Winston-Salem native
shows short film at
RiverRun 2015
BY CHANEL DAVIS
THE CHRONICLE
A filmmaker from the area is back in Winston-Salem
to show his short film at the 2015 RiverRun International
Film Festival.
Neil Creque Williams, a Winston-Salem native, was
involved with the arts as a child in the city, participating in
the Steven's Center Children's Choir and UNC School of
the Arts Summer Filmmaking Sessions, attending the
National Black Theater Festival and numerous community
theater productions.
"I'm really excited. It's an honor to be able to play at
RiverRun. I get to hang out at the old stomping ground.
It's awesome to be back in Winston
and to be part of the art resurgence
that they've been doing," Williams
said.
He attended Bishop McGuinness
Catholic High School before earning
his degree from Duke University in
2006. He recently received his
Masters of Fine Arts from the
University of Southern California
School of Cinematic Arts in Los
Angeles. Williams's short film is
titled "David's Reverie," which is his
.1 i"i
uresis nun.
"David's Reverie" focuses on the story of a jazz musi
cian who struggles to prevent his epilepsy diagnosis from
stopping his career.
A 27-year-old David, played by Brandon Fobbs ("The
Wire," "Bones," "Pride" and "This Christmas") is living
out his lifelong dream of becoming a star trumpet player
in a band. He is suddenly struck by epilepsy and unpre
dictable seizures, challenging his ability to play his trum
pet.
With his dream on the line, he must find the courage to
accept his illness, the confidence to be himself and a way
to express the music inside of him.
Fobbs said that he was instantly interested in the role.
"The minute 1 read the breakdown, I was like 'Hey 1
want to do this.' The musician aspect touched me first. 1
play saxophone, so I connected with the jazz, being a
musician, and the levels of what he was dealing with," he
said. "It's one thing as a black actor to lead in a film. To
lead in a good film is amazing. Sometimes we get to lead
in a film that might not be that good or we get to be in a
good film but our role is real small. This was a really good
mix because I got to lead in a
really good film that had
some deeper levels."
Williams said that his
time on the arts scene in the
city was a huge influence on
him.
"It's been a huge influ
ence. Since I was little, I was
able to participate in the
Stevens Center's children's
choir, as well as the Stevens
Center always having differ
ent artists and musicians
coming in. I remember see
ing the Harlem Boy's Choir
and I think that we actually
sang an opening for them,
which was awesome to be
able to participate in that,"
Williams said. "We were sur
rounded by different artists
and art, which really influ
enced and helped me see
that being an artist is not
only possible but something
you can strive to do."
The writer said that
viewers can expect some
great music and an even
greater story line.
"All the music is origi
nal, composed by Andrae
Alexander, and we shot it in
South Central [Los Angeles], so we had all the real jazz
clubs. Ultimately, viewers can expect an emotionally
grounded story of an individual dealing with illness while
pursuing their artistic passion," he said. "If you're a fan of
jazz, if you're a fan of stories with individuals battling
health issues, then it's a story for you fpr sure. It's also
uplifting because at the end of the day, we wanted to make
a positive story about an experience of an individual deal
ing with epilepsy."
Williams was diagnosed with epilepsy as a teenager
and wanted to make a film that showed the disorder from
the perspective of an epileptic artist.
"For me, it was personal. I had epilepsy as a teenager.
I was in the Kernersville community theatre and I was
playing the child lead in 'The King and I' when I had my
What: "David's Reverie"
When: April 24 at 7:15 p.m.
Where: Hanesbrands Theatre, 209 Spruce St N.,
on April 24
How Long: 20 minutes run time
How Much: $10-12
nominated for Best NatT
very first seizure the night
before one of my
rehearsals," he said. "I was
dealing with seizures when I
was doing something artistic
or just while trying to
achieve in school. The whole
story is about an individual
coming to terms with how
they can handle their illness
and continue their dream. It
is meant to remove the stig
ma. For me, every time I
would watch a film with
someone that has epilepsy or
seizure's they usually were
written off. I wanted to show
that this is a person fighting
and achieving what he wants
to do, but he still has this ill
ness he needs to respect."
Fobbs said that the film
shows viewers that they
should take a broader look at
epilepsy and the bright
future that comes along with
it.
"We would definitely
like for people to be more
aware of the different kinds
of epilepsy and the hope that
there still is for people with
epilepsy. One of the biggest
examples of that is not just
the film but the director
himself," he said. "Go stand
in the face of your giant and
do what you hope to do."
The film premiered at
the Los Angeles
1 International Shortsfest in
July 2014, was recently
screened at the New Voices
in Black Cinema Film
Festival at BAMcinlmatek
in New York City. It was
ative Short at the 2015 Pan
African Film Festival in Los Angeles and took home third
place in the Best Narrative Short category at the North
Carolina Black Film Festival.
Both Williams and Fobbs are excited about the nla*
getting a chance on the big screen.
"In the future, we will see what happens when he has
to fight," Fobbs said.
Those interested in more information can visit the
film s Facebook page at http:llwwwfacebookjcomldavid
sreverie or visit Twitter and Instagram at
@DavidsReverie. You can also email at info?david
sreverie.com.
River Run
from page AT
me because I loved what he
has done. I've been really
careful and tried to select
movies that I believed in,"
he said.
Burnett is best known
for his works 'To Sleep
with Anger," "Killer of
Sheep" and "Glass Shield."
Killer of Sheep later
became one of the first 50
films to be selected for the
Library of Congress's
National Film Registry.
"I wanted to make a
film that spoke to the com
munity and could be used
for social means and
debate," Burnett said of
"Killer of Sheep." "It was
made to be shown in the
community. It was never
intended for theatrical
release."
Despite that, the film is
thought to be one of the
best films of the decade
('80s), according to
Pollock.
Pollock asked both
filmmakers about their
reaction to Blaxploitation
then and now.
Burnett said that most
people at the University of
California-Los Angeles
film school had a negative
reaction to the time period.
"That's one of the rea
sons we made the films we
did. We tried to focus on a
more accurate picture of
the black community. I
think it just reassured what
we wanted to do," he said.
"Hollywood exploited it
too far and they didn't sup
port all of the images."
Townsend Said that the
images that came out in the
'70s fed African
Americans and showed
them as superheroes
against "the man," but if
you were weak, you got
sucked in to wanting to be
what you saw on the
screen.
"1 think that it affected
me to want to right that
wrong," he told the audi
ence. "Hollywood offers
you the roles they want you
to do and not the roles you
always want to do."
He said that the reality
shows of today could be
considered the same thing.
"Whatever you watch
on television, it gets into
your DNA. It gets into your
ear gates, your eye gates
and your spirit. So if you
see all these beautiful
women of color acting out,
throwing drinks, calling
each other the B-, fighting
and tussling, you're going
to say 'oh that's acceptable
behavior.' There was a time
that you wanted television
to be the baby-sitter, now
you don't."
RiverRun runs through
April 26. For more infor
mation about the festival,
visit
wwwjiverrunfilm.com.
Photos by Erin Mizelk for The Chronicle
A packed room listens to filmmakers Robert Townsend, left, moderator Dale Pollock and Charles Burnett
talk about the industry.
"I wanted to make a
film that spoke to the
community and could
be used for social
means and debate,"
? Charles Burnett
Burnett
Town send
Dale Pollock, center, asks Charles Burnett a question about his experience in the industry. Robert
Townsend looks on.
Photos by Erin Mizelle for The Chronicle