An Afternoon with Spike Lee

The Village Celebration had the opportunity to enjoy a pre-screening of Red Hook Summer at the 2012 National Association of Black Journalist Convention and Career Fair. Although we can’t go into details about the movie itself, Spike did hold a short question and answer session answering whatever questions the audience had for him.

Many questions centered around the focus of the movie, because true to his Spike Lee Joint Form the movie left you with plenty of conversation and things to ponder. He stated that it takes a full year to produce a film and because of that he will only produce material that he believes in and is passionate about. In addition to that he wanted to address social issues and induce dialogue among his fan base. He made a point of saying that with this film he purposely didn’t market it through any major media outlets, that he put 100 percent of his dollars and man power behind it. When asked by a follower Villager about his thoughts on Tyler Perry’s adaptation of “For Color Girls” he declined to respond, but later, when on to state indirectly that another reason for directing and producing Red Hook Summer was that “I’m not happy with the current state of African American film making and culture.”

Spike always leaves you with something to chat and chew about during your “after the movie dinner”, and Red Hook Summer is no different. Red Hook Summer is definitely one to put on your summer list of movies to see as it will stir up some interesting emotions and thought provoking conversation.