BODEGA! takes an intimate, dramatic, and comedic look at a community facing rapid gentrification. When a newcomer to the neighborhood is disrespectful to two longtime residents, explosive interactions ensue. This film explores the effects of prejudice, and the emotions people who feel invisible or disregarded in their own neighborhood experience.

Interview with Writer/Director Donna Augustin & Talibah L. Newman

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Donna Augustin (DA): I wrote the film out of a need for this conversation. I currently live in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. I’m British which indeed makes me a gentrifier. I was really fed up of the way the new people who were coming into the neighborhood were treating people who had lived there for years. One evening I thought instead of complaining about it, why don’t you do a film about it. I wrote Bodega as a response to my frustration with gentrification.

Talibah L. Newman (TLN): I made Bodega because the story spoke to me as I've lived in a neighborhood in Harlem that has been gentrified for the last 20 or so years and I could relate to the sentiment. I think it is important to not only have conversations amongst your own community about polarizing issues but it is important to forge through conflict with people who are on the opposite end of the spectrum in order to get a better understanding. The more we are not afraid to broach these topics when they make us feel uncomfortable, the more we can place ourselves in a position to catalyze true resolution.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

DA: I want the audience to ask themselves where they sit in regards to this issue of race, class and gentrification. Are you becoming part of the fabric of the neighborhood and learning from the people there or are thinking I wish they'd leave. Where do you sit and how can you help things change for the positive.

TLN: You should watch Bodega because the film was written, directed, and shot by women. The film is funny, it presents a fresh take on gentrification and is a raw iteration of life in Brooklyn.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

DA: I’m from London I would be considered part of the problem but I find myself asking questions about people I don’t know or being interested in the difference between us. In London we have our issues and gentrification is widespread. However because we mix more I feel like it's not as pervasive as it is in New York.

TLN: I take pride in carefully navigating and crafting family dynamics in my work and this theme is present in Bodega in that generations are clashing as historical prejudices bubble to the surface. Parents are challenged to reconcile with their children and do better for their children in the long-run. Families are challenged to reexamine their core values and what is healthier for the whole. Gentrification is a universal theme that is explored throughout the film, but the baton is passed to the transgressor to make a change. New methods of handling old situations is also explored as the characters try to figure out how to make amends and honor the code of conduct of the neighborhood.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

DA: I wrote bodega at 2am in the morning in my old apartment in Bed-stuy. I obviously did many re-writes after letting other people read the script. When Talibah came on board, she really pushed me to keep re-writing. Much of the language around famous African American political figures are due to conversations I had with her and comedian Hadiyah Robinson. We really collaborated.

TLN: The script and film evolved in the deepening of character development, the exploration of the authentic depiction of a Russian family and choosing to have Russian language spoken in the film. The script also went through a tonal evolution where we towed the line of approaching the subject matter in an entirely serious manner and adding in humor to lift some of the heavier moments of the film. In the editing process the film also underwent an evolution from being a film that leaned more in the direction of an ensemble cast with various characters experiencing the effects of gentrification to tilting the film in the direction of the main character Alina and forcing her to take agency and do an about face as her values and ideologies came into question.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

DA: I've had a lot of people approach me about playing Bodega in universities and schools. To add to the dialogue about race and gentrification in African American studies. Of course people have said it's funny as well as serious.

TLN: We've received a lot of poignant feedback on the film, especially regarding the pacing of it and the frugality and purposeful integration of each of the scenes and shots in the film.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

DA: The biggest surprise has been white people coming to me and saying they don't understand this idea of privilege. A few people have also said they were surprised by the ending.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

DA: I look forward to continuing the dialogue around the idea of people being more open in regards to race, class and culture.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

DA: I'd like to get distribution, into some more film festivals and of course press is always a good way to push the message and dialogue more.

TLN: We need film festivals, distributors, and journalists to come on board to amplify the film's message and we want to garner interest for producers and financiers for our future projects.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

DA: I would like the Film to open the dialogue between gentrifiers and the people who live in these gentrified neighborhoods. Often people do not realize how judgmental they are being or how unaccepting they are. I want people to think about that.

TLN: I would like this film to spark a new layer of dialogue across the table with people who wouldn't normally engage each other about their perspectives on gentrification, economics, and what community means.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

DA: If you live in a multi cultural neighborhood, how do you feel you conduct yourself around people who've lived there for years? Are you open and interested in what’s already in place?

TLN: As a gentrifier what are five things you think you can do to elevate and improve your new community and why?

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

DA: I’m working on a TV pilot, two feature films and my one woman show. My co-director Talibah L. Newman is working on her webseries and financing for her feature film.

TLN: We are working on another collaborative project. I am working on securing producers and financing for a feature length film based on a short film I made, also putting a microbudget feature together to go into production this year, a television pilot, and working on a new webseries.

Interview: February 2018

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTIAQ+, scifi, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

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Bodega

Length: 19 mins

Director: Donna Augustin & Talibah L. Newman

Producer: Donna Augustin, Nathaniel Mary Quinn, Anna Orlova, Beth Rudin DeWoody.

Writer: Donna Augustin & Talibah L. Newman

About the writer, director and producer:

Donna Augustin is a producer/director/ writer from London. She has produced several comedies, including "The Show" for the BBC and the web comedy "Dirty Laundry." While working for Film Life in New York, she began her own production company and produced the acclaimed theater production "Shoot 2 Win" at The Cherry Lane Theater and the short film "Magpie Sings the Blues," which debuted at the British Urban Film Festival. Extending her love for writing/producing, she's currently developing her one woman show and pitching her feature film.

Talibah L. Newman is a writer/director from Dallas,Texas. She received her M.F.A. from Columbia University's School of the Arts, made New York City home base, and has been making waves ever since. Her poignant short films about family dynamics -- "Busted on Brigham Lane" and "Sweet Honey Chile" have garnered numerous awards including licensing on HBO. Talibah released season one of a comedic web series titled "Famous Farrah" on Youtube in 2013. She most recently released another comedic series titled "First Dates" in 2015, which is currently in post-production for the second season shot Fall of 2016. Diligently continuing to expand her craft, Talibah is currently in pre-production and securing financing for her debut feature film and working on an original television pilot.

Key cast:

Anna Orlova - Alina

Aleksandr Krasnopolskiy - Mr Katz

Donna Augustin - Jennifer

Hadiyah Robinson - Sister Fatima

Eden Marryshow – Eric

Eric Jennings Gerard

Asha Winer - Jazmine

Layla Silvestre - Victoria

Sawandi Wilson - Darryl

William Perry - Duane

Looking for distributors and journalists.

Social media handles:

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/Bodegashort/

Twitter

https://twitter.com/bodegashort

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/bodegashort/

Made in association with: Baby Cakes Studios

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?

Pheonix Film Festival 2018, Cannes Film Festival 2018