Melvin Van Peebles’ tribute

Melvin Van Peebles

Pick any industry and you can point to a few pioneers who inspired us with their courage, innovation and drive. As time passes, these visionaries achieve godlike status and become the stuff of legend. We learn their methods, but only through books or disciples who are little more than knockoffs of the original.

But every once in a while we get a chance to work side by side with these giants, to learn from them and grow as artists.

Before anyone ever heard of Tyler Perry or Spike Lee, Melvin Van Peebles was making history.

His infamous film, “Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song,”grossed millions, made him the undisputed godfather of independent cinema and introduced the world to a one-man revolution.

Melvin has been a mentor for Black Waxx Multimedia and for me personally. He stresses the importance of Black people knowing the difference between telling a joke and being a joke. He taught me not to give away my formula in hopes of being accepted, but to pass my formula down to other brothers and sisters in need of the information.

U-Savior Washington

He showed me that something is said with action that words cannot pronounce. On a Melvin Van Peebles set, you work on every aspect of filmmaking from building the set to rigging costumes. One day we were shooting several green screen scenes in a studio with a black floor. When we finished, the floor was covered with scuff marks and dust.

Melvin—TheMelvin—grabbed some rags, got down on his hands and knees and started wiping. That’s when I realized I was dealing with a singular individual. He’s a great director not because he’s good at telling people what to do (which he is). He’s great because he shows people what to do. I’d be a liar if I said he wouldn’t curse you out if you screwed up. But he’s just as quick to take you aside and show you why he set up a shot a certain way.

Over thirty years and dozens of projects later, he brings us “Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha,” which I had the honor to collaborate with him on through Black Waxx Multimedia Inc. It’s an original, trippy, shocking, wise, brilliant and hilarious call to arms for all who say they long to see a revolution.

“Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha” illustrates that sometimes the manner in which a film is created—not the content—is the most political aspect of the film.

Support “Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha.” Don’t just spread the word on your list serve or your blog. Buy a ticket and come to see it. Demand more showings. We need to show up in droves to prove that we recognize the connection between independent media and a major overhaul of the popular mindset.

Though glad his film was accepted into the Tribeca Film Festival, Melvin will be the first to tell you not to settle. We’re in this to win, to dominate. This is just another step in the right direction down a road we’ve been walking for a long time.

Many will want to know what the film is about. They’ll want to know who’s starring in it. It doesn’t matter what the film is about. What matters is that Black people have taken control over their intellectual property.

A movement cannot exist without industry. But how do we turn our intellectual and creative property into industry? We do it by creating our own stars and helping them to prosper. They, in turn, feed into the movement and make it stronger. Then repeat this process until through all of the different segments that we have supported and strengthened, we form an industry that we control.

I’ll put it in political activist terms. We’re going to have to CONVERGE on the Tribeca Film Festival. We need to MOBILIZE all the people that we can to DEMONSTRATE that buying not just one ticket but more than one ticket to “Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha” is a DIRECT ACTION that will result in a mass MOVEMENT toward the support of INDEPENDENT film and independent thinking. This is one SIT IN you need to stand up for.

No matter how many great films MVP—as I like to call him—makes, he is greater than the sum of his parts. His résumé extends beyond his filmography and his legacy will serve as a reminder for us to reach for greatness and to never settle for less.

Melvin Van Peebles has seen to it that the revolution will be televised, whether on an iPod, a flat screen computer monitor, a 60-inch HD set up or the big screen.

All the better to see us with.

‘Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha’ debuts at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City on Sun., April 27th at 7:30 p.m. at Pace University. For tickets and directions, visit www.tribecafilmfestival.org