Great to See: In-depth interview with Tom Roche, a force at work behind so many good scenes

You probably don't know the name Tom Roche, but I bet you've seen and admired this work. Tom has edited a ton of great video and film over the years, from early R.E.M. music video to Spinal Tap's recent Unwigged and Unplugged, and now Harry Shearer's New Orleans documentary The Big Uneasy.

Quite the range you might say, not to mention Tom's own documentary feature Alley Pat, the Music is Recorded, which won the audience prize at the 2010 Atlanta Film Festival.

So what has Tom Roche got to do with Dare Not Walk Alone? Well, without Tom the film would probably not be out there today, on DVD, in regional theaters, for rent at NetFlix and digital download from Amazon and BestBuy. Tom did not direct Dare Not Walk Alone and he didn't exactly edit it, what Tom did is make it possible for Jeremy Dean to take the film to the next level.

Here's what happened. Tom went to see an early cut of Dare Not Walk Alone at an indie film festival in Atlanta. He was so moved by the screening that he perusased his boss at Atlanta's Crawford Communications to give Jeremy access to the kind of high-end editing and sound sweetening equipment most indie filmmakers can only dream about (because they sure can't afford to buy or rent it).

Then Tom and Crawford donated untold hours to help Jeremy remix the movie, not once, but twice, to include the footage of the housefire that destroyed a setting central to the film's story. All of us at Dare Not Walk Alone are forever grateful to Tom for his efforts on the film's behalf. And we are delighted to see him get some of the long overdue recognition he deserves for his tireless work on behalf of telling important stories. Check out the in-depth interview at Creative Loafing.

Go Auburn Eagles: To the DNWA Screening

As part of The Southern Tour, Auburn University will screen Dare Not Walk Alone on September 15. There is a really nice write up of the film and the director, Jeremy Dean, in the Wire Eagle. You can read it online here.

Thanks Auburn!

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Acclaimed civil rights film, 'Dare Not Walk Alone,' at Peace Center Sept. 14

As reported in The Gaffney Ledger.

We have to say that the Southern Tour has done a great job with the PR for these screenings. We hope to see a big turnout in Greenville on Monday night. Thanks!

Thanks Gainesville! Great evening at The Hippodrome

A huge thanks to Shirley Lassiter and the Crystal at The Hippdrome State Theater in Gainesville for the opening of Dare Not Walk Alone last night (runs all week folks--don't miss it). The Hipp is an impressive venue.

It was great to catch up with (Vice Mayor) Errol Jones and I really appreciated the way he jumped in to answer questions in the lively Q&A session after the screening. (He later told me he is up for more such events, so if you have sponsorship for a screening, that can be arranged--he really is an articulate voice for the community.)

Thanks to everyone who came out to see the film [on a relatively cold evening]. Please spread the word. And if your company would like to sponsor kids from Alachua County Schools to go see Dare Not Walk Alone, please call 352.373.5968 and ask for Shirley. Thanks.

Google Ads, Twitter, and DVD Buzz

Hope you had a good Thanksgiving Day!
Are you surfing the net for deals today or waiting until Cyber Monday?

We just launched the first Google display ad for the Dare Not Walk Alone DVD and it would be great if you could let us know if you see it during your surfing (but please don't click it unless you really need to--each click costs us money).

You can leave a comment on this post or tweet us. We are http://twitter.com/dnwa. We're curious to know where the ad shows up. Note that the design of the ad is pretty much dictated by Google. We did the best we could with the available options (when the ad appears, the two images, the poster and the 1964 shot of Dr. King and James Brock, slide into view to provide some animation to draw attention to the ad). Without a PR company or anything of that sort we are hoping the relatively low cost of Google ads will help boost awareness of the DVD over the holiday shopping season. As usual, anything you can do to spread the word is much appreciated.
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Dare Not Walk Alone and "Award-Winning"

We recently learned that Dare Not Walk Alone is now eligible for several awards. One of these is the 2009 Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking (that's their logo on the left).

