- Inside the JSU Student Center theater, cast and crew discuss their experience Friday with producing their own film, “If,” with some assistance from actor-producer Tim Reid. Students are Aspen Wilson, left, Deshadrian Hopkins, Jamarion Wright, Myuana Jones (selected to travel to London with Reid), Maurice Williams, Orionna Brumfield, Dashawna Wright, Sharmonica Carter, Akayla Harris, Jarvis Generette and Jaleesa Harris. Missing is Kendall Green (also selected to travel to London). Photos by Darek Ashley/Special to JSU.
After lobbing verbal attacks, a married couple’s intense argument leads to a violent off-screen shooting involving a police officer that causes movie-goers to shudder. That was in the opening scene of “If,” the JSU student-produced film under the tutelage of veteran Hollywood actor and producer Tim Reid.
On Friday, more than 100 spectators assembled on the main campus in Jackson State University’s Student theater to screen the production by 13 young cast and crew members from the Department of Mass Communications and the College of Liberal Arts.
“If” is a short story about a bickering couple’s marital strife and the consequences of their actions. It explores three scenarios that dovetail into a lesson of compromise over violence.
En route to London
The five-day production culminated after a two-week master class spearheaded by Reid, who selected two JSU students to travel with him June 6 to London for an internship.
For years, Reid’s Legacy Media Institute in Virginia has invited students throughout the country to accompany the veteran actor to London.
The first pair of JSU winners is Myuana Jones and Kendall Green. Jones is the first sophomore selected to join the overseas trip, and Reid described her as his “most valuable player on the set.” As a gaffer, she was chief lighting technician for “If.” Because of the intense heat from handling lights, Reid says you typically can identify a gaffer by hand burns. It’s a position that everyone tries to avoid. He credits Jones for stepping up to perform such an important responsibility.
Jones, a native of Heidelberg, says she’s a little nervous about the long flight even though she traveled to Japan as a 5-year-old “military brat.” As the youngest among her peers, she says she was stunned Reid selected her because “I didn’t talk during the first week of class.” Her trip abroad will include learning from professionals in the industry about lighting.
Swooping in from New Orleans right after the screening with his freshly minted passport for the upcoming trip, Green says he was surprised to be selected. The Jackson native and junior mass communications major praised Reid for investing time at JSU. “Mister Reid has a lot to offer because of the longevity of his career. This has been an humbling experience. I’m blessed.”
In London, Green says he will continue learning about the role of a line producer and will become a “sponge to help our team better strategize at what we aim to accomplish.”
Student production
In producing “If” students handled every aspect of production: creating, writing, shooting, filming and editing – in just five days. The project will undergo additional adjustments in the future.
“It was a yeoman’s task. However, the idea was to get students to work together as a team,” said Reid, known for his acting roles in “WKRP in Cincinnati,” “Frank’s Place,” “Sister, Sister” and most recently “Tremé.”
The collaboration with Reid resulted when Dr. James C. Renick, provost and senior vice president for academic and student affairs, suggested to Reid that he conduct a master class to coincide with the revamp of the Department of Mass Communications.
Renick said the aim was to merge “talented students, talented faculty and wonderful facilities with the talents of Mister Reid and his history in the film industry.”
Also, Renick said it was important to bring Reid to JSU because “the actor is not just someone who cares about his own career but about the careers of those coming after him. That’s why Reid’s Legacy Media Institute was created.”
Reid hails JSU’s vision to equip students for careers in the film industry. He has traveled throughout the country to black and white universities and credits JSU as being one of the top universities providing important technology, outpacing even a few in California, he said. “This university can raise its head high because of the tools it has made available to students. After all, you are one of three universities in America with an Apple store and Genius Bar on campus.” JSU students, he said, realize they are capable of competing before they enter the workplace. “The victimization syndrome that is happening primarily at Historically Black Colleges is not felt here.” Other HBCUs, he says, “face deficits and are in deep trouble – more so psychologically. The other stuff is just money. But how do you retrain a mind to think 21st century?” He says JSU has figured out the answer.
Of the student-produced film “If,” Reid said, “They created it; they came up with the idea. I liked it. I fought with them to keep the structure so that we could see that just making an attitude change about life can sometimes alter the outcome.” He said the film’s idea was based on the poem “If” – written in 1895 – by English writer, poet, novelist Rudyard Kipling. “So, when the film’s characters kept their heads the outcome was changed. You have to get young people to understand that – including myself at my old age.”
Administrative support
Dr. Elayne Hayes Anthony, director of the Department of Mass Communications, reiterated her mantra that the “forecast is sunny for JSU students.” She boasted that the experience with Reid will shape their lives forever, with help from the administration and its commitment to provide necessary tools for students to excel. “Everyone, especially President (Carolyn W.) Meyers, Doctor Renick and the Cabinet have been very supportive of our efforts to make this program the best there is.”
Insofar as his work with other HBCUs throughout the nation, Reid observed in the past that while students possessed academic skills they lacked a “certain amount of reality training that would make it easy for them to transition to the workplace.”
Thus, he formed Legacy to increase minority exposure and diversity in the industry. Legacy has embarked on faraway places such as Nigeria, Cuba and Trinidad. As well, every year the institute travels to the LMI-BFI (Legacy Media Institute-British Film Institute) London Workshop to collaborate with the black British filmmaking community. It’s an opportunity for participants to refine their skills with top Hollywood and UK industry professionals.
Reid dropped a final message on young people in the audience: “If you hone your skills, if you keep your vision, if you have a plan and you really have passion, you can find a place in this business or any business you choose. You can’t lack in any of those. You have to be at the top of your game.”
An Interview With the Cast of “IF”
Aspen Wilson, a mass communications major from Memphis: “I play Steven, the husband of Carrie, a hard-working businesswoman. The role required personal adjustments because I had to yell and raise my voice. Naturally, I’m a calm person, but I got the job done. Ultimately, I hope we can expand this work and make a feature film. One of the most fulfilling aspects of this endeavor was getting to work with Tim Reid. He has more than 50 year of experience as a producer, director and actor. He knows how everything should run. It’s great for us to be able to follow in his footsteps.”
As for the storyline of “If,” Wilson said he believes a lot of people can relate to the problems that marriages encounter.
Deshadrian Hopkins, a junior speech and theater major from Jackson: “I play Carrie, a hard-working businesswoman and wife to Steven. I’m all about business, not really about family. We have a daughter, and I’m really not spending time with either one of them. This role made me realize to always do a self-check about myself because the character is similar to my own personality. It made me think about real life.”
Hopkins describes her work with Reid as “surreal” and says it was a blessing because he’s such a professional. “I learned about acting and the hard work it takes to put it all together.” Hopkins says her ambition beyond college is to become an actress.
Jamarion Wright, a junior speech communications and theater major from Jackson: “I played the role of Officer James, an average cop trying to keep peace. It forced me to step out of my real-life role because I’m goofy and outgoing. In this role I had to be serious. It taught me that when you’re doing something professionally you have to act accordingly.”
Wright said the film’s message shows that family should be a main priority even when feeling overwhelmed by work at your jobs.“You must forget about the small things and realize how they can affect your family.”
As for his future, Wright says he wants to work in the entertainment industry as a singer, actor or dancer.
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Each of the three “If” actors is involved in JSU’s celebrated MADDRAMA Performance Troupe, a cultural art form that provides a national stage for students interested in acting, singing, dancing, motivational speaking and poetry. MADDRAMA’s focus is entertainment and inspiration, with productions such as “Black Nativity,” “Miss Evers Boys” and “Aspirations of Greatness.”