REDBIRD
Leon Dart, an emerging young African American rodeo rider living in a small town in Oklahoma, must choose between his personal life or chasing after his dream of becoming a full time rider.
Interview with Editor/Writer/Director Dagmawi Abebe
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Eight years ago, during an undergraduate experimental film class, I was exposed to the world of modern Black cowboys in middle America through my professor/filmmaker Kevin Jerome Everson. Ever since then, I’ve wanted to make a narrative film set in that world that was also personal to me. My goal with this short film is to present to the world the African-American experience in the ever disappearing small all Black towns we never get to see in film and television. A timeless world where people of color are complex and have day to day worries living in a community that is a direct result of America's history. I’m thankful to be getting this opportunity to share this passion project with you in hopes that it gives everyone who watches it a brand new perspective on the black experience.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
You should watch this film because it gives a glimpse of a different perspective of the African American lifestyle we never get to see on film. Opening our eyes and realizing the Black community is not a monolith is very important to getting rid of biases and prejudice.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Once I found out about the Black cowboys of Oklahoma, the next step for me was to come up with a way to depict this community in the most authentic way I could. There are so many aspects of Black life in Oklahoma that I slowly had to narrow it down by picking a personal story that takes place in that world. I was able to do that by using my own story of being a runner throughout high school and college and putting in the rodeo world. It was very important to me to depict a young man who believes his whole world depends on one activity that he consequently neglects other parts of his community; his love life, and relationship with his father. We always seem to watch films where people leave their small towns because whatever will make them happy is waiting for them out in the big world. For me, I wanted to make a film that appreciated the small town while also showing the subtle influences young Black Americans have to overcome to just be themselves.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The script and film has changed a lot since its first inception. In the beginning I wanted to include a hazing ritual that takes place in the community. We even filmed the whole film that way and had a 24 minute version of the short edited with that in mind. Nevertheless, the story was lacking as we were not able to explore in depth the effect of hazing rituals. With time, I learned to let go of this idea and tell a story that focused more on the inner struggles of Leon Dart and his attempt at balancing his personal life with pleasing people in his community. In the end this is the story that I feel resonates more with audiences. I also hope to explore the idea of hazing rituals in the community in the longer version of the project.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
So far people have related to Leon's inner struggle and have also been intrigued by the depiction of a modern Black cowboy. The American cowboy was never presented as Black and that in itself has been fascinating for people that watch the short film.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The feedback has validated my reason for making the short film. Growing up in Ethiopia I was only seeing a one-dimensional view of African American life. However, after moving to the United States and as I read various history books, I realized there was so much Black history left out of our schools or media. When I attended film school, I made it my personal goal to explore these stories with the hope that other too will find them as intriguing as I do.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
My goal is to have more people learning about this community and understating that the Black experience is not a monolith. I hope more people can visit these town in Oklahoma and learn about their culture.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I would love to produce a longer version of REDBIRD either as a series or as a feature film. It would be great to get in touch with any producers, distributors, or film festival directors that can help us achieve this goal.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would like this film to encourage others to tell diverse stories of various forgotten communities. In our time now where commercial filmmaking takes the front stage, I would like other people to realize that we can make intriguing films about everyday people.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Why was the story of the numerous Black cowboys left America left out of the Western movies of the early to mid 20th century?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am currently on a second-draft a feature film script on African-American Chemist Alice Ball who found the treatment for leprosy in 1915 Hawaii.
Interview: April 2022
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, 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
REDBIRD
Length:
14:00
Writer/Director
Dagmawi Abebe is an Ethiopian born-American Writer, Director, and Editor and a recent graduate of the University of Southern California's Film and TV Production MFA.
Producer
Mehmet Gungoren and Yves Beneche
Mehmet is a Los Angeles-based indie producer. Recently, he co-produced Armenian Turkish director Ozcan Alper's Black Night supported by the Berlinale World Cinema Fund, starring Sibel Kekilli of Head-On and Game of Thrones.Mehmet’s debut feature, Noah Land a German, Turkish, and Greek co-production, was awarded Best Screenplay and Best Actors in the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.
Key cast:
Curtiss Cooke Jr, Kim Estes, Melinda Gay, Kristen Henry King, Kelcey Watson
Looking for:
distributors, film festival directors, producers, journalists
Hashtags used:
redbird, rodeo, oklahoma, western
More info:
Where can I watch it?
PAFF