Film awards serve many purposes, not least of which is acknowledging the years of struggle and heartache and effort and grit that go into getting a good film made. And believe us when we say that making a film these days takes all of these, even when you are being bankrolled by a studio or star. Want to make a serious film without financial backing and/or star power? Then count on the toil and sweat factor being multiplied many times over.

Thus far, DNWA has won one award: the Audience Award at the Deep Focus Film Festival in Columbus, Ohio. This might not sound like a big deal. You probably never even heard of it. But it meant a lot to us. For a start, it proved that the people who go to see DNWA appreciate the film. As you know, there have been some critics who have not [fully] appreciated the film. But we didn't make this film for the critics, we made it for the people. So winning an award voted on by the audience was like getting a whole bunch of hugs and thank you's (we have in fact received many hugs and thank you's when attending screenings, but we can't get to all the screenings).

However, the value of an award goes way beyond making the filmmaker feel good and reminding him or her that all the toil and sweat was not in vain. Awards help spread the word about a good film. Let's face it, there are loads of films out there these days (e.g. DNWA will be competing against close to 100 films for Cinema Eye Honors). And that makes it very hard just to get people to see your film, even if your film is very good and has a big budget.

Obviously we think DNWA is very good, but we know it has no budget (funny thing a budget, turns out that whatever money we could scrounge together was spent on making the film, and even then a lot of people worked for nothing, just because they believed that the story Jeremy was determined to tell, deserved to be told).

So you won't see ads for DNWA on FaceBook. You won't see DNWA as a featured [paid] video on YouTube. What you may see is the results a guerrilla marketing effort, led by those who support what DNWA is trying to achieve. This includes word-of-mouth, both physical and digital, with emails and link-swaps, and blog posts, and phone calls. Basically, the stuff that's free but takes effort. And we have racked up several thousand trailer views on YouTube, a very respectable rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a solid IMDB score.

Awards add a lot to such efforts. You can bet that as soon as we won our first award we started referring to DNWA as an award-winning film. It's one more way to get your film noticed, and thus seen, and it's about as honest as marketing can get. So thanks to Cinema Eye for deeming DNWA eligible for an award. Whether it wins or not, every little bit of exposure helps spread the word and get more people to see the film.

New York Times Says Dare Not Walk Alone "Deserves to be seen"

[Media: cell phone shot of the Dare Not Walk Alone poster outside the Pioneer Theater]

When the toughest critic for one of the toughest papers says that your movie "deserves to be seen" you have to embrace that, even if she leads off her review with some painful [and in our humble opinion misguided] comments that could hurt attendance. It would be a pity if some people who might otherwise be exposed to the film stayed away because of those comments.

However, we are pleased to report that the opening night, Friday, went very well, with a good-sized crowd in attendance. A slight problem with the print was remedied in time for the Saturday screening. Judging by the number of people who hung around afterward to talk with the director and producer on Friday evening, the film was well received (with no reports of the rumored unwatch-ability).

Interestingly, nobody seemed to have a problem with the way the film flowed from past events to slices of present reality, not unlike the way hip-hop mixes samples from old recordings with fresh vocals. So maybe some people just expect films that address this subject matter to do so in a strictly sequential and formal format. Admittedly, Dare Not Walk Alone might be more challenging to watch that a traditional documentary, just as some hip-hop can be more challenging to listen to than traditional music. And certainly the film makes no claim to deliver clear-cut answers to complex issues, but muddled? A lot of people would beg to differ.
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So Long LA and Thanks for all the Reviews

We want to send out a big THANK YOU to all the DNWA supporters in the Greater Los Angeles area who came out to see the film. Thanks to you, will look set to open in several more cities [details will be posted here on the blog].

The Los Angeles engagement showed that DNWA, made on the kind of budget that doesn't even register on Hollywood's radar, can hold its own in the heart of commercial movie country AND come away with some solid reviews. Very few independent documentaries get this many reviews from major publications.

