George Ellzey, Jr. To present Film Screening In March
George Ellzey, Jr. To present Film Screening In March
By Tia Carol Jones
Filmmaker George Ellzey, Jr. is presenting his work at a film screening titled INTERIOR on March1st at Facets Film Forum, located at 1517 W. Fullerton Ave. INTERIOR will include five completed short films, along with two new works he has in progress.
Ellzey named the screening INTERIOR because all of his work has a through line of focusing on the emotional and psychological struggles, challenges, beauty and positivity that Black and brown people go through navigating life. The films that will be shown as part of INTERIOR include Division, which Ellzey debuted in 2017; Role Model, Bosom, SWITCHIN and Cottage Grove. The two works in progress that will be shown are Accessories and Closed Mouths.
“It feels full circle and very exciting to have this as a benchmark thus far,” he said. “I think it’s a celebration of process and how much I’ve grown as an artist and hopefully, the community sees that, as well,” he said.
Ellzey describes Division as a Chicago-centric, romantic comedy, similar to Romeo & Juliet. The story revolves around an Asian man and an Asian woman from two different sides of the city, trying to date. He said that while he has moved away from romantic comedies, the idea of advocating and celebrating marginalized voices is always apparent in his work.
Ellzey described Role Model as experimental and deals with how a Black man sees himself in the world in terms of body image and what is deemed handsome. Bosom is about two sisters reconciling after their mother’s death and SWITCHIN deals with how Black and brown people code switch when they are in spaces where they are the minority. Ellzey said that he is very grateful that people know him for his film Cottage Grove, which deals with a father and son dynamic.
Ellzey said with Accessories and Closed Mouths he is very excited and very nervous to let audiences see the work, because they haven’t been completed. He said he is looking to make an emotional connection with the audience and the impact that people will feel when they watch the films. He said that Closed Mouths is a narrative film, his first since Cottage Grove, and with it, he is taking a page out of his journal when he was struggling with depression and anxiety around his career.
He said Closed Mouths is him working through those feelings and showing how depression or anxiety can affect Black men or anyone who feels like they are late to the party. Accessories shows a different side of him, with his colorful graphics and animation. In it, Ellzey is questioning the idea of tokenism of Black and brown characters in film and television. Ellzey said it is important to be vulnerable in his storytelling and filmmaking. He said it goes back to what his mother told him: what’s from the heart, reaches the heart.
“When I start a story, whether it is from a personal experience or through an idea that I have, I always want to make sure that it impacts me first. Because, if it doesn’t move me, how can I expect someone who’s watching this work to be moved,” he said. He added that by starting from a personal place, it also makes the work more specific and different.
Ellzey said that while there are many great artists, directors and actors, what separates anyone is putting their identity in their project. He said that by being vulnerable about the questions he is struggling with and giving the audience the space to wrestle with those questions, and have the freedom to feel those emotions. He said bringing his stories, which are rooted on the South side, to North side audiences, he hopes it will foster conversation and people will connect with the stories. Ellzey is also going to share insights on his feature film that he is making this year, called SHADES.
For more information about INTERIOR at Facet Film Forum, visit facets.org/programs/interior.
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