the void, a space of death, and disco-esque music would shape the lab, a space of life. I worked with Dave “lil’dave” Adams and he knocked it out of the park.

Xenia: They’ve spoiled me. The wonderful lessons that I’ve learned about myself, my practice and my community during this process are irreplaceable. I have a feeling that I’m never gonna let myself be overlooked, unheard, or undervalued after this. I have a feeling that I’ll be seeking out more fulfilling work within the industry and making space for myself to be an artist. Because now I know what it feels like when it’s right.

T&T: Give a quick shout out to your creative team and anyone who helped get your film from an idea to BlackStar 2022.

Xenia: I wanna shout out the friends I made in Texas before this all began, they’re some of the first people I ever told this idea to: Jan, Daniel, Tony, Christian, and Vicki, I love you all!
I also wanna thank Mike Attie and my Mom for helping me accept what came to me and letting me know that I was ready and deserving. Most of all, I want to thank Steph for making me completely rethink what a producer can be and do. You are truly so wonderful and I’m filled with gratitude every day that I get to know you. So much love.

T&T: Name 5 of your favorite films which influenced your desire to be a filmmaker?

Xenia: These films heavily influence my craft:
1. Black Is Black Ain’t – dir. Marlon Riggs
2. The Watermelon Woman – dir. Cheryl Dunye
3. Poison – dir. Todd Haynes
4. The Love Witch – dir. Anna Biller
5. Looking for Langston – dir. Isaac Julien

You can follow the short on Instagram: @ourikafilm

POST UPDATE: January 2023 – OURIKA! GoFundMe Page

Filmmaker JASMINE LYNEA
THE LOVE MACHINE

Synopsis: After successfully building a time machine that uses love to help heal and replace harmful childhood memories, a teenage scientist/influencer puts his new invention to the test to challenge intergenerational trauma.

T&T: In a nutshell what was the main inspiration and/or the theme that is the heart of your film?

Jasmine Lynea: The theme is love, always.

Before writing the script for The Love Machine, I felt an unexplainable emptiness. At the time I found sanctuary through music, especially R&B love songs. One particular song that I kept on replay was “Somebody Loves You” by the goddess herself, Patti Labelle. Initially, when listening to the song it’s easy to understand that she is addressing her love for an intimate partner. However, how I received the song at a time of self-healing, “Somebody Loves You” became a love letter to myself. When I interpreted the song from this new perspective, I became curious about how important self-love is while breaking the cycle of intergenerational trauma. I gave into writing and exploring ways to develop The Love Machine. If I work on myself, beginning with love, who else does that support or heal?

T&T: Tell us a bit about the music (Who did you work with? What did you want to convey? Or any other tidbits):

Jasmine: I worked with BlackStar’s Music in Cinema Fellow David Adams. Because “The Love Machine” was partially inspired by R&B love songs, I wanted to honor its essence throughout the film. Fortunately, it did not happen this way. Dave designed and captured an eccentric sound that beautifully elevates the emotion of the film.

Jasmine: The journey has been special. And the support has been impeccable. I wouldn’t have it any other way because without this strong community and funding this precious sci-fi fantasy film would not exist.

T&T: Give a quick shout out to your creative team and anyone who helped get your film from an idea to BlackStar 2022.

Jasmine: I would like to shout out to the entire TLM team!! This is my first time working with such a grand group of artists and they made this experience easy, allowing me to fully focus on directing this complex thing. Along with her team, Art Director Lenore Ramos built the time machine and took it to another level. You have to see this thing! With grace, Simone Holland, our fabulous Director of Photography worked effortlessly to capture the film with a magically and poetic style. Ja’Rel Ivory, our gaffer adorned the film with a fantastical touch of light or lights. Big shoutout to our AD Amber Leasure, hopped on this project with incredible force and knowledge. Major shoutout to our producer, Jackie Payton, who came through like the boss she is and kept my behind in check! And of course, James Doolittle, whose last name does not match the myriad of work he contributed.

T&T: Name 5 of your favorite films which influenced your desire to be a filmmaker?

Jasmine: It’s difficult for me to list favorite films that influence me to become a filmmaker. As I grow and become more aware, the list continues to change. This current list of films I have enjoyed playing on loop.

1. Boy – Taika Waititi

2. Mo’ Better Blues – Spike Lee

3. The Fifth Element – Luc Besson

4. The Science of Sleep – Michel Gondry

5. Water Soon Come – Nuotama Bodomo

You can follow Jasmine on Instagram: @jasminelynea_
And her website: jasminelynea.info

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