In fact, the film is currently scoring 100% on the review roundup web site known as Rotten Tomatoes, with 5 positive to 0 negative. And we're talking big name reviewers here, like the Los Angeles Times and Variety. In a few days we will post some of the comments from these reviews, comments that should help the film gain even more "buzz" in the next engagement.

Not that we all agree with all of the reviewers. Many of them don't seem to 'get' the way the second half of the movie works. One could say "it doesn't work for them" but bear in mind most reviewers watch the film on DVD, not in a cinema where you can feel and hear the audience reaction to the film. In our experience a lot of people who see the film in theaters 'get' the material, even though it can be jarring, even disturbing. If you want to check out the reviews, you will find links to them at Rotten Tomatoes.

Dare Not Walk Alone Getting Hot, Getting Noticed

The recent press release did not make the front page of any old media [yet] but it did get a shout on several blogs, including Clyde Smith's Hip-Hop Logic. Thanks Clyde, much appreciated. The trailer is already starting to heat up on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9lh4dGMHjo

Also got a nice post on Vernon Hadnot's D210 TV, a cutting edge video/magazine show focusing on "positive images and role models for today’s young adults, through the latest in music videos, entertainment news, artist spotlights and local community events." Thanks Vernon! We appreciate you tagging the story 'What's Hot' because we think DNWA is hot--and a bunch of people will soon be kicking themselves for not seeing that sooner. 

And the prize for 'far-out blog post' has to go to the University of Göteborg Resistance Studies Network. Yes, that's Goteborg in Sweden. And you might wonder what Sweden has to do with civil rights in America. Let's play random association:

• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the youngest person to win the Nobel Prize, awarded by Sweden just a few months after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the brilliant non-violent campaign for which is documented in DNWA .
• The official Dare Not Walk Alone web site was built with a template designed by a very cool twenty-something web designer from Jokkmokk, Sweden, Andreas Viklund.
• The University of Göteborg puts on an annual conference about gender and religion and this year's keynote speaker was Prof. Ursula King, a renowned expert in religious studies and good friend of one of Dare Not Walk Alone's producers.
  

Interesting connections and they remind us that, long before the Internet, people of conscience from around the world were working together to end injustice and bring about positive change. People in Europe supported Dr. King in America, and later Nelson Mandela in South Africa, through lobbying and letter-writing, marching and generally making a nuisance of themselves to anyone clinging to the injustices of the past.
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New Dare Not Walk Alone Trailer

[Update April 21: Over 1,500 people have watched the trailer on YouTube!]

P.S. For the geeks out there, here is code to embed the trailer from YouTube:
<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/s9lh4dGMHjo&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/s9lh4dGMHjo&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>

Happy New Year & Thank You DNWA Supporters!

Here's wishing everyone a great 2008! We appreciated all of your support during 2007 and hope to see some of you on the cinema circuit when Dare Not Walk Alone enters limited theatrical release in 2008 (watch this space for dates and places).

And we hope you see the progress you are looking for in this New Year. May it be a year of great change for the better for everyone.

The DNWA Team

Season's Greetings

Things have been quiet here on the blog, partly because we are into the holiday season. Film festivals are thinner on the ground at this time of year and we have been busy with all the nitty gritty work that goes into preparing a film for theatrical release.

We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and that your plans for the upcoming holidays are going well.

The DNWA Team

Keeping Hope Alive: Love and caring from the next generation

So often these days we hear about "kids today" doing foolish things, being selfish beings. But at DNWA we have seen numerous examples of just the opposite: kids who care and kids who do smart things. A good example was the recent outdoor screening of Dare Not Walk Alone orchestrated by the Intervarsity goup at Flagler College. It made a lot more people aware of the movie than an indoor showing.
Another great example is what Meghan Fretto and her friends did just before Christmas of 2006. Meghan is the younger sister of Mike Fretto who designed the Dare Not Walk Alone web site and performed numerous other helpful tasks during the making of the film. When Meghan and her peers from her church youth group heard about the unfortunate circumstances of the Coley family after the tragic fire they were touched. Their response was to make and sell Christmas wreaths to raise money. You can read all about it over at the Rosa Loves blog (which is where Mike and friends sell very cool t-shirts designed to raise money and consciousness).

