Long live the melanated people.
Merging art and culture were backing
that thing up with the deeper message.
Right now Dallas based film makers
Corey Williams and Jay Rhodes are
back in their artistic genius with
a film called King of Dallas.
The film focuses on colorism and
how it's perpetuated in society.
And if you have no idea what
I'm referring to, don't worry.
We have two very knowledgeable folks
joining me in studio, Justin Jay Rose,
the creator and one of the film makers
over the project and Jerry Hawkins,
executive director of Dallas Truth,
Rachel Hilling and Transformation.
Thank you both for being here today.
Thank you for having.
We got a lot to get to.
So I'm not gonna waste anytime.
Jay, we're gonna start with you.
This is your latest project after
a debuting a successful film.
It's a wonderful plight.
The hip hop musical.
I'm sure folks remember that
when it got to Amazon last year.
It has its own message.
But I want to talk about King of Dallas.
Why this project?
Why did you decide to make this happen?
Well with it's a wonderful plight.
It was more focused on the white
community and what what they could
help do to a better race relations.
They kind of just filling them up to speed.
But King of Dallas is set in a post
apocalyptic world and it's more focused
on what we could do because in this in
this dystopian world melanated people,
all only people they exist.
So over the years that some of
these issues of colorism from
back in Jim Crow have surfaced in
this poker post apocalyptic world.
So we're just trying to figure
it out and better race relations
internally instead of externally
like it's a wonderful flight. Did
Jerry when you hear about this
film and what it hopes to target,
what it's all about.
We're talking about colorism,
something that you and your team
have focused on for a really,
really long time. Not just that,
just really improving race relations
in the city in and around Dallas.
What do you hope folks
will take away from this?
Yeah, at Dallas truth,
racial healing, and transformation.
Our mission is to create a radically
inclusive city by addressing race
and racism through narrative change,
racial healing,
and equitable policies and practices.
And I think folks need to
understand what colorism is because
it exists in every community.
You know, as a basic definition,
it's discrimination when
it comes to skin color,
and particularly how societal cues and
cultural meaning is applied to skin color,
and particularly how lighter the
lighter skin of a skin color is
valued more than darker skin.
People in every skin color.
So hopefully, number one,
knowing that message and that
we need to work on internalized
oppression in every group,
how can you have folks encourage folks
to have these honest conversations?
Yeah, #1 is really just looking within.
You know, we live in a
very segregated society.
We don't sometimes see each
other on a daily basis.
We don't work with each other.
We're going to school with each other,
particularly as we get older and
folks are fearful for no reason.
They're scared of each other.
So one is just confronting some
of those fears about people.
And once we get to know each other,
we have some of the same aspirations,
dreams, hopes.
And like you mentioned earlier,
colorism is something that
can happen to a lot of.
Different groups of people. That's right.
Just being able to recognize that and
actually have conversations about it.
Jay films like this require a lot of
resources, a lot of talent, a lot of effort.
And so you have a push going right now to
make this film the best that it can be.
But you brought on an executive producer,
a big time executive producer.
I want you to talk about who that is,
some of the stuff that he's done and what
he's hoping to do with this project.
Well, it's cool. Alex Kurtzman,
he's I don't know if you've if people
have seen the man who fell from Earth
but that's his latest project on Amazon.
But from. Star Trek and he even
even skin in the game from Hercules
and Xena the Warrior Princess.
So it's it's real cool he saw
the project he he he said it was
special and he invested in it and
he helped our fundraising push.
So we've ultimately raised over $25,000
still doing some fundraising for the
back end but it's just a blessing to
be in Dallas you know in in in my
city born and raised and have people
in Hollywood seeing what we're doing
before the film is even being shy.
So how can people support you they can
go to at Jay under score rose right now.
Our fundraising campaign is just you know,
concluded for pre production,
but we do have production and
post production.
So just follow me,
follow the movie and you can
get updated on so many things.
King of Dallas and King of Dallas is
slated to come out the first quarter of 2023.
OK and Jerry, I want you
to mention this real quick.
You brought the accommodation
which sent some shockwaves
through Dallas a minute ago,
but it's been rereleased.
Tell folks about this book.
That's right. So the accommodation is one of
the first books written about race in Dallas.
It was sort of banned in
this city for over 30 years.
Deep Vellum Publishing,
which I'm on the board of,
has brought this book back out.
We are now part of a big movement called
Big D Reese to get everybody in Dallas
to read the same book at the same time.
There's programming going on now.
Dallas TRC is doing a book
tour of the accommodation.
Next Saturday is sold out,
but you can get on the
waiting list and we're also,
I'm talking to the author of the
book at DMA on October 25th.
This is also sold out, but.
There's a big waiting list for it.
So so joy.
So, so join that waiting list
because folks will drop off for sure,
but they could at least get the book.
They can get the book.
You'll see this logo,
go to the website bigdreads.com
and you can go to programming.
A lot of places are programming
that's been over 30 programs.
I love that.
I saw the big push when this was
first initiated by your group.
So cool stuff there happening.
Make sure you guys go pick up the
accommodation and we'll have more from you.
I'm going to clip this interview
and post it online so if you miss
anything that we talked about with the.
Think of Dallas film and Colorism will
of course have that online@wfa.com.