Written by: Laura Lee Harrison, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
It’s not hard to see or feel.
The world is in pain right now and has been for centuries. However, this pain has been forcibly repressed. We are now seeing generations upon generations of pain and suffering rise to the surface and erupt like volcanoes around the world. This is what happens when repression is present. We are now experiencing the results of this abuse and people are rightfully taking a stand and speaking out about racism.
Before I jump into this Interview Article, I want to touch on something. I am a white woman who has my entire life supported black lives. With racism present within my upbringing, and I remember the passion I felt as a young girl regarding this. How upset I would get. I knew the insides of someone with a black skin tone were the same as mine. I didn’t understand why this was even a topic. Why the adults around me didn’t understand this, as well. Now, I must admit, writing this article has pushed me to see my white privilege in a new light. I knew it was there, especially during recent events.
Even though I support, love and defend, I truly do not understand, and I never will. However, I will do what I can to support, now and in the future. I have raised my child and will continue to raise my child to accept diversity. To love, respect and protect. To not be afraid to show up and make a difference for someone and share a moment of kindness, regardless of skin color.
Hopefully, this article will reach people far and wide and the dynamic work you are about to see will shed some light for you. I understand that writing this article is a very small step, and sharing it only goes so far towards supporting the Black Lives Movement. I hope it reaches people that need to see it. I hope you feel a little more empowered by Andy Hodgson and his team’s work. I hope you decide to share it, so more people can see a different take on the topic of racism towards black lives and gain some powerful education and a new perspective.
I recently had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Andy about his film, El Color Negro. What intrigued me most was his passion as he spoke about the film and where the idea was born. One thing he said to me was, “I wanted to do something more than changing my profile photo to a black square.” I think many would agree, Andy and his team did a phenomenal job at showing support and creating an educational tool for the Black Lives Movement. This short film is an incredible take on Black and White and provides a thought-provoking view on color in general, then shifts into what is relevant in our world regarding racism. Powerful imagery by Andy depicts a black and white picture that showcases the greyscale and ultimately how that translates to racism with different skin tones. An empowered woman’s voice narrates, and the actors show the weight of racism in their eyes while also portraying empowered men and women during the 20’s in Western Civilization.
The film touches on how the world consumes Black. It is about both popularity around the world and negative connotation in Western Culture. The narrator dives into the scale of black and white with some color education, and ends up posing a very strong question Let me introduce you to Andy and see what he has to say about his short film, El Color Negro.
Please Introduce yourself to our readers!
My name is Andy Hodgson. I was born in Ecuador and raised in Central America and all over the Middle East. I moved to Vancouver in 2001 to attend film school. Now I am dedicating my life to cinematography and producing films. El Color Negro is my first attempt at directing something that has meaning and a powerful message about what is going on in the world today. This film was created with my personal experiences in mind, how I see racism. My biological father is a Black Central American, and I saw a lot of racism and discrimination happening there throughout the 80s. It still happens. I wanted to have a way to talk about the specific things that are happening around the world right now, especially with racism in the United States.
For those who may not know what a Cinematographer does, please share more. Then we will get into your Short Film.
I’m a cinematographer and producer. This means I oversee the photography and camera work and am the man behind the camera. As a Film Producer, my main responsibilities are to oversee the budget, timeline and quality of the finished product. I started my career shooting short films and music videos. What I discovered through cinematography was the ability to shoot and produce my own films. This allows me to keep the creative control and be more flexible with projects I want to take on. I now run Red Castle Films, a production company based in Vancouver, BC, Canada. We have been producing feature films and music videos since 2013.
When did you start doing this, and why is this subject is so interesting to you?
I started in 2004, right out of film school. Film is a way for me to express and showcase the talent of storytelling. Film can provide information through vision and audio that we might otherwise not have access to without this medium.
What was your vision behind the short film you created?
El Color Negro was created taking into consideration recent events happening with the Black Lives Matter movement in the USA. I wanted to do something that wouldn’t bombard the viewer with media and facts, like everybody else seemed to be posting. I wanted to think outside the box and explain this issue in a different direction or tone.
As a cinematographer, I deal with a lot of lighting and color. So, I started researching what the color black really means. Not in terms of race or skin tone, but black as an element of the color spectrum. In transitioning the message from color to race, I wanted to show that it’s not only the darkest skin that people are racist towards. Being mulatto myself — half Latino, half Black – I know that there are light-skinned people who are still subjected to extreme racist behavior.
Black comes in different shades, which brings us back to the script. Black is the darkest shade on the greyscale, and white is the lightest. I wanted the film to show that all skin tone variations, from the darkest to the lightest, are still Black.
You said to me you wanted to do more than put a black square on your profile to show support. What does this mean to you?
This goes back to what Western media puts out about what Black is. Always looking down upon Black people in general. So, I thought: “Let’s look at what the rest of the world thinks about Black. One of the lines in the film talks about the color black representing life and rebirth in Ancient Egypt and the Nile being black and fertile. This a really powerful statement. I think the Western world looks at Black differently than any other culture, so it was important for me to make this film here in the western world. Right in our own backyard.
Any insight into what we can expect to see from you in the future?
Right now, I’m working on my second short film about the same topic. I want to do a trilogy of shorts that have the same meaning and message behind them. You can follow our releases as they come out here and here!
Andy, Thank You for your time with this article and for creating meaningful and impactful work. I look forward to seeing what you create next.
You can follow Andy on his Instagram!
Join my Facebook community, follow me on Instagram and visit my Linktree and website for more information!
Laura Lee Harrison, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Laura Lee Harrison is a Confidence & Beauty Strategist who works with professional women to help them deliver their message on stage or on camera effortlessly, by assisting them with their beauty regimens, so they feel beautiful as they are with their unique features. She also guides business owners to their first 6 figures in business with her business partner and their Social Media Agency, Media Exclusive. The agency and scheduling platform help entrepreneurs to show up and scale business with ease and consistency. As a sole parent, multi-business owner and International Best-Selling Co-Author, Laura Lee has had to overcome many obstacles in her life and within her own mindset to get where she is today. Daily she uses her story to inspire and empower entrepreneurs globally, showing them no matter their circumstance in life they can achieve their goals, if they choose to never give up on themselves.