The funds that Meghan and friends raised--well over $500!--will really help when work starts on the house that is going to replace the one that burned down. But what these kids did will do a lot more than that. First of all, it will serve to remind everyone that there are kids who have initiative and drive and who care about others. Second, it is yet another example of how caring crosses all barriers, such as those of age and race, and in so doing, helps to wear them down.

So we all thank Meghan and her friends very much and very sincerely for what they did.

A Big Thanks to The Sisters in Buffalo!

The new cut of Dare Not Walk Alone had an excellent screening on Saturday night in Buffalo despite the snow. Executive producer Stephen Cobb was amply rewarded for venturing North from balmy St. Augustine by a warm welcome and great hospitality, plus excellent audience participation in the after-screening discussion, not to mention delicious peach cobbler at the reception.

A big, big thanks to Jayme Glover, the Event coordinator, and to all the other board members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority who organized and staged the event, including Nicole who braved the snow to deliver Stephen to the theater (in the photo, left to right, are: Mary, Jayme, Beverly, and Robyn).
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Thank You Flagler! First ever outdoor screening lights up the night

We will expand on this post with more details in a few hours but we wanted to put up this picture right away...it shows the first ever outdoor screening of Dare Not Walk Alone, on the campus of Flagler College, Saint Augustine, Florida as part of the InterVarsity group's diversity awareness campaign.

Kudos to Kelly and friends for arranging this screening--it was a unique experience and definitely achieved its goal of raising campus awareness of Saint Augustine's racial history. And many thanks to all who donated time and money. The fund for the rebuilding of the Coley house was increased and more volunteers were signed up. All of which is very encouraging. The film's director, Jeremy Dean, himself a Flagler alumn, was unable to attend because he was on his way to a screening in Phoenix at the Arizona Black Film Showcase. However, one of the film's executive producers, Stephen Cobb, was in attendance and participated in a lively post-screening discussion.

As Stephen reported to Jeremy: "This proves you really can string up a big white tarpaulin between two palm trees at night, point a projector at it, hook up a DVD player and a great big speaker, and show a movie. And you have the added bonus that, just as Kelly predicted, passers by get drawn in like flies."

Praise Where Praise is Due: St. Augustine Record Coverage of Racial Struggles

Kudos to Margo Pope of the St. Augustine Record for her story on the hidden history of the city, the unmarked sites of significance in the struggle that precipitated the passage of the first civil rights act in 1964. We are sure that more of the these sites will be marked in the future.

And kudos to the city and county officials who have been so receptive to the needs of the Coley family--there is a real sense that they will help move the rebuilding forward. The attitude of the county as a whole to affordable housing has really taken a positive turn and that needs to be noted.

Happy New Year!

Okay, so we are little late with our New Year wishes, bit no less sincere. We hope all of you have a blessed and bountiful 2007.

The end of 2006 certainly saw some wonderful examples of charitable hearts and minds at work. Contributions to the fund for the Coley family totalled over $1,000. We have not yet had a chance to thank all donors individually, but please know that your contributions, big and small, are all appreciated.

Thanks to the efforts of the wonderful staff at the Woodlawn Apartments, Helen and family were able to move into their temporary residence in time for Christmas. Unlike Christmases past at the house that burned down, heavy rains this Christmas Day posed no threat to an enjoyable dinner and the enjoyment of many gifts.

We are now working with St. John's County on the plans for a replacement for the burned out house and county officials have so far been extremely helpful and understanding. The donated funds will be used to help build the new house and we already have many offers of in-kind assistance with materials, labor, and construction expertise.

As for the movie, things are once again moving forward, with screenings scheduled for February in Phoenix and Buffalo (details to follow as soon as we have them). Director Jeremy Dean recently completed a new cut of the film which includes footage of the burned out house. A huge debt of gratitude is owed to Crawford Communications of Atlanta for their generous support of the editing process.
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Where Have We Been? DNWA project 8-point update

Please accept our apologies for the prolonged silence, but we have been busy. Here is what's been going on:

1. The 521 Family: Helen has just this week heard that she and Precious and Quinton can move into an apartment at Woodlawn Terrace. This is HUD-subsidized housing and so the rent will be affordable. Helen is very pleased that she will be able to move in before Christmas. This will be where the family lives until project 2 is completed.

2. The house at 521 that was burned out has now been gutted as part of the preparation for the next phase: rebuilding a new home. George Holman has done a terrific job clearing the fire damage and Don Davino of New Augustine Construction arranged for the necessary "cans" [local term for dumpsters or what the Brits call skips].

3. In the New Year we will convene a meeting of building professionals to plan the next steps (permitting, design, etc). Incidentally, it was the same, some say the one and only, Don Davino, who was responsible for a major renovation of Woodlawn Terrace a few years ago and they are very nice units.

4. Financial donations to aid the 521 Family continue to come in (over $1,000 so far). Your generosity continues to inspire hope that has spread much further than this one family. We will be reporting on this campaign in more detail soon and letting you know the goals for 2007 and the rebuild.

5. The film (yes, we have to remind ourselves sometimes that Dare Not Walk Alone is a film as well as a movement) has been selected by THINKFilm for "non-theatrical distribution." What does this mean? First of all, THINKFilm is a highly respected company in the film business, self-described as a "Controversial producer and distributor of edgy and artful features." Being approached by, and then signed to, THINKFilm is a major achievement for the film, its director, and its loyal supporters (so give yourself a hearty pat on the back). We should to point out that this does not mean any revenue for DNWA, yet. DNWA still continues to cost money, not earn money [one of the executive producers plans to publish an article about this soon--some folks seem to think movie out=money in, but there is a lot more to be said about it than that, most of it written in red ink).

6. The best news about the arrangement with THINKFilm is that it pretty much guarantees a broader distribution of the film and the [eventual] DVD. We think this is a very good thing. The term "non-theatrical distribution" means screenings at festivals, schools, colleges, and a whole range of other venues. It keeps alive the possibility that, if the film plays well in these screenings, there will be some form of theatrical release, i.e. in regular or art-house movie theaters. And this means we will still pester you to "motivate the base." In other words, we will tell you when and where the film is playing so you can get your friends and family to go see it.

7. Speaking of staying in touch, be sure to get the feed from this blog to be kept posted, and/or sign up for the mailing list by going here and completing the form. We promise not to spam you...besides we're too busy to even try!

8. The last point for this posting is something of an open secret. It is certainly both unusual and exciting. The director, Jeremy Dean, is currently working on a new cut of the film that will include the fire. He has received the support of THINKFilm in doing this, which is a brave step on their part. This means there are no screenings scheduled for the next few months, and no mention of the film on the THINKFilm web site. But you will be the first to know when the new release is ready to roll.

Thanks again for your continued support. We hope that you will continue to believe, as we do, that the spirit of unconditional love can indeed achieve the Beloved Community of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream.

Dare Not Walk Alone Makes Front Page

The front page of today's St. Augustine Record features the work that Dare Not Walk Alone is doing on the post-fire housing situation of the Helen Coley family. (If you are reading this after today, you can find the story here.)

We want to send out a big Thank You! to the Record for devoting space to this story, and to everyone who has responded so generously (when we get the next bank statement we will know who has deposited money in the Putnam State Bank account and thank them individually).

We are now building a list of folks who have volunteered tine, resources, etc. The next step after that will be organizing the re-build but that will take time.

From what we have seen so far, the people of this county have a big heart, and a whole lot of the special kind of love that it takes to bring a community together.